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

Counties in Missouri by covered employment (QCEW)

St. Louis County had the highest covered employment (QCEW) of 115 counties in 2021, at 577,802 jobs. Worth County had the lowest, at 380 jobs. The median was 5,020 jobs and the figure for Missouri was 2,741,069 jobs. Source: the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

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Highest577,802St. Louis County
Lowest380Worth County
Median5,020115 counties
Missouri2,741,069History

Map of counties, 2021

Adair County: 9,328 jobsAndrew County: 2,758 jobsAtchison County: 1,645 jobsAudrain County: 8,314 jobsBarry County: 13,677 jobsBarton County: 3,281 jobsBates County: 3,579 jobsBenton County: 3,562 jobsBollinger County: 1,765 jobsBoone County: 94,270 jobsBuchanan County: 44,809 jobsButler County: 17,941 jobsCaldwell County: 1,881 jobsCallaway County: 14,508 jobsCamden County: 16,595 jobsCape Girardeau County: 40,121 jobsCarroll County: 2,315 jobsCarter County: 1,531 jobsCass County: 27,669 jobsCedar County: 3,149 jobsChariton County: 1,835 jobsChristian County: 18,263 jobsClark County: 1,401 jobsClay County: 103,942 jobsClinton County: 4,075 jobsCole County: 51,400 jobsCooper County: 4,553 jobsCrawford County: 6,708 jobsDade County: 1,674 jobsDallas County: 2,517 jobsDaviess County: 1,619 jobsDeKalb County: 2,698 jobsDent County: 3,834 jobsDouglas County: 2,404 jobsDunklin County: 8,551 jobsFranklin County: 37,537 jobsGasconade County: 5,201 jobsGentry County: 2,081 jobsGreene County: 167,636 jobsGrundy County: 2,862 jobsHarrison County: 2,414 jobsHenry County: 7,516 jobsHickory County: 1,321 jobsHolt County: 1,206 jobsHoward County: 2,497 jobsHowell County: 14,832 jobsIron County: 3,346 jobsJackson County: 361,445 jobsJasper County: 56,914 jobsJefferson County: 46,756 jobsJohnson County: 15,406 jobsKnox County: 867 jobsLaclede County: 13,481 jobsLafayette County: 8,473 jobsLawrence County: 8,364 jobsLewis County: 2,340 jobsLincoln County: 11,830 jobsLinn County: 3,781 jobsLivingston County: 6,148 jobsMcDonald County: 6,671 jobsMacon County: 4,816 jobsMadison County: 3,621 jobsMaries County: 1,257 jobsMarion County: 12,818 jobsMercer County: 1,544 jobsMiller County: 7,499 jobsMississippi County: 3,230 jobsMoniteau County: 4,159 jobsMonroe County: 1,720 jobsMontgomery County: 2,994 jobsMorgan County: 4,577 jobsNew Madrid County: 7,384 jobsNewton County: 20,186 jobsNodaway County: 7,760 jobsOregon County: 2,157 jobsOsage County: 4,083 jobsOzark County: 1,461 jobsPemiscot County: 5,020 jobsPerry County: 9,159 jobsPettis County: 18,581 jobsPhelps County: 18,368 jobsPike County: 5,175 jobsPlatte County: 43,550 jobsPolk County: 9,245 jobsPulaski County: 12,842 jobsPutnam County: 898 jobsRalls County: 3,554 jobsRandolph County: 9,333 jobsRay County: 4,023 jobsReynolds County: 1,863 jobsRipley County: 2,729 jobsSt. Charles County: 153,063 jobsSt. Clair County: 1,580 jobsSte. Genevieve County: 5,745 jobsSt. Francois County: 22,180 jobsSt. Louis County: 577,802 jobsSaline County: 8,456 jobsSchuyler County: 556 jobsScotland County: 1,123 jobsScott County: 15,758 jobsShannon County: 1,508 jobsShelby County: 1,728 jobsStoddard County: 10,260 jobsStone County: 6,558 jobsSullivan County: 2,294 jobsTaney County: 27,112 jobsTexas County: 5,505 jobsVernon County: 6,680 jobsWarren County: 7,586 jobsWashington County: 4,799 jobsWayne County: 2,191 jobsWebster County: 8,347 jobsWorth County: 380 jobsWright County: 4,258 jobsSt. Louis city: 215,222 jobs
  • Under 2,000
  • 2,000 to 3,000
  • 3,000 to 5,000
  • 5,000 to 8,000
  • 8,000 to 18K
  • 18K and over
jobs, 2021. 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, 2021

St. Louis County: 577,802 jobsSt. Louis County577,802Jackson County: 361,445 jobsJackson County361,445St. Louis city: 215,222 jobsSt. Louis city215,222Greene County: 167,636 jobsGreene County167,636St. Charles County: 153,063 jobsSt. Charles County153,063Clay County: 103,942 jobsClay County103,942Boone County: 94,270 jobsBoone County94,270Jasper County: 56,914 jobsJasper County56,914Cole County: 51,400 jobsCole County51,400Jefferson County: 46,756 jobsJefferson County46,756Buchanan County: 44,809 jobsBuchanan County44,809Platte County: 43,550 jobsPlatte County43,550Cape Girardeau County: 40,121 jobsCape Girardeau County40,121Franklin County: 37,537 jobsFranklin County37,537Cass County: 27,669 jobsCass County27,669Taney County: 27,112 jobsTaney County27,112St. Francois County: 22,180 jobsSt. Francois County22,180Newton County: 20,186 jobsNewton County20,186Pettis County: 18,581 jobsPettis County18,581Phelps County: 18,368 jobsPhelps County18,368Christian County: 18,263 jobsChristian County18,263Butler County: 17,941 jobsButler County17,941Camden County: 16,595 jobsCamden County16,595Scott County: 15,758 jobsScott County15,758Johnson County: 15,406 jobsJohnson County15,406Howell County: 14,832 jobsHowell County14,832Callaway County: 14,508 jobsCallaway County14,508Barry County: 13,677 jobsBarry County13,677Laclede County: 13,481 jobsLaclede County13,481Pulaski County: 12,842 jobsPulaski County12,842Marion County: 12,818 jobsMarion County12,818Lincoln County: 11,830 jobsLincoln County11,830Stoddard County: 10,260 jobsStoddard County10,260Randolph County: 9,333 jobsRandolph County9,333Adair County: 9,328 jobsAdair County9,328Polk County: 9,245 jobsPolk County9,245Perry County: 9,159 jobsPerry County9,159Dunklin County: 8,551 jobsDunklin County8,551Lafayette County: 8,473 jobsLafayette County8,473Saline County: 8,456 jobsSaline County8,456St. Louis County: 577,802 jobsSt. Louis County577,802Jackson County: 361,445 jobsJackson County361,445St. Louis city: 215,222 jobsSt. Louis city215,222Greene County: 167,636 jobsGreene County167,636St. Charles County: 153,063 jobsSt. Charles County153,063Clay County: 103,942 jobsClay County103,942Boone County: 94,270 jobsBoone County94,270Jasper County: 56,914 jobsJasper County56,914Cole County: 51,400 jobsCole County51,400Jefferson County: 46,756 jobsJefferson County46,756Buchanan County: 44,809 jobsBuchanan County44,809Platte County: 43,550 jobsPlatte County43,550Cape Girardeau County: 40,121 jobsCape Girardeau County40,121Franklin County: 37,537 jobsFranklin County37,537Cass County: 27,669 jobsCass County27,669Taney County: 27,112 jobsTaney County27,112St. Francois County: 22,180 jobsSt. Francois County22,180Newton County: 20,186 jobsNewton County20,186Pettis County: 18,581 jobsPettis County18,581Phelps County: 18,368 jobsPhelps County18,368Christian County: 18,263 jobsChristian County18,263Butler County: 17,941 jobsButler County17,941Camden County: 16,595 jobsCamden County16,595Scott County: 15,758 jobsScott County15,758Johnson County: 15,406 jobsJohnson County15,406Howell County: 14,832 jobsHowell County14,832Callaway County: 14,508 jobsCallaway County14,508Barry County: 13,677 jobsBarry County13,677Laclede County: 13,481 jobsLaclede County13,481Pulaski County: 12,842 jobsPulaski County12,842Marion County: 12,818 jobsMarion County12,818Lincoln County: 11,830 jobsLincoln County11,830Stoddard County: 10,260 jobsStoddard County10,260Randolph County: 9,333 jobsRandolph County9,333Adair County: 9,328 jobsAdair County9,328Polk County: 9,245 jobsPolk County9,245Perry County: 9,159 jobsPerry County9,159Dunklin County: 8,551 jobsDunklin County8,551Lafayette County: 8,473 jobsLafayette County8,473Saline County: 8,456 jobsSaline County8,456
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

RankCounties2021
jobs		Change on 2020
1St. Louis County577,802+1.3%
2Jackson County361,445+2%
3St. Louis city215,222+1.2%
4Greene County167,636+2.4%
5St. Charles County153,063+4%
6Clay County103,942+2.8%
7Boone County94,270+4%
8Jasper County56,914+4%
9Cole County51,400-0.5%
10Jefferson County46,756+1.9%
11Buchanan County44,809-0.9%
12Platte County43,550-0.7%
13Cape Girardeau County40,121+0.8%
14Franklin County37,537+1%
15Cass County27,669+5.9%
16Taney County27,112+7.8%
17St. Francois County22,180+0.2%
18Newton County20,186+1.8%
19Pettis County18,581+0.8%
20Phelps County18,368+2.2%
21Christian County18,263+5.3%
22Butler County17,941+0.5%
23Camden County16,595+4.9%
24Scott County15,758+4.1%
25Johnson County15,406+0.1%
26Howell County14,832+1.3%
27Callaway County14,508+1%
28Barry County13,677-2%
29Laclede County13,481+3%
30Pulaski County12,842+1.1%
31Marion County12,818+0.1%
32Lincoln County11,830+1.9%
33Stoddard County10,260+2.9%
34Randolph County9,333+2.8%
35Adair County9,328-1%
36Polk County9,245+8.6%
37Perry County9,159+2.6%
38Dunklin County8,551-0.3%
39Lafayette County8,473+1.4%
40Saline County8,456-0.2%
41Lawrence County8,364+0.9%
42Webster County8,347+8.8%
43Audrain County8,314+1.3%
44Nodaway County7,760+2.3%
45Warren County7,586+2.4%
46Henry County7,516+7.3%
47Miller County7,499+5.9%
48New Madrid County7,384-0.3%
49Crawford County6,708+4%
50Vernon County6,680+1%
51McDonald County6,671-2.5%
52Stone County6,558+3.5%
53Livingston County6,148+0.4%
54Ste. Genevieve County5,745+2.3%
55Texas County5,505+2.9%
56Gasconade County5,201+3.1%
57Pike County5,175-0.2%
58Pemiscot County5,020-2.6%
59Macon County4,816-0.4%
60Washington County4,799+2.5%
61Morgan County4,577+6.2%
62Cooper County4,553-0.8%
63Wright County4,258+10.5%
64Moniteau County4,159-0.1%
65Osage County4,083+2.8%
66Clinton County4,075+3.1%
67Ray County4,023+1.8%
68Dent County3,834-0.4%
69Linn County3,781+1.3%
70Madison County3,621+2.8%
71Bates County3,579+0.9%
72Benton County3,562+4.1%
73Ralls County3,554+3.7%
74Iron County3,346+1.5%
75Barton County3,281+3.7%
76Mississippi County3,230-5.6%
77Cedar County3,149+2.4%
78Montgomery County2,994+4.1%
79Grundy County2,862-1.2%
80Andrew County2,758+10.3%
81Ripley County2,729+5.4%
82DeKalb County2,698-2.8%
83Dallas County2,517+1.6%
84Howard County2,497+1.2%
85Harrison County2,414+0.2%
86Douglas County2,404+2.9%
87Lewis County2,340-1.8%
88Carroll County2,315+0.4%
89Sullivan County2,294-5.1%
90Wayne County2,191-4.5%
91Oregon County2,157-0.3%
92Gentry County2,081-0.5%
93Caldwell County1,881+3.4%
94Reynolds County1,863+1.7%
95Chariton County1,835+0.3%
96Bollinger County1,765+0.5%
97Shelby County1,728-1.1%
98Monroe County1,720+2.8%
99Dade County1,674+1%
100Atchison County1,645-0.1%
101Daviess County1,619+2.6%
102St. Clair County1,580+3.7%
103Mercer County1,544-5.1%
104Carter County1,531+4%
105Shannon County1,508+4.5%
106Ozark County1,461+1.7%
107Clark County1,401+2%
108Hickory County1,321+2.9%
109Maries County1,257+2.5%
110Holt County1,206-0.7%
111Scotland County1,123-1.5%
112Putnam County898+2%
113Knox County867+0.6%
114Schuyler County556-1.4%
115Worth County380+7.3%

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/2021/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 Missouri by covered employment (QCEW), 2021) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2021/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 Missouri by covered employment (QCEW), 2021. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 21 Aug. 2026, https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2021/a/industry/10.csv. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/missouri-counties?period=2021. 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 Missouri by covered employment (QCEW), 2021. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2021/a/industry/10.csv. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/missouri-counties?period=2021.

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 Missouri by covered employment (QCEW), 2021 [Dataset]. Available at: https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2021/a/industry/10.csv, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/missouri-counties?period=2021 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{bureau_counties_in_missouri_by_2021,
  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 Missouri by covered employment (QCEW), 2021}},
  year = {2026},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2021/a/industry/10.csv},
  urldate = {2026-10-12},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/missouri-counties?period=2021. 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/2021/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 Missouri by covered employment (QCEW), 2021
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/08/21
PB  - U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2021/a/industry/10.csv
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/missouri-counties?period=2021
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/missouri-counties?period=2021.
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/2021/a/industry/10.csv. Retrieved 2026-10-12.
ER  -
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Questions

Which county has the highest covered employment (QCEW)?

St. Louis County, with 577,802 jobs in 2021, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Which county has the lowest covered employment (QCEW)?

Worth County, with 380 jobs in 2021.

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 Missouri: more rankings