Counties in Missouri by average weekly wage (QCEW)

St. Louis city had the highest average weekly wage (QCEW) of 115 counties in 2017, at $1,118. Ripley County had the lowest, at $468. The median was $627 and the figure for Missouri was $911. Source: the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Highest1,118St. Louis city
Lowest468Ripley County
Median627115 counties
Missouri911History

Top 40 counties, 2017

St. Louis city: 1,118 USDSt. Louis city1,118St. Louis County: 1,106 USDSt. Louis County1,106Jackson County: 1,053 USDJackson County1,053Clay County: 916 USDClay County916Platte County: 874 USDPlatte County874St. Charles County: 847 USDSt. Charles County847Ralls County: 846 USDRalls County846Buchanan County: 843 USDBuchanan County843Boone County: 828 USDBoone County828Ste. Genevieve County: 815 USDSte. Genevieve County815Greene County: 804 USDGreene County804Crawford County: 798 USDCrawford County798Cole County: 795 USDCole County795Callaway County: 784 USDCallaway County784Sullivan County: 777 USDSullivan County777Jasper County: 775 USDJasper County775Cape Girardeau County: 755 USDCape Girardeau County755Franklin County: 749 USDFranklin County749Lincoln County: 748 USDLincoln County748Phelps County: 737 USDPhelps County737Barry County: 729 USDBarry County729Iron County: 727 USDIron County727Perry County: 718 USDPerry County718Pulaski County: 715 USDPulaski County715Warren County: 712 USDWarren County712Jefferson County: 701 USDJefferson County701Marion County: 695 USDMarion County695DeKalb County: 693 USDDeKalb County693Scott County: 693 USDScott County693Lawrence County: 692 USDLawrence County692Vernon County: 692 USDVernon County692Henry County: 688 USDHenry County688Randolph County: 683 USDRandolph County683Newton County: 678 USDNewton County678Johnson County: 677 USDJohnson County677Stoddard County: 675 USDStoddard County675Audrain County: 673 USDAudrain County673Nodaway County: 671 USDNodaway County671Ray County: 671 USDRay County671Cass County: 670 USDCass County670
USD. Source: BLS, Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW): annual average weekly wage, total covered, all industries (NAICS 10), nation, states and counties. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Full ranking

RankCounties2017
USD
Change on 2016
1St. Louis city1,118+1.6%
2St. Louis County1,106+2.8%
3Jackson County1,053+2.5%
4Clay County916+1.9%
5Platte County874+2%
6St. Charles County847+1.3%
7Ralls County846+2.9%
8Buchanan County843+5.2%
9Boone County828+2.3%
10Ste. Genevieve County815+3.7%
11Greene County804+3.1%
12Crawford County798+13.4%
13Cole County795+2.4%
14Callaway County784+1.4%
15Sullivan County777+4.3%
16Jasper County775+2.9%
17Cape Girardeau County755+1.8%
18Franklin County749+3.2%
19Lincoln County748+4.8%
20Phelps County737+2.2%
21Barry County729+2.4%
22Iron County727-1.6%
23Perry County718+5.6%
24Pulaski County715+2.7%
25Warren County712+3.2%
26Jefferson County701+2.9%
27Marion County695+3.7%
28DeKalb County693+0.4%
28Scott County693+3.3%
30Lawrence County692+5.3%
30Vernon County692+3.6%
32Henry County688+1.2%
33Randolph County683+3.2%
34Newton County678+4%
35Johnson County677+2.3%
36Stoddard County675+5.1%
37Audrain County673+3.1%
38Nodaway County671+6%
38Ray County671+5.3%
40Cass County670+3.9%
41Mercer County667+2.1%
42McDonald County666+4.1%
43Saline County665+6.2%
44Pettis County657+2.3%
45Osage County656+0.9%
46Holt County655+3%
47Clinton County653+4.3%
48Polk County652+2.7%
49Butler County651+3.5%
49Laclede County651+4.8%
51New Madrid County649-1.7%
52Grundy County648+2.7%
53Linn County645+1.9%
54Livingston County643+3.5%
54Moniteau County643+7.7%
56Montgomery County641+4.9%
57Gentry County634+3.6%
58Reynolds County627+32.3%
59Adair County626+3.6%
60Howell County624+2%
61Carroll County620+3.7%
62Lafayette County617+1.8%
63Macon County616-0.6%
63Webster County616+3.4%
65Christian County613+3.9%
66Cooper County611+3.6%
67Pike County610-1.1%
68Andrew County607+0.5%
69Camden County606+5.2%
70Miller County603+2.6%
71Bates County602+3.3%
72Lewis County600+3.6%
72Stone County600+3.6%
74Caldwell County598+3.3%
75St. Francois County597+2.6%
76Chariton County595+2.8%
77Atchison County588+1.6%
78Mississippi County586+1.9%
79Maries County584+5.6%
80Monroe County580+1.6%
81Barton County579+1.8%
81Dade County579+5.5%
83Howard County578+2.1%
84Gasconade County575+3.4%
84Scotland County575+3.4%
86Harrison County574+7.5%
86Taney County574+1.8%
88Texas County572+3.1%
89Dent County568+1.6%
90Madison County561+4.5%
91Pemiscot County560-3.9%
92Wright County558+1.3%
93Benton County557+3%
94Washington County554+3.6%
95Morgan County549+5.4%
96Bollinger County545+4.6%
97Daviess County542+3.2%
98Douglas County529+3.7%
99Cedar County528+3.9%
100Putnam County527-0.8%
101Shelby County525+1.9%
102Carter County518+5.3%
103St. Clair County515+3.2%
104Dunklin County513+2.6%
105Clark County509+1.6%
106Knox County506+3.1%
107Dallas County499+0.8%
108Schuyler County496+2.1%
109Worth County494+0.8%
110Hickory County493+4%
111Wayne County492+3.4%
112Oregon County479+2.6%
113Shannon County473+5.3%
114Ozark County472+4.4%
115Ripley County468+4.2%

Other periods

About this ranking

Total wages paid during the year divided by the average number of covered jobs and by 52, in US dollars, all industries, private and government, from the Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW) of the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Counted where the job is located, from the reports employers file each quarter; monthly employment counts the jobs in the pay period that includes the 12th.

In current dollars, not adjusted for inflation. An average per job, so part-time jobs pull it down and high earners pull it up; for the typical job use median_annual_wage. Wages include bonuses, stock options exercised, severance pay and tips, which makes counties with corporate headquarters stand out. Covers about 95 percent of US wage and salary jobs. Excludes the self-employed, most agricultural workers on small farms, the armed forces, elected officials in most states, most railroad employees, some domestic workers and most student workers at schools.

Every value in the ranking comes from the same publisher and the same period, so the counties are compared on one definition. Equal values share a rank.

How to cite

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW): annual average weekly wage, total covered, all industries (NAICS 10), nation, states and counties. https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2017/a/industry/10.csv. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Citation styles

The publisher is the author. Invokely is named only as the place the figures were read, where a style asks for it.

APA 7

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. (2026). Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW): annual average weekly wage, total covered, all industries (NAICS 10), nation, states and counties (Counties in Missouri by average weekly wage (QCEW), 2017) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2017/a/industry/10.csv

MLA 9

Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW): annual average weekly wage, total covered, all industries (NAICS 10), nation, states and counties, Counties in Missouri by average weekly wage (QCEW), 2017. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 21 Aug. 2026, https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2017/a/industry/10.csv. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/average-weekly-wage/missouri-counties?period=2017. Accessed 12 Oct. 2026.

Chicago (author-date)

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. 2026. Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW): annual average weekly wage, total covered, all industries (NAICS 10), nation, states and counties. Counties in Missouri by average weekly wage (QCEW), 2017. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2017/a/industry/10.csv. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/average-weekly-wage/missouri-counties?period=2017.

Harvard

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (2026) Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW): annual average weekly wage, total covered, all industries (NAICS 10), nation, states and counties, Counties in Missouri by average weekly wage (QCEW), 2017 [Dataset]. Available at: https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2017/a/industry/10.csv, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/average-weekly-wage/missouri-counties?period=2017 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{bureau_counties_in_missouri_by_2017,
  author = {{U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics}},
  title = {{Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW): annual average weekly wage, total covered, all industries (NAICS 10), nation, states and counties: Counties in Missouri by average weekly wage (QCEW), 2017}},
  year = {2026},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2017/a/industry/10.csv},
  urldate = {2026-10-12},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/average-weekly-wage/missouri-counties?period=2017. Publisher attribution: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW): annual average weekly wage, total covered, all industries (NAICS 10), nation, states and counties. https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2017/a/industry/10.csv. Retrieved 2026-10-12.},
}
RIS
TY  - DATA
AU  - U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
TI  - Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW): annual average weekly wage, total covered, all industries (NAICS 10), nation, states and counties: Counties in Missouri by average weekly wage (QCEW), 2017
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/08/21
PB  - U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2017/a/industry/10.csv
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/average-weekly-wage/missouri-counties?period=2017
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/average-weekly-wage/missouri-counties?period=2017.
N1  - Publisher attribution: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW): annual average weekly wage, total covered, all industries (NAICS 10), nation, states and counties. https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2017/a/industry/10.csv. Retrieved 2026-10-12.
ER  - 
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Questions

Which county has the highest average weekly wage (QCEW)?

St. Louis city, with $1,118 in 2017, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Which county has the lowest average weekly wage (QCEW)?

Ripley County, with $468 in 2017.

Where does this ranking come from?

Every value comes from one source and one period, so the places are comparable: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW): annual average weekly wage, total covered, all industries (NAICS 10), nation, states and counties. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Average weekly wage (QCEW): other rankings

Counties in Missouri: more rankings