Photo by Richard Hurd
Metro Metrics March 2026
Metro Metrics is a monthly data snapshot that explores key economic indicators reflecting the health of the Madison metro economy.
Q4 Economic Update
This month’s edition of Metro Metrics examines key performance indicators in Greater Madison’s economy and how they changed throughout 2025.
Industries (Table 1)
Overall employment in the Greater Madison region remained relatively steady, with job growth of 0.44% over the year. This is stronger than the job growth seen in 2024 of only 0.02%, but less than the rate of growth in 2021, 2022 and 2023, which saw over 2% growth. These numbers reflect statewide and nationwide patterns of reduced job growth in 2024 and 2025.
The region’s job growth was driven in large part by gains in education and health services, again reflective of state and national trends. As the nation’s workforce ages, the health services sector has seen large job growth due to increased demand for eldercare.
Labor Force (Table 2)
The region’s workforce saw a modest retraction in line with the slowdown in demand for jobs. As with the jobs report, this is reflective of larger statewide and nationwide trends and is not unique to Greater Madison. The number of employed people in the region declined by about 1% in 2025, as did the total labor force. This resulted in a roughly constant unemployment rate over the year, ending at 2.4% in December, the 13th lowest among the 387 metropolitan areas in the nation.
Housing Building Permits (Table 3)
Housing permits in the region rose by more than 20% over the year. This growth was primarily driven by a nearly 30% increase in permits granted for structures containing five or more housing units. With more than 7,000 housing units granted construction permits in 2025, the region’s housing supply should see a sizable boost in the coming years as these structures move through the construction process.
MSN Airport Update (Table 4)
Dane County Regional Airport had a record-breaking year in 2025, seeing the most passengers in its history and surpassing its previous pre-pandemic high of 2.38 million. The airport served 5.6% more passengers than in 2024, and announced new nonstop service to Boston and the Research Triangle.
Source: Dane County Regional Airport