Job Opening Trends in Help Wanted Online Ads

by Luke Coury and Molly Hendrickson

October 16, 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 September

Oregon had 97,700 online ads in September 2026, up over the month from 87,700 in August. The number of ads posted for the first time (new ads) increased by 1,800. 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 occupational groups in September. Healthcare practitioners and technical had the most job openings of any broad occupational group with 13,300. Other occupational groups with relatively high postings included sales and related (10,800), management (10,500), transportation and material moving (7,700), and office and administrative support (7,100).

 

 

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 1.1 in September.

 

 

Online Ads Grew Nationally in September

Online ads nationally followed a similar trend to Oregon. The U.S. had 8.1 million ads in September and new ads increased by 238,500.

 

 

Oregon’s ad volume was in between its neighboring states in September. California had the most ads with 761,100 followed by Washington with 175,900. Nevada and Idaho had fewer ads than Oregon with 75,500 and 53,000, 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 September with 60,300. Portland new ads increased by 510. For Oregon’s other metro areas:

  • The Salem MSA had 10,800 ads. New ads increased by 80.

  • The Eugene MSA had 7,800 ads. New ads increased by 50.

  • The Bend MSA had 6,300 ads. New ads increased by 460.

  • The Medford MSA had 3,900 ads. New ads increased by 260.

  • The Corvallis MSA had 1,900 ads. New ads increased by 150.

  • The Albany MSA had 1,900 ads. New ads increased by 140.

  • The Grants Pass MSA had 1,000 ads. New ads increased by 120.

(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 24,700 followed by Washington County with 16,900.

 

 

Ad volume was also estimated by local workforce area. Portland-Metro had the the highest number of job openings with 41,600 followed by Mid-Valley (15,500), Clackamas (9,400), East Cascades (9,300), Lane (7,800), Rogue Valley (5,500), Northwest Oregon (5,100), Eastern Oregon (3,500), and Southwestern Oregon (3,100).

(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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