HÜNT · Monthly hiring report
Who's hiring: August 2026 hiring report (estimate)
Estimate, not a measurement. Job changes reach résumés with a delay, so the panel is measured through April 2026. Figures for August 2026 extend each employer's hiring percentile by its recent trend; the range is shown in brackets. The report is updated when August 2026 is measured.
Estimate for August 2026: we ranked 475 US employers by estimated hiring pace, extending job changes measured through April 2026 by their recent trend. Salesforce sped up the most, +5 pts in its estimated hiring percentile in a month, while Moderna slowed the most, -6 pts. Over 12 months, Waters gained the most: +53 pts.
Key takeaways
- Estimated hiring pace rose at Salesforce to 82nd and GoDaddy to 75th, while Moderna fell to 20th.
- Information Technology supplied 5 of 10 companies that sped up, including Micron Technology at 95th.
- Moderna recorded a -64 pts 12-month drop, while Waters posted a +53 pts gain to 100th.
- Only 3 sectors had median hiring rises over 12 months: Financials, Information Technology and Communication Services.
- Industrials supplied 3 of 10 companies that slowed this month, including Northrop Grumman at 24th.
Sped up hiring in August 2026
Information Technology led the listed monthly accelerations, with 5 of 10 companies across 5 sectors. Salesforce and GoDaddy each rose +5 pts, while Micron Technology reached 95th; the list also includes U.S. Steel, F5, Gap, Ball, Meta, NetApp and Equifax.
Change in hiring percentile from Jul 2026 to Aug 2026.
| # | Employer | Sector | Change, 1 mo | Hiring percentile |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Salesforce | Information Technology | +5 pts | 82nd (79–86) |
| 2 | GoDaddy | Information Technology | +5 pts | 75th (70–79) |
| 3 | U.S. Steel | — | +5 pts | 64th (55–71) |
| 4 | Micron Technology | Information Technology | +4 pts | 95th (90–99) |
| 5 | F5 | Information Technology | +4 pts | 63rd (59–67) |
| 6 | Gap | — | +4 pts | 50th (46–54) |
| 7 | Ball | Materials | +4 pts | 75th (70–80) |
| 8 | Meta | Communication Services | +3 pts | 54th (49–57) |
| 9 | NetApp | Information Technology | +3 pts | 44th (39–48) |
| 10 | Equifax | Industrials | +3 pts | 53rd (48–57) |
Slowed hiring in August 2026
Monthly slowdowns were spread across 7 sectors, led by Industrials with 3 of 10 companies and Consumer Discretionary with 2 of 10. Moderna had the largest decline at -6 pts and a 20th percentile pace, while Genuine Parts fell -5 pts to 26th; the remaining listed changes ranged from -4 pts to -3 pts.
| # | Employer | Sector | Change, 1 mo | Hiring percentile |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Moderna | Health Care | -6 pts | 20th (16–22) |
| 2 | Genuine Parts | Consumer Discretionary | -5 pts | 26th (18–32) |
| 3 | LyondellBasell | Materials | -4 pts | 38th (34–42) |
| 4 | Everest | Financials | -4 pts | 29th (25–34) |
| 5 | Edison International | Utilities | -4 pts | 32nd (25–38) |
| 6 | Weyerhaeuser | Real Estate | -4 pts | 52nd (40–64) |
| 7 | Delta Air Lines | Industrials | -3 pts | 43rd (40–47) |
| 8 | Northrop Grumman | Industrials | -3 pts | 24th (20–28) |
| 9 | Southwest Airlines | Industrials | -3 pts | 28th (24–33) |
| 10 | Carnival | Consumer Discretionary | -3 pts | 44th (40–49) |
Biggest gains over 12 months
The 12-month gain list covered 7 sectors, with unclassified, Financials and Information Technology each contributing 2 of 10 companies. Waters led at +53 pts and 100th, followed by Ball and U.S. Steel at +45 pts; Salesforce, GoDaddy, Meta, Gap, Robinhood Markets and DoorDash also appear.
Change in hiring percentile from Aug 2025 to Aug 2026.
| # | Employer | Sector | Change, 12 mo | Hiring percentile |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Waters | Health Care | +53 pts | 100th (97–100) |
| 2 | Ball | Materials | +45 pts | 75th (70–80) |
| 3 | U.S. Steel | — | +45 pts | 64th (55–71) |
| 4 | Coinbase | Financials | +42 pts | 88th (83–94) |
| 5 | GoDaddy | Information Technology | +42 pts | 75th (70–79) |
| 6 | Salesforce | Information Technology | +40 pts | 82nd (79–86) |
| 7 | Meta | Communication Services | +37 pts | 54th (49–57) |
| 8 | Gap | — | +37 pts | 50th (46–54) |
| 9 | Robinhood Markets | Financials | +36 pts | 48th (42–52) |
| 10 | DoorDash | Consumer Discretionary | +34 pts | 85th (82–89) |
Biggest drops over 12 months
The 12-month drop list covered 7 sectors, with Materials contributing 3 of 10 companies and Communication Services 2 of 10. Moderna led the declines at -64 pts and 20th, followed by Discover Financial at -57 pts and Air Products at -54 pts; Celanese, CSX, Genuine Parts, Live Nation Entertainment, Everest, Upwork and LyondellBasell also appear.
| # | Employer | Sector | Change, 12 mo | Hiring percentile |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Moderna | Health Care | -64 pts | 20th (16–22) |
| 2 | Discover Financial | — | -57 pts | 20th (17–24) |
| 3 | Air Products | Materials | -54 pts | 16th (11–19) |
| 4 | Celanese | Materials | -50 pts | 21st (16–31) |
| 5 | CSX | Industrials | -48 pts | 22nd (15–30) |
| 6 | Genuine Parts | Consumer Discretionary | -44 pts | 26th (18–32) |
| 7 | Live Nation Entertainment | Communication Services | -37 pts | 48th (41–53) |
| 8 | Everest | Financials | -36 pts | 29th (25–34) |
| 9 | Upwork | Communication Services | -34 pts | 39th (36–42) |
| 10 | LyondellBasell | Materials | -34 pts | 38th (34–42) |
By sector
Sector medians ranged from Real Estate at 72nd to Consumer Discretionary at 35th, with Financials at 60th and Information Technology at 57th. Financials, Information Technology and Communication Services were the 3 sectors with median 12-month rises, while the other 8 sectors had median drops; Energy recorded -10 pts and Materials -8 pts.
| Sector | Employers | Median percentile | Median change, 12 mo | Fastest hirer |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Real Estate | 14 | 72nd | -3 pts | Federal Realty Investment Trust (94th) |
| Financials | 60 | 60th | +1 pt | Arthur J. Gallagher (97th) |
| Information Technology | 66 | 57th | +2 pts | NVIDIA (99th) |
| Industrials | 70 | 51st | -3 pts | Honeywell Aerospace (100th) |
| Utilities | 12 | 50th | -2 pts | Exelon (85th) |
| Energy | 17 | 49th | -10 pts | Murphy Oil (96th) |
| Consumer Staples | 29 | 48th | -6 pts | Kraft Heinz (95th) |
| Health Care | 55 | 46th | -1 pt | Waters (100th) |
| Communication Services | 22 | 40th | +5 pts | Fox (89th) |
| Materials | 17 | 39th | -8 pts | Smurfit Westrock (100th) |
| Consumer Discretionary | 59 | 35th | -3 pts | H&R Block (96th) |
Sectors with at least 5 employers in the report.
Questions and answers
Which US companies sped up hiring the most in August 2026?
By estimated change in hiring percentile over one month: Salesforce (+5 pts, now in the 82nd percentile), GoDaddy (+5 pts, now in the 75th percentile) and U.S. Steel (+5 pts, now in the 64th percentile).
Which US companies slowed hiring the most in August 2026?
By estimated change in hiring percentile over one month: Moderna (-6 pts, now in the 20th percentile), Genuine Parts (-5 pts, now in the 26th percentile) and LyondellBasell (-4 pts, now in the 38th percentile).
Which companies gained the most hiring momentum over the 12 months to August 2026?
Waters (+53 pts, now in the 100th percentile), Ball (+45 pts, now in the 75th percentile) and U.S. Steel (+45 pts, now in the 64th percentile), by change in hiring percentile since August 2025.
Which sector is hiring fastest in the US in August 2026?
Real Estate: its median employer is in the 72nd hiring percentile, and the fastest hirer in the sector is Federal Realty Investment Trust. The slowest sector is Consumer Discretionary, with a median in the 35th percentile.
How is the hiring percentile calculated?
From job changes in public résumé histories over a rolling 36-month window, not from job postings. Each employer is ranked by hiring pace among all employers in the panel: 0 is the slowest, 100 the fastest. Only employers with enough observed job changes are ranked, and the data is updated monthly.
Is the August 2026 report measured or estimated?
Estimated. Job changes reach résumés with a delay, so measurements run through April 2026. Later months extend each employer's hiring percentile by its recent trend, with a range shown next to it. When August 2026 is measured, this report is updated with measured figures.
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Data: HÜNT Workforce Panel · résumé history · updated monthly · data through April 2026 · Methodology