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 2024, at 917,117 jobs. Red Lake County had the lowest, at 985 jobs. The median was 8,042 jobs and the figure for Minnesota was 2,932,411 jobs. Source: the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

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Highest917,117Hennepin County
Lowest985Red Lake County
Median8,04287 counties
Minnesota2,932,411History

Map of counties, 2024

Aitkin County: 4,328 jobsAnoka County: 133,130 jobsBecker County: 15,120 jobsBeltrami County: 20,746 jobsBenton County: 17,384 jobsBig Stone County: 1,694 jobsBlue Earth County: 41,255 jobsBrown County: 13,221 jobsCarlton County: 13,269 jobsCarver County: 40,848 jobsCass County: 10,661 jobsChippewa County: 5,290 jobsChisago County: 16,091 jobsClay County: 19,702 jobsClearwater County: 2,536 jobsCook County: 2,628 jobsCottonwood County: 4,847 jobsCrow Wing County: 31,053 jobsDakota County: 189,387 jobsDodge County: 5,967 jobsDouglas County: 19,527 jobsFaribault County: 4,549 jobsFillmore County: 6,235 jobsFreeborn County: 11,963 jobsGoodhue County: 21,366 jobsGrant County: 1,920 jobsHennepin County: 917,117 jobsHouston County: 5,031 jobsHubbard County: 6,263 jobsIsanti County: 11,704 jobsItasca County: 16,608 jobsJackson County: 5,021 jobsKanabec County: 4,221 jobsKandiyohi County: 23,173 jobsKittson County: 1,436 jobsKoochiching County: 4,246 jobsLac qui Parle County: 2,185 jobsLake County: 3,902 jobsLake of the Woods County: 1,578 jobsLe Sueur County: 8,667 jobsLincoln County: 1,684 jobsLyon County: 13,763 jobsMcLeod County: 15,697 jobsMahnomen County: 1,989 jobsMarshall County: 2,435 jobsMartin County: 8,245 jobsMeeker County: 8,042 jobsMille Lacs County: 9,372 jobsMorrison County: 11,175 jobsMower County: 16,932 jobsMurray County: 2,914 jobsNicollet County: 14,609 jobsNobles County: 9,788 jobsNorman County: 1,710 jobsOlmsted County: 103,905 jobsOtter Tail County: 22,910 jobsPennington County: 9,793 jobsPine County: 7,799 jobsPipestone County: 4,302 jobsPolk County: 12,036 jobsPope County: 4,459 jobsRamsey County: 325,226 jobsRed Lake County: 985 jobsRedwood County: 6,096 jobsRenville County: 5,483 jobsRice County: 26,196 jobsRock County: 3,689 jobsRoseau County: 7,971 jobsSt. Louis County: 95,504 jobsScott County: 63,111 jobsSherburne County: 28,090 jobsSibley County: 3,884 jobsStearns County: 87,252 jobsSteele County: 18,956 jobsStevens County: 5,738 jobsSwift County: 3,737 jobsTodd County: 7,081 jobsTraverse County: 1,069 jobsWabasha County: 6,566 jobsWadena County: 5,650 jobsWaseca County: 5,530 jobsWashington County: 95,625 jobsWatonwan County: 4,510 jobsWilkin County: 1,644 jobsWinona County: 24,022 jobsWright County: 48,758 jobsYellow Medicine County: 3,621 jobs
  • Under 3,000
  • 3,000 to 5,000
  • 5,000 to 8,000
  • 8,000 to 15K
  • 15K to 25K
  • 25K and over
jobs, 2024. 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, 2024

Hennepin County: 917,117 jobsHennepin County917,117Ramsey County: 325,226 jobsRamsey County325,226Dakota County: 189,387 jobsDakota County189,387Anoka County: 133,130 jobsAnoka County133,130Olmsted County: 103,905 jobsOlmsted County103,905Washington County: 95,625 jobsWashington County95,625St. Louis County: 95,504 jobsSt. Louis County95,504Stearns County: 87,252 jobsStearns County87,252Scott County: 63,111 jobsScott County63,111Wright County: 48,758 jobsWright County48,758Blue Earth County: 41,255 jobsBlue Earth County41,255Carver County: 40,848 jobsCarver County40,848Crow Wing County: 31,053 jobsCrow Wing County31,053Sherburne County: 28,090 jobsSherburne County28,090Rice County: 26,196 jobsRice County26,196Winona County: 24,022 jobsWinona County24,022Kandiyohi County: 23,173 jobsKandiyohi County23,173Otter Tail County: 22,910 jobsOtter Tail County22,910Goodhue County: 21,366 jobsGoodhue County21,366Beltrami County: 20,746 jobsBeltrami County20,746Clay County: 19,702 jobsClay County19,702Douglas County: 19,527 jobsDouglas County19,527Steele County: 18,956 jobsSteele County18,956Benton County: 17,384 jobsBenton County17,384Mower County: 16,932 jobsMower County16,932Itasca County: 16,608 jobsItasca County16,608Chisago County: 16,091 jobsChisago County16,091McLeod County: 15,697 jobsMcLeod County15,697Becker County: 15,120 jobsBecker County15,120Nicollet County: 14,609 jobsNicollet County14,609Lyon County: 13,763 jobsLyon County13,763Carlton County: 13,269 jobsCarlton County13,269Brown County: 13,221 jobsBrown County13,221Polk County: 12,036 jobsPolk County12,036Freeborn County: 11,963 jobsFreeborn County11,963Isanti County: 11,704 jobsIsanti County11,704Morrison County: 11,175 jobsMorrison County11,175Cass County: 10,661 jobsCass County10,661Pennington County: 9,793 jobsPennington County9,793Nobles County: 9,788 jobsNobles County9,788Hennepin County: 917,117 jobsHennepin County917,117Ramsey County: 325,226 jobsRamsey County325,226Dakota County: 189,387 jobsDakota County189,387Anoka County: 133,130 jobsAnoka County133,130Olmsted County: 103,905 jobsOlmsted County103,905Washington County: 95,625 jobsWashington County95,625St. Louis County: 95,504 jobsSt. Louis County95,504Stearns County: 87,252 jobsStearns County87,252Scott County: 63,111 jobsScott County63,111Wright County: 48,758 jobsWright County48,758Blue Earth County: 41,255 jobsBlue Earth County41,255Carver County: 40,848 jobsCarver County40,848Crow Wing County: 31,053 jobsCrow Wing County31,053Sherburne County: 28,090 jobsSherburne County28,090Rice County: 26,196 jobsRice County26,196Winona County: 24,022 jobsWinona County24,022Kandiyohi County: 23,173 jobsKandiyohi County23,173Otter Tail County: 22,910 jobsOtter Tail County22,910Goodhue County: 21,366 jobsGoodhue County21,366Beltrami County: 20,746 jobsBeltrami County20,746Clay County: 19,702 jobsClay County19,702Douglas County: 19,527 jobsDouglas County19,527Steele County: 18,956 jobsSteele County18,956Benton County: 17,384 jobsBenton County17,384Mower County: 16,932 jobsMower County16,932Itasca County: 16,608 jobsItasca County16,608Chisago County: 16,091 jobsChisago County16,091McLeod County: 15,697 jobsMcLeod County15,697Becker County: 15,120 jobsBecker County15,120Nicollet County: 14,609 jobsNicollet County14,609Lyon County: 13,763 jobsLyon County13,763Carlton County: 13,269 jobsCarlton County13,269Brown County: 13,221 jobsBrown County13,221Polk County: 12,036 jobsPolk County12,036Freeborn County: 11,963 jobsFreeborn County11,963Isanti County: 11,704 jobsIsanti County11,704Morrison County: 11,175 jobsMorrison County11,175Cass County: 10,661 jobsCass County10,661Pennington County: 9,793 jobsPennington County9,793Nobles County: 9,788 jobsNobles County9,788
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

RankCounties2024
jobs		Change on 2023
1Hennepin County917,117+0.3%
2Ramsey County325,226+0.2%
3Dakota County189,387+0.7%
4Anoka County133,130+0.6%
5Olmsted County103,905+1.8%
6Washington County95,625+2%
7St. Louis County95,504+0.9%
8Stearns County87,252+1.4%
9Scott County63,111+4.1%
10Wright County48,758+3.2%
11Blue Earth County41,255+2.5%
12Carver County40,848-1.3%
13Crow Wing County31,053+1.5%
14Sherburne County28,090+1.7%
15Rice County26,196+2.5%
16Winona County24,022+0.5%
17Kandiyohi County23,173+1.7%
18Otter Tail County22,910+0.9%
19Goodhue County21,366+0.7%
20Beltrami County20,746+1.2%
21Clay County19,702-0.1%
22Douglas County19,527+0.6%
23Steele County18,956+0.3%
24Benton County17,384-1.6%
25Mower County16,932+1.2%
26Itasca County16,608+4.9%
27Chisago County16,0910%
28McLeod County15,697-0.1%
29Becker County15,120+1.1%
30Nicollet County14,609-2.7%
31Lyon County13,763+0.7%
32Carlton County13,269+2.5%
33Brown County13,221-0%
34Polk County12,036+1.3%
35Freeborn County11,963+1.5%
36Isanti County11,704-0.6%
37Morrison County11,175+3.7%
38Cass County10,661-0.2%
39Pennington County9,793-2.2%
40Nobles County9,788-3.5%
41Mille Lacs County9,372+2.6%
42Le Sueur County8,667+1.7%
43Martin County8,245-0.3%
44Meeker County8,042+0.9%
45Roseau County7,971-1.3%
46Pine County7,799+0.1%
47Todd County7,081+6.1%
48Wabasha County6,566+0.5%
49Hubbard County6,263+1.1%
50Fillmore County6,235-0.7%
51Redwood County6,096+0.3%
52Dodge County5,967+2.4%
53Stevens County5,738+2.8%
54Wadena County5,650+0.9%
55Waseca County5,530+0.2%
56Renville County5,483+0.4%
57Chippewa County5,290-0.2%
58Houston County5,031-1%
59Jackson County5,021+1.7%
60Cottonwood County4,847-10.8%
61Faribault County4,549-1.3%
62Watonwan County4,510-0.6%
63Pope County4,459+0.2%
64Aitkin County4,328+0.9%
65Pipestone County4,302-0.1%
66Koochiching County4,246-1.8%
67Kanabec County4,221+3.1%
68Lake County3,902+2.4%
69Sibley County3,884+1.5%
70Swift County3,737+0.5%
71Rock County3,689+3.6%
72Yellow Medicine County3,621-2.5%
73Murray County2,914+2.7%
74Cook County2,628-1%
75Clearwater County2,536-4.4%
76Marshall County2,435+0.7%
77Lac qui Parle County2,1850%
78Mahnomen County1,989+10.9%
79Grant County1,920+2.6%
80Norman County1,710+3.1%
81Big Stone County1,694+2.4%
82Lincoln County1,684+3%
83Wilkin County1,644-1.8%
84Lake of the Woods County1,578-1.4%
85Kittson County1,436-0.3%
86Traverse County1,069-1.6%
87Red Lake County9850%

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/2024/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), 2024) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2024/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), 2024. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 21 Aug. 2026, https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2024/a/industry/10.csv. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/minnesota-counties?period=2024. 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), 2024. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2024/a/industry/10.csv. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/minnesota-counties?period=2024.

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), 2024 [Dataset]. Available at: https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2024/a/industry/10.csv, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/minnesota-counties?period=2024 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{bureau_counties_in_minnesota_by_2024,
  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), 2024}},
  year = {2026},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2024/a/industry/10.csv},
  urldate = {2026-10-12},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/minnesota-counties?period=2024. 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/2024/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), 2024
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/08/21
PB  - U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2024/a/industry/10.csv
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/minnesota-counties?period=2024
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/minnesota-counties?period=2024.
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/2024/a/industry/10.csv. Retrieved 2026-10-12.
ER  -
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Rank Counties in Minnesota by covered employment (QCEW) using official data, and cite the source.
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Questions

Which county has the highest covered employment (QCEW)?

Hennepin County, with 917,117 jobs in 2024, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Which county has the lowest covered employment (QCEW)?

Red Lake County, with 985 jobs in 2024.

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