Downtown Seattle accounts for roughly 70% of city’s job losses
Sep 30, 2026, 4:30 PM | Updated: 4:33 pm
A view of downtown Seattle. (Photo: Julia Dallas, MyNorthwest)
(Photo: Julia Dallas, MyNorthwest)
Seattle lost more than 18,000 jobs from 2024 to 2025, with downtown accounting for roughly 70% of those losses, according to a new report from the Downtown Seattle Association (DSA).
By contrast, neighboring cities added jobs: Bellevue gained 5,375 jobs, and Tacoma added 662.
“Downtown Seattle is still the largest and most important employment center in our region, but these numbers are a clear warning that we cannot take that position for granted,” DSA President and CEO Jon Scholes said. “Seattle needs to be a place where employers want to invest, grow and create jobs. We have tremendous assets — world-class talent, transit, culture and institutions — but we’re competing every day for jobs and investment.”
Scholes said Seattle Mayor Katie Wilson’s budget proposal, which does not add new business taxes, is “a helpful signal to employers weighing where to grow.”
“We need a renewed focus on growing our employment base, supporting existing businesses and making Seattle one of the best places in the country to start and grow a business,” he said.
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Despite job loss, downtown Seattle still has more than 300,000 positions
Downtown Seattle still has more than 300,000 jobs, but employment in 2025 was roughly 22% below 2019 levels. Bellevue had 6% fewer jobs in 2025 than in 2019.
“Seattle has reinvented its economy many times, and we have every reason to believe we can do it again,” Scholes said. “This is about competing for the next generation of jobs and investment. The mayor’s proposed budget is a strong foundation.
“And the coming weeks are a chance to build on it by keeping Seattle a place where employers can invest with confidence,” he continued. “It will take the public and private sectors working together to reduce barriers to investment, support employers and entrepreneurs, and ensure downtown remains the economic engine of Seattle and our region.”
Frank Lenzi is the News Director for KIRO Newsradio. Read more of his stories here.
