Austin Job Market 2025–2026: Still Outrunning the Rest of the Country

Austin has a funny habit of ignoring national economic mood swings - kind of like how we ignore speed limits on Mopac or act surprised when Cedar Fever returns every year. While other metros slow hiring, Austin keeps quietly expanding.

The Austin metro added 18,500 jobs last year (+1.4% growth), outperforming national averages again. Unemployment stays low (3.0–3.4%), and wages grew 5%+, reaching ~$36.41/hour, one of the strongest increases among large U.S. cities.

And despite the popular narrative, Austin’s economy isn’t just tech bros in Patagonia vests. Less than 30% of jobs are tech-dependent now - the rest are driven by healthcare, government, logistics, finance, education, hospitality leadership, real estate, and our ever-expanding service economy (because someone has to feed the 145 people moving here daily).

**Translation:** Austin remains one of the most resilient job markets in America - even if you’ve never touched a line of code.