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

Counties in Kentucky by business establishments (QCEW)

Jefferson County had the highest business establishments (QCEW) of 120 counties in 2024, at 33,844. Robertson County had the lowest, at 62. The median was 450 and the figure for Kentucky was 158,455. Source: the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

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Highest33,844Jefferson County
Lowest62Robertson County
Median450120 counties
Kentucky158,455History

Map of counties, 2024

Adair County: 508 countAllen County: 422 countAnderson County: 565 countBallard County: 229 countBarren County: 1,306 countBath County: 292 countBell County: 612 countBoone County: 6,277 countBourbon County: 646 countBoyd County: 1,796 countBoyle County: 1,066 countBracken County: 222 countBreathitt County: 354 countBreckinridge County: 442 countBullitt County: 1,788 countButler County: 309 countCaldwell County: 380 countCalloway County: 1,333 countCampbell County: 3,434 countCarlisle County: 143 countCarroll County: 372 countCarter County: 645 countCasey County: 362 countChristian County: 2,207 countClark County: 1,069 countClay County: 418 countClinton County: 301 countCrittenden County: 215 countCumberland County: 188 countDaviess County: 3,566 countEdmonson County: 186 countElliott County: 96 countEstill County: 264 countFayette County: 15,142 countFleming County: 444 countFloyd County: 1,160 countFranklin County: 2,802 countFulton County: 214 countGallatin County: 162 countGarrard County: 424 countGrant County: 629 countGraves County: 1,042 countGrayson County: 687 countGreen County: 244 countGreenup County: 788 countHancock County: 234 countHardin County: 3,704 countHarlan County: 525 countHarrison County: 428 countHart County: 417 countHenderson County: 1,442 countHenry County: 404 countHickman County: 111 countHopkins County: 1,209 countJackson County: 204 countJefferson County: 33,844 countJessamine County: 1,973 countJohnson County: 640 countKenton County: 5,970 countKnott County: 312 countKnox County: 622 countLarue County: 327 countLaurel County: 1,793 countLawrence County: 353 countLee County: 163 countLeslie County: 178 countLetcher County: 500 countLewis County: 283 countLincoln County: 504 countLivingston County: 260 countLogan County: 794 countLyon County: 283 countMcCracken County: 2,900 countMcCreary County: 303 countMcLean County: 248 countMadison County: 3,101 countMagoffin County: 281 countMarion County: 534 countMarshall County: 1,051 countMartin County: 222 countMason County: 717 countMeade County: 551 countMenifee County: 130 countMercer County: 586 countMetcalfe County: 258 countMonroe County: 302 countMontgomery County: 891 countMorgan County: 286 countMuhlenberg County: 747 countNelson County: 1,530 countNicholas County: 124 countOhio County: 516 countOldham County: 2,480 countOwen County: 182 countOwsley County: 93 countPendleton County: 292 countPerry County: 948 countPike County: 1,627 countPowell County: 303 countPulaski County: 2,166 countRobertson County: 62 countRockcastle County: 278 countRowan County: 808 countRussell County: 546 countScott County: 1,819 countShelby County: 1,594 countSimpson County: 706 countSpencer County: 440 countTaylor County: 908 countTodd County: 323 countTrigg County: 353 countTrimble County: 162 countUnion County: 390 countWarren County: 5,308 countWashington County: 361 countWayne County: 455 countWebster County: 294 countWhitley County: 1,040 countWolfe County: 189 countWoodford County: 1,083 count
  • Under 200
  • 200 to 300
  • 300 to 400
  • 400 to 700
  • 700 to 1,600
  • 1,600 and over
count, 2024. 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, 2024

Jefferson County: 33,844 countJefferson County33,844Fayette County: 15,142 countFayette County15,142Boone County: 6,277 countBoone County6,277Kenton County: 5,970 countKenton County5,970Warren County: 5,308 countWarren County5,308Hardin County: 3,704 countHardin County3,704Daviess County: 3,566 countDaviess County3,566Campbell County: 3,434 countCampbell County3,434Madison County: 3,101 countMadison County3,101McCracken County: 2,900 countMcCracken County2,900Franklin County: 2,802 countFranklin County2,802Oldham County: 2,480 countOldham County2,480Christian County: 2,207 countChristian County2,207Pulaski County: 2,166 countPulaski County2,166Jessamine County: 1,973 countJessamine County1,973Scott County: 1,819 countScott County1,819Boyd County: 1,796 countBoyd County1,796Laurel County: 1,793 countLaurel County1,793Bullitt County: 1,788 countBullitt County1,788Pike County: 1,627 countPike County1,627Shelby County: 1,594 countShelby County1,594Nelson County: 1,530 countNelson County1,530Henderson County: 1,442 countHenderson County1,442Calloway County: 1,333 countCalloway County1,333Barren County: 1,306 countBarren County1,306Hopkins County: 1,209 countHopkins County1,209Floyd County: 1,160 countFloyd County1,160Woodford County: 1,083 countWoodford County1,083Clark County: 1,069 countClark County1,069Boyle County: 1,066 countBoyle County1,066Marshall County: 1,051 countMarshall County1,051Graves County: 1,042 countGraves County1,042Whitley County: 1,040 countWhitley County1,040Perry County: 948 countPerry County948Taylor County: 908 countTaylor County908Montgomery County: 891 countMontgomery County891Rowan County: 808 countRowan County808Logan County: 794 countLogan County794Greenup County: 788 countGreenup County788Muhlenberg County: 747 countMuhlenberg County747Jefferson County: 33,844 countJefferson County33,844Fayette County: 15,142 countFayette County15,142Boone County: 6,277 countBoone County6,277Kenton County: 5,970 countKenton County5,970Warren County: 5,308 countWarren County5,308Hardin County: 3,704 countHardin County3,704Daviess County: 3,566 countDaviess County3,566Campbell County: 3,434 countCampbell County3,434Madison County: 3,101 countMadison County3,101McCracken County: 2,900 countMcCracken County2,900Franklin County: 2,802 countFranklin County2,802Oldham County: 2,480 countOldham County2,480Christian County: 2,207 countChristian County2,207Pulaski County: 2,166 countPulaski County2,166Jessamine County: 1,973 countJessamine County1,973Scott County: 1,819 countScott County1,819Boyd County: 1,796 countBoyd County1,796Laurel County: 1,793 countLaurel County1,793Bullitt County: 1,788 countBullitt County1,788Pike County: 1,627 countPike County1,627Shelby County: 1,594 countShelby County1,594Nelson County: 1,530 countNelson County1,530Henderson County: 1,442 countHenderson County1,442Calloway County: 1,333 countCalloway County1,333Barren County: 1,306 countBarren County1,306Hopkins County: 1,209 countHopkins County1,209Floyd County: 1,160 countFloyd County1,160Woodford County: 1,083 countWoodford County1,083Clark County: 1,069 countClark County1,069Boyle County: 1,066 countBoyle County1,066Marshall County: 1,051 countMarshall County1,051Graves County: 1,042 countGraves County1,042Whitley County: 1,040 countWhitley County1,040Perry County: 948 countPerry County948Taylor County: 908 countTaylor County908Montgomery County: 891 countMontgomery County891Rowan County: 808 countRowan County808Logan County: 794 countLogan County794Greenup County: 788 countGreenup County788Muhlenberg County: 747 countMuhlenberg County747
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

RankCounties2024
count		Change on 2023
1Jefferson County33,844+3.8%
2Fayette County15,142+4.5%
3Boone County6,277+5.1%
4Kenton County5,970+5.6%
5Warren County5,308+6.1%
6Hardin County3,704+4.5%
7Daviess County3,566+4.3%
8Campbell County3,434+8.1%
9Madison County3,101+8.7%
10McCracken County2,900+3.1%
11Franklin County2,802+3.7%
12Oldham County2,480+5.7%
13Christian County2,207+4.2%
14Pulaski County2,166+4.5%
15Jessamine County1,973+6.6%
16Scott County1,819+6.8%
17Boyd County1,796+2.4%
18Laurel County1,793+1.8%
19Bullitt County1,788+5.9%
20Pike County1,627+2.3%
21Shelby County1,594+5.4%
22Nelson County1,530+4.9%
23Henderson County1,442+3.9%
24Calloway County1,333+5.2%
25Barren County1,306+3.9%
26Hopkins County1,209+4.4%
27Floyd County1,160+5.6%
28Woodford County1,083+5.8%
29Clark County1,069+3.8%
30Boyle County1,066+4.4%
31Marshall County1,051+4.7%
32Graves County1,042+2.3%
33Whitley County1,040+3.9%
34Perry County948+2.8%
35Taylor County908+5.5%
36Montgomery County891+6.2%
37Rowan County808+7%
38Logan County794+5.4%
39Greenup County788+5.3%
40Muhlenberg County747+2.5%
41Mason County717+7.7%
42Simpson County706+6.2%
43Grayson County687+2.8%
44Bourbon County646+4%
45Carter County645+3.2%
46Johnson County640+1.6%
47Grant County629+6.1%
48Knox County622+1%
49Bell County612+3%
50Mercer County586+2.3%
51Anderson County565+9.3%
52Meade County551+4.4%
53Russell County546+5%
54Marion County534+5.3%
55Harlan County525+1.9%
56Ohio County516+4.2%
57Adair County508+4.5%
58Lincoln County504+5%
59Letcher County500+1.4%
60Wayne County455+2%
61Fleming County444+6%
62Breckinridge County442+4.5%
63Spencer County440+8.6%
64Harrison County428+5.4%
65Garrard County424+7.6%
66Allen County422+5.5%
67Clay County418+1.5%
68Hart County417+3.7%
69Henry County404+5.2%
70Union County390+2.1%
71Caldwell County380+1.9%
72Carroll County372+0.8%
73Casey County362+1.4%
74Washington County361+3.7%
75Breathitt County354-1.9%
76Lawrence County353+4.7%
76Trigg County353+4.4%
78Larue County327+6.2%
79Todd County323+4.9%
80Knott County312+1.3%
81Butler County309+5.1%
82McCreary County303+4.5%
82Powell County303+5.9%
84Monroe County302+4.5%
85Clinton County301+2%
86Webster County294+2.1%
87Bath County292+11.9%
87Pendleton County292+7.7%
89Morgan County286+6.7%
90Lewis County283+4.8%
90Lyon County283+4.8%
92Magoffin County281+6.8%
93Rockcastle County278+4.1%
94Estill County264+5.6%
95Livingston County260+7.9%
96Metcalfe County258+4.9%
97McLean County248+0.8%
98Green County244+6.6%
99Hancock County234+3.5%
100Ballard County229+2.2%
101Bracken County222+6.2%
101Martin County222+5.7%
103Crittenden County215+2.9%
104Fulton County214-1.4%
105Jackson County204+6.3%
106Wolfe County189+0.5%
107Cumberland County188+3.3%
108Edmonson County186+5.1%
109Owen County182+7.7%
110Leslie County1780%
111Lee County163+0.6%
112Gallatin County162+1.9%
112Trimble County162+2.5%
114Carlisle County143+3.6%
115Menifee County130+6.6%
116Nicholas County124+8.8%
117Hickman County111+0.9%
118Elliott County96+2.1%
119Owsley County93+2.2%
120Robertson County62+1.6%

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/2024/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 Kentucky by business establishments (QCEW), 2024) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2024/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 Kentucky by business establishments (QCEW), 2024. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 21 Aug. 2026, https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2024/a/industry/10.csv. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/business-establishments/kentucky-counties?period=2024. 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 Kentucky by business establishments (QCEW), 2024. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2024/a/industry/10.csv. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/business-establishments/kentucky-counties?period=2024.

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 Kentucky by business establishments (QCEW), 2024 [Dataset]. Available at: https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2024/a/industry/10.csv, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/business-establishments/kentucky-counties?period=2024 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{bureau_counties_in_kentucky_by_2024,
  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 Kentucky by business establishments (QCEW), 2024}},
  year = {2026},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2024/a/industry/10.csv},
  urldate = {2026-10-12},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/business-establishments/kentucky-counties?period=2024. 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/2024/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 Kentucky by business establishments (QCEW), 2024
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/08/21
PB  - U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2024/a/industry/10.csv
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/business-establishments/kentucky-counties?period=2024
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/business-establishments/kentucky-counties?period=2024.
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/2024/a/industry/10.csv. Retrieved 2026-10-12.
ER  -
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Questions

Which county has the highest business establishments (QCEW)?

Jefferson County, with 33,844 in 2024, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Which county has the lowest business establishments (QCEW)?

Robertson County, with 62 in 2024.

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 Kentucky: more rankings