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 2022, at 4,481,040 jobs. McPherson County had the lowest, at 65 jobs. The median was 8,162 jobs and the figure for the United States was 150,025,655 jobs. Source: the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

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Highest4,481,040Los Angeles County
Lowest65McPherson County
Median8,1623134 counties
United States150,025,655History

Map of counties, 2022

jobs, 2022. 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, 2022

Los Angeles County: 4,481,040 jobsLos Angeles County4,481,040Cook County: 2,519,083 jobsCook County2,519,083New York County: 2,366,149 jobsNew York County2,366,149Harris County: 2,349,928 jobsHarris County2,349,928Maricopa County: 2,170,744 jobsMaricopa County2,170,744Dallas County: 1,804,808 jobsDallas County1,804,808Orange County: 1,632,794 jobsOrange County1,632,794San Diego County: 1,507,661 jobsSan Diego County1,507,661King County: 1,453,606 jobsKing County1,453,606Miami-Dade County: 1,190,317 jobsMiami-Dade County1,190,317Santa Clara County: 1,117,310 jobsSanta Clara County1,117,310Clark County: 1,056,764 jobsClark County1,056,764Tarrant County: 969,110 jobsTarrant County969,110Fulton County: 933,190 jobsFulton County933,190Middlesex County: 922,865 jobsMiddlesex County922,865Hennepin County: 902,653 jobsHennepin County902,653Bexar County: 898,899 jobsBexar County898,899Orange County: 895,937 jobsOrange County895,937Travis County: 876,994 jobsTravis County876,994San Bernardino County: 837,301 jobsSan Bernardino County837,301Broward County: 834,384 jobsBroward County834,384Kings County: 827,192 jobsKings County827,192Riverside County: 805,582 jobsRiverside County805,582Alameda County: 787,020 jobsAlameda County787,020Salt Lake County: 771,216 jobsSalt Lake County771,216Franklin County: 763,679 jobsFranklin County763,679Mecklenburg County: 755,918 jobsMecklenburg County755,918Hillsborough County: 749,607 jobsHillsborough County749,607District of Columbia: 748,663 jobsDistrict of Columbia748,663San Francisco County: 738,015 jobsSan Francisco County738,015Oakland County: 717,269 jobsOakland County717,269Wayne County: 714,597 jobsWayne County714,597Cuyahoga County: 704,809 jobsCuyahoga County704,809Suffolk County: 698,786 jobsSuffolk County698,786Queens County: 698,550 jobsQueens County698,550Sacramento County: 698,234 jobsSacramento County698,234Philadelphia County: 684,638 jobsPhiladelphia County684,638Allegheny County: 659,639 jobsAllegheny County659,639Suffolk County: 648,655 jobsSuffolk County648,655Palm Beach County: 636,903 jobsPalm Beach County636,903Los Angeles County: 4,481,040 jobsLos Angeles County4,481,040Cook County: 2,519,083 jobsCook County2,519,083New York County: 2,366,149 jobsNew York County2,366,149Harris County: 2,349,928 jobsHarris County2,349,928Maricopa County: 2,170,744 jobsMaricopa County2,170,744Dallas County: 1,804,808 jobsDallas County1,804,808Orange County: 1,632,794 jobsOrange County1,632,794San Diego County: 1,507,661 jobsSan Diego County1,507,661King County: 1,453,606 jobsKing County1,453,606Miami-Dade County: 1,190,317 jobsMiami-Dade County1,190,317Santa Clara County: 1,117,310 jobsSanta Clara County1,117,310Clark County: 1,056,764 jobsClark County1,056,764Tarrant County: 969,110 jobsTarrant County969,110Fulton County: 933,190 jobsFulton County933,190Middlesex County: 922,865 jobsMiddlesex County922,865Hennepin County: 902,653 jobsHennepin County902,653Bexar County: 898,899 jobsBexar County898,899Orange County: 895,937 jobsOrange County895,937Travis County: 876,994 jobsTravis County876,994San Bernardino County: 837,301 jobsSan Bernardino County837,301Broward County: 834,384 jobsBroward County834,384Kings County: 827,192 jobsKings County827,192Riverside County: 805,582 jobsRiverside County805,582Alameda County: 787,020 jobsAlameda County787,020Salt Lake County: 771,216 jobsSalt Lake County771,216Franklin County: 763,679 jobsFranklin County763,679Mecklenburg County: 755,918 jobsMecklenburg County755,918Hillsborough County: 749,607 jobsHillsborough County749,607District of Columbia: 748,663 jobsDistrict of Columbia748,663San Francisco County: 738,015 jobsSan Francisco County738,015Oakland County: 717,269 jobsOakland County717,269Wayne County: 714,597 jobsWayne County714,597Cuyahoga County: 704,809 jobsCuyahoga County704,809Suffolk County: 698,786 jobsSuffolk County698,786Queens County: 698,550 jobsQueens County698,550Sacramento County: 698,234 jobsSacramento County698,234Philadelphia County: 684,638 jobsPhiladelphia County684,638Allegheny County: 659,639 jobsAllegheny County659,639Suffolk County: 648,655 jobsSuffolk County648,655Palm Beach County: 636,903 jobsPalm Beach County636,903
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

RankCounties2022
jobs		Change on 2021
1Los Angeles County4,481,040+5.4%
2Cook County2,519,083+4%
3New York County2,366,149+7.5%
4Harris County2,349,928+3.9%
5Maricopa County2,170,744+4.2%
6Dallas County1,804,808+4.2%
7Orange County1,632,794+4.8%
8San Diego County1,507,661+5.9%
9King County1,453,606+5.3%
10Miami-Dade County1,190,317+6%
11Santa Clara County1,117,310+4.4%
12Clark County1,056,764+9.6%
13Tarrant County969,110+5.5%
14Fulton County933,190+6.3%
15Middlesex County922,865+3.4%
16Hennepin County902,653+2.6%
17Bexar County898,899+4.8%
18Orange County895,937+9.8%
19Travis County876,994+8.6%
20San Bernardino County837,301+5.4%
21Broward County834,384+4.6%
22Kings County827,192+7.3%
23Riverside County805,582+5.8%
24Alameda County787,020+4.2%
25Salt Lake County771,216+4.5%
26Franklin County763,679+2.7%
27Mecklenburg County755,918+5.2%
28Hillsborough County749,607+5.1%
29District of Columbia748,663+3.2%
30San Francisco County738,015+7.4%
31Oakland County717,269+3%
32Wayne County714,597+3.6%
33Cuyahoga County704,809+2%
34Suffolk County698,786+5.3%
35Queens County698,550+5.7%
36Sacramento County698,234+4.3%
37Philadelphia County684,638+5.1%
38Allegheny County659,639+1.6%
39Suffolk County648,655+3.2%
40Palm Beach County636,903+4.9%
41Fairfax County620,691+2.2%
42Nassau County618,117+4.5%
43Wake County617,742+6%
44Marion County607,919+3.6%
45DuPage County603,675+2.9%
46St. Louis County589,994+2.1%
47Denver County555,532+7.5%
48Duval County549,226+3.9%
49Davidson County533,519+6.6%
50Hamilton County510,941+2.7%
51Collin County506,624+10.1%
52Montgomery County502,118+2.5%
53Multnomah County500,424+3.9%
54Shelby County493,623+2.2%
55Oklahoma County473,310+4.4%
56Jefferson County471,664+3.1%
57Milwaukee County463,797+1.7%
58Montgomery County453,270+1.5%
59Erie County450,359+3.6%
60Pinellas County449,973+3.7%
61Honolulu County439,355+4.8%
62Middlesex County431,358+4.1%
63Bergen County429,530+4.2%
64San Mateo County421,592+4.6%
65Fresno County412,147+5%
66Westchester County411,178+3.9%
67Kent County403,212+4.8%
68Cobb County379,305+3.9%
69Pima County377,863+2.6%
70Gwinnett County373,486+4.2%
71Monroe County372,698+3.3%
72Contra Costa County367,582+4.9%
73Jackson County366,660+1.4%
74Baltimore County366,485+2.1%
75Johnson County359,464+3.6%
76Tulsa County357,489+2.8%
77Jefferson County356,742+2.7%
78Worcester County350,980+3.8%
79Dane County344,839+2.5%
80Kern County341,045+4.4%
81Norfolk County340,956+3%
82Baltimore city338,166+2%
83Douglas County337,267+1.9%
84Bernalillo County337,103+4.5%
85Arapahoe County335,587+2.3%
86Essex County333,488+5.8%
87Macomb County332,069+4%
88Ventura County328,204+4.1%
89Lake County326,413+1.4%
90Pierce County325,215+3.9%
91Ramsey County319,596+2.4%
92Essex County318,677+3.1%
93El Paso County318,183+3.9%
94Bronx County314,266+2.8%
95Prince George's County311,391+3.1%
96Polk County306,109+3.3%
97Washington County304,915+4.3%
98DeKalb County303,097+3.2%
99El Paso County296,816+3.6%
100New Castle County295,191+3.9%
101Morris County294,429+4.6%
102Denton County293,147+5.7%
103Greenville County287,069+5%
104Utah County286,446+4.7%
105Lee County285,203+4.1%
106Snohomish County284,609+3.6%
107Guilford County284,394+2.3%
108Providence County282,632+3.3%
109San Joaquin County280,168+6.2%
110Hidalgo County280,134+4.7%
111Ada County274,586+4.6%
112Hudson County269,191+5.7%
113Charleston County266,407+5.6%
114Monmouth County263,960+4.4%
115Bucks County263,708+4.3%
116East Baton Rouge Parish263,220+3.1%
117Mercer County260,823+3.7%
118Anne Arundel County258,896-1.4%
119Summit County258,539+1.4%
120Will County255,761+4.7%
121Sedgwick County254,503+3.5%
122Polk County253,134+3.8%
123Pulaski County251,364+3.4%
124Knox County250,532+4.5%
125Lancaster County247,260+3.3%
126Chester County246,241+2.6%
127Montgomery County245,844+1.9%
128Waukesha County243,193+2.2%
129Jefferson County243,025+2.8%
130Adams County238,188+4.4%
131Onondaga County238,087+3.2%
132Spokane County237,838+3.5%
133Washoe County233,380+5.1%
134Brevard County231,409+2.8%
135Fort Bend County230,396+13.4%
136Durham County228,147+2.9%
137Union County226,287+4.9%
138Bristol County225,948+3.7%
139Albany County224,442+2.3%
140Richland County222,383+2.6%
141St. Louis city222,214+3.2%
142Delaware County217,685+2.6%
143Santa Barbara County217,351+3.7%
144Madison County217,074+3.3%
145Washtenaw County212,593+2.9%
146Montgomery County211,218+7.3%
147Kane County210,204+4.8%
148Hamilton County209,272+3.8%
149Seminole County208,261+4%
150Williamson County207,917+8%
151Sonoma County207,234+4.9%
152Hampden County205,583+2.3%
153Burlington County203,384+3.3%
154Camden County202,152+4.9%
155Hillsborough County200,934+2%
156Monterey County199,291+5.5%
157Lehigh County196,756+3.6%
158Stanislaus County196,601+3.9%
159Lucas County196,355+1%
160Fayette County195,513+4.4%
161Allen County194,563+4.1%
162Boulder County193,368+3.8%
163Plymouth County192,541+3.6%
164Forsyth County190,891+2.4%
165Somerset County188,821+4.1%
166Henrico County188,096+2.6%
167Lake County185,773+2.9%
168Dakota County185,620+2.4%
169Cumberland County185,006+1.9%
170Orleans Parish184,793+5.9%
171Dauphin County183,142+3.1%
172Jefferson Parish182,566+1.7%
173Placer County181,728+4.9%
174Volusia County181,174+3.5%
175Loudoun County180,628+4.7%
176Sarasota County180,525+3.5%
177York County179,123+3.4%
178Ocean County177,031+5.2%
179Clark County175,840+6%
180Virginia Beach city174,794+1.9%
181Arlington County174,381+1.2%
182Tulare County173,456+6.3%
183Greene County172,522+2.9%
184Mobile County172,206+1.3%
185Clackamas County171,635+4.3%
186Larimer County171,495+4.1%
187Lancaster County169,665+1.5%
188Berks County169,378+3.4%
189Passaic County166,877+6%
190Chatham County166,222+4%
191Howard County165,143+1.3%
192Marion County163,582+4.3%
193Collier County159,744+5.3%
194Hamilton County157,527+6.6%
195Leon County155,885+3.7%
196St. Charles County155,852+1.8%
197Brown County155,653+2.2%
198Nueces County155,500+2.1%
199Lane County154,936+2.9%
200Stark County154,738+1.4%
201Richmond city154,383+3.7%
202Butler County153,980+2.4%
203Rockingham County151,320+2.7%
204Cameron County150,974+4.2%
205Spartanburg County149,838+1.9%
206Williamson County149,579+5.4%
207Ingham County149,185+4.3%
208Orange County148,470+4.6%
209Lubbock County146,409+2.8%
210Luzerne County143,241+3.9%
211Escambia County142,294+3%
212Anchorage Municipality141,687+2.1%
213Elkhart County141,288+2.9%
214Chesterfield County140,474+3.5%
215Douglas County140,210+3.8%
216Rutherford County140,009+4.7%
217Davis County138,795+2.5%
218Solano County138,619+4.5%
219Norfolk city137,491+2.7%
220Horry County136,962+5.5%
221Buncombe County135,740+3.9%
222Alachua County135,727+2.3%
223Cumberland County135,442+1.8%
224Pasco County135,111+7.2%
225Benton County134,825+6.8%
226Prince William County133,867+2.9%
227Manatee County133,646+3.8%
228Lafayette Parish132,723+4.4%
229Minnehaha County131,824+2.6%
230Richmond County131,109+4.1%
231Genesee County130,274+3.5%
232Ottawa County130,004+3.9%
233Anoka County129,640+3.9%
234Rockland County129,460+3%
235Westmoreland County129,223+1.7%
236Montgomery County128,398+1.3%
237Sangamon County127,882+2.3%
238Linn County126,890+1.6%
239Lexington County126,811+4%
240Bell County125,917+3.4%
241New Hanover County124,346+5.4%
242Thurston County123,982+5.7%
243Winnebago County123,908+5.5%
244Atlantic County123,336+5.1%
245Cass County123,128+2.9%
246Gloucester County120,798+6.8%
247Clayton County120,557+6.5%
248McLennan County120,336+3.3%
249Cumberland County120,192+1.4%
250Galveston County119,523+8.1%

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 2022 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/2022/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), 2022) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2022/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), 2022. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 21 Aug. 2026, https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2022/a/industry/10.csv. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/us-counties?period=2022. 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), 2022. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2022/a/industry/10.csv. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/us-counties?period=2022.

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), 2022 [Dataset]. Available at: https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2022/a/industry/10.csv, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/us-counties?period=2022 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{bureau_us_counties_by_covered_2022,
  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), 2022}},
  year = {2026},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2022/a/industry/10.csv},
  urldate = {2026-10-12},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/us-counties?period=2022. 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/2022/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), 2022
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/08/21
PB  - U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2022/a/industry/10.csv
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/us-counties?period=2022
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/us-counties?period=2022.
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/2022/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 4,481,040 jobs in 2022, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Which county has the lowest covered employment (QCEW)?

McPherson County, with 65 jobs in 2022.

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 2022 and are not ranked.

Covered employment (QCEW): other rankings

US counties: more rankings