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 2018, at 251,108 jobs. Newton County had the lowest, at 1,056 jobs. The median was 5,707 jobs and the figure for Arkansas was 1,211,021 jobs. Source: the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

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Highest251,108Pulaski County
Lowest1,056Newton County
Median5,70775 counties
Arkansas1,211,021History

Map of counties, 2018

Arkansas County: 9,784 jobsAshley County: 6,680 jobsBaxter County: 14,974 jobsBenton County: 119,780 jobsBoone County: 14,063 jobsBradley County: 3,816 jobsCalhoun County: 3,030 jobsCarroll County: 10,658 jobsChicot County: 3,051 jobsClark County: 9,383 jobsClay County: 3,306 jobsCleburne County: 6,325 jobsCleveland County: 1,066 jobsColumbia County: 7,948 jobsConway County: 6,384 jobsCraighead County: 51,051 jobsCrawford County: 19,530 jobsCrittenden County: 16,113 jobsCross County: 4,823 jobsDallas County: 2,690 jobsDesha County: 4,700 jobsDrew County: 6,445 jobsFaulkner County: 40,539 jobsFranklin County: 4,670 jobsFulton County: 1,981 jobsGarland County: 37,201 jobsGrant County: 4,168 jobsGreene County: 15,506 jobsHempstead County: 7,875 jobsHot Spring County: 8,248 jobsHoward County: 6,937 jobsIndependence County: 15,919 jobsIzard County: 3,078 jobsJackson County: 5,159 jobsJefferson County: 27,608 jobsJohnson County: 8,561 jobsLafayette County: 1,193 jobsLawrence County: 3,968 jobsLee County: 1,920 jobsLincoln County: 2,820 jobsLittle River County: 3,359 jobsLogan County: 5,322 jobsLonoke County: 14,013 jobsMadison County: 3,339 jobsMarion County: 3,754 jobsMiller County: 12,918 jobsMississippi County: 17,706 jobsMonroe County: 2,045 jobsMontgomery County: 1,343 jobsNevada County: 2,472 jobsNewton County: 1,056 jobsOuachita County: 6,903 jobsPerry County: 1,152 jobsPhillips County: 5,494 jobsPike County: 2,623 jobsPoinsett County: 5,254 jobsPolk County: 5,884 jobsPope County: 25,993 jobsPrairie County: 1,468 jobsPulaski County: 251,108 jobsRandolph County: 5,707 jobsSt. Francis County: 7,377 jobsSaline County: 24,697 jobsScott County: 3,060 jobsSearcy County: 1,531 jobsSebastian County: 65,429 jobsSevier County: 4,856 jobsSharp County: 3,598 jobsStone County: 2,677 jobsUnion County: 17,409 jobsVan Buren County: 3,534 jobsWashington County: 107,947 jobsWhite County: 23,889 jobsWoodruff County: 1,712 jobsYell County: 6,543 jobs
  • Under 3,000
  • 3,000 to 4,000
  • 4,000 to 6,000
  • 6,000 to 8,000
  • 8,000 to 18K
  • 18K 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

Pulaski County: 251,108 jobsPulaski County251,108Benton County: 119,780 jobsBenton County119,780Washington County: 107,947 jobsWashington County107,947Sebastian County: 65,429 jobsSebastian County65,429Craighead County: 51,051 jobsCraighead County51,051Faulkner County: 40,539 jobsFaulkner County40,539Garland County: 37,201 jobsGarland County37,201Jefferson County: 27,608 jobsJefferson County27,608Pope County: 25,993 jobsPope County25,993Saline County: 24,697 jobsSaline County24,697White County: 23,889 jobsWhite County23,889Crawford County: 19,530 jobsCrawford County19,530Mississippi County: 17,706 jobsMississippi County17,706Union County: 17,409 jobsUnion County17,409Crittenden County: 16,113 jobsCrittenden County16,113Independence County: 15,919 jobsIndependence County15,919Greene County: 15,506 jobsGreene County15,506Baxter County: 14,974 jobsBaxter County14,974Boone County: 14,063 jobsBoone County14,063Lonoke County: 14,013 jobsLonoke County14,013Miller County: 12,918 jobsMiller County12,918Carroll County: 10,658 jobsCarroll County10,658Arkansas County: 9,784 jobsArkansas County9,784Clark County: 9,383 jobsClark County9,383Johnson County: 8,561 jobsJohnson County8,561Hot Spring County: 8,248 jobsHot Spring County8,248Columbia County: 7,948 jobsColumbia County7,948Hempstead County: 7,875 jobsHempstead County7,875St. Francis County: 7,377 jobsSt. Francis County7,377Howard County: 6,937 jobsHoward County6,937Ouachita County: 6,903 jobsOuachita County6,903Ashley County: 6,680 jobsAshley County6,680Yell County: 6,543 jobsYell County6,543Drew County: 6,445 jobsDrew County6,445Conway County: 6,384 jobsConway County6,384Cleburne County: 6,325 jobsCleburne County6,325Polk County: 5,884 jobsPolk County5,884Randolph County: 5,707 jobsRandolph County5,707Phillips County: 5,494 jobsPhillips County5,494Logan County: 5,322 jobsLogan County5,322Pulaski County: 251,108 jobsPulaski County251,108Benton County: 119,780 jobsBenton County119,780Washington County: 107,947 jobsWashington County107,947Sebastian County: 65,429 jobsSebastian County65,429Craighead County: 51,051 jobsCraighead County51,051Faulkner County: 40,539 jobsFaulkner County40,539Garland County: 37,201 jobsGarland County37,201Jefferson County: 27,608 jobsJefferson County27,608Pope County: 25,993 jobsPope County25,993Saline County: 24,697 jobsSaline County24,697White County: 23,889 jobsWhite County23,889Crawford County: 19,530 jobsCrawford County19,530Mississippi County: 17,706 jobsMississippi County17,706Union County: 17,409 jobsUnion County17,409Crittenden County: 16,113 jobsCrittenden County16,113Independence County: 15,919 jobsIndependence County15,919Greene County: 15,506 jobsGreene County15,506Baxter County: 14,974 jobsBaxter County14,974Boone County: 14,063 jobsBoone County14,063Lonoke County: 14,013 jobsLonoke County14,013Miller County: 12,918 jobsMiller County12,918Carroll County: 10,658 jobsCarroll County10,658Arkansas County: 9,784 jobsArkansas County9,784Clark County: 9,383 jobsClark County9,383Johnson County: 8,561 jobsJohnson County8,561Hot Spring County: 8,248 jobsHot Spring County8,248Columbia County: 7,948 jobsColumbia County7,948Hempstead County: 7,875 jobsHempstead County7,875St. Francis County: 7,377 jobsSt. Francis County7,377Howard County: 6,937 jobsHoward County6,937Ouachita County: 6,903 jobsOuachita County6,903Ashley County: 6,680 jobsAshley County6,680Yell County: 6,543 jobsYell County6,543Drew County: 6,445 jobsDrew County6,445Conway County: 6,384 jobsConway County6,384Cleburne County: 6,325 jobsCleburne County6,325Polk County: 5,884 jobsPolk County5,884Randolph County: 5,707 jobsRandolph County5,707Phillips County: 5,494 jobsPhillips County5,494Logan County: 5,322 jobsLogan County5,322
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
1Pulaski County251,108+0.5%
2Benton County119,780+1.9%
3Washington County107,947+2.5%
4Sebastian County65,429-0.4%
5Craighead County51,051+1.9%
6Faulkner County40,539+0.9%
7Garland County37,201+1.8%
8Jefferson County27,608-0.8%
9Pope County25,993+0.5%
10Saline County24,697+3%
11White County23,889+0.7%
12Crawford County19,530+1.2%
13Mississippi County17,706-1%
14Union County17,409-0.4%
15Crittenden County16,113-2.4%
16Independence County15,919+1.7%
17Greene County15,506+1.4%
18Baxter County14,974+0.9%
19Boone County14,063+1.9%
20Lonoke County14,013+0.5%
21Miller County12,918+0.2%
22Carroll County10,658-2.6%
23Arkansas County9,784+2.3%
24Clark County9,383+2.4%
25Johnson County8,561-1.6%
26Hot Spring County8,248-2.4%
27Columbia County7,948+0.4%
28Hempstead County7,875+1.1%
29St. Francis County7,377-0.6%
30Howard County6,937-0.8%
31Ouachita County6,903+0.2%
32Ashley County6,680+1%
33Yell County6,543-0.3%
34Drew County6,445+0.1%
35Conway County6,384-0%
36Cleburne County6,325-2.1%
37Polk County5,884+2.1%
38Randolph County5,707+6.1%
39Phillips County5,494+2.2%
40Logan County5,322-1.9%
41Poinsett County5,2540%
42Jackson County5,159-0.7%
43Sevier County4,856-0.1%
44Cross County4,823-2%
45Desha County4,700+1.7%
46Franklin County4,670+1.7%
47Grant County4,168+2.8%
48Lawrence County3,968-0.2%
49Bradley County3,816+2.1%
50Marion County3,754+0.3%
51Sharp County3,598-4.2%
52Van Buren County3,534-1.7%
53Little River County3,359+0.4%
54Madison County3,339+1.4%
55Clay County3,306+0.4%
56Izard County3,078+0.9%
57Scott County3,0600%
58Chicot County3,051-2.1%
59Calhoun County3,030+5.2%
60Lincoln County2,820+1.4%
61Dallas County2,690-3.3%
62Stone County2,677+2.8%
63Pike County2,623+1.9%
64Nevada County2,472+2.1%
65Monroe County2,045-1.9%
66Fulton County1,981+5.4%
67Lee County1,920-0.3%
68Woodruff County1,712-3.6%
69Searcy County1,531-0.1%
70Prairie County1,468-4.9%
71Montgomery County1,343-0.7%
72Lafayette County1,193-1.2%
73Perry County1,152-3.7%
74Cleveland County1,066+9.3%
75Newton County1,056-2.6%

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 Arkansas 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 Arkansas 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/arkansas-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 Arkansas 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/arkansas-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 Arkansas 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/arkansas-counties?period=2018 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{bureau_counties_in_arkansas_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 Arkansas 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/arkansas-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 Arkansas 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/arkansas-counties?period=2018
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/arkansas-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)?

Pulaski County, with 251,108 jobs in 2018, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Which county has the lowest covered employment (QCEW)?

Newton County, with 1,056 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 Arkansas: more rankings