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

Counties in Iowa by covered employment (QCEW)

Polk County had the highest covered employment (QCEW) of 99 counties in 2020, at 288,496 jobs. Adams County had the lowest, at 1,178 jobs. The median was 5,770 jobs and the figure for Iowa was 1,475,704 jobs. Source: the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Keep it in a collection in your library.
Highest288,496Polk County
Lowest1,178Adams County
Median5,77099 counties
Iowa1,475,704History

Map of counties, 2020

Adair County: 2,889 jobsAdams County: 1,178 jobsAllamakee County: 4,810 jobsAppanoose County: 4,352 jobsAudubon County: 1,770 jobsBenton County: 5,792 jobsBlack Hawk County: 69,743 jobsBoone County: 8,636 jobsBremer County: 9,433 jobsBuchanan County: 6,516 jobsBuena Vista County: 10,857 jobsButler County: 3,374 jobsCalhoun County: 2,687 jobsCarroll County: 10,813 jobsCass County: 5,643 jobsCedar County: 5,014 jobsCerro Gordo County: 23,699 jobsCherokee County: 4,861 jobsChickasaw County: 4,686 jobsClarke County: 4,289 jobsClay County: 8,259 jobsClayton County: 6,314 jobsClinton County: 18,979 jobsCrawford County: 6,530 jobsDallas County: 44,844 jobsDavis County: 1,999 jobsDecatur County: 2,353 jobsDelaware County: 6,516 jobsDes Moines County: 19,900 jobsDickinson County: 9,247 jobsDubuque County: 55,789 jobsEmmet County: 3,501 jobsFayette County: 6,793 jobsFloyd County: 5,395 jobsFranklin County: 3,771 jobsFremont County: 2,311 jobsGreene County: 3,229 jobsGrundy County: 4,038 jobsGuthrie County: 3,041 jobsHamilton County: 5,631 jobsHancock County: 5,989 jobsHardin County: 6,512 jobsHarrison County: 3,921 jobsHenry County: 8,793 jobsHoward County: 4,098 jobsHumboldt County: 3,654 jobsIda County: 3,632 jobsIowa County: 9,497 jobsJackson County: 5,781 jobsJasper County: 10,857 jobsJefferson County: 7,210 jobsJohnson County: 78,683 jobsJones County: 5,735 jobsKeokuk County: 2,172 jobsKossuth County: 6,361 jobsLee County: 14,465 jobsLinn County: 123,175 jobsLouisa County: 3,761 jobsLucas County: 3,610 jobsLyon County: 4,487 jobsMadison County: 3,777 jobsMahaska County: 7,738 jobsMarion County: 17,354 jobsMarshall County: 15,809 jobsMills County: 3,467 jobsMitchell County: 4,103 jobsMonona County: 2,519 jobsMonroe County: 3,423 jobsMontgomery County: 3,929 jobsMuscatine County: 21,837 jobsO'Brien County: 6,406 jobsOsceola County: 2,392 jobsPage County: 5,886 jobsPalo Alto County: 3,524 jobsPlymouth County: 11,381 jobsPocahontas County: 2,945 jobsPolk County: 288,496 jobsPottawattamie County: 37,660 jobsPoweshiek County: 9,249 jobsRinggold County: 1,332 jobsSac County: 2,886 jobsScott County: 84,266 jobsShelby County: 5,325 jobsSioux County: 20,818 jobsStory County: 43,737 jobsTama County: 5,310 jobsTaylor County: 1,905 jobsUnion County: 5,770 jobsVan Buren County: 1,897 jobsWapello County: 15,320 jobsWarren County: 11,517 jobsWashington County: 7,970 jobsWayne County: 1,831 jobsWebster County: 17,095 jobsWinnebago County: 4,072 jobsWinneshiek County: 9,802 jobsWoodbury County: 49,093 jobsWorth County: 2,196 jobsWright County: 6,046 jobs
  • Under 3,000
  • 3,000 to 4,000
  • 4,000 to 6,000
  • 6,000 to 8,000
  • 8,000 to 17K
  • 17K 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

Polk County: 288,496 jobsPolk County288,496Linn County: 123,175 jobsLinn County123,175Scott County: 84,266 jobsScott County84,266Johnson County: 78,683 jobsJohnson County78,683Black Hawk County: 69,743 jobsBlack Hawk County69,743Dubuque County: 55,789 jobsDubuque County55,789Woodbury County: 49,093 jobsWoodbury County49,093Dallas County: 44,844 jobsDallas County44,844Story County: 43,737 jobsStory County43,737Pottawattamie County: 37,660 jobsPottawattamie County37,660Cerro Gordo County: 23,699 jobsCerro Gordo County23,699Muscatine County: 21,837 jobsMuscatine County21,837Sioux County: 20,818 jobsSioux County20,818Des Moines County: 19,900 jobsDes Moines County19,900Clinton County: 18,979 jobsClinton County18,979Marion County: 17,354 jobsMarion County17,354Webster County: 17,095 jobsWebster County17,095Marshall County: 15,809 jobsMarshall County15,809Wapello County: 15,320 jobsWapello County15,320Lee County: 14,465 jobsLee County14,465Warren County: 11,517 jobsWarren County11,517Plymouth County: 11,381 jobsPlymouth County11,381Buena Vista County: 10,857 jobsBuena Vista County10,857Jasper County: 10,857 jobsJasper County10,857Carroll County: 10,813 jobsCarroll County10,813Winneshiek County: 9,802 jobsWinneshiek County9,802Iowa County: 9,497 jobsIowa County9,497Bremer County: 9,433 jobsBremer County9,433Poweshiek County: 9,249 jobsPoweshiek County9,249Dickinson County: 9,247 jobsDickinson County9,247Henry County: 8,793 jobsHenry County8,793Boone County: 8,636 jobsBoone County8,636Clay County: 8,259 jobsClay County8,259Washington County: 7,970 jobsWashington County7,970Mahaska County: 7,738 jobsMahaska County7,738Jefferson County: 7,210 jobsJefferson County7,210Fayette County: 6,793 jobsFayette County6,793Crawford County: 6,530 jobsCrawford County6,530Buchanan County: 6,516 jobsBuchanan County6,516Delaware County: 6,516 jobsDelaware County6,516Polk County: 288,496 jobsPolk County288,496Linn County: 123,175 jobsLinn County123,175Scott County: 84,266 jobsScott County84,266Johnson County: 78,683 jobsJohnson County78,683Black Hawk County: 69,743 jobsBlack Hawk County69,743Dubuque County: 55,789 jobsDubuque County55,789Woodbury County: 49,093 jobsWoodbury County49,093Dallas County: 44,844 jobsDallas County44,844Story County: 43,737 jobsStory County43,737Pottawattamie County: 37,660 jobsPottawattamie County37,660Cerro Gordo County: 23,699 jobsCerro Gordo County23,699Muscatine County: 21,837 jobsMuscatine County21,837Sioux County: 20,818 jobsSioux County20,818Des Moines County: 19,900 jobsDes Moines County19,900Clinton County: 18,979 jobsClinton County18,979Marion County: 17,354 jobsMarion County17,354Webster County: 17,095 jobsWebster County17,095Marshall County: 15,809 jobsMarshall County15,809Wapello County: 15,320 jobsWapello County15,320Lee County: 14,465 jobsLee County14,465Warren County: 11,517 jobsWarren County11,517Plymouth County: 11,381 jobsPlymouth County11,381Buena Vista County: 10,857 jobsBuena Vista County10,857Jasper County: 10,857 jobsJasper County10,857Carroll County: 10,813 jobsCarroll County10,813Winneshiek County: 9,802 jobsWinneshiek County9,802Iowa County: 9,497 jobsIowa County9,497Bremer County: 9,433 jobsBremer County9,433Poweshiek County: 9,249 jobsPoweshiek County9,249Dickinson County: 9,247 jobsDickinson County9,247Henry County: 8,793 jobsHenry County8,793Boone County: 8,636 jobsBoone County8,636Clay County: 8,259 jobsClay County8,259Washington County: 7,970 jobsWashington County7,970Mahaska County: 7,738 jobsMahaska County7,738Jefferson County: 7,210 jobsJefferson County7,210Fayette County: 6,793 jobsFayette County6,793Crawford County: 6,530 jobsCrawford County6,530Buchanan County: 6,516 jobsBuchanan County6,516Delaware County: 6,516 jobsDelaware County6,516
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
1Polk County288,496-4.8%
2Linn County123,175-6.2%
3Scott County84,266-7.5%
4Johnson County78,683-5.8%
5Black Hawk County69,743-5.3%
6Dubuque County55,789-5.3%
7Woodbury County49,093-5.3%
8Dallas County44,844-3.6%
9Story County43,737-5.3%
10Pottawattamie County37,660-6.4%
11Cerro Gordo County23,699-4.3%
12Muscatine County21,837-5.3%
13Sioux County20,818-2.1%
14Des Moines County19,900-7.2%
15Clinton County18,979-6.4%
16Marion County17,354-3.6%
17Webster County17,095-6.2%
18Marshall County15,809-4.7%
19Wapello County15,320-4.9%
20Lee County14,465-5.5%
21Warren County11,517-2.1%
22Plymouth County11,381-2.1%
23Buena Vista County10,857-1.6%
23Jasper County10,857-5.6%
25Carroll County10,813-5.7%
26Winneshiek County9,802-5.7%
27Iowa County9,497-7.3%
28Bremer County9,433-5.5%
29Poweshiek County9,249-5.7%
30Dickinson County9,247-5.1%
31Henry County8,793-6.3%
32Boone County8,636-4.4%
33Clay County8,259-2.6%
34Washington County7,970-3.7%
35Mahaska County7,738-2.5%
36Jefferson County7,210-6.9%
37Fayette County6,793-4.3%
38Crawford County6,530-3.8%
39Buchanan County6,516-2.6%
39Delaware County6,516-1.7%
41Hardin County6,512-5.1%
42O'Brien County6,406-2.8%
43Kossuth County6,361-5.2%
44Clayton County6,314-6.4%
45Wright County6,046-0.4%
46Hancock County5,989-4.1%
47Page County5,886-5.2%
48Benton County5,792-4.5%
49Jackson County5,781-7.1%
50Union County5,770-4.2%
51Jones County5,735-7.5%
52Cass County5,643-3%
53Hamilton County5,631-1.8%
54Floyd County5,395-11.2%
55Shelby County5,325-7.6%
56Tama County5,310-4.7%
57Cedar County5,014-6.7%
58Cherokee County4,861+1.2%
59Allamakee County4,810-4.8%
60Chickasaw County4,686-4.2%
61Lyon County4,487-3.2%
62Appanoose County4,352-2.4%
63Clarke County4,289-4.4%
64Mitchell County4,103-13%
65Howard County4,098-2%
66Winnebago County4,072-4.7%
67Grundy County4,038-0.9%
68Montgomery County3,929-4.7%
69Harrison County3,921-3.3%
70Madison County3,777-1.7%
71Franklin County3,771-2.4%
72Louisa County3,761-2%
73Humboldt County3,654-4.7%
74Ida County3,632-4.8%
75Lucas County3,610-0.7%
76Palo Alto County3,524-7.2%
77Emmet County3,501-6.9%
78Mills County3,467-3.5%
79Monroe County3,423-3.9%
80Butler County3,374-1.7%
81Greene County3,229-3.4%
82Guthrie County3,041-2.1%
83Pocahontas County2,945-9.1%
84Adair County2,889+0.2%
85Sac County2,886-3.4%
86Calhoun County2,687-5%
87Monona County2,519-2.8%
88Osceola County2,392-0.7%
89Decatur County2,353-3.4%
90Fremont County2,311+6.9%
91Worth County2,196-7%
92Keokuk County2,172-1.7%
93Davis County1,999-2.2%
94Taylor County1,905-6.3%
95Van Buren County1,897+0.5%
96Wayne County1,831-2.9%
97Audubon County1,770-2.4%
98Ringgold County1,332-3.5%
99Adams County1,178-9.9%

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 Iowa 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 Iowa 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/iowa-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 Iowa 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/iowa-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 Iowa 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/iowa-counties?period=2020 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{bureau_counties_in_iowa_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 Iowa 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/iowa-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 Iowa 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/iowa-counties?period=2020
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/iowa-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)?

Polk County, with 288,496 jobs in 2020, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Which county has the lowest covered employment (QCEW)?

Adams County, with 1,178 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 Iowa: more rankings