Counties in Pennsylvania by covered employment (QCEW)

Allegheny County had the highest covered employment (QCEW) of 67 counties in 2018, at 701,729 jobs. Sullivan County had the lowest, at 1,569 jobs. The median was 29,638 jobs and the figure for Pennsylvania was 5,867,783 jobs. Source: the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

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Highest701,729Allegheny County
Lowest1,569Sullivan County
Median29,63867 counties
Pennsylvania5,867,783History

Map of counties, 2018

Adams County: 35,052 jobsAllegheny County: 701,729 jobsArmstrong County: 16,500 jobsBeaver County: 52,956 jobsBedford County: 15,576 jobsBerks County: 173,551 jobsBlair County: 58,374 jobsBradford County: 22,981 jobsBucks County: 266,495 jobsButler County: 86,077 jobsCambria County: 50,796 jobsCameron County: 1,936 jobsCarbon County: 16,511 jobsCentre County: 68,868 jobsChester County: 251,021 jobsClarion County: 13,204 jobsClearfield County: 29,970 jobsClinton County: 13,358 jobsColumbia County: 24,843 jobsCrawford County: 30,159 jobsCumberland County: 134,480 jobsDauphin County: 184,687 jobsDelaware County: 224,808 jobsElk County: 14,995 jobsErie County: 122,028 jobsFayette County: 39,224 jobsForest County: 1,994 jobsFranklin County: 59,587 jobsFulton County: 5,934 jobsGreene County: 12,893 jobsHuntingdon County: 12,554 jobsIndiana County: 29,638 jobsJefferson County: 15,841 jobsJuniata County: 6,835 jobsLackawanna County: 98,101 jobsLancaster County: 242,383 jobsLawrence County: 28,607 jobsLebanon County: 50,423 jobsLehigh County: 193,040 jobsLuzerne County: 144,969 jobsLycoming County: 51,378 jobsMcKean County: 15,179 jobsMercer County: 46,266 jobsMifflin County: 15,815 jobsMonroe County: 56,529 jobsMontgomery County: 496,676 jobsMontour County: 15,614 jobsNorthampton County: 115,498 jobsNorthumberland County: 27,740 jobsPerry County: 7,788 jobsPhiladelphia County: 687,903 jobsPike County: 11,506 jobsPotter County: 5,463 jobsSchuylkill County: 49,398 jobsSnyder County: 16,435 jobsSomerset County: 24,275 jobsSullivan County: 1,569 jobsSusquehanna County: 9,069 jobsTioga County: 12,542 jobsUnion County: 17,738 jobsVenango County: 17,873 jobsWarren County: 14,521 jobsWashington County: 88,056 jobsWayne County: 15,099 jobsWestmoreland County: 133,713 jobsWyoming County: 9,592 jobsYork County: 179,411 jobs
  • Under 13K
  • 13K to 16K
  • 16K to 30K
  • 30K to 57K
  • 57K to 140K
  • 140K and over
jobs, 2018. 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, 2018

Allegheny County: 701,729 jobsAllegheny County701,729Philadelphia County: 687,903 jobsPhiladelphia County687,903Montgomery County: 496,676 jobsMontgomery County496,676Bucks County: 266,495 jobsBucks County266,495Chester County: 251,021 jobsChester County251,021Lancaster County: 242,383 jobsLancaster County242,383Delaware County: 224,808 jobsDelaware County224,808Lehigh County: 193,040 jobsLehigh County193,040Dauphin County: 184,687 jobsDauphin County184,687York County: 179,411 jobsYork County179,411Berks County: 173,551 jobsBerks County173,551Luzerne County: 144,969 jobsLuzerne County144,969Cumberland County: 134,480 jobsCumberland County134,480Westmoreland County: 133,713 jobsWestmoreland County133,713Erie County: 122,028 jobsErie County122,028Northampton County: 115,498 jobsNorthampton County115,498Lackawanna County: 98,101 jobsLackawanna County98,101Washington County: 88,056 jobsWashington County88,056Butler County: 86,077 jobsButler County86,077Centre County: 68,868 jobsCentre County68,868Franklin County: 59,587 jobsFranklin County59,587Blair County: 58,374 jobsBlair County58,374Monroe County: 56,529 jobsMonroe County56,529Beaver County: 52,956 jobsBeaver County52,956Lycoming County: 51,378 jobsLycoming County51,378Cambria County: 50,796 jobsCambria County50,796Lebanon County: 50,423 jobsLebanon County50,423Schuylkill County: 49,398 jobsSchuylkill County49,398Mercer County: 46,266 jobsMercer County46,266Fayette County: 39,224 jobsFayette County39,224Adams County: 35,052 jobsAdams County35,052Crawford County: 30,159 jobsCrawford County30,159Clearfield County: 29,970 jobsClearfield County29,970Indiana County: 29,638 jobsIndiana County29,638Lawrence County: 28,607 jobsLawrence County28,607Northumberland County: 27,740 jobsNorthumberland County27,740Columbia County: 24,843 jobsColumbia County24,843Somerset County: 24,275 jobsSomerset County24,275Bradford County: 22,981 jobsBradford County22,981Venango County: 17,873 jobsVenango County17,873Allegheny County: 701,729 jobsAllegheny County701,729Philadelphia County: 687,903 jobsPhiladelphia County687,903Montgomery County: 496,676 jobsMontgomery County496,676Bucks County: 266,495 jobsBucks County266,495Chester County: 251,021 jobsChester County251,021Lancaster County: 242,383 jobsLancaster County242,383Delaware County: 224,808 jobsDelaware County224,808Lehigh County: 193,040 jobsLehigh County193,040Dauphin County: 184,687 jobsDauphin County184,687York County: 179,411 jobsYork County179,411Berks County: 173,551 jobsBerks County173,551Luzerne County: 144,969 jobsLuzerne County144,969Cumberland County: 134,480 jobsCumberland County134,480Westmoreland County: 133,713 jobsWestmoreland County133,713Erie County: 122,028 jobsErie County122,028Northampton County: 115,498 jobsNorthampton County115,498Lackawanna County: 98,101 jobsLackawanna County98,101Washington County: 88,056 jobsWashington County88,056Butler County: 86,077 jobsButler County86,077Centre County: 68,868 jobsCentre County68,868Franklin County: 59,587 jobsFranklin County59,587Blair County: 58,374 jobsBlair County58,374Monroe County: 56,529 jobsMonroe County56,529Beaver County: 52,956 jobsBeaver County52,956Lycoming County: 51,378 jobsLycoming County51,378Cambria County: 50,796 jobsCambria County50,796Lebanon County: 50,423 jobsLebanon County50,423Schuylkill County: 49,398 jobsSchuylkill County49,398Mercer County: 46,266 jobsMercer County46,266Fayette County: 39,224 jobsFayette County39,224Adams County: 35,052 jobsAdams County35,052Crawford County: 30,159 jobsCrawford County30,159Clearfield County: 29,970 jobsClearfield County29,970Indiana County: 29,638 jobsIndiana County29,638Lawrence County: 28,607 jobsLawrence County28,607Northumberland County: 27,740 jobsNorthumberland County27,740Columbia County: 24,843 jobsColumbia County24,843Somerset County: 24,275 jobsSomerset County24,275Bradford County: 22,981 jobsBradford County22,981Venango County: 17,873 jobsVenango County17,873
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

RankCounties2018
jobs
Change on 2017
1Allegheny County701,729+1%
2Philadelphia County687,903+2.2%
3Montgomery County496,676+0.8%
4Bucks County266,495+1.1%
5Chester County251,021+0.6%
6Lancaster County242,383+2.1%
7Delaware County224,808+1%
8Lehigh County193,040+2.2%
9Dauphin County184,687+1.5%
10York County179,411+0.8%
11Berks County173,551+1.3%
12Luzerne County144,969+0.1%
13Cumberland County134,480+0.9%
14Westmoreland County133,713+0.3%
15Erie County122,028+0.4%
16Northampton County115,498+1%
17Lackawanna County98,101+0.3%
18Washington County88,056+1.5%
19Butler County86,077+0.9%
20Centre County68,868-0.8%
21Franklin County59,587+2.4%
22Blair County58,374-0.2%
23Monroe County56,529+0.7%
24Beaver County52,956+3.3%
25Lycoming County51,378+0.4%
26Cambria County50,796-1.3%
27Lebanon County50,423+1.9%
28Schuylkill County49,398+0.4%
29Mercer County46,266-1%
30Fayette County39,224+0.3%
31Adams County35,052+0.3%
32Crawford County30,159-0%
33Clearfield County29,970+0.8%
34Indiana County29,638-0.6%
35Lawrence County28,607+3%
36Northumberland County27,740-0.8%
37Columbia County24,843-0%
38Somerset County24,275+1.7%
39Bradford County22,981-0.2%
40Venango County17,873-0.4%
41Union County17,738-0.2%
42Carbon County16,511-0.7%
43Armstrong County16,500+1.3%
44Snyder County16,435-0.4%
45Jefferson County15,841+1.3%
46Mifflin County15,815+1.4%
47Montour County15,614-0.5%
48Bedford County15,576+0.8%
49McKean County15,179+0.3%
50Wayne County15,099+0.7%
51Elk County14,995+0.8%
52Warren County14,521-0.2%
53Clinton County13,358+3.1%
54Clarion County13,204-0.7%
55Greene County12,893+0.6%
56Huntingdon County12,554-0.1%
57Tioga County12,542+0.3%
58Pike County11,506+0.9%
59Wyoming County9,592-1.3%
60Susquehanna County9,069-0.5%
61Perry County7,788-0.3%
62Juniata County6,835+2.5%
63Fulton County5,934+18.9%
64Potter County5,463+2.2%
65Forest County1,994-0.1%
66Cameron County1,936+0.2%
67Sullivan County1,569-4.8%

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/2018/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 Pennsylvania by covered employment (QCEW), 2018) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2018/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 Pennsylvania by covered employment (QCEW), 2018. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 21 Aug. 2026, https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2018/a/industry/10.csv. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/pennsylvania-counties?period=2018. 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 Pennsylvania by covered employment (QCEW), 2018. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2018/a/industry/10.csv. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/pennsylvania-counties?period=2018.

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 Pennsylvania by covered employment (QCEW), 2018 [Dataset]. Available at: https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2018/a/industry/10.csv, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/pennsylvania-counties?period=2018 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{bureau_counties_in_pennsylvania_by_2018,
  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 Pennsylvania by covered employment (QCEW), 2018}},
  year = {2026},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2018/a/industry/10.csv},
  urldate = {2026-10-12},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/pennsylvania-counties?period=2018. 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/2018/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 Pennsylvania by covered employment (QCEW), 2018
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/08/21
PB  - U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2018/a/industry/10.csv
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/pennsylvania-counties?period=2018
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/pennsylvania-counties?period=2018.
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/2018/a/industry/10.csv. Retrieved 2026-10-12.
ER  - 
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Questions

Which county has the highest covered employment (QCEW)?

Allegheny County, with 701,729 jobs in 2018, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Which county has the lowest covered employment (QCEW)?

Sullivan County, with 1,569 jobs in 2018.

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 Pennsylvania: more rankings