Counties in Missouri by business establishments (QCEW)

St. Louis County had the highest business establishments (QCEW) of 115 counties in 2019, at 40,359. Worth County had the lowest, at 70. The median was 533 and the figure for Missouri was 208,913. Source: the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

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Highest40,359St. Louis County
Lowest70Worth County
Median533115 counties
Missouri208,913History

Map of counties, 2019

Adair County: 679 countAndrew County: 441 countAtchison County: 230 countAudrain County: 624 countBarry County: 926 countBarton County: 325 countBates County: 456 countBenton County: 552 countBollinger County: 267 countBoone County: 4,949 countBuchanan County: 2,428 countButler County: 1,545 countCaldwell County: 220 countCallaway County: 856 countCamden County: 1,636 countCape Girardeau County: 2,866 countCarroll County: 311 countCarter County: 235 countCass County: 2,255 countCedar County: 361 countChariton County: 277 countChristian County: 2,007 countClark County: 174 countClay County: 5,831 countClinton County: 452 countCole County: 2,399 countCooper County: 472 countCrawford County: 659 countDade County: 183 countDallas County: 365 countDaviess County: 245 countDeKalb County: 261 countDent County: 574 countDouglas County: 228 countDunklin County: 1,512 countFranklin County: 3,012 countGasconade County: 472 countGentry County: 227 countGreene County: 9,291 countGrundy County: 290 countHarrison County: 291 countHenry County: 675 countHickory County: 188 countHolt County: 180 countHoward County: 227 countHowell County: 1,311 countIron County: 533 countJackson County: 22,471 countJasper County: 3,358 countJefferson County: 4,438 countJohnson County: 1,108 countKnox County: 107 countLaclede County: 834 countLafayette County: 864 countLawrence County: 911 countLewis County: 227 countLincoln County: 1,080 countLinn County: 377 countLivingston County: 486 countMcDonald County: 407 countMacon County: 412 countMadison County: 368 countMaries County: 156 countMarion County: 936 countMercer County: 102 countMiller County: 687 countMississippi County: 490 countMoniteau County: 360 countMonroe County: 250 countMontgomery County: 310 countMorgan County: 540 countNew Madrid County: 796 countNewton County: 1,361 countNodaway County: 584 countOregon County: 252 countOsage County: 282 countOzark County: 216 countPemiscot County: 840 countPerry County: 577 countPettis County: 1,262 countPhelps County: 1,175 countPike County: 487 countPlatte County: 2,751 countPolk County: 718 countPulaski County: 831 countPutnam County: 129 countRalls County: 237 countRandolph County: 656 countRay County: 427 countReynolds County: 281 countRipley County: 518 countSt. Charles County: 9,819 countSt. Clair County: 212 countSte. Genevieve County: 469 countSt. Francois County: 1,863 countSt. Louis County: 40,359 countSaline County: 606 countSchuyler County: 92 countScotland County: 145 countScott County: 1,419 countShannon County: 227 countShelby County: 194 countStoddard County: 950 countStone County: 762 countSullivan County: 146 countTaney County: 2,001 countTexas County: 600 countVernon County: 664 countWarren County: 666 countWashington County: 733 countWayne County: 435 countWebster County: 797 countWorth County: 70 countWright County: 490 countSt. Louis city: 15,067 count
  • Under 200
  • 200 to 400
  • 400 to 500
  • 500 to 800
  • 800 to 1,500
  • 1,500 and over
count, 2019. 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, 2019

St. Louis County: 40,359 countSt. Louis County40,359Jackson County: 22,471 countJackson County22,471St. Louis city: 15,067 countSt. Louis city15,067St. Charles County: 9,819 countSt. Charles County9,819Greene County: 9,291 countGreene County9,291Clay County: 5,831 countClay County5,831Boone County: 4,949 countBoone County4,949Jefferson County: 4,438 countJefferson County4,438Jasper County: 3,358 countJasper County3,358Franklin County: 3,012 countFranklin County3,012Cape Girardeau County: 2,866 countCape Girardeau County2,866Platte County: 2,751 countPlatte County2,751Buchanan County: 2,428 countBuchanan County2,428Cole County: 2,399 countCole County2,399Cass County: 2,255 countCass County2,255Christian County: 2,007 countChristian County2,007Taney County: 2,001 countTaney County2,001St. Francois County: 1,863 countSt. Francois County1,863Camden County: 1,636 countCamden County1,636Butler County: 1,545 countButler County1,545Dunklin County: 1,512 countDunklin County1,512Scott County: 1,419 countScott County1,419Newton County: 1,361 countNewton County1,361Howell County: 1,311 countHowell County1,311Pettis County: 1,262 countPettis County1,262Phelps County: 1,175 countPhelps County1,175Johnson County: 1,108 countJohnson County1,108Lincoln County: 1,080 countLincoln County1,080Stoddard County: 950 countStoddard County950Marion County: 936 countMarion County936Barry County: 926 countBarry County926Lawrence County: 911 countLawrence County911Lafayette County: 864 countLafayette County864Callaway County: 856 countCallaway County856Pemiscot County: 840 countPemiscot County840Laclede County: 834 countLaclede County834Pulaski County: 831 countPulaski County831Webster County: 797 countWebster County797New Madrid County: 796 countNew Madrid County796Stone County: 762 countStone County762St. Louis County: 40,359 countSt. Louis County40,359Jackson County: 22,471 countJackson County22,471St. Louis city: 15,067 countSt. Louis city15,067St. Charles County: 9,819 countSt. Charles County9,819Greene County: 9,291 countGreene County9,291Clay County: 5,831 countClay County5,831Boone County: 4,949 countBoone County4,949Jefferson County: 4,438 countJefferson County4,438Jasper County: 3,358 countJasper County3,358Franklin County: 3,012 countFranklin County3,012Cape Girardeau County: 2,866 countCape Girardeau County2,866Platte County: 2,751 countPlatte County2,751Buchanan County: 2,428 countBuchanan County2,428Cole County: 2,399 countCole County2,399Cass County: 2,255 countCass County2,255Christian County: 2,007 countChristian County2,007Taney County: 2,001 countTaney County2,001St. Francois County: 1,863 countSt. Francois County1,863Camden County: 1,636 countCamden County1,636Butler County: 1,545 countButler County1,545Dunklin County: 1,512 countDunklin County1,512Scott County: 1,419 countScott County1,419Newton County: 1,361 countNewton County1,361Howell County: 1,311 countHowell County1,311Pettis County: 1,262 countPettis County1,262Phelps County: 1,175 countPhelps County1,175Johnson County: 1,108 countJohnson County1,108Lincoln County: 1,080 countLincoln County1,080Stoddard County: 950 countStoddard County950Marion County: 936 countMarion County936Barry County: 926 countBarry County926Lawrence County: 911 countLawrence County911Lafayette County: 864 countLafayette County864Callaway County: 856 countCallaway County856Pemiscot County: 840 countPemiscot County840Laclede County: 834 countLaclede County834Pulaski County: 831 countPulaski County831Webster County: 797 countWebster County797New Madrid County: 796 countNew Madrid County796Stone County: 762 countStone County762
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

RankCounties2019
count
Change on 2018
1St. Louis County40,359+4.5%
2Jackson County22,471+3.8%
3St. Louis city15,067+5.3%
4St. Charles County9,819+3.7%
5Greene County9,291+4.6%
6Clay County5,831+3.3%
7Boone County4,949+2.7%
8Jefferson County4,438+2.5%
9Jasper County3,358+3.1%
10Franklin County3,012+1.8%
11Cape Girardeau County2,866+3.9%
12Platte County2,751+3.9%
13Buchanan County2,428+1.1%
14Cole County2,399+1.3%
15Cass County2,255+3.9%
16Christian County2,007+3.8%
17Taney County2,001+2.2%
18St. Francois County1,863+0.1%
19Camden County1,636+1.2%
20Butler County1,545+0.9%
21Dunklin County1,512+0.2%
22Scott County1,419+1.1%
23Newton County1,361+1.1%
24Howell County1,311+2.7%
25Pettis County1,262+3.4%
26Phelps County1,175+1.9%
27Johnson County1,108+2.9%
28Lincoln County1,080+3.8%
29Stoddard County950-2.2%
30Marion County936-1.1%
31Barry County926+4.6%
32Lawrence County911+2.7%
33Lafayette County864+2.2%
34Callaway County856+1.9%
35Pemiscot County840+4.6%
36Laclede County834+0.6%
37Pulaski County831+0.8%
38Webster County797+3.6%
39New Madrid County796+5%
40Stone County762+2.8%
41Washington County733+1.4%
42Polk County718+2.6%
43Miller County687+3.3%
44Adair County679-7.2%
45Henry County675+3.4%
46Warren County666+2.1%
47Vernon County664+3.1%
48Crawford County659-0.3%
49Randolph County656-2.1%
50Audrain County624-1.3%
51Saline County606-0.5%
52Texas County600+0.7%
53Nodaway County584+1.9%
54Perry County577+1.8%
55Dent County574+3.8%
56Benton County552+2.6%
57Morgan County540+3.3%
58Iron County533+9%
59Ripley County518+3%
60Mississippi County490-2.6%
60Wright County490+2.3%
62Pike County487+3.8%
63Livingston County486+0.6%
64Cooper County472+2.4%
64Gasconade County472-0.8%
66Ste. Genevieve County469+1.3%
67Bates County456+1.6%
68Clinton County452+0.7%
69Andrew County441+8.1%
70Wayne County435-1.4%
71Ray County427+1.9%
72Macon County412-1%
73McDonald County407+2%
74Linn County3770%
75Madison County368+1.9%
76Dallas County365+6.1%
77Cedar County361+1.4%
78Moniteau County360+0.3%
79Barton County325+3.8%
80Carroll County311-0.6%
81Montgomery County310-2.2%
82Harrison County291-1.7%
83Grundy County290-1.7%
84Osage County282+4.8%
85Reynolds County281-2.4%
86Chariton County277+1.1%
87Bollinger County267+1.5%
88DeKalb County261+1.6%
89Oregon County252-0.8%
90Monroe County250+0.4%
91Daviess County245+5.6%
92Ralls County237+1.3%
93Carter County235+0.4%
94Atchison County230-1.3%
95Douglas County228+4.1%
96Gentry County227+1.8%
96Howard County227-1.3%
96Lewis County227+2.3%
96Shannon County227-0.4%
100Caldwell County220+2.8%
101Ozark County216+4.9%
102St. Clair County212+3.4%
103Shelby County194-2.5%
104Hickory County188+5.6%
105Dade County183+2.8%
106Holt County180+1.7%
107Clark County174+1.8%
108Maries County156+4%
109Sullivan County146-0.7%
110Scotland County145-0.7%
111Putnam County1290%
112Knox County107-4.5%
113Mercer County102+5.2%
114Schuyler County920%
115Worth County70+4.5%

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/2019/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 Missouri by business establishments (QCEW), 2019) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2019/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 Missouri by business establishments (QCEW), 2019. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 21 Aug. 2026, https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2019/a/industry/10.csv. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/business-establishments/missouri-counties?period=2019. 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 Missouri by business establishments (QCEW), 2019. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2019/a/industry/10.csv. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/business-establishments/missouri-counties?period=2019.

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 Missouri by business establishments (QCEW), 2019 [Dataset]. Available at: https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2019/a/industry/10.csv, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/business-establishments/missouri-counties?period=2019 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{bureau_counties_in_missouri_by_2019,
  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 Missouri by business establishments (QCEW), 2019}},
  year = {2026},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2019/a/industry/10.csv},
  urldate = {2026-10-12},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/business-establishments/missouri-counties?period=2019. 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/2019/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 Missouri by business establishments (QCEW), 2019
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/08/21
PB  - U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2019/a/industry/10.csv
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/business-establishments/missouri-counties?period=2019
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/business-establishments/missouri-counties?period=2019.
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/2019/a/industry/10.csv. Retrieved 2026-10-12.
ER  - 
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Rank Counties in Missouri by business establishments (QCEW) using official data, and cite the source.
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Questions

Which county has the highest business establishments (QCEW)?

St. Louis County, with 40,359 in 2019, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Which county has the lowest business establishments (QCEW)?

Worth County, with 70 in 2019.

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 Missouri: more rankings