Counties in Pennsylvania by business establishments (QCEW)

Allegheny County had the highest business establishments (QCEW) of 67 counties in 2020, at 35,906. Cameron County had the lowest, at 152. The median was 1,987 and the figure for Pennsylvania was 361,303. Source: the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Keep it in a collection in your library.
Highest35,906Allegheny County
Median1,98767 counties
Pennsylvania361,303History

Map of counties, 2020

Adams County: 2,163 countAllegheny County: 35,906 countArmstrong County: 1,477 countBeaver County: 3,677 countBedford County: 1,186 countBerks County: 8,844 countBlair County: 3,428 countBradford County: 1,575 countBucks County: 20,265 countButler County: 5,112 countCambria County: 3,358 countCameron County: 152 countCarbon County: 1,260 countCentre County: 3,644 countChester County: 15,791 countClarion County: 1,060 countClearfield County: 2,105 countClinton County: 909 countColumbia County: 1,565 countCrawford County: 2,161 countCumberland County: 6,629 countDauphin County: 7,468 countDelaware County: 14,079 countElk County: 978 countErie County: 6,826 countFayette County: 2,827 countForest County: 157 countFranklin County: 3,330 countFulton County: 315 countGreene County: 801 countHuntingdon County: 996 countIndiana County: 1,972 countJefferson County: 1,197 countJuniata County: 541 countLackawanna County: 5,568 countLancaster County: 13,792 countLawrence County: 1,987 countLebanon County: 2,851 countLehigh County: 8,741 countLuzerne County: 7,416 countLycoming County: 3,120 countMcKean County: 1,132 countMercer County: 2,902 countMifflin County: 1,062 countMonroe County: 3,538 countMontgomery County: 27,925 countMontour County: 484 countNorthampton County: 6,820 countNorthumberland County: 1,847 countPerry County: 887 countPhiladelphia County: 34,705 countPike County: 1,055 countPotter County: 451 countSchuylkill County: 3,028 countSnyder County: 980 countSomerset County: 1,845 countSullivan County: 198 countSusquehanna County: 970 countTioga County: 1,038 countUnion County: 1,012 countVenango County: 1,230 countWarren County: 1,013 countWashington County: 5,530 countWayne County: 1,382 countWestmoreland County: 9,155 countWyoming County: 711 countYork County: 9,171 count
  • Under 1,000
  • 1,000 to 1,200
  • 1,200 to 2,000
  • 2,000 to 3,400
  • 3,400 to 7,500
  • 7,500 and over
count, 2020. 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, 2020

Allegheny County: 35,906 countAllegheny County35,906Philadelphia County: 34,705 countPhiladelphia County34,705Montgomery County: 27,925 countMontgomery County27,925Bucks County: 20,265 countBucks County20,265Chester County: 15,791 countChester County15,791Delaware County: 14,079 countDelaware County14,079Lancaster County: 13,792 countLancaster County13,792York County: 9,171 countYork County9,171Westmoreland County: 9,155 countWestmoreland County9,155Berks County: 8,844 countBerks County8,844Lehigh County: 8,741 countLehigh County8,741Dauphin County: 7,468 countDauphin County7,468Luzerne County: 7,416 countLuzerne County7,416Erie County: 6,826 countErie County6,826Northampton County: 6,820 countNorthampton County6,820Cumberland County: 6,629 countCumberland County6,629Lackawanna County: 5,568 countLackawanna County5,568Washington County: 5,530 countWashington County5,530Butler County: 5,112 countButler County5,112Beaver County: 3,677 countBeaver County3,677Centre County: 3,644 countCentre County3,644Monroe County: 3,538 countMonroe County3,538Blair County: 3,428 countBlair County3,428Cambria County: 3,358 countCambria County3,358Franklin County: 3,330 countFranklin County3,330Lycoming County: 3,120 countLycoming County3,120Schuylkill County: 3,028 countSchuylkill County3,028Mercer County: 2,902 countMercer County2,902Lebanon County: 2,851 countLebanon County2,851Fayette County: 2,827 countFayette County2,827Adams County: 2,163 countAdams County2,163Crawford County: 2,161 countCrawford County2,161Clearfield County: 2,105 countClearfield County2,105Lawrence County: 1,987 countLawrence County1,987Indiana County: 1,972 countIndiana County1,972Northumberland County: 1,847 countNorthumberland County1,847Somerset County: 1,845 countSomerset County1,845Bradford County: 1,575 countBradford County1,575Columbia County: 1,565 countColumbia County1,565Armstrong County: 1,477 countArmstrong County1,477Allegheny County: 35,906 countAllegheny County35,906Philadelphia County: 34,705 countPhiladelphia County34,705Montgomery County: 27,925 countMontgomery County27,925Bucks County: 20,265 countBucks County20,265Chester County: 15,791 countChester County15,791Delaware County: 14,079 countDelaware County14,079Lancaster County: 13,792 countLancaster County13,792York County: 9,171 countYork County9,171Westmoreland County: 9,155 countWestmoreland County9,155Berks County: 8,844 countBerks County8,844Lehigh County: 8,741 countLehigh County8,741Dauphin County: 7,468 countDauphin County7,468Luzerne County: 7,416 countLuzerne County7,416Erie County: 6,826 countErie County6,826Northampton County: 6,820 countNorthampton County6,820Cumberland County: 6,629 countCumberland County6,629Lackawanna County: 5,568 countLackawanna County5,568Washington County: 5,530 countWashington County5,530Butler County: 5,112 countButler County5,112Beaver County: 3,677 countBeaver County3,677Centre County: 3,644 countCentre County3,644Monroe County: 3,538 countMonroe County3,538Blair County: 3,428 countBlair County3,428Cambria County: 3,358 countCambria County3,358Franklin County: 3,330 countFranklin County3,330Lycoming County: 3,120 countLycoming County3,120Schuylkill County: 3,028 countSchuylkill County3,028Mercer County: 2,902 countMercer County2,902Lebanon County: 2,851 countLebanon County2,851Fayette County: 2,827 countFayette County2,827Adams County: 2,163 countAdams County2,163Crawford County: 2,161 countCrawford County2,161Clearfield County: 2,105 countClearfield County2,105Lawrence County: 1,987 countLawrence County1,987Indiana County: 1,972 countIndiana County1,972Northumberland County: 1,847 countNorthumberland County1,847Somerset County: 1,845 countSomerset County1,845Bradford County: 1,575 countBradford County1,575Columbia County: 1,565 countColumbia County1,565Armstrong County: 1,477 countArmstrong County1,477
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

RankCounties2020
count
Change on 2019
1Allegheny County35,906+1%
2Philadelphia County34,705-0.1%
3Montgomery County27,925+0.6%
4Bucks County20,265+0.3%
5Chester County15,791+0.8%
6Delaware County14,079+0.2%
7Lancaster County13,792+0.4%
8York County9,171-0.3%
9Westmoreland County9,155-0.7%
10Berks County8,844-0.7%
11Lehigh County8,741-0.8%
12Dauphin County7,468+0.4%
13Luzerne County7,416+0.2%
14Erie County6,826-1.2%
15Northampton County6,8200%
16Cumberland County6,629+0.9%
17Lackawanna County5,568-0.7%
18Washington County5,530-0.3%
19Butler County5,112+0.3%
20Beaver County3,677-0.2%
21Centre County3,644+1.1%
22Monroe County3,538-0.3%
23Blair County3,428+0.4%
24Cambria County3,358-1.9%
25Franklin County3,330-0.3%
26Lycoming County3,120-0.8%
27Schuylkill County3,028-0.3%
28Mercer County2,902-1.2%
29Lebanon County2,851-0.7%
30Fayette County2,827-1%
31Adams County2,163-1.1%
32Crawford County2,161-0.8%
33Clearfield County2,105-0.9%
34Lawrence County1,987-0.1%
35Indiana County1,972-1.8%
36Northumberland County1,847-0.4%
37Somerset County1,845-1.9%
38Bradford County1,575-1.1%
39Columbia County1,565-0.6%
40Armstrong County1,4770%
41Wayne County1,382-1.3%
42Carbon County1,260-0.3%
43Venango County1,230-1.6%
44Jefferson County1,197-1.3%
45Bedford County1,186-1.8%
46McKean County1,132-2.2%
47Mifflin County1,062+0.4%
48Clarion County1,060-1.1%
49Pike County1,055+0.5%
50Tioga County1,038-0.3%
51Warren County1,013-4.3%
52Union County1,012-0.4%
53Huntingdon County996+0.1%
54Snyder County980+0.1%
55Elk County978-0.1%
56Susquehanna County970-1.9%
57Clinton County909-0.3%
58Perry County887-0.6%
59Greene County8010%
60Wyoming County711-0.3%
61Juniata County541+1.3%
62Montour County484+4.5%
63Potter County451-0.7%
64Fulton County3150%
65Sullivan County198-0.5%
66Forest County157-5.4%
67Cameron County152+0.7%

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/2020/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 Pennsylvania by business establishments (QCEW), 2020) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2020/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 Pennsylvania by business establishments (QCEW), 2020. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 21 Aug. 2026, https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2020/a/industry/10.csv. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/business-establishments/pennsylvania-counties?period=2020. 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 Pennsylvania by business establishments (QCEW), 2020. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2020/a/industry/10.csv. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/business-establishments/pennsylvania-counties?period=2020.

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 Pennsylvania by business establishments (QCEW), 2020 [Dataset]. Available at: https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2020/a/industry/10.csv, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/business-establishments/pennsylvania-counties?period=2020 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{bureau_counties_in_pennsylvania_by_2020,
  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 Pennsylvania by business establishments (QCEW), 2020}},
  year = {2026},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2020/a/industry/10.csv},
  urldate = {2026-10-12},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/business-establishments/pennsylvania-counties?period=2020. 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/2020/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 Pennsylvania by business establishments (QCEW), 2020
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/08/21
PB  - U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2020/a/industry/10.csv
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/business-establishments/pennsylvania-counties?period=2020
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/business-establishments/pennsylvania-counties?period=2020.
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/2020/a/industry/10.csv. Retrieved 2026-10-12.
ER  - 
Embed this chart

Paste this code into a web page or a blog post. The chart shows the latest figures as they are published, with the source and a link back to this page.

Sites that read oEmbed links, such as WordPress, can show the chart when you paste the link to this page.

Use this data in your AI agent

Invokely serves this figure to AI assistants through MCP and to code through a REST API, with the source and citation attached. Ask your assistant:

Rank Counties in Pennsylvania by business establishments (QCEW) using official data, and cite the source.
rank_places {"indicator":"establishments_qcew","level":"province","within":"Pennsylvania","limit":10}
GET https://invokely.ai/api/v1/rank?indicator=establishments_qcew&level=province&within=Pennsylvania&limit=10

Connect Claude, ChatGPT or Cursor in one step. The trial answers 25 calls a day without an account.

Questions

Which county has the highest business establishments (QCEW)?

Allegheny County, with 35,906 in 2020, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Which county has the lowest business establishments (QCEW)?

Cameron County, with 152 in 2020.

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 Pennsylvania: more rankings