Unit Labor Costs
Unit labor costs measure how much labor it costs to produce one unit of output — compensation per hour divided by productivity. They rise when pay outpaces productivity and fall when productivity outpaces pay, making them the cleanest read on whether wage growth is inflationary or absorbed by efficiency.
Latest reading
As of January 2026, Unit Labor Costs (Unit labor costs YoY %) stands at 0.5% — down from 1.8% the prior reading. Accelerating unit labor costs squeeze profit margins and feed core inflation — the Fed watches them closely as a wage-inflation gauge. Subdued or falling unit labor costs mean productivity is covering wage gains, supporting margins and disinflation. A spike in this series with flat productivity is an early warning for the margin picture. Series history runs from 1948 to present.
Unit labor costs YoY %
- Index (2017=100)
- 123.8
Next release: Aug 6, 2026
Full history
Year-over-year %
Quarter-over-quarter %
The latest-quarter change in unit labor costs — the higher-frequency momentum read behind the year-over-year rate.
Index level
The unit-labor-cost index (2017 = 100) — labor cost per unit of output. The year-over-year view above is the wage-inflation signal the Fed watches; this is the cumulative level.
Methodology & data
Unit Labor Costs is sourced from BLS via the Federal Reserve's FRED service (BLS via FRED (ULCNFB), quarterly, index 2017=100). We pull the complete history, chart it on a quarterly basis, overlay SPY for context, and generate a dated plain-English reading from the latest release — with no smoothing or adjustment beyond what the chart legend states.
Every reading is stamped with its release date, last updated 2026-06-29. Maintained and reviewed by Yuriy Matso; see our methodology for the standards every series on the site is held to.
Frequently asked questions
What is the Unit Labor Costs?
Unit labor costs measure how much labor it costs to produce one unit of output — compensation per hour divided by productivity. They rise when pay outpaces productivity and fall when productivity outpaces pay, making them the cleanest read on whether wage growth is inflationary or absorbed by efficiency.
How do you read Unit Labor Costs?
Accelerating unit labor costs squeeze profit margins and feed core inflation — the Fed watches them closely as a wage-inflation gauge. Subdued or falling unit labor costs mean productivity is covering wage gains, supporting margins and disinflation. A spike in this series with flat productivity is an early warning for the margin picture.
Where does the Unit Labor Costs data come from?
BLS via FRED (ULCNFB), quarterly, index 2017=100. We chart the full history and publish a dated, plain-English reading with every release; the raw series is downloadable as CSV at /data/indicators/unit-labor-costs.csv.
How often is Unit Labor Costs updated?
Unit Labor Costs is a quarterly series from BLS, refreshed here as soon as a new release posts to FRED.