Automatic Data Processing (ADP) NER Pulse: Weekly Hiring Strengthens to 10,250 Jobs

NER Pulse indicates strengthening weekly hiring momentum

Automatic Data Processing’s weekly NER Pulse shows U.S. private employers adding an average of 10,250 jobs per week for the four weeks ending Jan. 31, 2026, marking a third consecutive week of strengthening job gains, ADP Research reports. The high-frequency indicator, produced in collaboration with the Stanford Digital Economy Lab, publishes every Tuesday and gives an early read on hiring momentum ahead of official government releases. ADP cautions the figures are preliminary and subject to revision as new payroll data are incorporated.

The uptick follows a sequence of four‑week moving averages that ADP lists in the release, including 7,750 for the week ending Jan. 24 and 5,500 for Jan. 17, reflecting a recent acceleration in weekly hiring. ADP positions the NER Pulse as a complement to its monthly ADP National Employment Report, offering higher-frequency visibility into short-term shifts in hiring across industries and regions. The company emphasizes that the Pulse helps companies, workers and policymakers assess hiring momentum in near real time before official statistics arrive.

Market and policy observers use the NER Pulse as an early signal of labor market dynamics, and ADP highlights methodological transparency and rigor in its dissemination. By publishing the Pulse at 8:15 a.m. ET in its media center and on ADP Research and Main Street Macro, the firm aims to make timely payroll insights broadly available; the next scheduled Pulse release is Feb. 24, 2026.

How the Pulse measures hiring

ADP’s NER Pulse estimates week‑over‑week employment change using a four‑week moving average applied to the company’s seasonally adjusted, high‑frequency payroll data. The series incorporates a two‑week lag to improve completeness and accuracy, and ADP provides 12 weeks of historical data in each release, with an adjustment to cadence in weeks that coincide with the monthly National Employment Report.

ADP Research’s stated mission

ADP Research says its mission is to make the future of work more productive through data‑driven discovery, underscoring partnerships such as the one with Stanford’s Digital Economy Lab. The firm maintains that its finely tuned data and analysis are relied upon by companies, workers and policymakers to monitor labor trends in real time.