Counties in Oklahoma by covered employment (QCEW)

Oklahoma County had the highest covered employment (QCEW) of 77 counties in 2016, at 447,610 jobs. Harmon County had the lowest, at 676 jobs. The median was 6,665 jobs and the figure for Oklahoma was 1,575,978 jobs. Source: the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Keep it in a collection in your library.
Highest447,610Oklahoma County
Lowest676Harmon County
Median6,66577 counties
Oklahoma1,575,978History

Map of counties, 2016

Adair County: 4,359 jobsAlfalfa County: 1,492 jobsAtoka County: 3,327 jobsBeaver County: 1,522 jobsBeckham County: 9,449 jobsBlaine County: 2,950 jobsBryan County: 16,593 jobsCaddo County: 7,224 jobsCanadian County: 31,583 jobsCarter County: 24,009 jobsCherokee County: 15,708 jobsChoctaw County: 4,141 jobsCimarron County: 731 jobsCleveland County: 79,653 jobsCoal County: 1,144 jobsComanche County: 42,903 jobsCotton County: 1,453 jobsCraig County: 5,457 jobsCreek County: 18,211 jobsCuster County: 12,138 jobsDelaware County: 8,899 jobsDewey County: 1,627 jobsEllis County: 1,206 jobsGarfield County: 26,523 jobsGarvin County: 9,637 jobsGrady County: 12,381 jobsGrant County: 1,505 jobsGreer County: 1,195 jobsHarmon County: 676 jobsHarper County: 1,168 jobsHaskell County: 3,495 jobsHughes County: 3,024 jobsJackson County: 9,527 jobsJefferson County: 1,139 jobsJohnston County: 3,261 jobsKay County: 17,591 jobsKingfisher County: 6,193 jobsKiowa County: 2,172 jobsLatimer County: 2,884 jobsLe Flore County: 12,796 jobsLincoln County: 6,414 jobsLogan County: 7,300 jobsLove County: 6,255 jobsMcClain County: 8,833 jobsMcCurtain County: 11,176 jobsMcIntosh County: 3,925 jobsMajor County: 2,409 jobsMarshall County: 4,050 jobsMayes County: 12,539 jobsMurray County: 5,510 jobsMuskogee County: 29,629 jobsNoble County: 4,688 jobsNowata County: 1,666 jobsOkfuskee County: 2,374 jobsOklahoma County: 447,610 jobsOkmulgee County: 9,751 jobsOsage County: 6,665 jobsOttawa County: 12,126 jobsPawnee County: 3,388 jobsPayne County: 33,656 jobsPittsburg County: 16,169 jobsPontotoc County: 18,196 jobsPottawatomie County: 22,981 jobsPushmataha County: 2,786 jobsRoger Mills County: 787 jobsRogers County: 26,341 jobsSeminole County: 7,052 jobsSequoyah County: 8,776 jobsStephens County: 13,910 jobsTexas County: 9,696 jobsTillman County: 1,899 jobsTulsa County: 349,471 jobsWagoner County: 8,782 jobsWashington County: 20,309 jobsWashita County: 1,887 jobsWoods County: 3,808 jobsWoodward County: 8,666 jobs
  • Under 2,000
  • 2,000 to 3,000
  • 3,000 to 7,000
  • 7,000 to 10K
  • 10K to 18K
  • 18K and over
jobs, 2016. 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, 2016

Oklahoma County: 447,610 jobsOklahoma County447,610Tulsa County: 349,471 jobsTulsa County349,471Cleveland County: 79,653 jobsCleveland County79,653Comanche County: 42,903 jobsComanche County42,903Payne County: 33,656 jobsPayne County33,656Canadian County: 31,583 jobsCanadian County31,583Muskogee County: 29,629 jobsMuskogee County29,629Garfield County: 26,523 jobsGarfield County26,523Rogers County: 26,341 jobsRogers County26,341Carter County: 24,009 jobsCarter County24,009Pottawatomie County: 22,981 jobsPottawatomie County22,981Washington County: 20,309 jobsWashington County20,309Creek County: 18,211 jobsCreek County18,211Pontotoc County: 18,196 jobsPontotoc County18,196Kay County: 17,591 jobsKay County17,591Bryan County: 16,593 jobsBryan County16,593Pittsburg County: 16,169 jobsPittsburg County16,169Cherokee County: 15,708 jobsCherokee County15,708Stephens County: 13,910 jobsStephens County13,910Le Flore County: 12,796 jobsLe Flore County12,796Mayes County: 12,539 jobsMayes County12,539Grady County: 12,381 jobsGrady County12,381Custer County: 12,138 jobsCuster County12,138Ottawa County: 12,126 jobsOttawa County12,126McCurtain County: 11,176 jobsMcCurtain County11,176Okmulgee County: 9,751 jobsOkmulgee County9,751Texas County: 9,696 jobsTexas County9,696Garvin County: 9,637 jobsGarvin County9,637Jackson County: 9,527 jobsJackson County9,527Beckham County: 9,449 jobsBeckham County9,449Delaware County: 8,899 jobsDelaware County8,899McClain County: 8,833 jobsMcClain County8,833Wagoner County: 8,782 jobsWagoner County8,782Sequoyah County: 8,776 jobsSequoyah County8,776Woodward County: 8,666 jobsWoodward County8,666Logan County: 7,300 jobsLogan County7,300Caddo County: 7,224 jobsCaddo County7,224Seminole County: 7,052 jobsSeminole County7,052Osage County: 6,665 jobsOsage County6,665Lincoln County: 6,414 jobsLincoln County6,414Oklahoma County: 447,610 jobsOklahoma County447,610Tulsa County: 349,471 jobsTulsa County349,471Cleveland County: 79,653 jobsCleveland County79,653Comanche County: 42,903 jobsComanche County42,903Payne County: 33,656 jobsPayne County33,656Canadian County: 31,583 jobsCanadian County31,583Muskogee County: 29,629 jobsMuskogee County29,629Garfield County: 26,523 jobsGarfield County26,523Rogers County: 26,341 jobsRogers County26,341Carter County: 24,009 jobsCarter County24,009Pottawatomie County: 22,981 jobsPottawatomie County22,981Washington County: 20,309 jobsWashington County20,309Creek County: 18,211 jobsCreek County18,211Pontotoc County: 18,196 jobsPontotoc County18,196Kay County: 17,591 jobsKay County17,591Bryan County: 16,593 jobsBryan County16,593Pittsburg County: 16,169 jobsPittsburg County16,169Cherokee County: 15,708 jobsCherokee County15,708Stephens County: 13,910 jobsStephens County13,910Le Flore County: 12,796 jobsLe Flore County12,796Mayes County: 12,539 jobsMayes County12,539Grady County: 12,381 jobsGrady County12,381Custer County: 12,138 jobsCuster County12,138Ottawa County: 12,126 jobsOttawa County12,126McCurtain County: 11,176 jobsMcCurtain County11,176Okmulgee County: 9,751 jobsOkmulgee County9,751Texas County: 9,696 jobsTexas County9,696Garvin County: 9,637 jobsGarvin County9,637Jackson County: 9,527 jobsJackson County9,527Beckham County: 9,449 jobsBeckham County9,449Delaware County: 8,899 jobsDelaware County8,899McClain County: 8,833 jobsMcClain County8,833Wagoner County: 8,782 jobsWagoner County8,782Sequoyah County: 8,776 jobsSequoyah County8,776Woodward County: 8,666 jobsWoodward County8,666Logan County: 7,300 jobsLogan County7,300Caddo County: 7,224 jobsCaddo County7,224Seminole County: 7,052 jobsSeminole County7,052Osage County: 6,665 jobsOsage County6,665Lincoln County: 6,414 jobsLincoln County6,414
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

RankCounties2016
jobs
Change on 2015
1Oklahoma County447,610-0.6%
2Tulsa County349,4710%
3Cleveland County79,653-1.6%
4Comanche County42,903-0.3%
5Payne County33,656+0.4%
6Canadian County31,583-0.1%
7Muskogee County29,629-1%
8Garfield County26,523-0.6%
9Rogers County26,341-5.7%
10Carter County24,009-0.9%
11Pottawatomie County22,981+0.3%
12Washington County20,309-4.2%
13Creek County18,211-2.7%
14Pontotoc County18,196+0.3%
15Kay County17,591-3.1%
16Bryan County16,593+7.6%
17Pittsburg County16,169-0.2%
18Cherokee County15,708-1.1%
19Stephens County13,910-11.7%
20Le Flore County12,796-2.2%
21Mayes County12,539-1.6%
22Grady County12,381-2.2%
23Custer County12,138-4.6%
24Ottawa County12,126+0.2%
25McCurtain County11,176+1.5%
26Okmulgee County9,751-0.3%
27Texas County9,696-2.1%
28Garvin County9,637-3%
29Jackson County9,527+0.6%
30Beckham County9,449-13.5%
31Delaware County8,899+2.1%
32McClain County8,833+0.1%
33Wagoner County8,782-2.6%
34Sequoyah County8,776-3.7%
35Woodward County8,666-10.5%
36Logan County7,300+0.3%
37Caddo County7,224-0.4%
38Seminole County7,052-3.4%
39Osage County6,665-1.3%
40Lincoln County6,414-2.5%
41Love County6,255+14.5%
42Kingfisher County6,193+2.2%
43Murray County5,510-8.9%
44Craig County5,457-0.7%
45Noble County4,688+2.2%
46Adair County4,359-2.3%
47Choctaw County4,141-4%
48Marshall County4,050-3.7%
49McIntosh County3,925-1.8%
50Woods County3,808-4.5%
51Haskell County3,495-0.9%
52Pawnee County3,388-2.1%
53Atoka County3,327+2.9%
54Johnston County3,261+9.9%
55Hughes County3,024-5.4%
56Blaine County2,950-1.6%
57Latimer County2,884-6.7%
58Pushmataha County2,786-0.5%
59Major County2,409-11.3%
60Okfuskee County2,374-0.6%
61Kiowa County2,172-3.1%
62Tillman County1,899-3%
63Washita County1,887-7.6%
64Nowata County1,666-4.5%
65Dewey County1,627+9.1%
66Beaver County1,522-7.6%
67Grant County1,505-14.1%
68Alfalfa County1,492-9.9%
69Cotton County1,453-3%
70Ellis County1,206-5.4%
71Greer County1,195-2.4%
72Harper County1,168-5.3%
73Coal County1,144-0.8%
74Jefferson County1,139+1.6%
75Roger Mills County787+2.5%
76Cimarron County731+6.4%
77Harmon County676-3.6%

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/2016/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 Oklahoma by covered employment (QCEW), 2016) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2016/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 Oklahoma by covered employment (QCEW), 2016. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 21 Aug. 2026, https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2016/a/industry/10.csv. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/oklahoma-counties?period=2016. 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 Oklahoma by covered employment (QCEW), 2016. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2016/a/industry/10.csv. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/oklahoma-counties?period=2016.

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 Oklahoma by covered employment (QCEW), 2016 [Dataset]. Available at: https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2016/a/industry/10.csv, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/oklahoma-counties?period=2016 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{bureau_counties_in_oklahoma_by_2016,
  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 Oklahoma by covered employment (QCEW), 2016}},
  year = {2026},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2016/a/industry/10.csv},
  urldate = {2026-10-12},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/oklahoma-counties?period=2016. 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/2016/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 Oklahoma by covered employment (QCEW), 2016
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/08/21
PB  - U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2016/a/industry/10.csv
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/oklahoma-counties?period=2016
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/oklahoma-counties?period=2016.
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/2016/a/industry/10.csv. Retrieved 2026-10-12.
ER  - 
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Questions

Which county has the highest covered employment (QCEW)?

Oklahoma County, with 447,610 jobs in 2016, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Which county has the lowest covered employment (QCEW)?

Harmon County, with 676 jobs in 2016.

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 Oklahoma: more rankings