The cities with the highest — and lowest — unemployment levels

Why it matters: Looking at only the nationwide unemployment rate can hide significant disparities between cities that are thriving and those that are struggling.

By the numbers: Nationally, the unemployment rate was 3.5% as of March — down 0.1 percentage point from the previous month, and down 0.1 percentage point year over year.

• As of February — the latest month for which city-level data is available — unemployment was below 3% in a handful of U.S. metro areas, including Miami (2.2%), Minneapolis (2.4%) and Tampa (2.5%).
• But it was above 4% in other cities, including in Las Vegas (5.7%), Chicago (4.4%), Los Angeles (4.3%) and Houston (4.3%).

Zoom in: Miami, New Orleans and Philadelphia have all seen a particularly noteworthy drop in unemployment, with rates falling by more than a percentage point in each of those cities between February 2022 and February 2023.

Zoom out: City-level unemployment figures tend to closely track the national trend, with minor deviations driven by the local economic situation.

• Here's a look at Chicago, for example:

The bottom line: While unemployment is down nationally, some cities are struggling with it more than others.

• The Fed, meanwhile, is keeping a close eye on employment levels as a measure of the economy's overall temperature.

Go deeper: U.S. economy adds 236,000 jobs in March as labor market stays strong

• March jobs numbers point to healthy but not-too-hot economy
• Wage growth returns with cooling inflation
• Listen to the Axios Today podcast, where host Niala Boodhoo and Alex Fitzpatrick break down unemployment rates at the city level in the U.S.