Recovery is more than a dream in Texas and Pittsburgh. It's a fact of life.

Only five of the nation's 100 major metropolitan areas are currently at their highest employment levels in a decade, according to an On Numbers analysis of U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data.

Four of these high-flying metros are in Texas: Austin, El Paso, Houston and McAllen-Edinburg. The fifth is Pittsburgh.

On Numbers took the official job figures for October 2011 (the latest numbers available from the bureau) and compared them to previous Octobers dating to 2001.

A complete database can be found at On Numbers' website: http://tinyurl.com/on-numbers. Charts accompanying the items below can be accessed at the same address.

The five metros noted above are at the top of the left side of the online ledger. They've posted changes of 0 percent, indicating that their current job numbers are their best since 2001. Detroit ranks last among the 100 major markets, presently sitting 16.6 percent below its best employment total of the decade.

The Buffalo market, which consists of Erie and Niagara counties, had 549,700 jobs in October 2011, which was down 2.2 percent from its peak for the decade. That was the 16th-best performance in the nation.

The other side of the ledger indicates how far each market has risen from its worst employment total of the 10-year period.

McAllen-Edinburg is No. 1. Its total of 226,400 jobs in October 2011 is 38.4 percent above its worst reading since 2001.

Buffalo is 78th in these rankings. It is 0.9 percent above its decade-low total of 545,000 jobs.

At the bottom of the list are seven major markets that are presently at their worst employment levels of the decade: Albany, N.Y.; Birmingham; Harrisburg, Pa.; Palm Bay-Melbourne, Fla.; Philadelphia; Sacramento; and Virginia Beach-Norfolk.

Omaha enjoys lowest unemployment rate

Ninety of America's 100 major metropolitan areas have posted unemployment rates below 5 percent at some point during the past decade.

But Omaha is the only place to claim that distinction today.

Just 4.3 percent of Omaha's workforce is unemployed, easily the best jobless rate in the country, according to the latest federal data.

Next on the list are Madison, Wis., at 5.1 percent and Minneapolis-St. Paul at 5.4 percent. All figures are for October, the latest available from the bureau.

Omaha's jobless rate has risen just 1.4 percentage points from its lowest figure of the decade, 2.9 percent. That's the smallest increase registered by any major market.

Buffalo is sixth in the national rankings. Its unemployment rate of 7.0 percent is only 2.5 points above its best October rate since 2001, 4.5 percent.

Stockton, Calif., on the other hand, has suffered the sharpest rise. Its current unemployment rate of 15.7 percent is up 9.4 percentage points from its low for the decade, 6.3 percent.

On Numbers has reversed the comparison, too, determining how much each area has dropped from its worst jobless rate since October 2001.

New Orleans has enjoyed the biggest decline. Its current rate of 7.1 percent is 8.4 points below its worst, 15.5 percent.

Buffalo ranks 38th, down 1.2 points from its peak of 8.2 percent.

At the bottom of the scale are six metros that are currently suffering their highest unemployment rates of the decade: Austin; El Paso; Jackson, Miss.; Little Rock, Ark.; McAllen-Edinburg, Texas; and San Antonio.

5 million added to unemployment rolls

Nearly 8.8 million workers in America's 100 major metropolitan areas are currently unemployed.

That's an increase of almost 5 million people from the lowest levels of unemployment recorded in those same metros during the past decade, according to an On Numbers breakdown of U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data.

The study compared raw unemployment totals for each October since 2001. Adding the lowest figures for the 100 metros yields a total of 3.85 million unemployed workers. The present number is 128 percent higher.

Grand Rapids, Mich., has experienced the smallest increase in unemployment. It currently has 26,870 people on its jobless rolls, up 43 percent from its lowest total since October 2001, 18,790. Every other market but Omaha is up by at least 51 percent.

Boise, Idaho, has suffered the worst increase. It now has 25,000 unemployed workers, up 326 percent from its lowest level of the decade.

The online database also indicates the changes from each market's worst unemployment total during the 2001-11 period.

New Orleans has seen the biggest drop. Unemployment peaked at 78,560 workers in New Orleans during the past decade, but subsequently dropped 51 percent to its current total of 38,820.

Last place is shared by nine places that have more unemployed workers now than at any other point since 2001: Austin; Dallas-Fort Worth; El Paso; Houston; Jackson, Miss.; Little Rock, Ark.; Memphis; McAllen-Edinburg, Texas; and San Antonio.