A Better Alaska
Alaska has changed since 2018. Not every headline mentions it. Here's the record.A Better Alaska
Alaska has changed since 2018. Not every headline mentions it. Here's the record.Jobs & Labor
Employment, wages, and the people entering Alaska's workforce.
Total employment
337,300jobs
Alaska has more jobs than before the pandemic — a new post-pandemic high.
Annual-average nonfarm employment rose from 327,700 in 2018 to 337,300 in 2025, an increase of 2.9 percent.
Alaska Department of Labor and Workforce Development, Research and Analysis — Monthly Employment Statistics, Total Nonfarm
Unemployment
4.4%June 2026
Alaska's unemployment rate has fallen by nearly two percentage points since 2018.
Down from a 6.1 percent annual average in 2018. The 2025 annual average was 4.7 percent; the June 2026 preliminary reading of 4.4 percent is the most current published value.
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics — Local Area Unemployment Statistics
Construction jobs
19,200jobs
Construction employment is up more than 20 percent since 2018.
Annual-average construction jobs rose from 15,800 in 2018 to 19,200 in 2025.
Alaska Department of Labor and Workforce Development, Research and Analysis — Monthly Employment Statistics, Construction
New businesses
18,080licenses issued
Alaskans are starting more businesses — new license issuance is up 12.7 percent.
New business licenses rose from 16,045 in FY2018 to 18,080 in FY2025.
Alaska Department of Commerce, Community, and Economic Development — 2026 Business Licensing Report
Apprenticeships
2,420active apprentices
Nearly 550 more Alaskans are earning wages while training in registered apprenticeships.
Active apprentices rose from 1,873 in FY2018 to 2,420 in 2026, an increase of 29.0 percent. Apprentices earn wages while receiving structured, occupation-specific training.
U.S. Office of Apprenticeship — Apprentices by State Dashboard
Labor force
66.1%participation
A larger share of working-age Alaskans is in the labor force than in 2018.
Labor-force participation rose from 65.1 percent in May 2018 to 66.1 percent in May 2026.
Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, citing BLS — Labor Force Participation Rate for Alaska
Tourism
Who is coming to Alaska, and what they spend when they do.
Visitor volume
3.08Mvisitors
More people visited Alaska than in any year on record.
Statewide visitor volume reached 3,079,200 for May 2024 through April 2025, up 1.1 percent over the prior year.
Alaska Travel Industry Association — Full-Year Visitor Volume Report
Tourism economy
$5.6Beconomic output
Alaska’s tourism economy grew by nearly a quarter since 2018.
Total economic output rose from $4.5 billion in 2018 to $5.6 billion in 2023-24, with direct visitor spending up from $2.8 billion to $3.9 billion — growth of 24.4 percent.
Alaska Travel Industry Association — Tourism Works for Alaska
Summer visitors
2.71Msummer 2025
Summer visitation is more than 22 percent above where it stood before the pandemic.
Summer statewide volume reached 2,706,900 in 2025, up from 2,213,000 in summer 2019.
Alaska Travel Industry Association — Alaska Visitor Volume Report
Statewide cruise
1.78Mcruise visitors
Statewide cruise volume reached 1,777,000 in summer 2025, a sustained record.
Cruise visitation ran 29 percent above the summer 2019 baseline by summer 2023 and has held at record levels since.
Alaska Travel Industry Association — Alaska Visitor Volume Report
Air visitors
845,900air visitors
Air travel to Alaska has recovered past its pre-pandemic level.
845,900 air visitors in summer 2025, above the summer 2019 baseline.
Alaska Travel Industry Association — Alaska Visitor Volume Report
State Finances & Corporations
The Permanent Fund, state debt, credit ratings, and the corporations the state owns.
Permanent Fund
$85.1Bat FY2025 close
The Alaska Permanent Fund has grown 31 percent since 2018.
The Fund closed FY2025 at $85.1 billion, up from $64.894 billion at the FY2018 audited close.
Alaska Permanent Fund Corporation — FY2025 annual report
State debt
$506Min debt retired
Alaska has paid down more than half a billion dollars in state bonded debt since 2018.
Bonded debt fell from $1.525 billion in FY2018 to $1.019 billion in FY2025, a drop of 33.2 percent.
Alaska Department of Administration — FY2025 Annual Comprehensive Financial Report
Credit ratings
4agencies
All four major rating agencies improved their view of Alaska's credit in 2024 and 2025.
Kroll upgraded from AA to AA+ in February 2025 and affirmed in March 2026. S&P upgraded from AA- to AA in April 2024. Fitch upgraded from A+ to AA- in September 2025. Moody’s affirmed Aa3 and shifted its outlook from stable to positive in April 2024.
Alaska Department of Revenue, Treasury Division — Alaska credit ratings|Kroll affirmation
AIDEA
$67.4Mnet income
AIDEA posted the highest net income in its history in FY2025, and declared a $17 million dividend to the state general fund.
Statutory net income of $67.4 million for FY2025.
Alaska Industrial Development and Export Authority — FY2027 declared dividend|
Alaska Housing Finance Corporation
$54Mreturned to the state
AHFC returned $54 million to the state in FY2025 — its largest dividend since 2008.
Alaska Housing Finance Corporation — 2025 annual report
Home lending
$649.8Min loans purchased
AHFC purchased $649.8 million in single-family and multifamily loans in FY2025, about 7 percent more than the year before.
Up from $607 million in FY2024.
Alaska Housing Finance Corporation — August 2025 disclosure
