Real earnings in the United States declined in September 2026, breaking from the modest growth seen a month earlier. According to the latest data updated on 14 October 2026, real earnings fell by 0.5% month-over-month, following a 0.2% increase in August.
The figures are measured on a month-over-month basis, with the current reading comparing September’s change to August, while the previous reading compared August’s change to July. The shift from positive to negative growth suggests that workers’ purchasing power weakened in September after a brief period of improvement in late summer.
