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 2020, at 337,153 jobs. Coosa County had the lowest, at 1,307 jobs. The median was 10,157 jobs and the figure for Alabama was 1,909,145 jobs. Source: the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Keep it in a collection in your library.
Highest337,153Jefferson County
Lowest1,307Coosa County
Median10,15767 counties
Alabama1,909,145History

Map of counties, 2020

Autauga County: 10,794 jobsBaldwin County: 73,087 jobsBarbour County: 7,935 jobsBibb County: 4,653 jobsBlount County: 8,380 jobsBullock County: 2,913 jobsButler County: 6,382 jobsCalhoun County: 42,802 jobsChambers County: 8,267 jobsCherokee County: 4,956 jobsChilton County: 9,007 jobsChoctaw County: 3,514 jobsClarke County: 7,841 jobsClay County: 4,251 jobsCleburne County: 2,104 jobsCoffee County: 15,899 jobsColbert County: 23,145 jobsConecuh County: 3,291 jobsCoosa County: 1,307 jobsCovington County: 11,587 jobsCrenshaw County: 3,426 jobsCullman County: 28,128 jobsDale County: 16,925 jobsDallas County: 11,316 jobsDeKalb County: 21,501 jobsElmore County: 19,290 jobsEscambia County: 12,270 jobsEtowah County: 32,042 jobsFayette County: 3,892 jobsFranklin County: 10,678 jobsGeneva County: 5,092 jobsGreene County: 1,834 jobsHale County: 2,530 jobsHenry County: 3,536 jobsHouston County: 47,226 jobsJackson County: 14,600 jobsJefferson County: 337,153 jobsLamar County: 3,321 jobsLauderdale County: 28,295 jobsLawrence County: 4,886 jobsLee County: 57,378 jobsLimestone County: 24,015 jobsLowndes County: 2,192 jobsMacon County: 4,482 jobsMadison County: 202,530 jobsMarengo County: 6,926 jobsMarion County: 10,157 jobsMarshall County: 37,252 jobsMobile County: 164,350 jobsMonroe County: 6,135 jobsMontgomery County: 124,286 jobsMorgan County: 49,045 jobsPerry County: 1,920 jobsPickens County: 3,561 jobsPike County: 14,334 jobsRandolph County: 4,662 jobsRussell County: 13,623 jobsSt. Clair County: 18,836 jobsShelby County: 81,126 jobsSumter County: 2,866 jobsTalladega County: 28,951 jobsTallapoosa County: 12,352 jobsTuscaloosa County: 90,085 jobsWalker County: 17,326 jobsWashington County: 3,454 jobsWilcox County: 2,679 jobsWinston County: 8,017 jobs
  • Under 3,000
  • 3,000 to 5,000
  • 5,000 to 10K
  • 10K to 17K
  • 17K to 37K
  • 37K and over
jobs, 2020. 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, 2020

Jefferson County: 337,153 jobsJefferson County337,153Madison County: 202,530 jobsMadison County202,530Mobile County: 164,350 jobsMobile County164,350Montgomery County: 124,286 jobsMontgomery County124,286Tuscaloosa County: 90,085 jobsTuscaloosa County90,085Shelby County: 81,126 jobsShelby County81,126Baldwin County: 73,087 jobsBaldwin County73,087Lee County: 57,378 jobsLee County57,378Morgan County: 49,045 jobsMorgan County49,045Houston County: 47,226 jobsHouston County47,226Calhoun County: 42,802 jobsCalhoun County42,802Marshall County: 37,252 jobsMarshall County37,252Etowah County: 32,042 jobsEtowah County32,042Talladega County: 28,951 jobsTalladega County28,951Lauderdale County: 28,295 jobsLauderdale County28,295Cullman County: 28,128 jobsCullman County28,128Limestone County: 24,015 jobsLimestone County24,015Colbert County: 23,145 jobsColbert County23,145DeKalb County: 21,501 jobsDeKalb County21,501Elmore County: 19,290 jobsElmore County19,290St. Clair County: 18,836 jobsSt. Clair County18,836Walker County: 17,326 jobsWalker County17,326Dale County: 16,925 jobsDale County16,925Coffee County: 15,899 jobsCoffee County15,899Jackson County: 14,600 jobsJackson County14,600Pike County: 14,334 jobsPike County14,334Russell County: 13,623 jobsRussell County13,623Tallapoosa County: 12,352 jobsTallapoosa County12,352Escambia County: 12,270 jobsEscambia County12,270Covington County: 11,587 jobsCovington County11,587Dallas County: 11,316 jobsDallas County11,316Autauga County: 10,794 jobsAutauga County10,794Franklin County: 10,678 jobsFranklin County10,678Marion County: 10,157 jobsMarion County10,157Chilton County: 9,007 jobsChilton County9,007Blount County: 8,380 jobsBlount County8,380Chambers County: 8,267 jobsChambers County8,267Winston County: 8,017 jobsWinston County8,017Barbour County: 7,935 jobsBarbour County7,935Clarke County: 7,841 jobsClarke County7,841Jefferson County: 337,153 jobsJefferson County337,153Madison County: 202,530 jobsMadison County202,530Mobile County: 164,350 jobsMobile County164,350Montgomery County: 124,286 jobsMontgomery County124,286Tuscaloosa County: 90,085 jobsTuscaloosa County90,085Shelby County: 81,126 jobsShelby County81,126Baldwin County: 73,087 jobsBaldwin County73,087Lee County: 57,378 jobsLee County57,378Morgan County: 49,045 jobsMorgan County49,045Houston County: 47,226 jobsHouston County47,226Calhoun County: 42,802 jobsCalhoun County42,802Marshall County: 37,252 jobsMarshall County37,252Etowah County: 32,042 jobsEtowah County32,042Talladega County: 28,951 jobsTalladega County28,951Lauderdale County: 28,295 jobsLauderdale County28,295Cullman County: 28,128 jobsCullman County28,128Limestone County: 24,015 jobsLimestone County24,015Colbert County: 23,145 jobsColbert County23,145DeKalb County: 21,501 jobsDeKalb County21,501Elmore County: 19,290 jobsElmore County19,290St. Clair County: 18,836 jobsSt. Clair County18,836Walker County: 17,326 jobsWalker County17,326Dale County: 16,925 jobsDale County16,925Coffee County: 15,899 jobsCoffee County15,899Jackson County: 14,600 jobsJackson County14,600Pike County: 14,334 jobsPike County14,334Russell County: 13,623 jobsRussell County13,623Tallapoosa County: 12,352 jobsTallapoosa County12,352Escambia County: 12,270 jobsEscambia County12,270Covington County: 11,587 jobsCovington County11,587Dallas County: 11,316 jobsDallas County11,316Autauga County: 10,794 jobsAutauga County10,794Franklin County: 10,678 jobsFranklin County10,678Marion County: 10,157 jobsMarion County10,157Chilton County: 9,007 jobsChilton County9,007Blount County: 8,380 jobsBlount County8,380Chambers County: 8,267 jobsChambers County8,267Winston County: 8,017 jobsWinston County8,017Barbour County: 7,935 jobsBarbour County7,935Clarke County: 7,841 jobsClarke County7,841
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

RankCounties2020
jobs		Change on 2019
1Jefferson County337,153-4.8%
2Madison County202,530-1.7%
3Mobile County164,350-4.4%
4Montgomery County124,286-5%
5Tuscaloosa County90,085-7.4%
6Shelby County81,126-4.5%
7Baldwin County73,087-4.4%
8Lee County57,378-4.8%
9Morgan County49,045-1.8%
10Houston County47,226-3.7%
11Calhoun County42,802-4%
12Marshall County37,252-2.1%
13Etowah County32,042-10%
14Talladega County28,951-3.7%
15Lauderdale County28,295-4.8%
16Cullman County28,128-2.9%
17Limestone County24,015-1.4%
18Colbert County23,145-4.6%
19DeKalb County21,501-3.9%
20Elmore County19,290-3%
21St. Clair County18,836-6.1%
22Walker County17,326-5.9%
23Dale County16,925-1.8%
24Coffee County15,899-3.1%
25Jackson County14,600-6.4%
26Pike County14,3340%
27Russell County13,623-3.9%
28Tallapoosa County12,352-7.7%
29Escambia County12,270-4.7%
30Covington County11,587-5.3%
31Dallas County11,316-7.3%
32Autauga County10,794-2.8%
33Franklin County10,678-3.7%
34Marion County10,157+0.8%
35Chilton County9,007-5.7%
36Blount County8,380-3.8%
37Chambers County8,267-2.5%
38Winston County8,017-1.7%
39Barbour County7,935-3.7%
40Clarke County7,841-1.6%
41Marengo County6,926-3.5%
42Butler County6,382-7.8%
43Monroe County6,135-1.7%
44Geneva County5,092-0.4%
45Cherokee County4,956-5%
46Lawrence County4,886-2.9%
47Randolph County4,662-2.1%
48Bibb County4,653+1.1%
49Macon County4,482-3.2%
50Clay County4,251-1.1%
51Fayette County3,892-2.8%
52Pickens County3,561-4.9%
53Henry County3,536+4.6%
54Choctaw County3,514-3.8%
55Washington County3,454-3.9%
56Crenshaw County3,426-8.4%
57Lamar County3,321-4.3%
58Conecuh County3,291-4.1%
59Bullock County2,913-1.3%
60Sumter County2,866-3.8%
61Wilcox County2,679-4.1%
62Hale County2,530-5.4%
63Lowndes County2,192-5.5%
64Cleburne County2,104+2.6%
65Perry County1,920-8.3%
66Greene County1,834+3.4%
67Coosa County1,307-9.3%

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/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 employment, total covered, all industries (NAICS 10), nation, states and counties (Counties in Alabama by covered employment (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 employment, total covered, all industries (NAICS 10), nation, states and counties, Counties in Alabama by covered employment (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/covered-employment/alabama-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 employment, total covered, all industries (NAICS 10), nation, states and counties. Counties in Alabama by covered employment (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/covered-employment/alabama-counties?period=2020.

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

BibTeX
@misc{bureau_counties_in_alabama_by_2020,
  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), 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/covered-employment/alabama-counties?period=2020. 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/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 employment, total covered, all industries (NAICS 10), nation, states and counties: Counties in Alabama by covered employment (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/covered-employment/alabama-counties?period=2020
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/alabama-counties?period=2020.
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/2020/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 337,153 jobs in 2020, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Which county has the lowest covered employment (QCEW)?

Coosa County, with 1,307 jobs 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 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