All 14 Illinois metro areas saw their unemployment rates tick down in September compared to one year ago, according to the Illinois Department of Employment Security.

Eight metro areas, however, lost jobs in September compared to the same time last year. The metro areas of Quad Cities, Carbondale-Marion, Peoria and Decatur were among those that lost jobs.

"Illinois unemployment data since January have shown very weak employment growth compared to many other states," IDES Director Jeff Mays said in a statement. "Sub-state data paint an even bleaker picture for areas outside of the Chicago area that have lost a net 10,000 jobs over the past year. Additionally, our internal unemployment insurance claims data indicate the likelihood of labor market softening in the coming months." 

Meanwhile, September marked the 19th consecutive month that over-the-month metro area unemployment rates fell.

Jobless rates also dropped in all but two of the 102 Illinois counties last month compared to September 2014.

The Chicago-Naperville-Arlington Heights metro area saw the biggest drop in its unemployment rate. It decreased from 6.2 percent in September 2014 to 4.9 percent last month.

Overall, Bloomington had the lowest jobless rate last month, 4.3 percent. Danville and Decatur tied for having the highest unemployment rate at 6.4 percent.  

The state's unemployment rate was 5.4 percent in September.