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

Counties in Arkansas by covered employment (QCEW)

Pulaski County had the highest covered employment (QCEW) of 75 counties in 2017, at 249,844 jobs. Cleveland County had the lowest, at 975 jobs. The median was 5,425 jobs and the figure for Arkansas was 1,200,542 jobs. Source: the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

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Highest249,844Pulaski County
Lowest975Cleveland County
Median5,42575 counties
Arkansas1,200,542History

Map of counties, 2017

Arkansas County: 9,566 jobsAshley County: 6,613 jobsBaxter County: 14,843 jobsBenton County: 117,551 jobsBoone County: 13,795 jobsBradley County: 3,736 jobsCalhoun County: 2,879 jobsCarroll County: 10,948 jobsChicot County: 3,118 jobsClark County: 9,160 jobsClay County: 3,292 jobsCleburne County: 6,459 jobsCleveland County: 975 jobsColumbia County: 7,920 jobsConway County: 6,385 jobsCraighead County: 50,121 jobsCrawford County: 19,298 jobsCrittenden County: 16,504 jobsCross County: 4,921 jobsDallas County: 2,781 jobsDesha County: 4,623 jobsDrew County: 6,438 jobsFaulkner County: 40,193 jobsFranklin County: 4,591 jobsFulton County: 1,880 jobsGarland County: 36,557 jobsGrant County: 4,054 jobsGreene County: 15,289 jobsHempstead County: 7,790 jobsHot Spring County: 8,452 jobsHoward County: 6,994 jobsIndependence County: 15,656 jobsIzard County: 3,052 jobsJackson County: 5,197 jobsJefferson County: 27,825 jobsJohnson County: 8,699 jobsLafayette County: 1,207 jobsLawrence County: 3,977 jobsLee County: 1,925 jobsLincoln County: 2,782 jobsLittle River County: 3,347 jobsLogan County: 5,425 jobsLonoke County: 13,939 jobsMadison County: 3,292 jobsMarion County: 3,744 jobsMiller County: 12,891 jobsMississippi County: 17,878 jobsMonroe County: 2,084 jobsMontgomery County: 1,352 jobsNevada County: 2,420 jobsNewton County: 1,084 jobsOuachita County: 6,890 jobsPerry County: 1,196 jobsPhillips County: 5,375 jobsPike County: 2,574 jobsPoinsett County: 5,254 jobsPolk County: 5,764 jobsPope County: 25,857 jobsPrairie County: 1,543 jobsPulaski County: 249,844 jobsRandolph County: 5,379 jobsSt. Francis County: 7,421 jobsSaline County: 23,981 jobsScott County: 3,059 jobsSearcy County: 1,533 jobsSebastian County: 65,669 jobsSevier County: 4,859 jobsSharp County: 3,756 jobsStone County: 2,604 jobsUnion County: 17,478 jobsVan Buren County: 3,594 jobsWashington County: 105,302 jobsWhite County: 23,731 jobsWoodruff County: 1,776 jobsYell County: 6,560 jobs
  • Under 3,000
  • 3,000 to 4,000
  • 4,000 to 5,000
  • 5,000 to 9,000
  • 9,000 to 18K
  • 18K and over
jobs, 2017. 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, 2017

Pulaski County: 249,844 jobsPulaski County249,844Benton County: 117,551 jobsBenton County117,551Washington County: 105,302 jobsWashington County105,302Sebastian County: 65,669 jobsSebastian County65,669Craighead County: 50,121 jobsCraighead County50,121Faulkner County: 40,193 jobsFaulkner County40,193Garland County: 36,557 jobsGarland County36,557Jefferson County: 27,825 jobsJefferson County27,825Pope County: 25,857 jobsPope County25,857Saline County: 23,981 jobsSaline County23,981White County: 23,731 jobsWhite County23,731Crawford County: 19,298 jobsCrawford County19,298Mississippi County: 17,878 jobsMississippi County17,878Union County: 17,478 jobsUnion County17,478Crittenden County: 16,504 jobsCrittenden County16,504Independence County: 15,656 jobsIndependence County15,656Greene County: 15,289 jobsGreene County15,289Baxter County: 14,843 jobsBaxter County14,843Lonoke County: 13,939 jobsLonoke County13,939Boone County: 13,795 jobsBoone County13,795Miller County: 12,891 jobsMiller County12,891Carroll County: 10,948 jobsCarroll County10,948Arkansas County: 9,566 jobsArkansas County9,566Clark County: 9,160 jobsClark County9,160Johnson County: 8,699 jobsJohnson County8,699Hot Spring County: 8,452 jobsHot Spring County8,452Columbia County: 7,920 jobsColumbia County7,920Hempstead County: 7,790 jobsHempstead County7,790St. Francis County: 7,421 jobsSt. Francis County7,421Howard County: 6,994 jobsHoward County6,994Ouachita County: 6,890 jobsOuachita County6,890Ashley County: 6,613 jobsAshley County6,613Yell County: 6,560 jobsYell County6,560Cleburne County: 6,459 jobsCleburne County6,459Drew County: 6,438 jobsDrew County6,438Conway County: 6,385 jobsConway County6,385Polk County: 5,764 jobsPolk County5,764Logan County: 5,425 jobsLogan County5,425Randolph County: 5,379 jobsRandolph County5,379Phillips County: 5,375 jobsPhillips County5,375Pulaski County: 249,844 jobsPulaski County249,844Benton County: 117,551 jobsBenton County117,551Washington County: 105,302 jobsWashington County105,302Sebastian County: 65,669 jobsSebastian County65,669Craighead County: 50,121 jobsCraighead County50,121Faulkner County: 40,193 jobsFaulkner County40,193Garland County: 36,557 jobsGarland County36,557Jefferson County: 27,825 jobsJefferson County27,825Pope County: 25,857 jobsPope County25,857Saline County: 23,981 jobsSaline County23,981White County: 23,731 jobsWhite County23,731Crawford County: 19,298 jobsCrawford County19,298Mississippi County: 17,878 jobsMississippi County17,878Union County: 17,478 jobsUnion County17,478Crittenden County: 16,504 jobsCrittenden County16,504Independence County: 15,656 jobsIndependence County15,656Greene County: 15,289 jobsGreene County15,289Baxter County: 14,843 jobsBaxter County14,843Lonoke County: 13,939 jobsLonoke County13,939Boone County: 13,795 jobsBoone County13,795Miller County: 12,891 jobsMiller County12,891Carroll County: 10,948 jobsCarroll County10,948Arkansas County: 9,566 jobsArkansas County9,566Clark County: 9,160 jobsClark County9,160Johnson County: 8,699 jobsJohnson County8,699Hot Spring County: 8,452 jobsHot Spring County8,452Columbia County: 7,920 jobsColumbia County7,920Hempstead County: 7,790 jobsHempstead County7,790St. Francis County: 7,421 jobsSt. Francis County7,421Howard County: 6,994 jobsHoward County6,994Ouachita County: 6,890 jobsOuachita County6,890Ashley County: 6,613 jobsAshley County6,613Yell County: 6,560 jobsYell County6,560Cleburne County: 6,459 jobsCleburne County6,459Drew County: 6,438 jobsDrew County6,438Conway County: 6,385 jobsConway County6,385Polk County: 5,764 jobsPolk County5,764Logan County: 5,425 jobsLogan County5,425Randolph County: 5,379 jobsRandolph County5,379Phillips County: 5,375 jobsPhillips County5,375
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

RankCounties2017
jobs		Change on 2016
1Pulaski County249,844+0.9%
2Benton County117,551+2.5%
3Washington County105,302+2.1%
4Sebastian County65,669-1%
5Craighead County50,121+3.1%
6Faulkner County40,193-0.2%
7Garland County36,557+0.5%
8Jefferson County27,825-1.5%
9Pope County25,857-1.1%
10Saline County23,981+2.1%
11White County23,731-1.1%
12Crawford County19,298-0.8%
13Mississippi County17,878-0.6%
14Union County17,478-1.7%
15Crittenden County16,5040%
16Independence County15,656+1.7%
17Greene County15,289-0.4%
18Baxter County14,843+1.6%
19Lonoke County13,939-0.7%
20Boone County13,795-0.9%
21Miller County12,891-0.5%
22Carroll County10,948+1.3%
23Arkansas County9,566-3.3%
24Clark County9,160+0.6%
25Johnson County8,699+0.9%
26Hot Spring County8,452-0.3%
27Columbia County7,920-1.8%
28Hempstead County7,790-0.4%
29St. Francis County7,421-6.5%
30Howard County6,994+0.2%
31Ouachita County6,890-2.6%
32Ashley County6,613-0.4%
33Yell County6,560+1.9%
34Cleburne County6,459-1.4%
35Drew County6,438+0.4%
36Conway County6,385-3.7%
37Polk County5,764-1.2%
38Logan County5,425-2%
39Randolph County5,379+10.4%
40Phillips County5,375-1.6%
41Poinsett County5,254+0.5%
42Jackson County5,197-2.3%
43Cross County4,921-1.4%
44Sevier County4,859-0.7%
45Desha County4,623+1%
46Franklin County4,591+2.7%
47Grant County4,054+2.2%
48Lawrence County3,977-1.4%
49Sharp County3,756-2.3%
50Marion County3,744-1.8%
51Bradley County3,736+1.2%
52Van Buren County3,594+0.5%
53Little River County3,347-3.7%
54Clay County3,292-1.3%
54Madison County3,292+3.8%
56Chicot County3,118-3.7%
57Scott County3,059-0.3%
58Izard County3,052-2.6%
59Calhoun County2,879+4.5%
60Lincoln County2,782-2.8%
61Dallas County2,781-2%
62Stone County2,604+2%
63Pike County2,574+3.9%
64Nevada County2,420-1.7%
65Monroe County2,084-2.6%
66Lee County1,925-2.3%
67Fulton County1,880+3%
68Woodruff County1,776-0.1%
69Prairie County1,543+4%
70Searcy County1,533-1.7%
71Montgomery County1,352-2.2%
72Lafayette County1,207-0.2%
73Perry County1,196-2.4%
74Newton County1,084-2%
75Cleveland County975+1.2%

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/2017/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 Arkansas by covered employment (QCEW), 2017) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2017/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 Arkansas by covered employment (QCEW), 2017. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 21 Aug. 2026, https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2017/a/industry/10.csv. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/arkansas-counties?period=2017. 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 Arkansas by covered employment (QCEW), 2017. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2017/a/industry/10.csv. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/arkansas-counties?period=2017.

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 Arkansas by covered employment (QCEW), 2017 [Dataset]. Available at: https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2017/a/industry/10.csv, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/arkansas-counties?period=2017 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{bureau_counties_in_arkansas_by_2017,
  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 Arkansas by covered employment (QCEW), 2017}},
  year = {2026},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2017/a/industry/10.csv},
  urldate = {2026-10-12},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/arkansas-counties?period=2017. 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/2017/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 Arkansas by covered employment (QCEW), 2017
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/08/21
PB  - U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2017/a/industry/10.csv
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/arkansas-counties?period=2017
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/arkansas-counties?period=2017.
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/2017/a/industry/10.csv. Retrieved 2026-10-12.
ER  -
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Questions

Which county has the highest covered employment (QCEW)?

Pulaski County, with 249,844 jobs in 2017, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Which county has the lowest covered employment (QCEW)?

Cleveland County, with 975 jobs in 2017.

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 Arkansas: more rankings