Job Opening Trends in Help Wanted Online Ads

by Luke Coury and Molly Hendrickson

June 17, 2026

The Conference Board-Lightcast Help Wanted OnLine series measures online job ad volume over time, aggregated from a broad universe of job boards. It’s a useful source of information about demand for workers in Oregon’s labor market, often seen as a leading indicator, as job ads show employers’ intentions to hire in the near term.

Oregon Online Ads Grew in May

Oregon had 98,300 online ads in May 2026, up over the month from 95,600 in April. The number of ads posted for the first time (new ads) increased by 400. Online ads peaked in the historically tight labor market in the two years following the pandemic-recession, but have since decreased.

 

 

Oregon’s employers posted ads for a wide range of occupations in May. Healthcare practitioners and technical had the most job openings of any broad occupational group with 13,200. Other occupational groups with relatively high postings included sales and related (11,990), management (10,820), office and administrative support (7,310), and transportation and material moving (7,230).

 

 

The number of unemployed Oregonians per online ad rose to over 3.0 during the pandemic before dropping to a low of slightly over 0.5 in 2022. Since then, the ratio has gradually increased to around 1.0. The ratio of unemployed persons to online postings was 1.2 in May.

 

 

Online Ads Grew Nationally in May

Online ads nationally followed a similar trend to Oregon. The U.S. had 7.5 million ads in May and new ads increased by 600.

 

 

Oregon’s ad volume was in between its neighboring states in May. California had the most ads with 715,100 followed by Washington with 162,900. Nevada and Idaho had fewer ads than Oregon with 65,300 and 44,500, respectively.

New Ads Varied by Oregon Area

Ad volume varied significantly among Oregon’s metropolitan statistical areas (MSAs). The Portland MSA had the most ads in May with 59,890. Portland new ads increased by 1,470. For Oregon’s other metro areas:

  • The Salem MSA had 9,600 ads. New ads increased by 250.

  • The Eugene MSA had 7,320 ads. New ads decreased by 40.

  • The Medford MSA had 3,970 ads. New ads decreased by 30.

  • The Bend MSA had 5,490 ads. New ads decreased by 260.

  • The Corvallis MSA had 1,980 ads. New ads decreased by 140.

  • The Albany MSA had 1,880 ads. New ads decreased by 200.

  • The Grants Pass MSA had 1,200 ads. New ads increased by 40.

(Note: On the graph below, press on the series in the legend to select or deselect each series from the visualization)

 

 

The two counties making up the Portland MSA had the highest ad volumes of any county in Oregon. Multnomah County had the highest ad volume with 25,600 followed by Washington County with 16,800.

 

 

Ad volume was also estimated by local workforce area. Portland-Metro had the the highest number of job openings with 42,400 followed by Mid-Valley (14,800), Clackamas (9,900), East Cascades (9,400), Lane (7,800), Northwest Oregon (5,800), Rogue Valley (5,600), Eastern Oregon (4,000), and Southwestern Oregon (3,400).

(Note: On the graph below, press on the series in the legend to select or deselect each series from the visualization)

 

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