The jobs report has
a second draft.

On July 3, 2025, the first estimate for June showed147,000 added jobs. By the third estimate, published September 5, the figure was a 13,000 decline. A later release, on March 6, 2026, put the decline at 20,000.

All three describe the same month. A reader following only the first headline would remember June as a month of job growth. By September, the estimate showed a loss.

Why the number changes

Waiting for every employer to report would leave us with a clearer picture of an older economy. The first estimate offers an early reading. Later responses, corrections and seasonal adjustments improve it. To compare jobs numbers fairly, we need to know when each was published.

BLS also makes an annual revision using more comprehensive employment records, mainly unemployment-insurance tax records. That update and revised seasonal adjustments can change earlier months. The chart combines these changes; it does not separate their causes. Read how BLS revises the estimates.

Some revisions barely change the story

June is worth noticing. So is the month after it. July 2025 began at 73,000 added jobs and reached 72,000 at the third estimate: a difference of just 1,000. The March 6 vintage puts it at 64,000. All three retain the same estimated direction.

Revisions can also move upward. March 2024 went from 303,000 added jobs to 310,000 at the third estimate. By March 6, 2026, it was down to 228,000. A small early revision can be followed by a much larger annual update. Compare the BLS first and third estimates.

Why October has no first estimate

October 2025 has no blue dot because the lapse in federal appropriations disrupted publication. Its data first appeared in the December 16 release. BLS labels that estimate second preliminary, so there is no first estimate to plot here.

The interruption also delayed August’s third estimate until December 16. The dates in this article follow the actual releases, including that delay. See the release archive and the December 16 explanation.

A year is more than twelve headlines

The January 9, 2026 vintage showed 584,000 jobs added during 2025. The February 11 benchmark release lowered that to 181,000. After the next release revised December again, the March 6 vintage showed 116,000.

Each annual total compares December with the previous December using figures from a single release. Adding twelve first estimates would mix figures published at different stages of revision. The benchmark release and March 6 release show how the annual total changed.

Read the first estimate to learn what is happening now, and check later releases to see how that account holds up. Keep the publication date with the number: it tells the next reader which version of the month you mean.