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 2022, at 20,067. Adams County had the lowest, at 159. The median was 543 and the figure for Iowa was 110,664. Source: the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

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Highest20,067Polk County
Lowest159Adams County
Median54399 counties
Iowa110,664History

Map of counties, 2022

Adair County: 335 countAdams County: 159 countAllamakee County: 464 countAppanoose County: 387 countAudubon County: 233 countBenton County: 701 countBlack Hawk County: 3,916 countBoone County: 747 countBremer County: 730 countBuchanan County: 635 countBuena Vista County: 647 countButler County: 435 countCalhoun County: 331 countCarroll County: 976 countCass County: 564 countCedar County: 605 countCerro Gordo County: 1,671 countCherokee County: 452 countChickasaw County: 445 countClarke County: 253 countClay County: 748 countClayton County: 630 countClinton County: 1,477 countCrawford County: 523 countDallas County: 3,290 countDavis County: 252 countDecatur County: 226 countDelaware County: 626 countDes Moines County: 1,403 countDickinson County: 940 countDubuque County: 3,647 countEmmet County: 329 countFayette County: 692 countFloyd County: 482 countFranklin County: 380 countFremont County: 295 countGreene County: 331 countGrundy County: 393 countGuthrie County: 382 countHamilton County: 481 countHancock County: 384 countHardin County: 665 countHarrison County: 472 countHenry County: 624 countHoward County: 334 countHumboldt County: 368 countIda County: 305 countIowa County: 686 countJackson County: 706 countJasper County: 990 countJefferson County: 837 countJohnson County: 5,025 countJones County: 660 countKeokuk County: 331 countKossuth County: 645 countLee County: 1,073 countLinn County: 7,668 countLouisa County: 283 countLucas County: 257 countLyon County: 543 countMadison County: 560 countMahaska County: 651 countMarion County: 1,060 countMarshall County: 1,056 countMills County: 430 countMitchell County: 378 countMonona County: 308 countMonroe County: 246 countMontgomery County: 397 countMuscatine County: 1,248 countO'Brien County: 621 countOsceola County: 274 countPage County: 488 countPalo Alto County: 343 countPlymouth County: 870 countPocahontas County: 282 countPolk County: 20,067 countPottawattamie County: 2,706 countPoweshiek County: 714 countRinggold County: 187 countSac County: 396 countScott County: 6,071 countShelby County: 447 countSioux County: 1,577 countStory County: 3,012 countTama County: 459 countTaylor County: 197 countUnion County: 456 countVan Buren County: 218 countWapello County: 884 countWarren County: 1,314 countWashington County: 838 countWayne County: 183 countWebster County: 1,190 countWinnebago County: 400 countWinneshiek County: 773 countWoodbury County: 3,323 countWorth County: 237 countWright County: 482 count
  • Under 300
  • 300 to 400
  • 400 to 500
  • 500 to 700
  • 700 to 1,200
  • 1,200 and over
count, 2022. 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, 2022

Polk County: 20,067 countPolk County20,067Linn County: 7,668 countLinn County7,668Scott County: 6,071 countScott County6,071Johnson County: 5,025 countJohnson County5,025Black Hawk County: 3,916 countBlack Hawk County3,916Dubuque County: 3,647 countDubuque County3,647Woodbury County: 3,323 countWoodbury County3,323Dallas County: 3,290 countDallas County3,290Story County: 3,012 countStory County3,012Pottawattamie County: 2,706 countPottawattamie County2,706Cerro Gordo County: 1,671 countCerro Gordo County1,671Sioux County: 1,577 countSioux County1,577Clinton County: 1,477 countClinton County1,477Des Moines County: 1,403 countDes Moines County1,403Warren County: 1,314 countWarren County1,314Muscatine County: 1,248 countMuscatine County1,248Webster County: 1,190 countWebster County1,190Lee County: 1,073 countLee County1,073Marion County: 1,060 countMarion County1,060Marshall County: 1,056 countMarshall County1,056Jasper County: 990 countJasper County990Carroll County: 976 countCarroll County976Dickinson County: 940 countDickinson County940Wapello County: 884 countWapello County884Plymouth County: 870 countPlymouth County870Washington County: 838 countWashington County838Jefferson County: 837 countJefferson County837Winneshiek County: 773 countWinneshiek County773Clay County: 748 countClay County748Boone County: 747 countBoone County747Bremer County: 730 countBremer County730Poweshiek County: 714 countPoweshiek County714Jackson County: 706 countJackson County706Benton County: 701 countBenton County701Fayette County: 692 countFayette County692Iowa County: 686 countIowa County686Hardin County: 665 countHardin County665Jones County: 660 countJones County660Mahaska County: 651 countMahaska County651Buena Vista County: 647 countBuena Vista County647Polk County: 20,067 countPolk County20,067Linn County: 7,668 countLinn County7,668Scott County: 6,071 countScott County6,071Johnson County: 5,025 countJohnson County5,025Black Hawk County: 3,916 countBlack Hawk County3,916Dubuque County: 3,647 countDubuque County3,647Woodbury County: 3,323 countWoodbury County3,323Dallas County: 3,290 countDallas County3,290Story County: 3,012 countStory County3,012Pottawattamie County: 2,706 countPottawattamie County2,706Cerro Gordo County: 1,671 countCerro Gordo County1,671Sioux County: 1,577 countSioux County1,577Clinton County: 1,477 countClinton County1,477Des Moines County: 1,403 countDes Moines County1,403Warren County: 1,314 countWarren County1,314Muscatine County: 1,248 countMuscatine County1,248Webster County: 1,190 countWebster County1,190Lee County: 1,073 countLee County1,073Marion County: 1,060 countMarion County1,060Marshall County: 1,056 countMarshall County1,056Jasper County: 990 countJasper County990Carroll County: 976 countCarroll County976Dickinson County: 940 countDickinson County940Wapello County: 884 countWapello County884Plymouth County: 870 countPlymouth County870Washington County: 838 countWashington County838Jefferson County: 837 countJefferson County837Winneshiek County: 773 countWinneshiek County773Clay County: 748 countClay County748Boone County: 747 countBoone County747Bremer County: 730 countBremer County730Poweshiek County: 714 countPoweshiek County714Jackson County: 706 countJackson County706Benton County: 701 countBenton County701Fayette County: 692 countFayette County692Iowa County: 686 countIowa County686Hardin County: 665 countHardin County665Jones County: 660 countJones County660Mahaska County: 651 countMahaska County651Buena Vista County: 647 countBuena Vista County647
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

RankCounties2022
count		Change on 2021
1Polk County20,067+5.9%
2Linn County7,668+4.6%
3Scott County6,071+4.1%
4Johnson County5,025+7.6%
5Black Hawk County3,916+1.9%
6Dubuque County3,647+4.8%
7Woodbury County3,323+1.7%
8Dallas County3,290+7.8%
9Story County3,012+5.8%
10Pottawattamie County2,706+2.9%
11Cerro Gordo County1,671+2%
12Sioux County1,577+2.3%
13Clinton County1,477+1.9%
14Des Moines County1,403+1.8%
15Warren County1,314+5.9%
16Muscatine County1,248+1.8%
17Webster County1,190+0.8%
18Lee County1,073+0.4%
19Marion County1,060+1.7%
20Marshall County1,056+2.5%
21Jasper County990+3.4%
22Carroll County976+1.6%
23Dickinson County940+2.7%
24Wapello County884+0.6%
25Plymouth County870+2.1%
26Washington County838+3.1%
27Jefferson County837+3%
28Winneshiek County773+2.9%
29Clay County748-0.1%
30Boone County747-0.8%
31Bremer County730+2.4%
32Poweshiek County714+1%
33Jackson County706+2.2%
34Benton County701+4.2%
35Fayette County692+2.4%
36Iowa County686-0.6%
37Hardin County665-0.2%
38Jones County660+2%
39Mahaska County651+1.6%
40Buena Vista County647-2%
41Kossuth County645+1.4%
42Buchanan County635+0.3%
43Clayton County630+1.4%
44Delaware County626+1.1%
45Henry County624+1.1%
46O'Brien County621+4.5%
47Cedar County605+3.2%
48Cass County564+1.4%
49Madison County560+5.9%
50Lyon County543+3%
51Crawford County523+1.8%
52Page County488+0.4%
53Floyd County482+1.7%
53Wright County482-2.2%
55Hamilton County481+0.6%
56Harrison County472+2.4%
57Allamakee County464+0.9%
58Tama County459+2%
59Union County456+2.5%
60Cherokee County452-0.4%
61Shelby County447+3.5%
62Chickasaw County445+1.4%
63Butler County435-0.2%
64Mills County430+2.9%
65Winnebago County400+0.5%
66Montgomery County397+3.7%
67Sac County396+0.3%
68Grundy County393+6.8%
69Appanoose County387+2.1%
70Hancock County384+2.7%
71Guthrie County382+3.2%
72Franklin County380+1.9%
73Mitchell County378-1%
74Humboldt County368+2.5%
75Palo Alto County343-1.2%
76Adair County335+4.7%
77Howard County334+0.3%
78Calhoun County331+3.4%
78Greene County331+2.2%
78Keokuk County331+2.8%
81Emmet County329+0.9%
82Monona County308+1%
83Ida County3050%
84Fremont County295+1.7%
85Louisa County283+2.9%
86Pocahontas County2820%
87Osceola County274+1.5%
88Lucas County257+2.4%
89Clarke County253+5%
90Davis County252+3.7%
91Monroe County246+3.4%
92Worth County237+2.2%
93Audubon County233+3.6%
94Decatur County226+0.9%
95Van Buren County218-1.4%
96Taylor County197-0.5%
97Ringgold County187+0.5%
98Wayne County1830%
99Adams County159+2.6%

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/2022/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), 2022) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2022/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), 2022. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 21 Aug. 2026, https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2022/a/industry/10.csv. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/business-establishments/iowa-counties?period=2022. 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), 2022. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2022/a/industry/10.csv. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/business-establishments/iowa-counties?period=2022.

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), 2022 [Dataset]. Available at: https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2022/a/industry/10.csv, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/business-establishments/iowa-counties?period=2022 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{bureau_counties_in_iowa_by_2022,
  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), 2022}},
  year = {2026},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2022/a/industry/10.csv},
  urldate = {2026-10-12},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/business-establishments/iowa-counties?period=2022. 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/2022/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), 2022
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/08/21
PB  - U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2022/a/industry/10.csv
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/business-establishments/iowa-counties?period=2022
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/business-establishments/iowa-counties?period=2022.
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/2022/a/industry/10.csv. Retrieved 2026-10-12.
ER  -
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Rank Counties in Iowa by business establishments (QCEW) using official data, and cite the source.
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Questions

Which county has the highest business establishments (QCEW)?

Polk County, with 20,067 in 2022, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Which county has the lowest business establishments (QCEW)?

Adams County, with 159 in 2022.

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