Welcome to Payday HCM’s monthly Albuquerque Jobs Report. We’ve compiled data from 560 businesses with five employees or more in the greater Albuquerque area to track job growth throughout 2026.
- Download August's Report Here
- Last Month's Jobs Report (July 2026)
- Payday HCM Albuquerque Jobs Report Archive
- Payday HCM Albuquerque Jobs Report: Full Methodology Breakdown
August 2026 Summary: Payday HCM’s Albuquerque panel grew 1.2% in August, up from 0.6% in July, marking the fifth consecutive month of net job growth
Overall Job Change in Albuquerque Through August 2026
Payday HCM’s Albuquerque panel extended its run of monthly job gains into August, with hiring rebounding from July’s soft month and educational services returning to net growth for the first time since spring, according to the company’s monthly Albuquerque Jobs Report.
Across the representative panel of 573 local businesses, the report recorded 977 new hires against 673 separations, a net gain of 304 positions, up from a net gain of 146 in July. Hospitality continued to lead the panel’s growth for a fifth consecutive month.
Key Insights
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Educational services returned to net growth. The sector added a net 17 positions across 14 businesses in August, its first positive month since May. The reversal completes the seasonal cycle that began with June’s -219 net, matching the typical New Mexico pattern of new-academic-year hiring picking up in August and September.
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Ambulatory health care rebounded sharply from July’s decline. The sector added a net 69 positions across 59 businesses in August, a 196-position swing from July’s net loss of 127. The rebound offset more than half of July’s contraction and returned the sector to positive growth.
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Growth accelerated but concentrated in fewer firms. Although net hiring more than doubled from July, the share of firms expanding fell to 32.3%, the year’s lowest reading, while the share contracting rose to 15.0%, the year’s highest. Net growth was driven by stronger performance from a smaller set of leading sectors rather than by broad-based expansion.
Payday HCM Albuquerque Jobs Report Archive
Find below the archive for the previous months' jobs reports.
- January 2026 Albuquerque Jobs Report
- February 2026 Albuquerque Jobs Report
- March 2026 Albuquerque Jobs Report
- April 2026 Albuquerque Jobs Report
- May 2026 Albuquerque Jobs Report
- June 2026 Albuquerque Jobs Report
- July 2026 Albuquerque Jobs Report
Payday HCM Albuquerque Jobs Report: Full Methodology Breakdown
As a payroll service provider, we at Payday HCM have access to numerical data regarding the number of people employed at our clients’ businesses. For this report, we’ve narrowed our overall national client base to a smaller survey of 560 businesses located within the Albuquerque area.
Focusing our report on Albuquerque serves two purposes: it not only allows us to provide vital data to our local community, but also helps to narrow our sample size to around 560 businesses in the Albuquerque area (around ten percent of total businesses in Albuquerque), which provides a more statistically sound estimate of the job market locally as opposed to what would be too small of a sample size for a national jobs report.
Our numerical data is based on data from our clients’ payroll data as they either increase or decrease the number of employees on their payroll. While this data does not include any sensitive information regarding our clients or our clients’ employees, it does allow us to sort the data by ZIP code and industry, providing us with location and industry-specific information.
The report also includes data on the change in the number of businesses over the course of the year. The data used to present these findings comes from a period that stretches from January 2025 to December 2025.
1. Data Source
Payday processes payroll for more than 500 businesses located in the greater Albuquerque area. For this report, we track the same panel of 560 employers each month, all of whom have five or more employees.
2. Panel Structure
Each business remains in the panel month-to-month. If a business closes, leaves the region, or discontinues payroll service, it may be replaced with a similar-sized business; such change is noted. Tracking the same group eliminates distortions caused by business migration.
3. Why 5 or More Employees?
Microbusinesses (1–4 employees) make up the majority of all business establishments and can distort trends due to volatility. The employers with 5+ employees account for the majority of payroll jobs in the region and provide a stable indicator of employment conditions.
4. Core Metric Used
For each business each month, we count the number of employees on payroll. We then compute the average number of employees per business for the 500-business panel. This average tells us whether staffing levels are increasing, decreasing, or staying stable.
5. Estimating Regional Job Change
Based on Census and regional economic development data, we estimate that approximately 5,200 Albuquerque-area businesses have five or more employees. When our panel average changes by Δ employees per business, we estimate total job change by:
- Estimated Jobs Added or Lost = Δ ×5,200
Plan for 2026 With Confidence With Payday’s Albuquerque Jobs Report
The end of the year means it’s time to start planning for the new year ahead. For business owners, having access to information on things like hiring trends, both nationally and locally, can be crucial to ensuring success throughout the year. While this 2025 Albuquerque Jobs Report can help to provide your business with an overall forecast of 2026, businesses should keep an eye out for monthly reports from Payday for fresh data and continual insight into the performance of the Albuquerque jobs market.
“Moving forward, we want to release a monthly report outlining how the job market is fluctuating throughout the year within the greater Albuquerque area,” Siegel said.
Payday HCM is committed to providing top-tier service to each and every one of our clients while simultaneously continually reaffirming our position as a trusted source of information when it comes to HR, payroll, and benefits. Regardless of whether you’re a client or not, we want your business to have access to the information you need to make informed decisions that will help grow your business—regardless of what state you’re in. Check out our payroll, HR, and benefits services to find out how Payday HCM can help take your business to the next level.
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