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 2019, at 4,509,905 jobs. McPherson County had the lowest, at 70 jobs. The median was 8,251 jobs and the figure for the United States was 148,105,092 jobs. Source: the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Keep it in a collection in your library.
Highest4,509,905Los Angeles County
Lowest70McPherson County
Median8,2513132 counties
United States148,105,092History

Map of counties, 2019

jobs, 2019. 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, 2019

Los Angeles County: 4,509,905 jobsLos Angeles County4,509,905Cook County: 2,609,154 jobsCook County2,609,154New York County: 2,527,343 jobsNew York County2,527,343Harris County: 2,350,807 jobsHarris County2,350,807Maricopa County: 2,062,384 jobsMaricopa County2,062,384Dallas County: 1,743,903 jobsDallas County1,743,903Orange County: 1,650,571 jobsOrange County1,650,571San Diego County: 1,488,281 jobsSan Diego County1,488,281King County: 1,433,618 jobsKing County1,433,618Miami-Dade County: 1,164,271 jobsMiami-Dade County1,164,271Santa Clara County: 1,119,639 jobsSanta Clara County1,119,639Clark County: 1,025,501 jobsClark County1,025,501Middlesex County: 940,312 jobsMiddlesex County940,312Hennepin County: 936,694 jobsHennepin County936,694Tarrant County: 921,867 jobsTarrant County921,867Fulton County: 903,005 jobsFulton County903,005Bexar County: 878,251 jobsBexar County878,251Orange County: 868,723 jobsOrange County868,723Broward County: 824,195 jobsBroward County824,195Kings County: 795,104 jobsKings County795,104Alameda County: 793,213 jobsAlameda County793,213Travis County: 779,766 jobsTravis County779,766District of Columbia: 775,978 jobsDistrict of Columbia775,978San Bernardino County: 773,699 jobsSan Bernardino County773,699Franklin County: 765,429 jobsFranklin County765,429Riverside County: 761,383 jobsRiverside County761,383San Francisco County: 760,775 jobsSan Francisco County760,775Oakland County: 746,341 jobsOakland County746,341Wayne County: 734,176 jobsWayne County734,176Cuyahoga County: 732,550 jobsCuyahoga County732,550Salt Lake County: 720,626 jobsSalt Lake County720,626Queens County: 717,786 jobsQueens County717,786Mecklenburg County: 715,297 jobsMecklenburg County715,297Hillsborough County: 707,611 jobsHillsborough County707,611Allegheny County: 703,109 jobsAllegheny County703,109Suffolk County: 703,058 jobsSuffolk County703,058Philadelphia County: 699,722 jobsPhiladelphia County699,722Sacramento County: 679,516 jobsSacramento County679,516Suffolk County: 665,854 jobsSuffolk County665,854Nassau County: 632,169 jobsNassau County632,169Los Angeles County: 4,509,905 jobsLos Angeles County4,509,905Cook County: 2,609,154 jobsCook County2,609,154New York County: 2,527,343 jobsNew York County2,527,343Harris County: 2,350,807 jobsHarris County2,350,807Maricopa County: 2,062,384 jobsMaricopa County2,062,384Dallas County: 1,743,903 jobsDallas County1,743,903Orange County: 1,650,571 jobsOrange County1,650,571San Diego County: 1,488,281 jobsSan Diego County1,488,281King County: 1,433,618 jobsKing County1,433,618Miami-Dade County: 1,164,271 jobsMiami-Dade County1,164,271Santa Clara County: 1,119,639 jobsSanta Clara County1,119,639Clark County: 1,025,501 jobsClark County1,025,501Middlesex County: 940,312 jobsMiddlesex County940,312Hennepin County: 936,694 jobsHennepin County936,694Tarrant County: 921,867 jobsTarrant County921,867Fulton County: 903,005 jobsFulton County903,005Bexar County: 878,251 jobsBexar County878,251Orange County: 868,723 jobsOrange County868,723Broward County: 824,195 jobsBroward County824,195Kings County: 795,104 jobsKings County795,104Alameda County: 793,213 jobsAlameda County793,213Travis County: 779,766 jobsTravis County779,766District of Columbia: 775,978 jobsDistrict of Columbia775,978San Bernardino County: 773,699 jobsSan Bernardino County773,699Franklin County: 765,429 jobsFranklin County765,429Riverside County: 761,383 jobsRiverside County761,383San Francisco County: 760,775 jobsSan Francisco County760,775Oakland County: 746,341 jobsOakland County746,341Wayne County: 734,176 jobsWayne County734,176Cuyahoga County: 732,550 jobsCuyahoga County732,550Salt Lake County: 720,626 jobsSalt Lake County720,626Queens County: 717,786 jobsQueens County717,786Mecklenburg County: 715,297 jobsMecklenburg County715,297Hillsborough County: 707,611 jobsHillsborough County707,611Allegheny County: 703,109 jobsAllegheny County703,109Suffolk County: 703,058 jobsSuffolk County703,058Philadelphia County: 699,722 jobsPhiladelphia County699,722Sacramento County: 679,516 jobsSacramento County679,516Suffolk County: 665,854 jobsSuffolk County665,854Nassau County: 632,169 jobsNassau County632,169
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

RankCounties2019
jobs		Change on 2018
1Los Angeles County4,509,905+1.4%
2Cook County2,609,154+0.6%
3New York County2,527,343+2.6%
4Harris County2,350,807+1.9%
5Maricopa County2,062,384+3.5%
6Dallas County1,743,903+2.1%
7Orange County1,650,571+1.4%
8San Diego County1,488,281+1.6%
9King County1,433,618+2.9%
10Miami-Dade County1,164,271+1.7%
11Santa Clara County1,119,639+2%
12Clark County1,025,501+3%
13Middlesex County940,312+1.8%
14Hennepin County936,694+0.8%
15Tarrant County921,867+2.7%
16Fulton County903,005+3.2%
17Bexar County878,251+1.4%
18Orange County868,723+2.3%
19Broward County824,195+1.5%
20Kings County795,104+3.6%
21Alameda County793,213+0.9%
22Travis County779,766+4%
23District of Columbia775,978+0.5%
24San Bernardino County773,699+2.9%
25Franklin County765,429+1.1%
26Riverside County761,383+3.2%
27San Francisco County760,775+2.7%
28Oakland County746,341+1.3%
29Wayne County734,176+1.2%
30Cuyahoga County732,550+0.8%
31Salt Lake County720,626+2.7%
32Queens County717,786+1.9%
33Mecklenburg County715,297+2.8%
34Hillsborough County707,611+3.1%
35Allegheny County703,109+0.2%
36Suffolk County703,058+3.4%
37Philadelphia County699,722+1.7%
38Sacramento County679,516+2.2%
39Suffolk County665,854+0.7%
40Nassau County632,169-0.2%
41Fairfax County622,226+1.6%
42DuPage County617,970+0.2%
43Palm Beach County616,001+1.6%
44St. Louis County610,438+0.3%
45Marion County607,651+1.5%
46Wake County575,410+2.7%
47Denver County529,083+1.9%
48Duval County524,919+2%
49Hamilton County520,766+0.5%
50Multnomah County520,002+1.5%
51Davidson County512,729+3.4%
52Montgomery County505,372+1.8%
53Shelby County502,998+0.7%
54Milwaukee County486,530-0.5%
55Montgomery County472,495+0.3%
56Erie County471,422+0.3%
57Jefferson County470,694+0.6%
58Honolulu County470,002-1.1%
59Oklahoma County464,560+1.7%
60Bergen County444,282-0.1%
61Pinellas County440,101+1.3%
62Westchester County432,732+0.8%
63Collin County430,949+3.6%
64Middlesex County429,757-0.1%
65San Mateo County415,999+2.9%
66Kent County406,962+1.2%
67Fresno County400,030+2.5%
68Monroe County390,287+0.4%
69Baltimore County380,770+0.1%
70Pima County375,906+2%
71Jackson County374,684+1%
72Cobb County373,989+2.6%
73Contra Costa County369,280+0.2%
74Tulsa County362,031+1.5%
75Gwinnett County361,947+2.2%
76Jefferson County354,285+1.2%
77Norfolk County354,1290%
78Johnson County353,498+1.2%
79Worcester County353,153+0.8%
80Essex County345,294+1.1%
81Baltimore city344,378+0.1%
82Dane County344,363+2.4%
83Douglas County341,763+0.6%
84Lake County340,643+0.5%
85Ramsey County335,159+0.5%
86Arapahoe County334,833+0.9%
87Bernalillo County334,472+1.4%
88Kern County331,711+2.1%
89Ventura County331,001+1.3%
90Macomb County330,867+0.4%
91Essex County327,009+0.4%
92Bronx County324,446+1.2%
93Prince George's County322,168+0.5%
94Pierce County316,825+1.9%
95El Paso County311,895+1.8%
96DeKalb County303,327+0.8%
97Washington County303,103+2.6%
98Polk County303,035+0.4%
99Morris County294,052+0.9%
100New Castle County293,839+1.2%
101Snohomish County291,770+1.5%
102Providence County289,328+0.6%
103Guilford County285,872+1.5%
104El Paso County283,370+2.5%
105Greenville County279,531+1.6%
106Anne Arundel County274,972+0.5%
107Hudson County269,575+2.1%
108Lee County268,846+2.7%
109Bucks County268,787+0.9%
110Summit County267,461+0.2%
111Hidalgo County266,135+1.9%
112East Baton Rouge Parish265,287-0.9%
113Monmouth County264,831+1.3%
114Denton County260,697+5.8%
115Mercer County259,842+2.9%
116Charleston County259,723+2.2%
117San Joaquin County258,122+2%
118Sedgwick County257,216+2.6%
119Montgomery County255,736+0.5%
120Ada County252,953+3.4%
121Chester County252,900+0.7%
122Pulaski County251,743+0.3%
123Utah County251,585+3.4%
124Will County248,575+1.1%
125Onondaga County248,407+1%
126Waukesha County246,034+0.8%
127Lancaster County245,179+1.2%
128Jefferson County243,080+1.8%
129Knox County240,575+0.6%
130Albany County233,562-0%
131St. Louis city229,800+0.1%
132Bristol County228,5780%
133Spokane County228,502+2.1%
134Union County228,240+0.7%
135Polk County228,202+3.3%
136Delaware County226,885+0.9%
137Washoe County226,476+2.1%
138Adams County225,848+5.9%
139Richland County223,386+0.2%
140Brevard County222,374+3.3%
141Washtenaw County218,476+2.4%
142Kane County212,839-0.1%
143Hampden County212,505+1.3%
144Durham County211,634+3.2%
145Sonoma County211,197+0.5%
146Lucas County209,643-0%
147Hamilton County208,228+1.3%
148Madison County206,133+2.9%
149Hillsborough County205,982+1%
150Camden County205,081+0.2%
151Santa Barbara County204,441+2.3%
152Burlington County201,380-0.1%
153Seminole County201,004+3.1%
154Orleans Parish200,897+2.2%
155Monterey County198,165+1.3%
156Plymouth County197,144+1.2%
157Fort Bend County196,218+3.6%
158Lehigh County195,592+1.3%
159Fayette County195,183+0.9%
160Stanislaus County193,280+1.3%
161Henrico County192,419+0.4%
162Montgomery County192,400+3%
163Allen County191,195+1.7%
164Dakota County191,192+0.8%
165Forsyth County191,005+2.4%
166Jefferson Parish190,029+0.2%
167Somerset County189,752+1.1%
168Lake County188,875+0.6%
169Boulder County188,452+2.7%
170Cumberland County187,618+1.2%
171Dauphin County186,631+1.1%
172Arlington County182,197+2.3%
173Williamson County181,546+4.9%
174York County180,518+0.6%
175Virginia Beach city179,379+0.7%
176Berks County176,051+1.4%
177Volusia County176,018+1.5%
178Loudoun County175,497+3.8%
179Howard County174,642+1.4%
180Lancaster County172,990+1%
181Placer County172,439+2.4%
182Sarasota County172,211+0.6%
183Ocean County171,985+1.8%
184Mobile County171,826+0.4%
185Greene County170,031+1.7%
186Clackamas County169,433+2%
187Larimer County165,816+2.2%
188Passaic County165,696-0.1%
189Tulare County165,321+0.8%
190Clark County164,439+2%
191Nueces County164,372+0.2%
192Stark County159,294-0.5%
193Chatham County158,858+2.2%
194Marion County158,839+1.8%
195Richmond city158,794+2%
196Brown County158,546-0.3%
197Lane County158,077+0.8%
198Butler County157,990+1.8%
199Leon County153,131+1.2%
200Ingham County153,127+1.1%
201St. Charles County151,936+2.8%
202Rockingham County151,683+1.2%
203Collier County151,567+2.8%
204Orange County148,273+2.2%
205Anchorage Municipality147,964-0.1%
206Spartanburg County147,638+4%
207Luzerne County145,634+0.5%
208Hamilton County144,447+1.8%
209Solano County143,081+1.1%
210Lubbock County141,847+1.5%
211Cameron County141,392+1.6%
212Norfolk city141,016-1.2%
213Williamson County140,073+3.7%
214Escambia County138,581+2.2%
215Chesterfield County137,108-1%
216Cumberland County136,449+1.5%
217Genesee County135,885+1%
218Buncombe County135,002+1.8%
219Alachua County134,190+1.7%
220Rutherford County134,019+3.1%
221Westmoreland County134,010+0.2%
222Horry County133,871+2%
223Prince William County133,237+2.2%
224Davis County133,055+2.4%
225Elkhart County132,987-3.3%
226Lafayette Parish131,571+0.7%
227Linn County131,354+0.5%
228Douglas County130,825+4.1%
229Montgomery County130,780-0.2%
230Sangamon County130,712+0.6%
231Manatee County130,433+5%
232Rockland County129,857+2.8%
233Atlantic County128,996+1.6%
234Minnehaha County128,623+1.4%
235Ottawa County128,301+1.1%
236Richmond County128,053+4.2%
237Anoka County127,698+1.7%
238Winnebago County126,094-0.6%
239St. Joseph County124,850+1.3%
240Clayton County123,496+1.3%
241Jefferson County123,0500%
242Benton County122,478+2.3%
243Lexington County122,192+2%
244Erie County121,826-0.2%
245Pasco County121,741+2%
246Kalamazoo County121,019+1%
247Bell County120,784+1.8%
248Cumberland County120,496+0.7%
249Cass County120,149+1.7%
250Hinds County119,823-0.3%

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 2019 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/2019/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), 2019) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2019/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), 2019. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 21 Aug. 2026, https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2019/a/industry/10.csv. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/us-counties?period=2019. 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), 2019. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2019/a/industry/10.csv. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/us-counties?period=2019.

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), 2019 [Dataset]. Available at: https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2019/a/industry/10.csv, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/us-counties?period=2019 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{bureau_us_counties_by_covered_2019,
  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), 2019}},
  year = {2026},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2019/a/industry/10.csv},
  urldate = {2026-10-12},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/us-counties?period=2019. 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/2019/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), 2019
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/08/21
PB  - U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2019/a/industry/10.csv
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/us-counties?period=2019
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/us-counties?period=2019.
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/2019/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 4,509,905 jobs in 2019, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Which county has the lowest covered employment (QCEW)?

McPherson County, with 70 jobs in 2019.

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 2019 and are not ranked.

Covered employment (QCEW): other rankings

US counties: more rankings