Data / Rankings / Covered employment (QCEW) / US counties

US counties by covered employment (QCEW)

Los Angeles County had the highest covered employment (QCEW) of 3132 counties in 2017, at 4,381,836 jobs. McPherson County had the lowest, at 74 jobs. The median was 8,127 jobs and the figure for the United States was 143,859,855 jobs. Source: the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

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Highest4,381,836Los Angeles County
Lowest74McPherson County
Median8,1273132 counties
United States143,859,855History

Map of counties, 2017

jobs, 2017. Hatched areas have no value for this period. 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, 2017

Los Angeles County: 4,381,836 jobsLos Angeles County4,381,836Cook County: 2,572,191 jobsCook County2,572,191New York County: 2,461,393 jobsNew York County2,461,393Harris County: 2,272,758 jobsHarris County2,272,758Maricopa County: 1,927,372 jobsMaricopa County1,927,372Dallas County: 1,685,333 jobsDallas County1,685,333Orange County: 1,594,267 jobsOrange County1,594,267San Diego County: 1,435,108 jobsSan Diego County1,435,108King County: 1,356,141 jobsKing County1,356,141Miami-Dade County: 1,122,550 jobsMiami-Dade County1,122,550Santa Clara County: 1,071,448 jobsSanta Clara County1,071,448Clark County: 964,494 jobsClark County964,494Hennepin County: 915,718 jobsHennepin County915,718Middlesex County: 900,749 jobsMiddlesex County900,749Tarrant County: 873,867 jobsTarrant County873,867Bexar County: 854,325 jobsBexar County854,325Fulton County: 851,423 jobsFulton County851,423Orange County: 820,782 jobsOrange County820,782Broward County: 797,509 jobsBroward County797,509Alameda County: 771,652 jobsAlameda County771,652District of Columbia: 763,847 jobsDistrict of Columbia763,847Franklin County: 749,025 jobsFranklin County749,025San Bernardino County: 730,004 jobsSan Bernardino County730,004Oakland County: 728,374 jobsOakland County728,374Travis County: 725,880 jobsTravis County725,880Cuyahoga County: 720,084 jobsCuyahoga County720,084Wayne County: 718,667 jobsWayne County718,667San Francisco County: 716,917 jobsSan Francisco County716,917Riverside County: 713,182 jobsRiverside County713,182Kings County: 711,873 jobsKings County711,873Allegheny County: 694,921 jobsAllegheny County694,921Salt Lake County: 684,426 jobsSalt Lake County684,426Mecklenburg County: 680,310 jobsMecklenburg County680,310Hillsborough County: 673,490 jobsHillsborough County673,490Philadelphia County: 673,048 jobsPhiladelphia County673,048Suffolk County: 672,324 jobsSuffolk County672,324Queens County: 662,527 jobsQueens County662,527Suffolk County: 660,084 jobsSuffolk County660,084Sacramento County: 647,205 jobsSacramento County647,205Nassau County: 629,006 jobsNassau County629,006Los Angeles County: 4,381,836 jobsLos Angeles County4,381,836Cook County: 2,572,191 jobsCook County2,572,191New York County: 2,461,393 jobsNew York County2,461,393Harris County: 2,272,758 jobsHarris County2,272,758Maricopa County: 1,927,372 jobsMaricopa County1,927,372Dallas County: 1,685,333 jobsDallas County1,685,333Orange County: 1,594,267 jobsOrange County1,594,267San Diego County: 1,435,108 jobsSan Diego County1,435,108King County: 1,356,141 jobsKing County1,356,141Miami-Dade County: 1,122,550 jobsMiami-Dade County1,122,550Santa Clara County: 1,071,448 jobsSanta Clara County1,071,448Clark County: 964,494 jobsClark County964,494Hennepin County: 915,718 jobsHennepin County915,718Middlesex County: 900,749 jobsMiddlesex County900,749Tarrant County: 873,867 jobsTarrant County873,867Bexar County: 854,325 jobsBexar County854,325Fulton County: 851,423 jobsFulton County851,423Orange County: 820,782 jobsOrange County820,782Broward County: 797,509 jobsBroward County797,509Alameda County: 771,652 jobsAlameda County771,652District of Columbia: 763,847 jobsDistrict of Columbia763,847Franklin County: 749,025 jobsFranklin County749,025San Bernardino County: 730,004 jobsSan Bernardino County730,004Oakland County: 728,374 jobsOakland County728,374Travis County: 725,880 jobsTravis County725,880Cuyahoga County: 720,084 jobsCuyahoga County720,084Wayne County: 718,667 jobsWayne County718,667San Francisco County: 716,917 jobsSan Francisco County716,917Riverside County: 713,182 jobsRiverside County713,182Kings County: 711,873 jobsKings County711,873Allegheny County: 694,921 jobsAllegheny County694,921Salt Lake County: 684,426 jobsSalt Lake County684,426Mecklenburg County: 680,310 jobsMecklenburg County680,310Hillsborough County: 673,490 jobsHillsborough County673,490Philadelphia County: 673,048 jobsPhiladelphia County673,048Suffolk County: 672,324 jobsSuffolk County672,324Queens County: 662,527 jobsQueens County662,527Suffolk County: 660,084 jobsSuffolk County660,084Sacramento County: 647,205 jobsSacramento County647,205Nassau County: 629,006 jobsNassau County629,006
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

RankCounties2017
jobs		Change on 2016
1Los Angeles County4,381,836+0.9%
2Cook County2,572,191+0.4%
3New York County2,461,393+1.9%
4Harris County2,272,758+0.3%
5Maricopa County1,927,372+3%
6Dallas County1,685,333+2.1%
7Orange County1,594,267+2.2%
8San Diego County1,435,108+2.1%
9King County1,356,141+3.1%
10Miami-Dade County1,122,550+1.4%
11Santa Clara County1,071,448+2.4%
12Clark County964,494+3%
13Hennepin County915,718+1.6%
14Middlesex County900,749+1.4%
15Tarrant County873,867+2.1%
16Bexar County854,325+1.5%
17Fulton County851,423+3.4%
18Orange County820,782+3.4%
19Broward County797,509+1.9%
20Alameda County771,652+2.7%
21District of Columbia763,847+1%
22Franklin County749,025+1.4%
23San Bernardino County730,004+3.4%
24Oakland County728,374+1%
25Travis County725,880+2.8%
26Cuyahoga County720,084+0.1%
27Wayne County718,667+1%
28San Francisco County716,917+2%
29Riverside County713,182+3.5%
30Kings County711,873+3.6%
31Allegheny County694,921+0.9%
32Salt Lake County684,426+2.4%
33Mecklenburg County680,310+2.8%
34Hillsborough County673,490+1.3%
35Philadelphia County673,048+1.5%
36Suffolk County672,324+1.9%
37Queens County662,527+2.3%
38Suffolk County660,084+1.5%
39Sacramento County647,205+1.4%
40Nassau County629,006+1.1%
41DuPage County620,473+1.3%
42St. Louis County605,368+1.1%
43Fairfax County601,868+1.1%
44Palm Beach County596,686+2%
45Marion County594,093+0.5%
46Wake County544,214+2.6%
47Hamilton County515,161+1.2%
48Denver County506,049+2.3%
49Multnomah County502,929+2.2%
50Duval County502,137+3.2%
51Montgomery County492,934+1.8%
51Shelby County492,934+0.4%
53Milwaukee County484,696+0.1%
54Davidson County483,534+2.8%
55Honolulu County473,447+0.4%
56Montgomery County469,311+1.2%
57Erie County467,540+0.3%
58Jefferson County464,621+1.1%
59Oklahoma County448,440+0.2%
60Bergen County443,722-0.1%
61Westchester County426,170+0.9%
62Pinellas County425,392+1.8%
63Middlesex County422,763+2.2%
64San Mateo County400,511+2.3%
65Collin County398,536+4.8%
66Kent County394,306+1.4%
67Monroe County385,180+0.3%
68Fresno County381,997+1.9%
69Baltimore County374,732+0.3%
70Jackson County367,666+1.2%
71Contra Costa County366,720+2.1%
72Pima County364,174+1.5%
73Cobb County357,204+3.3%
74Gwinnett County352,117+2.7%
75Norfolk County352,059+0.7%
76Tulsa County351,314+0.5%
77Worcester County346,730+1.8%
78Jefferson County344,402+1.1%
79Johnson County342,420+1.3%
80Essex County340,496+1.2%
81Baltimore city340,218+0.9%
82Douglas County338,872+0.6%
83Lake County335,598+0.9%
84Dane County332,700+0.9%
85Ramsey County331,665+1.3%
86Arapahoe County328,169+2%
87Macomb County326,828+1.9%
88Bernalillo County326,579+0.6%
89Essex County325,362+0.8%
90Ventura County322,344+1%
91Prince George's County318,943+2.2%
92Kern County316,661+0.8%
93Pierce County302,409+2.4%
94Bronx County301,247+0.6%
95El Paso County300,968+1.3%
96Polk County298,553+1.2%
97DeKalb County297,451+1%
98Washington County290,034+2.4%
99Morris County288,157+0.9%
100New Castle County288,048+0.5%
101Providence County285,569+0.8%
102Snohomish County283,975+0.2%
103Guilford County279,556+0.5%
104Anne Arundel County270,987+1.2%
105El Paso County270,802+2.8%
106Summit County266,989+0.3%
107Greenville County266,796+1.7%
108East Baton Rouge Parish265,343-1%
109Bucks County263,466+1.4%
110Hudson County260,164+3%
111Monmouth County258,894+0.9%
112Lee County255,183+1.8%
113Hidalgo County255,024+2.2%
114Montgomery County254,680+0.8%
115Pulaski County249,844+0.9%
116Chester County249,630+0.6%
117San Joaquin County248,066+3.7%
118Mercer County247,445+0.8%
119Sedgwick County247,115-0.7%
120Charleston County246,380+1.8%
121Onondaga County243,621-0%
122Waukesha County242,167+1.4%
123Will County239,989+4.1%
124Denton County239,187+5%
125Lancaster County237,505+1.4%
126Knox County237,034+0.6%
127Albany County233,950+0.6%
128Ada County233,707+3.3%
129Jefferson County232,938-0.2%
130Utah County230,575+4.9%
131St. Louis city226,325+0.3%
132Bristol County226,304+1.3%
133Delaware County222,510+1.5%
134Richland County219,373+1%
135Union County219,341+1.1%
136Spokane County218,486+1.6%
137Washoe County216,508+3.1%
138Polk County215,151+2.7%
139Washtenaw County210,215+2%
140Kane County209,820+0.9%
141Hampden County208,391+0.6%
142Brevard County206,818+2.9%
143Lucas County206,670-1.5%
144Sonoma County205,511+1.8%
145Adams County204,964+3.3%
146Burlington County204,549+1.9%
147Camden County203,821+1.3%
148Hillsborough County201,736+1%
149Hamilton County200,522+1.9%
150Durham County199,398+1.9%
151Santa Barbara County197,603+1.3%
152Madison County195,702+2.1%
153Fayette County195,145+1.4%
154Orleans Parish193,947+0.2%
155Plymouth County193,131+2.1%
156Henrico County192,970+1.9%
157Jefferson Parish190,944-1.3%
158Monterey County190,470+1%
159Lehigh County188,896+1.2%
160Dakota County188,304+0.7%
161Seminole County188,069+2.8%
162Lake County187,601+0.4%
163Somerset County187,219+1.7%
164Stanislaus County187,022+1.7%
165Allen County184,976+1%
166Forsyth County183,617+0.7%
167Cumberland County182,633+2.1%
168Dauphin County181,927+1.1%
169Boulder County179,825+1.8%
170Fort Bend County178,763+3%
171Virginia Beach city178,341+1.1%
172York County178,056+0.9%
173Arlington County176,659+2.2%
174Montgomery County175,953+4.4%
175Berks County171,379+0.4%
176Howard County170,419+1.3%
177Mobile County170,070+0.6%
178Volusia County169,778+1.4%
179Lancaster County168,467-0%
180Sarasota County166,487+1.8%
181Passaic County166,186+0.3%
182Ocean County165,638+2.1%
183Williamson County165,256+4.2%
184Greene County164,733+1.1%
185Loudoun County164,537+3%
186Clackamas County162,507+3%
187Nueces County162,195+0.3%
188Tulare County162,071+0.7%
189Placer County161,169+3.1%
190Stark County159,282+0.7%
191Larimer County157,774+3.1%
192Brown County156,109+1.4%
193Clark County155,600+4.4%
194Lane County154,584+2.1%
195Richmond city154,502+0.9%
196Butler County153,926+2.4%
197Marion County152,213+2%
198Ingham County152,106+1.7%
199Chatham County151,668+1.7%
200Rockingham County149,062+1.4%
201Anchorage Municipality148,964-1.4%
202Leon County147,956+1.2%
203St. Charles County146,549+1.9%
204Luzerne County144,773+0.8%
205Collier County142,869+1.5%
206Orange County142,550+1.5%
207Norfolk city141,959+1.2%
208Hamilton County140,022+2.3%
209Lubbock County139,246+1.4%
210Cameron County138,982+0.4%
211Solano County138,371+1.9%
212Spartanburg County137,148+4.2%
213Chesterfield County135,816+1.3%
214Genesee County134,077+0.5%
215Escambia County133,738+2.8%
216Elkhart County133,688+4.8%
217Cumberland County133,313+0.9%
218Westmoreland County133,298+0.2%
219Montgomery County132,033+0.7%
220Buncombe County129,771+1.9%
221Linn County129,627-0%
222Williamson County129,237+4.6%
223Sangamon County129,179+0.4%
224Alachua County129,173+1.8%
225Lafayette Parish129,053-0.9%
226Prince William County127,892+1.3%
227Horry County127,045+4%
228Winnebago County126,019-0.8%
229Davis County126,008+4.2%
230Minnehaha County125,414+0.9%
231Ottawa County124,871+2%
232Rutherford County124,591+4.9%
233Rockland County123,811+2.1%
234Atlantic County123,400-1.2%
235Clayton County123,044+2.1%
236St. Joseph County122,566-0%
237Anoka County122,342+1.1%
238Jefferson County122,143-0.3%
239Erie County121,550-0.8%
240Manatee County121,320+2.4%
241Hinds County121,298+0.2%
242Douglas County121,139+3.7%
243Cumberland County118,780-0.2%
244Kalamazoo County118,196+1%
245Bell County118,107+1.4%
246Lexington County117,790+1.5%
247Benton County117,551+2.5%
248San Luis Obispo County117,425+2.6%
249Cass County117,363+0.4%
250Richmond County115,831+0.6%

Showing the top 250 of 3132. The Excel download has every row.

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. 11 counties with data in other periods have no value for 2017 and are left out rather than filled from another source. 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/2017/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 (US counties by covered employment (QCEW), 2017) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2017/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, US counties by covered employment (QCEW), 2017. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 21 Aug. 2026, https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2017/a/industry/10.csv. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/us-counties?period=2017. 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. US counties by covered employment (QCEW), 2017. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2017/a/industry/10.csv. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/us-counties?period=2017.

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, US counties by covered employment (QCEW), 2017 [Dataset]. Available at: https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2017/a/industry/10.csv, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/us-counties?period=2017 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{bureau_us_counties_by_covered_2017,
  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: US counties by covered employment (QCEW), 2017}},
  year = {2026},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2017/a/industry/10.csv},
  urldate = {2026-10-12},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/us-counties?period=2017. 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/2017/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: US counties by covered employment (QCEW), 2017
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/08/21
PB  - U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2017/a/industry/10.csv
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/us-counties?period=2017
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/us-counties?period=2017.
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/2017/a/industry/10.csv. Retrieved 2026-10-12.
ER  -
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Questions

Which county has the highest covered employment (QCEW)?

Los Angeles County, with 4,381,836 jobs in 2017, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Which county has the lowest covered employment (QCEW)?

McPherson County, with 74 jobs in 2017.

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. 11 counties have no value for 2017 and are not ranked.

Covered employment (QCEW): other rankings

US counties: more rankings