Data / Rankings / Business establishments (QCEW) / Counties in Iowa

Counties in Iowa by business establishments (QCEW)

Polk County had the highest business establishments (QCEW) of 99 counties in 2014, at 16,273. Adams County had the lowest, at 146. The median was 522 and the figure for Iowa was 99,418. Source: the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

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Highest16,273Polk County
Lowest146Adams County
Median52299 counties
Iowa99,418History

Map of counties, 2014

Adair County: 282 countAdams County: 146 countAllamakee County: 480 countAppanoose County: 387 countAudubon County: 220 countBenton County: 678 countBlack Hawk County: 3,768 countBoone County: 688 countBremer County: 708 countBuchanan County: 612 countBuena Vista County: 660 countButler County: 419 countCalhoun County: 341 countCarroll County: 981 countCass County: 573 countCedar County: 570 countCerro Gordo County: 1,615 countCherokee County: 461 countChickasaw County: 453 countClarke County: 248 countClay County: 736 countClayton County: 620 countClinton County: 1,387 countCrawford County: 522 countDallas County: 2,133 countDavis County: 233 countDecatur County: 231 countDelaware County: 579 countDes Moines County: 1,343 countDickinson County: 864 countDubuque County: 3,204 countEmmet County: 366 countFayette County: 687 countFloyd County: 495 countFranklin County: 406 countFremont County: 269 countGreene County: 323 countGrundy County: 372 countGuthrie County: 380 countHamilton County: 510 countHancock County: 375 countHardin County: 684 countHarrison County: 450 countHenry County: 640 countHoward County: 333 countHumboldt County: 386 countIda County: 293 countIowa County: 643 countJackson County: 679 countJasper County: 915 countJefferson County: 777 countJohnson County: 3,964 countJones County: 610 countKeokuk County: 323 countKossuth County: 632 countLee County: 1,111 countLinn County: 6,497 countLouisa County: 252 countLucas County: 231 countLyon County: 487 countMadison County: 446 countMahaska County: 644 countMarion County: 992 countMarshall County: 1,035 countMills County: 366 countMitchell County: 399 countMonona County: 310 countMonroe County: 248 countMontgomery County: 408 countMuscatine County: 1,194 countO'Brien County: 591 countOsceola County: 243 countPage County: 508 countPalo Alto County: 369 countPlymouth County: 842 countPocahontas County: 301 countPolk County: 16,273 countPottawattamie County: 2,536 countPoweshiek County: 646 countRinggold County: 187 countSac County: 416 countScott County: 5,473 countShelby County: 460 countSioux County: 1,375 countStory County: 2,487 countTama County: 439 countTaylor County: 199 countUnion County: 444 countVan Buren County: 200 countWapello County: 908 countWarren County: 971 countWashington County: 781 countWayne County: 188 countWebster County: 1,245 countWinnebago County: 404 countWinneshiek County: 722 countWoodbury County: 3,189 countWorth County: 228 countWright County: 534 count
  • Under 300
  • 300 to 400
  • 400 to 500
  • 500 to 700
  • 700 to 1,100
  • 1,100 and over
count, 2014. Source: BLS, Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW): annual average establishments, total covered, all industries (NAICS 10), nation, states and counties. Boundaries: U.S. Census Bureau cartographic boundary files.

Top 40 counties, 2014

Polk County: 16,273 countPolk County16,273Linn County: 6,497 countLinn County6,497Scott County: 5,473 countScott County5,473Johnson County: 3,964 countJohnson County3,964Black Hawk County: 3,768 countBlack Hawk County3,768Dubuque County: 3,204 countDubuque County3,204Woodbury County: 3,189 countWoodbury County3,189Pottawattamie County: 2,536 countPottawattamie County2,536Story County: 2,487 countStory County2,487Dallas County: 2,133 countDallas County2,133Cerro Gordo County: 1,615 countCerro Gordo County1,615Clinton County: 1,387 countClinton County1,387Sioux County: 1,375 countSioux County1,375Des Moines County: 1,343 countDes Moines County1,343Webster County: 1,245 countWebster County1,245Muscatine County: 1,194 countMuscatine County1,194Lee County: 1,111 countLee County1,111Marshall County: 1,035 countMarshall County1,035Marion County: 992 countMarion County992Carroll County: 981 countCarroll County981Warren County: 971 countWarren County971Jasper County: 915 countJasper County915Wapello County: 908 countWapello County908Dickinson County: 864 countDickinson County864Plymouth County: 842 countPlymouth County842Washington County: 781 countWashington County781Jefferson County: 777 countJefferson County777Clay County: 736 countClay County736Winneshiek County: 722 countWinneshiek County722Bremer County: 708 countBremer County708Boone County: 688 countBoone County688Fayette County: 687 countFayette County687Hardin County: 684 countHardin County684Jackson County: 679 countJackson County679Benton County: 678 countBenton County678Buena Vista County: 660 countBuena Vista County660Poweshiek County: 646 countPoweshiek County646Mahaska County: 644 countMahaska County644Iowa County: 643 countIowa County643Henry County: 640 countHenry County640Polk County: 16,273 countPolk County16,273Linn County: 6,497 countLinn County6,497Scott County: 5,473 countScott County5,473Johnson County: 3,964 countJohnson County3,964Black Hawk County: 3,768 countBlack Hawk County3,768Dubuque County: 3,204 countDubuque County3,204Woodbury County: 3,189 countWoodbury County3,189Pottawattamie County: 2,536 countPottawattamie County2,536Story County: 2,487 countStory County2,487Dallas County: 2,133 countDallas County2,133Cerro Gordo County: 1,615 countCerro Gordo County1,615Clinton County: 1,387 countClinton County1,387Sioux County: 1,375 countSioux County1,375Des Moines County: 1,343 countDes Moines County1,343Webster County: 1,245 countWebster County1,245Muscatine County: 1,194 countMuscatine County1,194Lee County: 1,111 countLee County1,111Marshall County: 1,035 countMarshall County1,035Marion County: 992 countMarion County992Carroll County: 981 countCarroll County981Warren County: 971 countWarren County971Jasper County: 915 countJasper County915Wapello County: 908 countWapello County908Dickinson County: 864 countDickinson County864Plymouth County: 842 countPlymouth County842Washington County: 781 countWashington County781Jefferson County: 777 countJefferson County777Clay County: 736 countClay County736Winneshiek County: 722 countWinneshiek County722Bremer County: 708 countBremer County708Boone County: 688 countBoone County688Fayette County: 687 countFayette County687Hardin County: 684 countHardin County684Jackson County: 679 countJackson County679Benton County: 678 countBenton County678Buena Vista County: 660 countBuena Vista County660Poweshiek County: 646 countPoweshiek County646Mahaska County: 644 countMahaska County644Iowa County: 643 countIowa County643Henry County: 640 countHenry County640
count. Source: BLS, Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW): annual average establishments, total covered, all industries (NAICS 10), nation, states and counties. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Full ranking

RankCounties2014
count		Change on 2013
1Polk County16,273+3.5%
2Linn County6,497+1.4%
3Scott County5,473+1.6%
4Johnson County3,964+3.1%
5Black Hawk County3,768+2.2%
6Dubuque County3,204+1.2%
7Woodbury County3,189+2.4%
8Pottawattamie County2,536+1.9%
9Story County2,487+1.6%
10Dallas County2,133+4.9%
11Cerro Gordo County1,615-0.4%
12Clinton County1,387+0.9%
13Sioux County1,375+1.9%
14Des Moines County1,343+2.9%
15Webster County1,245+1.2%
16Muscatine County1,194+1.7%
17Lee County1,111+1.6%
18Marshall County1,035+2.1%
19Marion County992+1.3%
20Carroll County981+0.2%
21Warren County971+4.5%
22Jasper County915-0.4%
23Wapello County908+0.4%
24Dickinson County864+1.9%
25Plymouth County842+1.2%
26Washington County781-0.8%
27Jefferson County777+1.2%
28Clay County736+1.9%
29Winneshiek County722+1.5%
30Bremer County708+1.3%
31Boone County688+0.7%
32Fayette County687+1.6%
33Hardin County684+2.2%
34Jackson County679+0.7%
35Benton County678+1.3%
36Buena Vista County660+1.2%
37Poweshiek County646-0.3%
38Mahaska County644-1.1%
39Iowa County643+6.3%
40Henry County640+1.4%
41Kossuth County632+1.4%
42Clayton County620-0.2%
43Buchanan County612+0.8%
44Jones County610+2.7%
45O'Brien County591+2.4%
46Delaware County579+2.7%
47Cass County573+1.6%
48Cedar County570+0.9%
49Wright County534+1.7%
50Crawford County522+1%
51Hamilton County510+0.4%
52Page County508+1.6%
53Floyd County495+0.2%
54Lyon County487+3%
55Allamakee County480+1.7%
56Cherokee County461-0.2%
57Shelby County460-1.3%
58Chickasaw County453-0.4%
59Harrison County450-1.7%
60Madison County446+4.4%
61Union County444+0.5%
62Tama County4390%
63Butler County419+0.7%
64Sac County416-0.2%
65Montgomery County408+0.7%
66Franklin County406+1.8%
67Winnebago County404-0.7%
68Mitchell County399+0.5%
69Appanoose County387+0.3%
70Humboldt County386-0.3%
71Guthrie County380+1.3%
72Hancock County375-1.1%
73Grundy County372-0.3%
74Palo Alto County369+2.5%
75Emmet County366-1.1%
75Mills County366+2.8%
77Calhoun County341+0.9%
78Howard County333+2.5%
79Greene County323+1.6%
79Keokuk County323+1.6%
81Monona County310+1%
82Pocahontas County301+1.3%
83Ida County293-1%
84Adair County282+1.4%
85Fremont County269+1.9%
86Louisa County252-1.2%
87Clarke County248-0.4%
87Monroe County248-0.8%
89Osceola County243+2.1%
90Davis County233-0.4%
91Decatur County231+1.8%
91Lucas County231+0.9%
93Worth County228+1.8%
94Audubon County220+0.9%
95Van Buren County200-4.8%
96Taylor County199+3.1%
97Wayne County188+1.1%
98Ringgold County187n/a
99Adams County146n/a

Other periods

About this ranking

Average number of establishments with jobs covered by unemployment insurance during the year, all industries, private and government, from the Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW) of the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. An establishment is a single place of business, such as a factory, store or office; a company with several locations has several.

Counts places of business, not firms: for firms use employer_firms. Changes in how large employers report their locations can move the count without any change in activity.

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 establishments, total covered, all industries (NAICS 10), nation, states and counties. https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2014/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 establishments, total covered, all industries (NAICS 10), nation, states and counties (Counties in Iowa by business establishments (QCEW), 2014) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2014/a/industry/10.csv

MLA 9

Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW): annual average establishments, total covered, all industries (NAICS 10), nation, states and counties, Counties in Iowa by business establishments (QCEW), 2014. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 21 Aug. 2026, https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2014/a/industry/10.csv. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/business-establishments/iowa-counties?period=2014. Accessed 12 Oct. 2026.

Chicago (author-date)

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. 2026. Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW): annual average establishments, total covered, all industries (NAICS 10), nation, states and counties. Counties in Iowa by business establishments (QCEW), 2014. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2014/a/industry/10.csv. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/business-establishments/iowa-counties?period=2014.

Harvard

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (2026) Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW): annual average establishments, total covered, all industries (NAICS 10), nation, states and counties, Counties in Iowa by business establishments (QCEW), 2014 [Dataset]. Available at: https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2014/a/industry/10.csv, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/business-establishments/iowa-counties?period=2014 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{bureau_counties_in_iowa_by_2014,
  author = {{U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics}},
  title = {{Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW): annual average establishments, total covered, all industries (NAICS 10), nation, states and counties: Counties in Iowa by business establishments (QCEW), 2014}},
  year = {2026},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2014/a/industry/10.csv},
  urldate = {2026-10-12},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/business-establishments/iowa-counties?period=2014. Publisher attribution: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW): annual average establishments, total covered, all industries (NAICS 10), nation, states and counties. https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2014/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 establishments, total covered, all industries (NAICS 10), nation, states and counties: Counties in Iowa by business establishments (QCEW), 2014
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/08/21
PB  - U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2014/a/industry/10.csv
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/business-establishments/iowa-counties?period=2014
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/business-establishments/iowa-counties?period=2014.
N1  - Publisher attribution: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW): annual average establishments, total covered, all industries (NAICS 10), nation, states and counties. https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2014/a/industry/10.csv. Retrieved 2026-10-12.
ER  -
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Questions

Which county has the highest business establishments (QCEW)?

Polk County, with 16,273 in 2014, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Which county has the lowest business establishments (QCEW)?

Adams County, with 146 in 2014.

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 establishments, total covered, all industries (NAICS 10), nation, states and counties. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Business establishments (QCEW): other rankings

Counties in Iowa: more rankings