Data / Rankings / Covered employment (QCEW) / Counties in North Carolina

Counties in North Carolina by covered employment (QCEW)

Mecklenburg County had the highest covered employment (QCEW) of 100 counties in 2022, at 755,918 jobs. Tyrrell County had the lowest, at 977 jobs. The median was 16,128 jobs and the figure for North Carolina was 4,699,554 jobs. Source: the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

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Highest755,918Mecklenburg County
Lowest977Tyrrell County
Median16,128100 counties
North Carolina4,699,554History

Map of counties, 2022

Alamance County: 63,536 jobsAlexander County: 9,421 jobsAlleghany County: 3,446 jobsAnson County: 6,730 jobsAshe County: 7,313 jobsAvery County: 6,975 jobsBeaufort County: 15,966 jobsBertie County: 5,182 jobsBladen County: 13,413 jobsBrunswick County: 37,073 jobsBuncombe County: 135,740 jobsBurke County: 29,145 jobsCabarrus County: 82,221 jobsCaldwell County: 25,081 jobsCamden County: 1,153 jobsCarteret County: 24,055 jobsCaswell County: 2,776 jobsCatawba County: 89,741 jobsChatham County: 16,804 jobsCherokee County: 8,037 jobsChowan County: 4,957 jobsClay County: 2,102 jobsCleveland County: 35,786 jobsColumbus County: 16,289 jobsCraven County: 39,770 jobsCumberland County: 120,192 jobsCurrituck County: 7,414 jobsDare County: 19,582 jobsDavidson County: 45,476 jobsDavie County: 13,461 jobsDuplin County: 18,633 jobsDurham County: 228,147 jobsEdgecombe County: 15,707 jobsForsyth County: 190,891 jobsFranklin County: 12,850 jobsGaston County: 75,934 jobsGates County: 1,400 jobsGraham County: 1,875 jobsGranville County: 20,527 jobsGreene County: 4,447 jobsGuilford County: 284,394 jobsHalifax County: 14,796 jobsHarnett County: 26,996 jobsHaywood County: 17,536 jobsHenderson County: 40,983 jobsHertford County: 8,547 jobsHoke County: 8,723 jobsHyde County: 1,718 jobsIredell County: 80,127 jobsJackson County: 14,117 jobsJohnston County: 56,489 jobsJones County: 1,626 jobsLee County: 25,920 jobsLenoir County: 28,478 jobsLincoln County: 26,545 jobsMcDowell County: 15,441 jobsMacon County: 11,796 jobsMadison County: 3,956 jobsMartin County: 6,104 jobsMecklenburg County: 755,918 jobsMitchell County: 4,737 jobsMontgomery County: 9,064 jobsMoore County: 37,210 jobsNash County: 38,515 jobsNew Hanover County: 124,346 jobsNorthampton County: 5,091 jobsOnslow County: 51,843 jobsOrange County: 75,629 jobsPamlico County: 3,659 jobsPasquotank County: 15,425 jobsPender County: 13,922 jobsPerquimans County: 2,348 jobsPerson County: 9,535 jobsPitt County: 78,586 jobsPolk County: 5,306 jobsRandolph County: 43,530 jobsRichmond County: 14,123 jobsRobeson County: 37,600 jobsRockingham County: 24,272 jobsRowan County: 49,989 jobsRutherford County: 18,393 jobsSampson County: 17,591 jobsScotland County: 11,682 jobsStanly County: 19,932 jobsStokes County: 7,413 jobsSurry County: 27,680 jobsSwain County: 10,779 jobsTransylvania County: 9,414 jobsTyrrell County: 977 jobsUnion County: 68,133 jobsVance County: 14,104 jobsWake County: 617,742 jobsWarren County: 2,921 jobsWashington County: 3,119 jobsWatauga County: 24,272 jobsWayne County: 40,173 jobsWilkes County: 19,772 jobsWilson County: 35,249 jobsYadkin County: 10,004 jobsYancey County: 4,402 jobs
  • Under 5,000
  • 5,000 to 10K
  • 10K to 16K
  • 16K to 27K
  • 27K to 54K
  • 54K and over
jobs, 2022. 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, 2022

Mecklenburg County: 755,918 jobsMecklenburg County755,918Wake County: 617,742 jobsWake County617,742Guilford County: 284,394 jobsGuilford County284,394Durham County: 228,147 jobsDurham County228,147Forsyth County: 190,891 jobsForsyth County190,891Buncombe County: 135,740 jobsBuncombe County135,740New Hanover County: 124,346 jobsNew Hanover County124,346Cumberland County: 120,192 jobsCumberland County120,192Catawba County: 89,741 jobsCatawba County89,741Cabarrus County: 82,221 jobsCabarrus County82,221Iredell County: 80,127 jobsIredell County80,127Pitt County: 78,586 jobsPitt County78,586Gaston County: 75,934 jobsGaston County75,934Orange County: 75,629 jobsOrange County75,629Union County: 68,133 jobsUnion County68,133Alamance County: 63,536 jobsAlamance County63,536Johnston County: 56,489 jobsJohnston County56,489Onslow County: 51,843 jobsOnslow County51,843Rowan County: 49,989 jobsRowan County49,989Davidson County: 45,476 jobsDavidson County45,476Randolph County: 43,530 jobsRandolph County43,530Henderson County: 40,983 jobsHenderson County40,983Wayne County: 40,173 jobsWayne County40,173Craven County: 39,770 jobsCraven County39,770Nash County: 38,515 jobsNash County38,515Robeson County: 37,600 jobsRobeson County37,600Moore County: 37,210 jobsMoore County37,210Brunswick County: 37,073 jobsBrunswick County37,073Cleveland County: 35,786 jobsCleveland County35,786Wilson County: 35,249 jobsWilson County35,249Burke County: 29,145 jobsBurke County29,145Lenoir County: 28,478 jobsLenoir County28,478Surry County: 27,680 jobsSurry County27,680Harnett County: 26,996 jobsHarnett County26,996Lincoln County: 26,545 jobsLincoln County26,545Lee County: 25,920 jobsLee County25,920Caldwell County: 25,081 jobsCaldwell County25,081Rockingham County: 24,272 jobsRockingham County24,272Watauga County: 24,272 jobsWatauga County24,272Carteret County: 24,055 jobsCarteret County24,055Mecklenburg County: 755,918 jobsMecklenburg County755,918Wake County: 617,742 jobsWake County617,742Guilford County: 284,394 jobsGuilford County284,394Durham County: 228,147 jobsDurham County228,147Forsyth County: 190,891 jobsForsyth County190,891Buncombe County: 135,740 jobsBuncombe County135,740New Hanover County: 124,346 jobsNew Hanover County124,346Cumberland County: 120,192 jobsCumberland County120,192Catawba County: 89,741 jobsCatawba County89,741Cabarrus County: 82,221 jobsCabarrus County82,221Iredell County: 80,127 jobsIredell County80,127Pitt County: 78,586 jobsPitt County78,586Gaston County: 75,934 jobsGaston County75,934Orange County: 75,629 jobsOrange County75,629Union County: 68,133 jobsUnion County68,133Alamance County: 63,536 jobsAlamance County63,536Johnston County: 56,489 jobsJohnston County56,489Onslow County: 51,843 jobsOnslow County51,843Rowan County: 49,989 jobsRowan County49,989Davidson County: 45,476 jobsDavidson County45,476Randolph County: 43,530 jobsRandolph County43,530Henderson County: 40,983 jobsHenderson County40,983Wayne County: 40,173 jobsWayne County40,173Craven County: 39,770 jobsCraven County39,770Nash County: 38,515 jobsNash County38,515Robeson County: 37,600 jobsRobeson County37,600Moore County: 37,210 jobsMoore County37,210Brunswick County: 37,073 jobsBrunswick County37,073Cleveland County: 35,786 jobsCleveland County35,786Wilson County: 35,249 jobsWilson County35,249Burke County: 29,145 jobsBurke County29,145Lenoir County: 28,478 jobsLenoir County28,478Surry County: 27,680 jobsSurry County27,680Harnett County: 26,996 jobsHarnett County26,996Lincoln County: 26,545 jobsLincoln County26,545Lee County: 25,920 jobsLee County25,920Caldwell County: 25,081 jobsCaldwell County25,081Rockingham County: 24,272 jobsRockingham County24,272Watauga County: 24,272 jobsWatauga County24,272Carteret County: 24,055 jobsCarteret County24,055
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

RankCounties2022
jobs		Change on 2021
1Mecklenburg County755,918+5.2%
2Wake County617,742+6%
3Guilford County284,394+2.3%
4Durham County228,147+2.9%
5Forsyth County190,891+2.4%
6Buncombe County135,740+3.9%
7New Hanover County124,346+5.4%
8Cumberland County120,192+1.4%
9Catawba County89,741+3.9%
10Cabarrus County82,221+3.8%
11Iredell County80,127+3%
12Pitt County78,586+2.9%
13Gaston County75,934+3.3%
14Orange County75,629+4.9%
15Union County68,133+3.8%
16Alamance County63,536+1.3%
17Johnston County56,489+6.3%
18Onslow County51,843+2.8%
19Rowan County49,989+2.6%
20Davidson County45,476+3.2%
21Randolph County43,530+1%
22Henderson County40,983+4.4%
23Wayne County40,173-0.4%
24Craven County39,770+1.4%
25Nash County38,515-0.3%
26Robeson County37,600+0.4%
27Moore County37,210+4.2%
28Brunswick County37,073+5.5%
29Cleveland County35,786+1.8%
30Wilson County35,249+0.5%
31Burke County29,145+0.6%
32Lenoir County28,478+2.1%
33Surry County27,680+1.1%
34Harnett County26,996+3%
35Lincoln County26,545+6%
36Lee County25,920+2.8%
37Caldwell County25,081+2.4%
38Rockingham County24,272+1.6%
38Watauga County24,272+2.9%
40Carteret County24,055+2.3%
41Granville County20,527+1.1%
42Stanly County19,932+5.6%
43Wilkes County19,772-0.5%
44Dare County19,582+1.8%
45Duplin County18,633+1%
46Rutherford County18,393+2.5%
47Sampson County17,591+1.6%
48Haywood County17,536+1.7%
49Chatham County16,804+6.1%
50Columbus County16,289+6.3%
51Beaufort County15,966-0.2%
52Edgecombe County15,707-1.6%
53McDowell County15,441-0%
54Pasquotank County15,425+2.5%
55Halifax County14,796+1.4%
56Richmond County14,123+5.3%
57Jackson County14,117+0.5%
58Vance County14,104+1.4%
59Pender County13,922+2.5%
60Davie County13,461+3.8%
61Bladen County13,413+0.8%
62Franklin County12,850+4.9%
63Macon County11,796+4%
64Scotland County11,682+2.5%
65Swain County10,779+6.5%
66Yadkin County10,004+0.9%
67Person County9,5350%
68Alexander County9,421+2%
69Transylvania County9,414+2.7%
70Montgomery County9,064+1.2%
71Hoke County8,723+2.7%
72Hertford County8,547+0.3%
73Cherokee County8,037+4.5%
74Currituck County7,414+1.6%
75Stokes County7,413-0.1%
76Ashe County7,313+0.6%
77Avery County6,975+4.1%
78Anson County6,7300%
79Martin County6,104-1.2%
80Polk County5,306+3.4%
81Bertie County5,182-1.7%
82Northampton County5,091-1.9%
83Chowan County4,957+5.7%
84Mitchell County4,737+1%
85Greene County4,447-0.3%
86Yancey County4,402+2.2%
87Madison County3,956+0.6%
88Pamlico County3,659+5.4%
89Alleghany County3,446+7.7%
90Washington County3,119+1.8%
91Warren County2,921-2%
92Caswell County2,776-0.5%
93Perquimans County2,348+4.8%
94Clay County2,102+6.2%
95Graham County1,875-5%
96Hyde County1,718-0.9%
97Jones County1,626+1.6%
98Gates County1,400-7.3%
99Camden County1,153+0.4%
100Tyrrell County977+0.7%

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/2022/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 North Carolina by covered employment (QCEW), 2022) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2022/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 North Carolina by covered employment (QCEW), 2022. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 21 Aug. 2026, https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2022/a/industry/10.csv. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/north-carolina-counties?period=2022. 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 North Carolina by covered employment (QCEW), 2022. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2022/a/industry/10.csv. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/north-carolina-counties?period=2022.

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 North Carolina by covered employment (QCEW), 2022 [Dataset]. Available at: https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2022/a/industry/10.csv, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/north-carolina-counties?period=2022 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{bureau_counties_in_north_carolina_2022,
  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 North Carolina by covered employment (QCEW), 2022}},
  year = {2026},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2022/a/industry/10.csv},
  urldate = {2026-10-12},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/north-carolina-counties?period=2022. 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/2022/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 North Carolina by covered employment (QCEW), 2022
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/08/21
PB  - U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2022/a/industry/10.csv
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/north-carolina-counties?period=2022
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/north-carolina-counties?period=2022.
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/2022/a/industry/10.csv. Retrieved 2026-10-12.
ER  -
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Rank Counties in North Carolina by covered employment (QCEW) using official data, and cite the source.
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Questions

Which county has the highest covered employment (QCEW)?

Mecklenburg County, with 755,918 jobs in 2022, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Which county has the lowest covered employment (QCEW)?

Tyrrell County, with 977 jobs in 2022.

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 North Carolina: more rankings