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

US counties by covered employment (QCEW)

Los Angeles County had the highest covered employment (QCEW) of 3134 counties in 2021, at 4,252,857 jobs. McPherson County had the lowest, at 64 jobs. The median was 7,983 jobs and the figure for the United States was 143,780,068 jobs. Source: the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

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Highest4,252,857Los Angeles County
Lowest64McPherson County
Median7,9833134 counties
United States143,780,068History

Map of counties, 2021

jobs, 2021. 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, 2021

Los Angeles County: 4,252,857 jobsLos Angeles County4,252,857Cook County: 2,422,930 jobsCook County2,422,930Harris County: 2,261,694 jobsHarris County2,261,694New York County: 2,201,025 jobsNew York County2,201,025Maricopa County: 2,083,731 jobsMaricopa County2,083,731Dallas County: 1,732,133 jobsDallas County1,732,133Orange County: 1,557,553 jobsOrange County1,557,553San Diego County: 1,424,139 jobsSan Diego County1,424,139King County: 1,381,043 jobsKing County1,381,043Miami-Dade County: 1,123,196 jobsMiami-Dade County1,123,196Santa Clara County: 1,070,603 jobsSanta Clara County1,070,603Clark County: 964,407 jobsClark County964,407Tarrant County: 918,623 jobsTarrant County918,623Middlesex County: 892,656 jobsMiddlesex County892,656Hennepin County: 879,356 jobsHennepin County879,356Fulton County: 878,223 jobsFulton County878,223Bexar County: 857,640 jobsBexar County857,640Orange County: 815,805 jobsOrange County815,805Travis County: 807,350 jobsTravis County807,350Broward County: 797,627 jobsBroward County797,627San Bernardino County: 794,603 jobsSan Bernardino County794,603Kings County: 771,064 jobsKings County771,064Riverside County: 761,553 jobsRiverside County761,553Alameda County: 754,951 jobsAlameda County754,951Franklin County: 743,438 jobsFranklin County743,438Salt Lake County: 737,675 jobsSalt Lake County737,675District of Columbia: 725,756 jobsDistrict of Columbia725,756Mecklenburg County: 718,431 jobsMecklenburg County718,431Hillsborough County: 713,110 jobsHillsborough County713,110Oakland County: 696,243 jobsOakland County696,243Cuyahoga County: 690,959 jobsCuyahoga County690,959Wayne County: 689,871 jobsWayne County689,871San Francisco County: 687,180 jobsSan Francisco County687,180Sacramento County: 669,697 jobsSacramento County669,697Suffolk County: 663,387 jobsSuffolk County663,387Queens County: 660,987 jobsQueens County660,987Philadelphia County: 651,477 jobsPhiladelphia County651,477Allegheny County: 649,465 jobsAllegheny County649,465Suffolk County: 628,572 jobsSuffolk County628,572Palm Beach County: 607,281 jobsPalm Beach County607,281Los Angeles County: 4,252,857 jobsLos Angeles County4,252,857Cook County: 2,422,930 jobsCook County2,422,930Harris County: 2,261,694 jobsHarris County2,261,694New York County: 2,201,025 jobsNew York County2,201,025Maricopa County: 2,083,731 jobsMaricopa County2,083,731Dallas County: 1,732,133 jobsDallas County1,732,133Orange County: 1,557,553 jobsOrange County1,557,553San Diego County: 1,424,139 jobsSan Diego County1,424,139King County: 1,381,043 jobsKing County1,381,043Miami-Dade County: 1,123,196 jobsMiami-Dade County1,123,196Santa Clara County: 1,070,603 jobsSanta Clara County1,070,603Clark County: 964,407 jobsClark County964,407Tarrant County: 918,623 jobsTarrant County918,623Middlesex County: 892,656 jobsMiddlesex County892,656Hennepin County: 879,356 jobsHennepin County879,356Fulton County: 878,223 jobsFulton County878,223Bexar County: 857,640 jobsBexar County857,640Orange County: 815,805 jobsOrange County815,805Travis County: 807,350 jobsTravis County807,350Broward County: 797,627 jobsBroward County797,627San Bernardino County: 794,603 jobsSan Bernardino County794,603Kings County: 771,064 jobsKings County771,064Riverside County: 761,553 jobsRiverside County761,553Alameda County: 754,951 jobsAlameda County754,951Franklin County: 743,438 jobsFranklin County743,438Salt Lake County: 737,675 jobsSalt Lake County737,675District of Columbia: 725,756 jobsDistrict of Columbia725,756Mecklenburg County: 718,431 jobsMecklenburg County718,431Hillsborough County: 713,110 jobsHillsborough County713,110Oakland County: 696,243 jobsOakland County696,243Cuyahoga County: 690,959 jobsCuyahoga County690,959Wayne County: 689,871 jobsWayne County689,871San Francisco County: 687,180 jobsSan Francisco County687,180Sacramento County: 669,697 jobsSacramento County669,697Suffolk County: 663,387 jobsSuffolk County663,387Queens County: 660,987 jobsQueens County660,987Philadelphia County: 651,477 jobsPhiladelphia County651,477Allegheny County: 649,465 jobsAllegheny County649,465Suffolk County: 628,572 jobsSuffolk County628,572Palm Beach County: 607,281 jobsPalm Beach County607,281
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

RankCounties2021
jobs		Change on 2020
1Los Angeles County4,252,857+3.5%
2Cook County2,422,930+1.4%
3Harris County2,261,694+1.8%
4New York County2,201,025+0.1%
5Maricopa County2,083,731+3.9%
6Dallas County1,732,133+3.9%
7Orange County1,557,553+3.6%
8San Diego County1,424,139+4%
9King County1,381,043+2.2%
10Miami-Dade County1,123,196+4.3%
11Santa Clara County1,070,603+1.8%
12Clark County964,407+7.6%
13Tarrant County918,623+3.5%
14Middlesex County892,656+2.8%
15Hennepin County879,356+2%
16Fulton County878,223+4%
17Bexar County857,640+3%
18Orange County815,805+6.3%
19Travis County807,350+7.3%
20Broward County797,627+4%
21San Bernardino County794,603+5.3%
22Kings County771,064+4.6%
23Riverside County761,553+5.5%
24Alameda County754,951+3.2%
25Franklin County743,438+2.3%
26Salt Lake County737,675+4.4%
27District of Columbia725,756-0%
28Mecklenburg County718,431+3.4%
29Hillsborough County713,110+4.3%
30Oakland County696,243+3.4%
31Cuyahoga County690,959+1.4%
32Wayne County689,871+3.6%
33San Francisco County687,180+0.3%
34Sacramento County669,697+3.1%
35Suffolk County663,387+2.8%
36Queens County660,987+3.7%
37Philadelphia County651,477+1.6%
38Allegheny County649,465+0.8%
39Suffolk County628,572+4.2%
40Palm Beach County607,281+4.8%
41Fairfax County607,242+2.6%
42Nassau County591,705+5.1%
43DuPage County586,589+2.6%
44Marion County586,567+3%
45Wake County582,687+5.8%
46St. Louis County577,802+1.3%
47Duval County528,371+3.7%
48Denver County516,893+5.1%
49Davidson County500,477+4.3%
50Hamilton County497,285+2%
51Montgomery County489,735+3.9%
52Shelby County483,230+1.3%
53Multnomah County481,459+0.8%
54Collin County460,220+7.9%
55Jefferson County457,558+3.5%
56Milwaukee County456,242+1.1%
57Oklahoma County453,530+1.9%
58Montgomery County446,524+1.7%
59Erie County434,803+2%
60Pinellas County433,939+3%
61Honolulu County419,146+3.1%
62Middlesex County414,230+4%
63Bergen County412,115+3.7%
64San Mateo County402,971+4.5%
65Westchester County395,736+2.3%
66Fresno County392,496+3.4%
67Kent County384,763+4.1%
68Pima County368,320+1.9%
69Cobb County365,029+3.2%
70Jackson County361,445+2%
71Monroe County360,643+1.5%
72Baltimore County359,100+2.4%
73Gwinnett County358,314+3.9%
74Contra Costa County350,476+2.9%
75Tulsa County347,639+1.1%
76Jefferson County347,199+3%
77Johnson County347,052+2.7%
78Worcester County337,997+3.6%
79Dane County336,300+2.5%
80Baltimore city331,470+1%
81Douglas County331,137+1.3%
82Norfolk County331,059+4.5%
83Arapahoe County328,194+2.6%
84Kern County326,740+3.5%
85Bernalillo County322,546+2.8%
86Lake County321,815+1.4%
87Macomb County319,373+7.1%
88Ventura County315,370+2%
89Essex County315,118+1.6%
90Pierce County312,859+3.5%
91Ramsey County311,977+1%
92Essex County309,191+4.2%
93El Paso County306,358+2.6%
94Bronx County305,567+1.5%
95Prince George's County301,912+2.2%
96Polk County296,465+2.8%
97DeKalb County293,810+2.4%
98Washington County292,473+2.3%
99El Paso County286,391+3.8%
100New Castle County284,197+2.9%
101Morris County281,577+3.9%
102Guilford County277,984+2.8%
103Denton County277,270+7.6%
104Snohomish County274,782+0.2%
105Lee County273,938+6.1%
106Providence County273,624+3.3%
107Greenville County273,521+3.5%
108Utah County273,507+7.9%
109Hidalgo County267,603+4%
110San Joaquin County263,909+4.5%
111Ada County262,628+4.9%
112Anne Arundel County262,580+2.6%
113East Baton Rouge Parish255,203+3.3%
114Summit County254,952+1.4%
115Hudson County254,735+2.9%
116Monmouth County252,798+5%
117Bucks County252,732+3.6%
118Charleston County252,288+4.1%
119Mercer County251,565+2%
120Sedgwick County245,936+2.4%
121Will County244,347+2.4%
122Polk County243,830+6.2%
123Pulaski County243,041+1.9%
124Montgomery County241,329+0.5%
125Chester County239,910+1.7%
126Knox County239,653+3.1%
127Lancaster County239,350+4.1%
128Waukesha County237,949+2.2%
129Jefferson County236,389+1.9%
130Onondaga County230,745+1.5%
131Spokane County229,882+5.3%
132Adams County228,087+3.3%
133Brevard County225,186+4.5%
134Washoe County222,027+4.4%
135Durham County221,801+4.7%
136Albany County219,339+1%
137Bristol County217,898+4.1%
138Richland County216,787+2.2%
139Union County215,805+2.4%
140St. Louis city215,222+1.2%
141Delaware County212,170+2.4%
142Madison County210,051+3.7%
143Santa Barbara County209,589+4.2%
144Washtenaw County206,679+2.3%
145Fort Bend County203,242+6.9%
146Hamilton County201,559+1.3%
147Hampden County200,960+4.2%
148Kane County200,560+3.2%
149Seminole County200,338+4.2%
150Sonoma County197,622+2.4%
151Hillsborough County196,997+2.2%
152Burlington County196,887+4.1%
153Montgomery County196,866+5.5%
154Lucas County194,391+1.2%
155Camden County192,749+3.3%
156Williamson County192,504+7.1%
157Lehigh County189,927+4.8%
158Stanislaus County189,249+2.6%
159Monterey County188,895+2.8%
160Fayette County187,362+2.7%
161Allen County186,853+3.1%
162Forsyth County186,460+2.8%
163Boulder County186,312+4.1%
164Plymouth County185,851+4.9%
165Henrico County183,265+1.4%
166Cumberland County181,471+3.7%
167Somerset County181,340+3.5%
168Dakota County181,203+1.9%
169Lake County180,554+2.4%
170Jefferson Parish179,578+1.7%
171Dauphin County177,614+1.8%
172Volusia County174,965+4.8%
173Orleans Parish174,451+1.7%
174Sarasota County174,445+6.6%
175York County173,266+3.2%
176Placer County173,223+6.8%
177Loudoun County172,484+4.4%
178Arlington County172,234-1.3%
179Virginia Beach city171,513+2.2%
180Mobile County169,918+3.4%
181Ocean County168,292+6.7%
182Greene County167,636+2.4%
183Lancaster County167,099+1.2%
184Clark County165,869+6.2%
185Larimer County164,669+4.2%
186Clackamas County164,600+3.6%
187Berks County163,885+1.6%
188Tulare County163,133+3.7%
189Howard County163,088+1.1%
190Chatham County159,768+5.3%
191Passaic County157,362+4.9%
192Marion County156,823+3.1%
193St. Charles County153,063+4%
194Stark County152,590+1.9%
195Brown County152,321+1.4%
196Nueces County152,3190%
197Collier County151,682+5.3%
198Lane County150,611+2.1%
199Butler County150,387+1%
200Leon County150,334+3.1%
201Richmond city148,861+0.8%
202Hamilton County147,818+5.6%
203Rockingham County147,382+3.9%
204Spartanburg County147,039+1.8%
205Cameron County144,902+5.3%
206Ingham County143,068+1.6%
207Lubbock County142,403+3.4%
208Williamson County141,890+5%
209Orange County141,889+4.7%
210Anchorage Municipality138,754+2%
211Escambia County138,169+2.4%
212Luzerne County137,812+1.7%
213Elkhart County137,344+10.1%
214Chesterfield County135,766+3.2%
215Davis County135,416+1.8%
216Douglas County135,025+6.3%
217Norfolk city133,874+0.8%
218Rutherford County133,709+3.7%
219Cumberland County133,046+3.3%
220Solano County132,666+0.3%
221Alachua County132,614+3.1%
222Buncombe County130,680+6.6%
223Prince William County130,075+3.8%
224Horry County129,774+6.2%
225Manatee County128,704+3.1%
226Minnehaha County128,421+2.8%
227Lafayette Parish127,106+2.9%
228Westmoreland County127,084+3.1%
229Montgomery County126,809+2%
230Benton County126,275+2.6%
231Pasco County126,041+5.4%
232Richmond County125,938+5.2%
233Genesee County125,929+3.7%
234Rockland County125,657+6%
235Ottawa County125,126+4.5%
236Sangamon County125,059+2.4%
237Linn County124,853+1.4%
238Anoka County124,791+3.5%
239Lexington County121,928+2.4%
240Bell County121,832+2.7%
241Cass County119,660+3.7%
242Cumberland County118,507+3.2%
243New Hanover County117,929+4.6%
244Winnebago County117,427+1.8%
245Atlantic County117,358+8.5%
246Thurston County117,255+3.7%
247McLennan County116,526+4.3%
248Kalamazoo County115,898+2.8%
249St. Joseph County115,557+0.7%
250Northampton County115,419+4.2%

Showing the top 250 of 3134. 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. 9 counties with data in other periods have no value for 2021 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/2021/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), 2021) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2021/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), 2021. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 21 Aug. 2026, https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2021/a/industry/10.csv. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/us-counties?period=2021. 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), 2021. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2021/a/industry/10.csv. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/us-counties?period=2021.

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), 2021 [Dataset]. Available at: https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2021/a/industry/10.csv, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/us-counties?period=2021 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{bureau_us_counties_by_covered_2021,
  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), 2021}},
  year = {2026},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2021/a/industry/10.csv},
  urldate = {2026-10-12},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/us-counties?period=2021. 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/2021/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), 2021
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/08/21
PB  - U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2021/a/industry/10.csv
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/us-counties?period=2021
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/us-counties?period=2021.
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/2021/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 4,252,857 jobs in 2021, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Which county has the lowest covered employment (QCEW)?

McPherson County, with 64 jobs in 2021.

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. 9 counties have no value for 2021 and are not ranked.

Covered employment (QCEW): other rankings

US counties: more rankings