The Lone Star State is making headlines with Governor Greg Abbott celebrating Texas' remarkable job growth, leading the country in this particular economic measure for 2025. With an impressive increase in nonfarm jobs, the state's labor market expansion has drawn attention nationwide. According to the Office of the Texas Governor, Texas surpassed all other states in the number of business relocations and expansions, owed greatly to its free-market approach and a workforce that's both young and skilled.
December labor market estimates have painted an encouraging picture of Texas's economic landscape, as released by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. In a span stretching from December 2024 to December 2025, Texas not only added 132,500 jobs, but it also saw its labor force swell to the largest in the state's recorded history, with over 15 million strong. "Texas is America’s jobs leader because Texas is where free enterprise flourishes and where hard work is rewarded," Abbott said in a statement obtained by the Governor's office, highlighting the state's promise of "boundless opportunity" as the new year unfolds.
These gains reflect a robust increase on multiple fronts: there are now 15,283,600 Texans working, including those self-employed, and the total nonfarm job figure has climbed to 14,341,000 after a monthly rise of 19,700 positions. Notably, these improvements in employment figures have come at a time when Texas's unemployment rate sits marginally below the national average at 4.3%, as opposed to the wider U.S. unemployment rate of 4.4%.
The Governor recently took pride in Texas' economic diversity and strength, reminiscing on the state's economic victories through 2025. Given these milestones, by pouring into the state, businesses of varied sizes are playing their part in fostering what's more than a prosperous present—it's a trajectory promising even greater fortunes. "Job-creating businesses — large and small — invest with certainty in Texas and in our young, skilled, and growing workforce," Abbott touted in a statement provided by the Office of the Texas Governor. With a year of "boundless opportunity" on the horizon, Texas steps confidently into the economic future, ready to bolster its place as a beacon of enterprise and employment.
