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

Counties in Alabama by covered employment (QCEW)

Jefferson County had the highest covered employment (QCEW) of 67 counties in 2018, at 349,955 jobs. Coosa County had the lowest, at 1,406 jobs. The median was 9,990 jobs and the figure for Alabama was 1,961,625 jobs. Source: the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Keep it in a collection in your library.
Highest349,955Jefferson County
Lowest1,406Coosa County
Median9,99067 counties
Alabama1,961,625History

Map of counties, 2018

Autauga County: 10,974 jobsBaldwin County: 74,051 jobsBarbour County: 8,113 jobsBibb County: 4,215 jobsBlount County: 8,535 jobsBullock County: 2,972 jobsButler County: 6,748 jobsCalhoun County: 44,436 jobsChambers County: 8,351 jobsCherokee County: 5,268 jobsChilton County: 9,511 jobsChoctaw County: 3,761 jobsClarke County: 8,016 jobsClay County: 4,275 jobsCleburne County: 2,124 jobsCoffee County: 15,881 jobsColbert County: 23,830 jobsConecuh County: 3,475 jobsCoosa County: 1,406 jobsCovington County: 12,373 jobsCrenshaw County: 3,685 jobsCullman County: 28,849 jobsDale County: 16,978 jobsDallas County: 12,460 jobsDeKalb County: 21,797 jobsElmore County: 19,848 jobsEscambia County: 12,774 jobsEtowah County: 36,276 jobsFayette County: 4,020 jobsFranklin County: 10,811 jobsGeneva County: 5,012 jobsGreene County: 1,770 jobsHale County: 2,732 jobsHenry County: 3,339 jobsHouston County: 48,045 jobsJackson County: 15,893 jobsJefferson County: 349,955 jobsLamar County: 3,457 jobsLauderdale County: 29,738 jobsLawrence County: 4,901 jobsLee County: 58,997 jobsLimestone County: 23,979 jobsLowndes County: 2,354 jobsMacon County: 4,750 jobsMadison County: 200,339 jobsMarengo County: 7,084 jobsMarion County: 9,990 jobsMarshall County: 37,023 jobsMobile County: 171,077 jobsMonroe County: 6,126 jobsMontgomery County: 131,023 jobsMorgan County: 48,357 jobsPerry County: 2,121 jobsPickens County: 3,814 jobsPike County: 14,255 jobsRandolph County: 4,824 jobsRussell County: 14,063 jobsSt. Clair County: 19,780 jobsShelby County: 85,040 jobsSumter County: 2,919 jobsTalladega County: 29,683 jobsTallapoosa County: 12,961 jobsTuscaloosa County: 94,506 jobsWalker County: 18,311 jobsWashington County: 3,585 jobsWilcox County: 2,815 jobsWinston County: 7,878 jobs
  • Under 3,000
  • 3,000 to 5,000
  • 5,000 to 10K
  • 10K to 17K
  • 17K to 37K
  • 37K and over
jobs, 2018. 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, 2018

Jefferson County: 349,955 jobsJefferson County349,955Madison County: 200,339 jobsMadison County200,339Mobile County: 171,077 jobsMobile County171,077Montgomery County: 131,023 jobsMontgomery County131,023Tuscaloosa County: 94,506 jobsTuscaloosa County94,506Shelby County: 85,040 jobsShelby County85,040Baldwin County: 74,051 jobsBaldwin County74,051Lee County: 58,997 jobsLee County58,997Morgan County: 48,357 jobsMorgan County48,357Houston County: 48,045 jobsHouston County48,045Calhoun County: 44,436 jobsCalhoun County44,436Marshall County: 37,023 jobsMarshall County37,023Etowah County: 36,276 jobsEtowah County36,276Lauderdale County: 29,738 jobsLauderdale County29,738Talladega County: 29,683 jobsTalladega County29,683Cullman County: 28,849 jobsCullman County28,849Limestone County: 23,979 jobsLimestone County23,979Colbert County: 23,830 jobsColbert County23,830DeKalb County: 21,797 jobsDeKalb County21,797Elmore County: 19,848 jobsElmore County19,848St. Clair County: 19,780 jobsSt. Clair County19,780Walker County: 18,311 jobsWalker County18,311Dale County: 16,978 jobsDale County16,978Jackson County: 15,893 jobsJackson County15,893Coffee County: 15,881 jobsCoffee County15,881Pike County: 14,255 jobsPike County14,255Russell County: 14,063 jobsRussell County14,063Tallapoosa County: 12,961 jobsTallapoosa County12,961Escambia County: 12,774 jobsEscambia County12,774Dallas County: 12,460 jobsDallas County12,460Covington County: 12,373 jobsCovington County12,373Autauga County: 10,974 jobsAutauga County10,974Franklin County: 10,811 jobsFranklin County10,811Marion County: 9,990 jobsMarion County9,990Chilton County: 9,511 jobsChilton County9,511Blount County: 8,535 jobsBlount County8,535Chambers County: 8,351 jobsChambers County8,351Barbour County: 8,113 jobsBarbour County8,113Clarke County: 8,016 jobsClarke County8,016Winston County: 7,878 jobsWinston County7,878Jefferson County: 349,955 jobsJefferson County349,955Madison County: 200,339 jobsMadison County200,339Mobile County: 171,077 jobsMobile County171,077Montgomery County: 131,023 jobsMontgomery County131,023Tuscaloosa County: 94,506 jobsTuscaloosa County94,506Shelby County: 85,040 jobsShelby County85,040Baldwin County: 74,051 jobsBaldwin County74,051Lee County: 58,997 jobsLee County58,997Morgan County: 48,357 jobsMorgan County48,357Houston County: 48,045 jobsHouston County48,045Calhoun County: 44,436 jobsCalhoun County44,436Marshall County: 37,023 jobsMarshall County37,023Etowah County: 36,276 jobsEtowah County36,276Lauderdale County: 29,738 jobsLauderdale County29,738Talladega County: 29,683 jobsTalladega County29,683Cullman County: 28,849 jobsCullman County28,849Limestone County: 23,979 jobsLimestone County23,979Colbert County: 23,830 jobsColbert County23,830DeKalb County: 21,797 jobsDeKalb County21,797Elmore County: 19,848 jobsElmore County19,848St. Clair County: 19,780 jobsSt. Clair County19,780Walker County: 18,311 jobsWalker County18,311Dale County: 16,978 jobsDale County16,978Jackson County: 15,893 jobsJackson County15,893Coffee County: 15,881 jobsCoffee County15,881Pike County: 14,255 jobsPike County14,255Russell County: 14,063 jobsRussell County14,063Tallapoosa County: 12,961 jobsTallapoosa County12,961Escambia County: 12,774 jobsEscambia County12,774Dallas County: 12,460 jobsDallas County12,460Covington County: 12,373 jobsCovington County12,373Autauga County: 10,974 jobsAutauga County10,974Franklin County: 10,811 jobsFranklin County10,811Marion County: 9,990 jobsMarion County9,990Chilton County: 9,511 jobsChilton County9,511Blount County: 8,535 jobsBlount County8,535Chambers County: 8,351 jobsChambers County8,351Barbour County: 8,113 jobsBarbour County8,113Clarke County: 8,016 jobsClarke County8,016Winston County: 7,878 jobsWinston County7,878
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

RankCounties2018
jobs		Change on 2017
1Jefferson County349,955+1.6%
2Madison County200,339+2.4%
3Mobile County171,077+0.6%
4Montgomery County131,023-0.8%
5Tuscaloosa County94,506+1.9%
6Shelby County85,040+0.3%
7Baldwin County74,051+2.9%
8Lee County58,997+1.1%
9Morgan County48,357+2.7%
10Houston County48,045+0.6%
11Calhoun County44,436+0.4%
12Marshall County37,023+1.3%
13Etowah County36,276+0.2%
14Lauderdale County29,738+0.3%
15Talladega County29,683+1.9%
16Cullman County28,849+0.4%
17Limestone County23,979+3.1%
18Colbert County23,830+0.1%
19DeKalb County21,797+3.4%
20Elmore County19,848-0%
21St. Clair County19,780+0.6%
22Walker County18,311+1.9%
23Dale County16,978+1.1%
24Jackson County15,893+0.7%
25Coffee County15,881+1.3%
26Pike County14,255-0.8%
27Russell County14,063+0.7%
28Tallapoosa County12,961-2.5%
29Escambia County12,774-0.4%
30Dallas County12,460-0.1%
31Covington County12,373-0.6%
32Autauga County10,974+1.4%
33Franklin County10,811+2.5%
34Marion County9,990+0.9%
35Chilton County9,511+2.2%
36Blount County8,535+2.5%
37Chambers County8,351+0.5%
38Barbour County8,113+1.3%
39Clarke County8,016-0.5%
40Winston County7,878+2.1%
41Marengo County7,084-0.3%
42Butler County6,748+0.8%
43Monroe County6,126+0.1%
44Cherokee County5,268+4.5%
45Geneva County5,012+2.5%
46Lawrence County4,901+2.4%
47Randolph County4,824+0.2%
48Macon County4,750-1.7%
49Clay County4,275+4.2%
50Bibb County4,215+2.6%
51Fayette County4,020-0.6%
52Pickens County3,814-1.1%
53Choctaw County3,761+9.4%
54Crenshaw County3,685-1.1%
55Washington County3,585-0.1%
56Conecuh County3,475+1.8%
57Lamar County3,457-1%
58Henry County3,339+2%
59Bullock County2,972-1%
60Sumter County2,919-1.5%
61Wilcox County2,815-0%
62Hale County2,732-0.1%
63Lowndes County2,354+1%
64Cleburne County2,124-0.7%
65Perry County2,121+0.5%
66Greene County1,770+0.4%
67Coosa County1,406+1.6%

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/2018/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), 2018) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2018/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), 2018. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 21 Aug. 2026, https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2018/a/industry/10.csv. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/alabama-counties?period=2018. 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), 2018. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2018/a/industry/10.csv. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/alabama-counties?period=2018.

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), 2018 [Dataset]. Available at: https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2018/a/industry/10.csv, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/alabama-counties?period=2018 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{bureau_counties_in_alabama_by_2018,
  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), 2018}},
  year = {2026},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2018/a/industry/10.csv},
  urldate = {2026-10-12},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/alabama-counties?period=2018. 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/2018/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), 2018
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/08/21
PB  - U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2018/a/industry/10.csv
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/alabama-counties?period=2018
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/alabama-counties?period=2018.
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/2018/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 349,955 jobs in 2018, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Which county has the lowest covered employment (QCEW)?

Coosa County, with 1,406 jobs in 2018.

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