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

Counties in Minnesota by covered employment (QCEW)

Hennepin County had the highest covered employment (QCEW) of 87 counties in 2014, at 866,709 jobs. Red Lake County had the lowest, at 1,029 jobs. The median was 8,450 jobs and the figure for Minnesota was 2,730,301 jobs. Source: the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

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Highest866,709Hennepin County
Lowest1,029Red Lake County
Median8,45087 counties
Minnesota2,730,301History

Map of counties, 2014

Aitkin County: 3,732 jobsAnoka County: 116,729 jobsBecker County: 13,857 jobsBeltrami County: 18,771 jobsBenton County: 17,274 jobsBig Stone County: 1,758 jobsBlue Earth County: 38,051 jobsBrown County: 13,523 jobsCarlton County: 13,668 jobsCarver County: 36,357 jobsCass County: 9,957 jobsChippewa County: 5,713 jobsChisago County: 14,255 jobsClay County: 18,353 jobsClearwater County: 2,608 jobsCook County: 2,793 jobsCottonwood County: 4,735 jobsCrow Wing County: 28,238 jobsDakota County: 180,335 jobsDodge County: 5,616 jobsDouglas County: 17,971 jobsFaribault County: 4,861 jobsFillmore County: 6,003 jobsFreeborn County: 12,103 jobsGoodhue County: 21,739 jobsGrant County: 1,926 jobsHennepin County: 866,709 jobsHouston County: 4,930 jobsHubbard County: 5,763 jobsIsanti County: 10,898 jobsItasca County: 15,971 jobsJackson County: 5,748 jobsKanabec County: 3,736 jobsKandiyohi County: 22,826 jobsKittson County: 1,481 jobsKoochiching County: 4,766 jobsLac qui Parle County: 2,288 jobsLake County: 4,307 jobsLake of the Woods County: 1,587 jobsLe Sueur County: 8,450 jobsLincoln County: 1,698 jobsLyon County: 14,871 jobsMcLeod County: 16,766 jobsMahnomen County: 1,913 jobsMarshall County: 2,377 jobsMartin County: 8,527 jobsMeeker County: 6,987 jobsMille Lacs County: 9,568 jobsMorrison County: 10,569 jobsMower County: 16,255 jobsMurray County: 2,958 jobsNicollet County: 14,123 jobsNobles County: 10,282 jobsNorman County: 1,678 jobsOlmsted County: 92,376 jobsOtter Tail County: 22,307 jobsPennington County: 10,283 jobsPine County: 8,052 jobsPipestone County: 4,395 jobsPolk County: 12,235 jobsPope County: 4,194 jobsRamsey County: 323,130 jobsRed Lake County: 1,029 jobsRedwood County: 6,419 jobsRenville County: 5,743 jobsRice County: 23,313 jobsRock County: 3,491 jobsRoseau County: 8,909 jobsSt. Louis County: 96,316 jobsScott County: 43,230 jobsSherburne County: 25,835 jobsSibley County: 4,032 jobsStearns County: 83,200 jobsSteele County: 21,601 jobsStevens County: 5,342 jobsSwift County: 3,495 jobsTodd County: 6,006 jobsTraverse County: 1,055 jobsWabasha County: 6,919 jobsWadena County: 5,754 jobsWaseca County: 6,781 jobsWashington County: 76,717 jobsWatonwan County: 4,020 jobsWilkin County: 2,015 jobsWinona County: 24,768 jobsWright County: 38,800 jobsYellow Medicine County: 4,076 jobs
  • Under 3,000
  • 3,000 to 5,000
  • 5,000 to 8,000
  • 8,000 to 14K
  • 14K to 24K
  • 24K and over
jobs, 2014. 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, 2014

Hennepin County: 866,709 jobsHennepin County866,709Ramsey County: 323,130 jobsRamsey County323,130Dakota County: 180,335 jobsDakota County180,335Anoka County: 116,729 jobsAnoka County116,729St. Louis County: 96,316 jobsSt. Louis County96,316Olmsted County: 92,376 jobsOlmsted County92,376Stearns County: 83,200 jobsStearns County83,200Washington County: 76,717 jobsWashington County76,717Scott County: 43,230 jobsScott County43,230Wright County: 38,800 jobsWright County38,800Blue Earth County: 38,051 jobsBlue Earth County38,051Carver County: 36,357 jobsCarver County36,357Crow Wing County: 28,238 jobsCrow Wing County28,238Sherburne County: 25,835 jobsSherburne County25,835Winona County: 24,768 jobsWinona County24,768Rice County: 23,313 jobsRice County23,313Kandiyohi County: 22,826 jobsKandiyohi County22,826Otter Tail County: 22,307 jobsOtter Tail County22,307Goodhue County: 21,739 jobsGoodhue County21,739Steele County: 21,601 jobsSteele County21,601Beltrami County: 18,771 jobsBeltrami County18,771Clay County: 18,353 jobsClay County18,353Douglas County: 17,971 jobsDouglas County17,971Benton County: 17,274 jobsBenton County17,274McLeod County: 16,766 jobsMcLeod County16,766Mower County: 16,255 jobsMower County16,255Itasca County: 15,971 jobsItasca County15,971Lyon County: 14,871 jobsLyon County14,871Chisago County: 14,255 jobsChisago County14,255Nicollet County: 14,123 jobsNicollet County14,123Becker County: 13,857 jobsBecker County13,857Carlton County: 13,668 jobsCarlton County13,668Brown County: 13,523 jobsBrown County13,523Polk County: 12,235 jobsPolk County12,235Freeborn County: 12,103 jobsFreeborn County12,103Isanti County: 10,898 jobsIsanti County10,898Morrison County: 10,569 jobsMorrison County10,569Pennington County: 10,283 jobsPennington County10,283Nobles County: 10,282 jobsNobles County10,282Cass County: 9,957 jobsCass County9,957Hennepin County: 866,709 jobsHennepin County866,709Ramsey County: 323,130 jobsRamsey County323,130Dakota County: 180,335 jobsDakota County180,335Anoka County: 116,729 jobsAnoka County116,729St. Louis County: 96,316 jobsSt. Louis County96,316Olmsted County: 92,376 jobsOlmsted County92,376Stearns County: 83,200 jobsStearns County83,200Washington County: 76,717 jobsWashington County76,717Scott County: 43,230 jobsScott County43,230Wright County: 38,800 jobsWright County38,800Blue Earth County: 38,051 jobsBlue Earth County38,051Carver County: 36,357 jobsCarver County36,357Crow Wing County: 28,238 jobsCrow Wing County28,238Sherburne County: 25,835 jobsSherburne County25,835Winona County: 24,768 jobsWinona County24,768Rice County: 23,313 jobsRice County23,313Kandiyohi County: 22,826 jobsKandiyohi County22,826Otter Tail County: 22,307 jobsOtter Tail County22,307Goodhue County: 21,739 jobsGoodhue County21,739Steele County: 21,601 jobsSteele County21,601Beltrami County: 18,771 jobsBeltrami County18,771Clay County: 18,353 jobsClay County18,353Douglas County: 17,971 jobsDouglas County17,971Benton County: 17,274 jobsBenton County17,274McLeod County: 16,766 jobsMcLeod County16,766Mower County: 16,255 jobsMower County16,255Itasca County: 15,971 jobsItasca County15,971Lyon County: 14,871 jobsLyon County14,871Chisago County: 14,255 jobsChisago County14,255Nicollet County: 14,123 jobsNicollet County14,123Becker County: 13,857 jobsBecker County13,857Carlton County: 13,668 jobsCarlton County13,668Brown County: 13,523 jobsBrown County13,523Polk County: 12,235 jobsPolk County12,235Freeborn County: 12,103 jobsFreeborn County12,103Isanti County: 10,898 jobsIsanti County10,898Morrison County: 10,569 jobsMorrison County10,569Pennington County: 10,283 jobsPennington County10,283Nobles County: 10,282 jobsNobles County10,282Cass County: 9,957 jobsCass County9,957
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

RankCounties2014
jobs		Change on 2013
1Hennepin County866,709+1.5%
2Ramsey County323,130+1%
3Dakota County180,335+1.5%
4Anoka County116,729+1.8%
5St. Louis County96,316+0.9%
6Olmsted County92,376-0%
7Stearns County83,200+2.1%
8Washington County76,717+1.1%
9Scott County43,230+2.4%
10Wright County38,800+3.3%
11Blue Earth County38,051+0.5%
12Carver County36,357+5.1%
13Crow Wing County28,238+2.2%
14Sherburne County25,835+3.2%
15Winona County24,768+0.5%
16Rice County23,313+1.6%
17Kandiyohi County22,826+1.4%
18Otter Tail County22,307+1.1%
19Goodhue County21,739+0.3%
20Steele County21,601+0.4%
21Beltrami County18,771+2.9%
22Clay County18,353-0.3%
23Douglas County17,971+1.1%
24Benton County17,274+2.9%
25McLeod County16,766-0.3%
26Mower County16,255+0.1%
27Itasca County15,971+2%
28Lyon County14,871+0.2%
29Chisago County14,255+1%
30Nicollet County14,123+2.4%
31Becker County13,857+0.8%
32Carlton County13,668+2.5%
33Brown County13,523-1.3%
34Polk County12,235+0.7%
35Freeborn County12,103-0.3%
36Isanti County10,898+1.2%
37Morrison County10,569-2.2%
38Pennington County10,283+4.1%
39Nobles County10,282+1.4%
40Cass County9,957+1.9%
41Mille Lacs County9,568+0.4%
42Roseau County8,909+3.7%
43Martin County8,527-0.7%
44Le Sueur County8,450+3%
45Pine County8,052-1.4%
46Meeker County6,987+3.3%
47Wabasha County6,919+0.3%
48Waseca County6,781-3.3%
49Redwood County6,419+1%
50Todd County6,006+0.3%
51Fillmore County6,003-0.6%
52Hubbard County5,763+0.2%
53Wadena County5,754+1.1%
54Jackson County5,748+0.8%
55Renville County5,743+1.5%
56Chippewa County5,713+0.3%
57Dodge County5,616+3.8%
58Stevens County5,342+1.9%
59Houston County4,930-0.1%
60Faribault County4,861-2.5%
61Koochiching County4,766-5%
62Cottonwood County4,735-3%
63Pipestone County4,395+3.4%
64Lake County4,307+0.5%
65Pope County4,194+4.8%
66Yellow Medicine County4,076-3.6%
67Sibley County4,032-3.2%
68Watonwan County4,020-0.6%
69Kanabec County3,736+1.4%
70Aitkin County3,732+1.4%
71Swift County3,495-0.9%
72Rock County3,491+1.6%
73Murray County2,958+1%
74Cook County2,793+0.1%
75Clearwater County2,608+2.1%
76Marshall County2,377-0.1%
77Lac qui Parle County2,288-0.7%
78Wilkin County2,015-0.9%
79Grant County1,926+1.5%
80Mahnomen County1,913-2.4%
81Big Stone County1,758+1.2%
82Lincoln County1,698-2.2%
83Norman County1,678-0.7%
84Lake of the Woods County1,587+2.9%
85Kittson County1,481-0.9%
86Traverse County1,055-0.8%
87Red Lake County1,029-2.8%

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/2014/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 Minnesota by covered employment (QCEW), 2014) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2014/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 Minnesota by covered employment (QCEW), 2014. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 21 Aug. 2026, https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2014/a/industry/10.csv. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/minnesota-counties?period=2014. 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 Minnesota by covered employment (QCEW), 2014. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2014/a/industry/10.csv. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/minnesota-counties?period=2014.

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 Minnesota by covered employment (QCEW), 2014 [Dataset]. Available at: https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2014/a/industry/10.csv, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/minnesota-counties?period=2014 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{bureau_counties_in_minnesota_by_2014,
  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 Minnesota by covered employment (QCEW), 2014}},
  year = {2026},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2014/a/industry/10.csv},
  urldate = {2026-10-12},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/minnesota-counties?period=2014. 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/2014/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 Minnesota by covered employment (QCEW), 2014
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/08/21
PB  - U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2014/a/industry/10.csv
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/minnesota-counties?period=2014
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/minnesota-counties?period=2014.
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/2014/a/industry/10.csv. Retrieved 2026-10-12.
ER  -
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Questions

Which county has the highest covered employment (QCEW)?

Hennepin County, with 866,709 jobs in 2014, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Which county has the lowest covered employment (QCEW)?

Red Lake County, with 1,029 jobs in 2014.

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 Minnesota: more rankings