Data / Rankings / Covered employment (QCEW) / Counties in Alabama

Counties in Alabama by covered employment (QCEW), 2025

Jefferson County had the highest covered employment (QCEW) of 67 counties in 2025, at 368,875 jobs. Coosa County had the lowest, at 1,456 jobs. The median was 10,057 jobs and the figure for Alabama was 2,118,878 jobs. Source: the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Keep it in a collection in your library.
Highest368,875Jefferson County
Lowest1,456Coosa County
Median10,05767 counties
Alabama2,118,878History

Map of counties, 2025

Autauga County: 12,976 jobsBaldwin County: 87,943 jobsBarbour County: 7,689 jobsBibb County: 4,917 jobsBlount County: 9,229 jobsBullock County: 2,613 jobsButler County: 6,796 jobsCalhoun County: 43,473 jobsChambers County: 9,358 jobsCherokee County: 5,446 jobsChilton County: 9,431 jobsChoctaw County: 3,364 jobsClarke County: 7,704 jobsClay County: 4,238 jobsCleburne County: 2,830 jobsCoffee County: 17,705 jobsColbert County: 24,754 jobsConecuh County: 3,383 jobsCoosa County: 1,456 jobsCovington County: 12,461 jobsCrenshaw County: 3,441 jobsCullman County: 31,028 jobsDale County: 18,014 jobsDallas County: 11,478 jobsDeKalb County: 23,861 jobsElmore County: 22,162 jobsEscambia County: 12,951 jobsEtowah County: 33,095 jobsFayette County: 3,946 jobsFranklin County: 10,994 jobsGeneva County: 5,591 jobsGreene County: 1,748 jobsHale County: 2,665 jobsHenry County: 3,747 jobsHouston County: 51,288 jobsJackson County: 15,108 jobsJefferson County: 368,875 jobsLamar County: 3,345 jobsLauderdale County: 30,996 jobsLawrence County: 5,551 jobsLee County: 68,299 jobsLimestone County: 34,737 jobsLowndes County: 2,405 jobsMacon County: 4,948 jobsMadison County: 235,169 jobsMarengo County: 7,243 jobsMarion County: 10,057 jobsMarshall County: 41,043 jobsMobile County: 175,010 jobsMonroe County: 5,990 jobsMontgomery County: 132,159 jobsMorgan County: 54,551 jobsPerry County: 1,785 jobsPickens County: 3,681 jobsPike County: 15,481 jobsRandolph County: 4,887 jobsRussell County: 13,969 jobsSt. Clair County: 22,380 jobsShelby County: 84,778 jobsSumter County: 2,908 jobsTalladega County: 31,617 jobsTallapoosa County: 12,920 jobsTuscaloosa County: 98,620 jobsWalker County: 18,858 jobsWashington County: 5,356 jobsWilcox County: 2,696 jobsWinston County: 8,154 jobs
  • Under 3,000
  • 3,000 to 6,000
  • 6,000 to 10K
  • 10K to 18K
  • 18K to 41K
  • 41K and over
jobs, 2025. Source: BLS, Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW): annual average employment, total covered, all industries (NAICS 10), nation, states and counties. Boundaries: U.S. Census Bureau cartographic boundary files.

Top 40 counties, 2025

Jefferson County: 368,875 jobsJefferson County368,875Madison County: 235,169 jobsMadison County235,169Mobile County: 175,010 jobsMobile County175,010Montgomery County: 132,159 jobsMontgomery County132,159Tuscaloosa County: 98,620 jobsTuscaloosa County98,620Baldwin County: 87,943 jobsBaldwin County87,943Shelby County: 84,778 jobsShelby County84,778Lee County: 68,299 jobsLee County68,299Morgan County: 54,551 jobsMorgan County54,551Houston County: 51,288 jobsHouston County51,288Calhoun County: 43,473 jobsCalhoun County43,473Marshall County: 41,043 jobsMarshall County41,043Limestone County: 34,737 jobsLimestone County34,737Etowah County: 33,095 jobsEtowah County33,095Talladega County: 31,617 jobsTalladega County31,617Cullman County: 31,028 jobsCullman County31,028Lauderdale County: 30,996 jobsLauderdale County30,996Colbert County: 24,754 jobsColbert County24,754DeKalb County: 23,861 jobsDeKalb County23,861St. Clair County: 22,380 jobsSt. Clair County22,380Elmore County: 22,162 jobsElmore County22,162Walker County: 18,858 jobsWalker County18,858Dale County: 18,014 jobsDale County18,014Coffee County: 17,705 jobsCoffee County17,705Pike County: 15,481 jobsPike County15,481Jackson County: 15,108 jobsJackson County15,108Russell County: 13,969 jobsRussell County13,969Autauga County: 12,976 jobsAutauga County12,976Escambia County: 12,951 jobsEscambia County12,951Tallapoosa County: 12,920 jobsTallapoosa County12,920Covington County: 12,461 jobsCovington County12,461Dallas County: 11,478 jobsDallas County11,478Franklin County: 10,994 jobsFranklin County10,994Marion County: 10,057 jobsMarion County10,057Chilton County: 9,431 jobsChilton County9,431Chambers County: 9,358 jobsChambers County9,358Blount County: 9,229 jobsBlount County9,229Winston County: 8,154 jobsWinston County8,154Clarke County: 7,704 jobsClarke County7,704Barbour County: 7,689 jobsBarbour County7,689Jefferson County: 368,875 jobsJefferson County368,875Madison County: 235,169 jobsMadison County235,169Mobile County: 175,010 jobsMobile County175,010Montgomery County: 132,159 jobsMontgomery County132,159Tuscaloosa County: 98,620 jobsTuscaloosa County98,620Baldwin County: 87,943 jobsBaldwin County87,943Shelby County: 84,778 jobsShelby County84,778Lee County: 68,299 jobsLee County68,299Morgan County: 54,551 jobsMorgan County54,551Houston County: 51,288 jobsHouston County51,288Calhoun County: 43,473 jobsCalhoun County43,473Marshall County: 41,043 jobsMarshall County41,043Limestone County: 34,737 jobsLimestone County34,737Etowah County: 33,095 jobsEtowah County33,095Talladega County: 31,617 jobsTalladega County31,617Cullman County: 31,028 jobsCullman County31,028Lauderdale County: 30,996 jobsLauderdale County30,996Colbert County: 24,754 jobsColbert County24,754DeKalb County: 23,861 jobsDeKalb County23,861St. Clair County: 22,380 jobsSt. Clair County22,380Elmore County: 22,162 jobsElmore County22,162Walker County: 18,858 jobsWalker County18,858Dale County: 18,014 jobsDale County18,014Coffee County: 17,705 jobsCoffee County17,705Pike County: 15,481 jobsPike County15,481Jackson County: 15,108 jobsJackson County15,108Russell County: 13,969 jobsRussell County13,969Autauga County: 12,976 jobsAutauga County12,976Escambia County: 12,951 jobsEscambia County12,951Tallapoosa County: 12,920 jobsTallapoosa County12,920Covington County: 12,461 jobsCovington County12,461Dallas County: 11,478 jobsDallas County11,478Franklin County: 10,994 jobsFranklin County10,994Marion County: 10,057 jobsMarion County10,057Chilton County: 9,431 jobsChilton County9,431Chambers County: 9,358 jobsChambers County9,358Blount County: 9,229 jobsBlount County9,229Winston County: 8,154 jobsWinston County8,154Clarke County: 7,704 jobsClarke County7,704Barbour County: 7,689 jobsBarbour County7,689
jobs. Source: BLS, Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW): annual average employment, total covered, all industries (NAICS 10), nation, states and counties. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Full ranking

RankCounties2025
jobs		Change on 2024
1Jefferson County368,875+0.5%
2Madison County235,169+2.3%
3Mobile County175,010-0.2%
4Montgomery County132,159-0.6%
5Tuscaloosa County98,620-0.7%
6Baldwin County87,943+3.3%
7Shelby County84,778-0.5%
8Lee County68,299+2.5%
9Morgan County54,551+3.7%
10Houston County51,288+0.8%
11Calhoun County43,473-0.7%
12Marshall County41,043+0.6%
13Limestone County34,737+1.9%
14Etowah County33,095+0.3%
15Talladega County31,617-0.2%
16Cullman County31,028-0.1%
17Lauderdale County30,996+0.5%
18Colbert County24,754+1.1%
19DeKalb County23,861+2.1%
20St. Clair County22,380+1.8%
21Elmore County22,162+2.9%
22Walker County18,858+0.8%
23Dale County18,014-1.3%
24Coffee County17,705+2%
25Pike County15,481+0.5%
26Jackson County15,108-2.2%
27Russell County13,969-0.6%
28Autauga County12,976+4.8%
29Escambia County12,951+0.2%
30Tallapoosa County12,920-1%
31Covington County12,461+2.4%
32Dallas County11,478+1.7%
33Franklin County10,994+0.3%
34Marion County10,057-1.6%
35Chilton County9,431+3.1%
36Chambers County9,358+3%
37Blount County9,229+1.5%
38Winston County8,154+2%
39Clarke County7,704-5.5%
40Barbour County7,689-0.3%
41Marengo County7,243-0.4%
42Butler County6,796+0.1%
43Monroe County5,990+0.6%
44Geneva County5,591+2.2%
45Lawrence County5,551-8.3%
46Cherokee County5,446+1.8%
47Washington County5,356+3.1%
48Macon County4,948+2.5%
49Bibb County4,917+1.8%
50Randolph County4,887+0.1%
51Clay County4,238-0.1%
52Fayette County3,946+0.5%
53Henry County3,747-4.4%
54Pickens County3,681-1%
55Crenshaw County3,441-3.2%
56Conecuh County3,383+2.7%
57Choctaw County3,364+2%
58Lamar County3,345-1.7%
59Sumter County2,908+2.1%
60Cleburne County2,830+4%
61Wilcox County2,696+0.5%
62Hale County2,665+2.2%
63Bullock County2,613-6.3%
64Lowndes County2,405-10.1%
65Perry County1,785-2.2%
66Greene County1,748+0.4%
67Coosa County1,456+0.3%

Other periods

About this ranking

Average number of 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. Counted where the job is located, from the reports employers file each quarter; monthly employment counts the jobs in the pay period that includes the 12th.

Counts jobs, not people: someone with two jobs counts twice. Covers about 95 percent of US wage and salary jobs. Excludes the self-employed, most agricultural workers on small farms, the armed forces, elected officials in most states, most railroad employees, some domestic workers and most student workers at schools. A count of employer reports, not a survey estimate like oews_employment.

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 employment, total covered, all industries (NAICS 10), nation, states and counties. https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2025/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 employment, total covered, all industries (NAICS 10), nation, states and counties (Counties in Alabama by covered employment (QCEW), 2025) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2025/a/industry/10.csv

MLA 9

Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW): annual average employment, total covered, all industries (NAICS 10), nation, states and counties, Counties in Alabama by covered employment (QCEW), 2025. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 21 Aug. 2026, https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2025/a/industry/10.csv. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/alabama-counties. Accessed 12 Oct. 2026.

Chicago (author-date)

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. 2026. Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW): annual average employment, total covered, all industries (NAICS 10), nation, states and counties. Counties in Alabama by covered employment (QCEW), 2025. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2025/a/industry/10.csv. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/alabama-counties.

Harvard

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (2026) Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW): annual average employment, total covered, all industries (NAICS 10), nation, states and counties, Counties in Alabama by covered employment (QCEW), 2025 [Dataset]. Available at: https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2025/a/industry/10.csv, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/alabama-counties (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{bureau_counties_in_alabama_by_2025,
  author = {{U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics}},
  title = {{Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW): annual average employment, total covered, all industries (NAICS 10), nation, states and counties: Counties in Alabama by covered employment (QCEW), 2025}},
  year = {2026},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2025/a/industry/10.csv},
  urldate = {2026-10-12},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/alabama-counties. Publisher attribution: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW): annual average employment, total covered, all industries (NAICS 10), nation, states and counties. https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2025/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 employment, total covered, all industries (NAICS 10), nation, states and counties: Counties in Alabama by covered employment (QCEW), 2025
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/08/21
PB  - U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2025/a/industry/10.csv
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/alabama-counties
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/alabama-counties.
N1  - Publisher attribution: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW): annual average employment, total covered, all industries (NAICS 10), nation, states and counties. https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2025/a/industry/10.csv. Retrieved 2026-10-12.
ER  -
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Questions

Which county has the highest covered employment (QCEW)?

Jefferson County, with 368,875 jobs in 2025, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Which county has the lowest covered employment (QCEW)?

Coosa County, with 1,456 jobs in 2025.

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

Covered employment (QCEW): other rankings

Counties in Alabama: more rankings