EconomyU.S. edition
US economic growth slowed to 2.16% in 2025: questions and answers on the official figures
The US economy grew 2.16% in 2025, a positive but slower pace than in 2024 and the lowest growth rate in this series since the 2020 contraction.
- 20182.97%
- 20192.58%
- 2020-2.08%
- 20216.15%
- 20222.52%
- 20232.93%
- 20242.79%
- 20252.16%
What do the latest figures say?
If you live and work in the United States, the economy you depend on kept growing in 2025, but more slowly. Gross domestic product grew 2.16% in 2025. This is an annual figure that compares the whole of 2025 with the whole of 2024.
Sources for this paragraph (1)
- F8 United States GDP growth (annual %) · 2.16% · 2025 · World Bank
In 2024, the growth rate was 2.79%. So the pace of growth fell from one year to the next. The economy still got larger, just by less than the year before.
Sources for this paragraph (2)
- F7 United States GDP growth (annual %) · 2.79% · 2024 · World Bank
- F8 United States GDP growth (annual %) · 2.16% · 2025 · World Bank
What does the full series show?
The series covers 8 years. Growth was 2.97% in 2018 and 2.58% in 2019. In 2020, the figure was -2.08%, which means the economy shrank that year.
Sources for this paragraph (3)
- F1 United States GDP growth (annual %) · 2.97% · 2018 · World Bank
- F2 United States GDP growth (annual %) · 2.58% · 2019 · World Bank
- F3 United States GDP growth (annual %) · -2.08% · 2020 · World Bank
Growth then jumped to 6.15% in 2021, the highest value in the series. After that it settled into a narrower band: 2.52% in 2022, 2.93% in 2023 and 2.79% in 2024.
Sources for this paragraph (4)
- F4 United States GDP growth (annual %) · 6.15% · 2021 · World Bank
- F5 United States GDP growth (annual %) · 2.52% · 2022 · World Bank
- F6 United States GDP growth (annual %) · 2.93% · 2023 · World Bank
- F7 United States GDP growth (annual %) · 2.79% · 2024 · World Bank
How does 2025 compare with earlier years?
At 2.16%, growth in 2025 was lower than in every other year of the series except 2020, when the economy contracted. It was below the 2.52% recorded in 2022, the previous low among the positive years.
Sources for this paragraph (3)
- F8 United States GDP growth (annual %) · 2.16% · 2025 · World Bank
- F5 United States GDP growth (annual %) · 2.52% · 2022 · World Bank
- F3 United States GDP growth (annual %) · -2.08% · 2020 · World Bank
Compared with the years before 2020, 2025 was also slower. Growth was 2.97% in 2018 and 2.58% in 2019. These comparisons use the same annual statistic, so they measure the same thing.
Sources for this paragraph (3)
- F1 United States GDP growth (annual %) · 2.97% · 2018 · World Bank
- F2 United States GDP growth (annual %) · 2.58% · 2019 · World Bank
- F8 United States GDP growth (annual %) · 2.16% · 2025 · World Bank
What does this mean for people living in the United States?
Slower growth does not mean the economy shrank. Output was still higher in 2025 than in 2024. The growth rate alone does not show how individual households fared.
Sources for this paragraph (1)
- F8 United States GDP growth (annual %) · 2.16% · 2025 · World Bank
Other recent figures describe daily life more directly, but each is a separate statistic. The seasonally adjusted unemployment rate was 4.2% in September 2026. This is a monthly figure.
Sources for this paragraph (1)
- C81 United States unemployment rate (seasonally adjusted) · 4.2% · 2026-09 · U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
Consumer prices (CPI-U) were 3.7% higher in September 2026 than in September 2025. Average hourly earnings for private employees were 3% higher over the same 12 months. These come from different statistics, so this report presents them side by side without treating them as a direct measure of buying power.
Sources for this paragraph (2)
- C76 United States consumer price inflation (CPI-U, 12-month change) · 3.7% · 2026-09 · U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
- C82 United States average hourly earnings, private employees (12-month change) · 3% · 2026-09 · U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
The population grew 0.52% in 2025. This is useful context because a growing population can add to total output, but the data here does not show how much of 2025 growth came from that.
Sources for this paragraph (1)
- C75 United States Population growth (annual %) · 0.52% · 2025 · World Bank
What can the data not tell us?
The facts here do not explain why growth slowed in 2025. They give the rate, not the causes.
Sources for this paragraph (1)
- F8 United States GDP growth (annual %) · 2.16% · 2025 · World Bank
The latest annual GDP figure is for 2025. There is no figure for 2026 in this data, so it cannot show whether the slowdown continued.
Sources for this paragraph (1)
- F8 United States GDP growth (annual %) · 2.16% · 2025 · World Bank
Two unemployment figures are available, and both are 4.2%. One is the seasonally adjusted monthly rate for September 2026. The other is an ILO modelled annual estimate for 2025. They are measured differently, so the matching values should not be read as the same measurement.
Sources for this paragraph (2)
- C81 United States unemployment rate (seasonally adjusted) · 4.2% · 2026-09 · U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
- C72 United States Unemployment, total (% of labour force, ILO modelled estimate) · 4.2% · 2025 · World Bank
The GDP figures are national totals. They do not show differences between states, industries or income groups.
Sources for this paragraph (1)
- F8 United States GDP growth (annual %) · 2.16% · 2025 · World Bank
Scenarios to watch
- Scenario, not a forecast If upcoming official estimates for 2026 come in above 2.16%, the 2025 slowdown would look like a single soft year rather than the start of a trend.
- Scenario, not a forecast If the 2026 estimate comes in below the 2025 rate, it would extend the slowdown from 2024 to a second year in a row.
- Scenario, not a forecast If later revisions change the 2025 figure, the comparison with earlier years in this report would need updating.
What to check next
- The first official annual GDP growth estimate for 2026
- Any revisions to the 2025 growth rate of 2.16%
- The monthly seasonally adjusted unemployment rate after September 2026
- The next 12-month CPI-U reading and the next 12-month change in average hourly earnings, read as separate statistics
Verified data used in this report
| Indicator | Value | Period | Sources | Accessed | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| F1 | United States GDP growth (annual %) | 2.97% | 2018 | World Bank | |
| F2 | United States GDP growth (annual %) | 2.58% | 2019 | World Bank | |
| F3 | United States GDP growth (annual %) | -2.08% | 2020 | World Bank | |
| F4 | United States GDP growth (annual %) | 6.15% | 2021 | World Bank | |
| F5 | United States GDP growth (annual %) | 2.52% | 2022 | World Bank | |
| F6 | United States GDP growth (annual %) | 2.93% | 2023 | World Bank | |
| F7 | United States GDP growth (annual %) | 2.79% | 2024 | World Bank | |
| F8 | United States GDP growth (annual %) | 2.16% | 2025 | World Bank | |
| C72 | United States Unemployment, total (% of labour force, ILO modelled estimate) | 4.2% | 2025 | World Bank | |
| C73 | United States Fertility rate, total (births per woman) | 1.63 | 2024 | World Bank | |
| C74 | United States Population aged 65 and above (% of total population) | 18.39% | 2025 | World Bank | |
| C75 | United States Population growth (annual %) | 0.52% | 2025 | World Bank | |
| C76 | United States consumer price inflation (CPI-U, 12-month change) | 3.7% | 2026-09 | U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics | |
| C77 | United States energy price inflation (12-month change) | 20.4% | 2026-09 | U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics | |
| C78 | United States food price inflation (12-month change) | 1.8% | 2026-09 | U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics | |
| C79 | United States motor fuel price inflation (12-month change) | 34.2% | 2026-09 | U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics | |
| C80 | United States shelter prices (CPI, 12-month change) | 3.2% | 2026-09 | U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics | |
| C81 | United States unemployment rate (seasonally adjusted) | 4.2% | 2026-09 | U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics | |
| C82 | United States average hourly earnings, private employees (12-month change) | 3% | 2026-09 | U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics |
Sources
How this report was checked
- Data: the newest reference period cited is 2026-09.
- Figures were collected from the source on
- Written by an AI model (claude-opus-5-5) using only the official figures listed in this report.
- Automatic checks passed: every number matches a cited figure, every paragraph names its evidence, and there is no investment advice or copied source text.
- A separate quality-check model raised concerns, and the report was rewritten once to address them.
- No person reviewed this report before publication. Automatic checks confirm the numbers, not every interpretation.
Update history
- 2026-10-31 16:02 UTC — created
- 2026-10-31 16:02 UTC — approved+published