Counties in Tennessee by covered employment (QCEW)

Davidson County had the highest covered employment (QCEW) of 95 counties in 2023, at 549,305 jobs. Pickett County had the lowest, at 887 jobs. The median was 9,116 jobs and the figure for Tennessee was 3,232,182 jobs. Source: the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Keep it in a collection in your library.
Highest549,305Davidson County
Median9,11695 counties
Tennessee3,232,182History

Map of counties, 2023

Anderson County: 44,795 jobsBedford County: 17,809 jobsBenton County: 4,234 jobsBledsoe County: 2,470 jobsBlount County: 54,542 jobsBradley County: 42,721 jobsCampbell County: 9,435 jobsCannon County: 2,447 jobsCarroll County: 7,630 jobsCarter County: 11,841 jobsCheatham County: 9,433 jobsChester County: 3,983 jobsClaiborne County: 9,116 jobsClay County: 1,471 jobsCocke County: 7,824 jobsCoffee County: 26,677 jobsCrockett County: 4,023 jobsCumberland County: 19,040 jobsDavidson County: 549,305 jobsDecatur County: 3,442 jobsDeKalb County: 5,709 jobsDickson County: 18,677 jobsDyer County: 16,742 jobsFayette County: 8,085 jobsFentress County: 5,504 jobsFranklin County: 11,909 jobsGibson County: 14,989 jobsGiles County: 10,224 jobsGrainger County: 4,088 jobsGreene County: 25,111 jobsGrundy County: 2,187 jobsHamblen County: 33,694 jobsHamilton County: 217,651 jobsHancock County: 1,022 jobsHardeman County: 6,559 jobsHardin County: 8,242 jobsHawkins County: 12,026 jobsHaywood County: 5,979 jobsHenderson County: 7,999 jobsHenry County: 11,724 jobsHickman County: 4,047 jobsHouston County: 1,451 jobsHumphreys County: 6,056 jobsJackson County: 1,543 jobsJefferson County: 13,889 jobsJohnson County: 4,306 jobsKnox County: 257,201 jobsLake County: 1,493 jobsLauderdale County: 6,654 jobsLawrence County: 11,684 jobsLewis County: 3,221 jobsLincoln County: 10,079 jobsLoudon County: 17,841 jobsMcMinn County: 17,474 jobsMcNairy County: 5,432 jobsMacon County: 5,224 jobsMadison County: 60,856 jobsMarion County: 8,128 jobsMarshall County: 9,887 jobsMaury County: 40,890 jobsMeigs County: 2,131 jobsMonroe County: 15,411 jobsMontgomery County: 62,330 jobsMoore County: 2,424 jobsMorgan County: 3,636 jobsObion County: 12,189 jobsOverton County: 5,488 jobsPerry County: 1,572 jobsPickett County: 887 jobsPolk County: 2,769 jobsPutnam County: 39,385 jobsRhea County: 11,490 jobsRoane County: 20,194 jobsRobertson County: 23,290 jobsRutherford County: 144,317 jobsScott County: 5,780 jobsSequatchie County: 3,491 jobsSevier County: 52,282 jobsShelby County: 486,615 jobsSmith County: 5,182 jobsStewart County: 3,051 jobsSullivan County: 69,302 jobsSumner County: 61,068 jobsTipton County: 12,061 jobsTrousdale County: 2,014 jobsUnicoi County: 5,096 jobsUnion County: 2,890 jobsVan Buren County: 903 jobsWarren County: 13,137 jobsWashington County: 64,992 jobsWayne County: 4,149 jobsWeakley County: 10,800 jobsWhite County: 7,300 jobsWilliamson County: 155,713 jobsWilson County: 63,996 jobs
  • Under 3,000
  • 3,000 to 5,000
  • 5,000 to 9,000
  • 9,000 to 14K
  • 14K to 42K
  • 42K and over
jobs, 2023. 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, 2023

Davidson County: 549,305 jobsDavidson County549,305Shelby County: 486,615 jobsShelby County486,615Knox County: 257,201 jobsKnox County257,201Hamilton County: 217,651 jobsHamilton County217,651Williamson County: 155,713 jobsWilliamson County155,713Rutherford County: 144,317 jobsRutherford County144,317Sullivan County: 69,302 jobsSullivan County69,302Washington County: 64,992 jobsWashington County64,992Wilson County: 63,996 jobsWilson County63,996Montgomery County: 62,330 jobsMontgomery County62,330Sumner County: 61,068 jobsSumner County61,068Madison County: 60,856 jobsMadison County60,856Blount County: 54,542 jobsBlount County54,542Sevier County: 52,282 jobsSevier County52,282Anderson County: 44,795 jobsAnderson County44,795Bradley County: 42,721 jobsBradley County42,721Maury County: 40,890 jobsMaury County40,890Putnam County: 39,385 jobsPutnam County39,385Hamblen County: 33,694 jobsHamblen County33,694Coffee County: 26,677 jobsCoffee County26,677Greene County: 25,111 jobsGreene County25,111Robertson County: 23,290 jobsRobertson County23,290Roane County: 20,194 jobsRoane County20,194Cumberland County: 19,040 jobsCumberland County19,040Dickson County: 18,677 jobsDickson County18,677Loudon County: 17,841 jobsLoudon County17,841Bedford County: 17,809 jobsBedford County17,809McMinn County: 17,474 jobsMcMinn County17,474Dyer County: 16,742 jobsDyer County16,742Monroe County: 15,411 jobsMonroe County15,411Gibson County: 14,989 jobsGibson County14,989Jefferson County: 13,889 jobsJefferson County13,889Warren County: 13,137 jobsWarren County13,137Obion County: 12,189 jobsObion County12,189Tipton County: 12,061 jobsTipton County12,061Hawkins County: 12,026 jobsHawkins County12,026Franklin County: 11,909 jobsFranklin County11,909Carter County: 11,841 jobsCarter County11,841Henry County: 11,724 jobsHenry County11,724Lawrence County: 11,684 jobsLawrence County11,684Davidson County: 549,305 jobsDavidson County549,305Shelby County: 486,615 jobsShelby County486,615Knox County: 257,201 jobsKnox County257,201Hamilton County: 217,651 jobsHamilton County217,651Williamson County: 155,713 jobsWilliamson County155,713Rutherford County: 144,317 jobsRutherford County144,317Sullivan County: 69,302 jobsSullivan County69,302Washington County: 64,992 jobsWashington County64,992Wilson County: 63,996 jobsWilson County63,996Montgomery County: 62,330 jobsMontgomery County62,330Sumner County: 61,068 jobsSumner County61,068Madison County: 60,856 jobsMadison County60,856Blount County: 54,542 jobsBlount County54,542Sevier County: 52,282 jobsSevier County52,282Anderson County: 44,795 jobsAnderson County44,795Bradley County: 42,721 jobsBradley County42,721Maury County: 40,890 jobsMaury County40,890Putnam County: 39,385 jobsPutnam County39,385Hamblen County: 33,694 jobsHamblen County33,694Coffee County: 26,677 jobsCoffee County26,677Greene County: 25,111 jobsGreene County25,111Robertson County: 23,290 jobsRobertson County23,290Roane County: 20,194 jobsRoane County20,194Cumberland County: 19,040 jobsCumberland County19,040Dickson County: 18,677 jobsDickson County18,677Loudon County: 17,841 jobsLoudon County17,841Bedford County: 17,809 jobsBedford County17,809McMinn County: 17,474 jobsMcMinn County17,474Dyer County: 16,742 jobsDyer County16,742Monroe County: 15,411 jobsMonroe County15,411Gibson County: 14,989 jobsGibson County14,989Jefferson County: 13,889 jobsJefferson County13,889Warren County: 13,137 jobsWarren County13,137Obion County: 12,189 jobsObion County12,189Tipton County: 12,061 jobsTipton County12,061Hawkins County: 12,026 jobsHawkins County12,026Franklin County: 11,909 jobsFranklin County11,909Carter County: 11,841 jobsCarter County11,841Henry County: 11,724 jobsHenry County11,724Lawrence County: 11,684 jobsLawrence County11,684
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

RankCounties2023
jobs
Change on 2022
1Davidson County549,305+3%
2Shelby County486,615-1.4%
3Knox County257,201+2.7%
4Hamilton County217,651+4%
5Williamson County155,713+4.1%
6Rutherford County144,317+3.1%
7Sullivan County69,302+1%
8Washington County64,992+1.9%
9Wilson County63,996+5.4%
10Montgomery County62,330+3.1%
11Sumner County61,068+3.1%
12Madison County60,856+0.6%
13Blount County54,542+3.7%
14Sevier County52,282+3.4%
15Anderson County44,795+0.4%
16Bradley County42,721+0.7%
17Maury County40,890+6.6%
18Putnam County39,385+1%
19Hamblen County33,694+2.2%
20Coffee County26,677+2.8%
21Greene County25,111-0.5%
22Robertson County23,290+2.4%
23Roane County20,194+4.3%
24Cumberland County19,040+4.2%
25Dickson County18,677+2.6%
26Loudon County17,841+1.4%
27Bedford County17,809+3.6%
28McMinn County17,474-1%
29Dyer County16,742+3%
30Monroe County15,411-1.6%
31Gibson County14,989+2.8%
32Jefferson County13,889+1.6%
33Warren County13,137+4%
34Obion County12,189+3.8%
35Tipton County12,061-2.4%
36Hawkins County12,026+0.8%
37Franklin County11,909+3.8%
38Carter County11,841+1.4%
39Henry County11,724+2.4%
40Lawrence County11,684+1.9%
41Rhea County11,490-2.3%
42Weakley County10,800-1%
43Giles County10,224-0.4%
44Lincoln County10,079+0.8%
45Marshall County9,887+2.4%
46Campbell County9,435+2%
47Cheatham County9,433+0.8%
48Claiborne County9,116-1.6%
49Hardin County8,242+2.1%
50Marion County8,128+1.7%
51Fayette County8,085-0.9%
52Henderson County7,999+1.3%
53Cocke County7,824+1.9%
54Carroll County7,630+12.2%
55White County7,300+1.2%
56Lauderdale County6,654-0.5%
57Hardeman County6,559+1%
58Humphreys County6,056+8.1%
59Haywood County5,979+18.3%
60Scott County5,780+0.9%
61DeKalb County5,709-5.6%
62Fentress County5,504+2.8%
63Overton County5,488+3.7%
64McNairy County5,432+2%
65Macon County5,224+1.7%
66Smith County5,182+2.7%
67Unicoi County5,096+4.1%
68Johnson County4,306+0.7%
69Benton County4,234-0.6%
70Wayne County4,149+0.9%
71Grainger County4,088-2.2%
72Hickman County4,047-2.5%
73Crockett County4,023+5.7%
74Chester County3,983+1.9%
75Morgan County3,636+9.5%
76Sequatchie County3,491+5.6%
77Decatur County3,442+1.2%
78Lewis County3,221+0.7%
79Stewart County3,051+6.1%
80Union County2,890+6.3%
81Polk County2,769+7.3%
82Bledsoe County2,470+13.4%
83Cannon County2,447+3.8%
84Moore County2,424-1.9%
85Grundy County2,187+4.3%
86Meigs County2,131-8.3%
87Trousdale County2,014+3.9%
88Perry County1,572+4.5%
89Jackson County1,543+0.4%
90Lake County1,493-1.4%
91Clay County1,471+5%
92Houston County1,451+2.3%
93Hancock County1,022+0.1%
94Van Buren County903+6.7%
95Pickett County887-4.6%

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/2023/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 Tennessee by covered employment (QCEW), 2023) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2023/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 Tennessee by covered employment (QCEW), 2023. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 21 Aug. 2026, https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2023/a/industry/10.csv. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/tennessee-counties?period=2023. 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 Tennessee by covered employment (QCEW), 2023. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2023/a/industry/10.csv. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/tennessee-counties?period=2023.

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 Tennessee by covered employment (QCEW), 2023 [Dataset]. Available at: https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2023/a/industry/10.csv, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/tennessee-counties?period=2023 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{bureau_counties_in_tennessee_by_2023,
  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 Tennessee by covered employment (QCEW), 2023}},
  year = {2026},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2023/a/industry/10.csv},
  urldate = {2026-10-12},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/tennessee-counties?period=2023. 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/2023/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 Tennessee by covered employment (QCEW), 2023
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/08/21
PB  - U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2023/a/industry/10.csv
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/tennessee-counties?period=2023
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/tennessee-counties?period=2023.
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/2023/a/industry/10.csv. Retrieved 2026-10-12.
ER  - 
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Questions

Which county has the highest covered employment (QCEW)?

Davidson County, with 549,305 jobs in 2023, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Which county has the lowest covered employment (QCEW)?

Pickett County, with 887 jobs in 2023.

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 Tennessee: more rankings