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

US counties by covered employment (QCEW)

Los Angeles County had the highest covered employment (QCEW) of 3133 counties in 2023, at 4,470,309 jobs. McPherson County had the lowest, at 63 jobs. The median was 8,324 jobs and the figure for the United States was 153,140,899 jobs. Source: the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Keep it in a collection in your library.
Highest4,470,309Los Angeles County
Lowest63McPherson County
Median8,3243133 counties
United States153,140,899History

Map of counties, 2023

jobs, 2023. 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, 2023

Los Angeles County: 4,470,309 jobsLos Angeles County4,470,309Cook County: 2,559,676 jobsCook County2,559,676New York County: 2,423,561 jobsNew York County2,423,561Harris County: 2,422,564 jobsHarris County2,422,564Maricopa County: 2,233,956 jobsMaricopa County2,233,956Dallas County: 1,837,548 jobsDallas County1,837,548Orange County: 1,645,472 jobsOrange County1,645,472San Diego County: 1,525,913 jobsSan Diego County1,525,913King County: 1,455,895 jobsKing County1,455,895Miami-Dade County: 1,234,673 jobsMiami-Dade County1,234,673Santa Clara County: 1,119,710 jobsSanta Clara County1,119,710Clark County: 1,098,202 jobsClark County1,098,202Tarrant County: 997,214 jobsTarrant County997,214Fulton County: 937,810 jobsFulton County937,810Orange County: 937,170 jobsOrange County937,170Middlesex County: 930,683 jobsMiddlesex County930,683Bexar County: 923,094 jobsBexar County923,094Hennepin County: 914,612 jobsHennepin County914,612Travis County: 904,044 jobsTravis County904,044Kings County: 871,174 jobsKings County871,174Broward County: 856,110 jobsBroward County856,110San Bernardino County: 839,180 jobsSan Bernardino County839,180Riverside County: 820,248 jobsRiverside County820,248Alameda County: 793,089 jobsAlameda County793,089Salt Lake County: 787,881 jobsSalt Lake County787,881Mecklenburg County: 780,609 jobsMecklenburg County780,609Hillsborough County: 780,078 jobsHillsborough County780,078Franklin County: 772,337 jobsFranklin County772,337District of Columbia: 757,701 jobsDistrict of Columbia757,701Queens County: 737,163 jobsQueens County737,163Oakland County: 726,175 jobsOakland County726,175San Francisco County: 723,526 jobsSan Francisco County723,526Wayne County: 719,741 jobsWayne County719,741Suffolk County: 711,127 jobsSuffolk County711,127Sacramento County: 709,131 jobsSacramento County709,131Cuyahoga County: 703,712 jobsCuyahoga County703,712Philadelphia County: 701,541 jobsPhiladelphia County701,541Suffolk County: 664,266 jobsSuffolk County664,266Allegheny County: 663,612 jobsAllegheny County663,612Palm Beach County: 658,485 jobsPalm Beach County658,485Los Angeles County: 4,470,309 jobsLos Angeles County4,470,309Cook County: 2,559,676 jobsCook County2,559,676New York County: 2,423,561 jobsNew York County2,423,561Harris County: 2,422,564 jobsHarris County2,422,564Maricopa County: 2,233,956 jobsMaricopa County2,233,956Dallas County: 1,837,548 jobsDallas County1,837,548Orange County: 1,645,472 jobsOrange County1,645,472San Diego County: 1,525,913 jobsSan Diego County1,525,913King County: 1,455,895 jobsKing County1,455,895Miami-Dade County: 1,234,673 jobsMiami-Dade County1,234,673Santa Clara County: 1,119,710 jobsSanta Clara County1,119,710Clark County: 1,098,202 jobsClark County1,098,202Tarrant County: 997,214 jobsTarrant County997,214Fulton County: 937,810 jobsFulton County937,810Orange County: 937,170 jobsOrange County937,170Middlesex County: 930,683 jobsMiddlesex County930,683Bexar County: 923,094 jobsBexar County923,094Hennepin County: 914,612 jobsHennepin County914,612Travis County: 904,044 jobsTravis County904,044Kings County: 871,174 jobsKings County871,174Broward County: 856,110 jobsBroward County856,110San Bernardino County: 839,180 jobsSan Bernardino County839,180Riverside County: 820,248 jobsRiverside County820,248Alameda County: 793,089 jobsAlameda County793,089Salt Lake County: 787,881 jobsSalt Lake County787,881Mecklenburg County: 780,609 jobsMecklenburg County780,609Hillsborough County: 780,078 jobsHillsborough County780,078Franklin County: 772,337 jobsFranklin County772,337District of Columbia: 757,701 jobsDistrict of Columbia757,701Queens County: 737,163 jobsQueens County737,163Oakland County: 726,175 jobsOakland County726,175San Francisco County: 723,526 jobsSan Francisco County723,526Wayne County: 719,741 jobsWayne County719,741Suffolk County: 711,127 jobsSuffolk County711,127Sacramento County: 709,131 jobsSacramento County709,131Cuyahoga County: 703,712 jobsCuyahoga County703,712Philadelphia County: 701,541 jobsPhiladelphia County701,541Suffolk County: 664,266 jobsSuffolk County664,266Allegheny County: 663,612 jobsAllegheny County663,612Palm Beach County: 658,485 jobsPalm Beach County658,485
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
1Los Angeles County4,470,309-0.2%
2Cook County2,559,676+1.6%
3New York County2,423,561+2.4%
4Harris County2,422,564+3.1%
5Maricopa County2,233,956+2.9%
6Dallas County1,837,548+1.8%
7Orange County1,645,472+0.8%
8San Diego County1,525,913+1.2%
9King County1,455,895+0.2%
10Miami-Dade County1,234,673+3.7%
11Santa Clara County1,119,710+0.2%
12Clark County1,098,202+3.9%
13Tarrant County997,214+2.9%
14Fulton County937,810+0.5%
15Orange County937,170+4.6%
16Middlesex County930,683+0.8%
17Bexar County923,094+2.7%
18Hennepin County914,612+1.3%
19Travis County904,044+3.1%
20Kings County871,174+5.3%
21Broward County856,110+2.6%
22San Bernardino County839,180+0.2%
23Riverside County820,248+1.8%
24Alameda County793,089+0.8%
25Salt Lake County787,881+2.2%
26Mecklenburg County780,609+3.3%
27Hillsborough County780,078+4.1%
28Franklin County772,337+1.1%
29District of Columbia757,701+1.2%
30Queens County737,163+5.5%
31Oakland County726,175+1.2%
32San Francisco County723,526-2%
33Wayne County719,741+0.7%
34Suffolk County711,127+1.8%
35Sacramento County709,131+1.6%
36Cuyahoga County703,712-0.2%
37Philadelphia County701,541+2.5%
38Suffolk County664,266+2.4%
39Allegheny County663,612+0.6%
40Palm Beach County658,485+3.4%
41Wake County639,870+3.6%
42Fairfax County629,471+1.4%
43Nassau County624,941+1.1%
44DuPage County621,258+2.9%
45Marion County621,243+2.2%
46St. Louis County597,676+1.3%
47Denver County568,731+2.4%
48Duval County556,916+1.4%
49Davidson County549,305+3%
50Collin County529,744+4.6%
51Hamilton County515,944+1%
52Multnomah County507,231+1.4%
53Montgomery County503,436+0.3%
54Oklahoma County486,702+2.8%
55Shelby County486,615-1.4%
56Jefferson County479,805+1.7%
57Milwaukee County467,390+0.8%
58Erie County460,226+2.2%
59Montgomery County458,933+1.2%
60Pinellas County452,927+0.7%
61Honolulu County448,389+2.1%
62Bergen County437,055+1.8%
63Middlesex County429,695-0.4%
64Westchester County422,643+2.8%
65San Mateo County420,679-0.2%
66Fresno County418,515+1.5%
67Kent County413,292+2.5%
68Pima County386,655+2.3%
69Cobb County384,916+1.5%
70Gwinnett County380,825+2%
71Monroe County377,781+1.4%
72Jackson County371,718+1.4%
73Johnson County369,949+2.9%
74Contra Costa County369,761+0.6%
75Baltimore County366,963+0.1%
76Tulsa County363,900+1.8%
77Jefferson County362,788+1.7%
78Dane County353,182+2.4%
79Worcester County351,0370%
80Norfolk County344,995+1.2%
81Bernalillo County343,914+2%
82Baltimore city343,749+1.7%
83Kern County343,323+0.7%
84Essex County341,577+2.4%
85Douglas County341,353+1.2%
86Arapahoe County340,616+1.5%
87Macomb County339,340+2.2%
88Pierce County330,763+1.7%
89Ventura County330,058+0.6%
90Lake County327,625+0.4%
91El Paso County325,804+2.4%
92Ramsey County324,569+1.6%
93Essex County321,610+0.9%
94Bronx County321,147+2.2%
95Prince George's County318,512+2.3%
96Polk County313,794+2.5%
97DeKalb County312,224+3%
98Washington County308,922+1.3%
99Denton County307,656+4.9%
100El Paso County307,454+3.6%
101New Castle County300,075+1.7%
102Morris County296,613+0.7%
103Lee County293,572+2.9%
104Snohomish County292,423+2.7%
105Greenville County291,794+1.6%
106Utah County290,791+1.5%
107Hidalgo County287,428+2.6%
108Guilford County287,073+0.9%
109Providence County284,603+0.7%
110San Joaquin County282,753+0.9%
111Ada County282,036+2.7%
112Anne Arundel County277,682+7.3%
113Charleston County274,104+2.9%
114Hudson County272,792+1.3%
115Monmouth County269,218+2%
116Bucks County269,183+2.1%
117East Baton Rouge Parish266,523+1.3%
118Will County262,954+2.8%
119Mercer County261,777+0.4%
120Summit County261,763+1.2%
121Sedgwick County261,500+2.7%
122Polk County258,740+2.2%
123Knox County257,201+2.7%
124Pulaski County256,872+2.2%
125Chester County251,034+1.9%
126Lancaster County249,580+0.9%
127Montgomery County248,053+0.9%
128Waukesha County247,774+1.9%
129Jefferson County247,227+1.7%
130Adams County245,136+2.9%
131Fort Bend County242,521+5.3%
132Spokane County241,548+1.6%
133Onondaga County241,095+1.3%
134Brevard County238,767+3.2%
135Washoe County238,729+2.3%
136Durham County233,266+2.2%
137Albany County229,149+2.1%
138Union County228,623+1%
139Bristol County228,032+0.9%
140Madison County224,952+3.6%
141Richland County223,968+0.7%
142St. Louis city223,562+0.6%
143Williamson County223,380+7.4%
144Montgomery County222,797+5.5%
145Delaware County218,962+0.6%
146Hamilton County217,651+4%
147Washtenaw County216,870+2%
148Santa Barbara County215,839-0.7%
149Kane County213,176+1.4%
150Seminole County212,150+1.9%
151Burlington County207,736+2.1%
152Sonoma County207,356+0.1%
153Camden County203,844+0.8%
154Hampden County202,689-1.4%
155Hillsborough County201,952+0.5%
156Fayette County201,604+3.1%
157Lehigh County199,371+1.3%
158Stanislaus County197,158+0.3%
159Monterey County196,972-1.2%
160Allen County196,725+1.1%
161Lucas County196,306-0%
162Boulder County195,224+1%
163Plymouth County193,646+0.6%
164Forsyth County192,841+1%
165Somerset County190,702+1%
166Lake County189,447+2%
167Cumberland County189,345+2.3%
168Loudoun County189,016+4.6%
169Dakota County188,030+1.3%
170Dauphin County187,808+2.5%
171Orleans Parish187,563+1.5%
172Sarasota County186,948+3.6%
173Henrico County186,666-0.8%
174Volusia County186,359+2.9%
175Ocean County185,006+4.5%
176Placer County184,581+1.6%
177Jefferson Parish183,018+0.2%
178York County181,934+1.6%
179Clark County180,046+2.4%
180Arlington County179,263+2.8%
181Virginia Beach city178,150+1.9%
182Greene County176,525+2.3%
183Tulare County174,904+0.8%
184Larimer County174,756+1.9%
185Lancaster County173,373+2.2%
186Clackamas County173,221+0.9%
187Mobile County171,453-0.4%
188Passaic County171,394+2.7%
189Berks County171,179+1.1%
190Howard County169,720+2.8%
191Chatham County168,990+1.7%
192Marion County168,029+2.7%
193Collier County165,907+3.9%
194Hamilton County161,075+2.3%
195St. Charles County160,581+3%
196Richmond city160,471+3.9%
197Nueces County160,317+3.1%
198Butler County160,057+3.9%
199Leon County159,360+2.2%
200Lane County157,194+1.5%
201Brown County156,287+0.4%
202Stark County156,051+0.8%
203Williamson County155,713+4.1%
204Cameron County154,822+2.5%
205Rockingham County154,738+2.3%
206Ingham County153,728+3%
207Orange County153,069+3.1%
208Spartanburg County152,492+1.8%
209Lubbock County149,879+2.4%
210Escambia County145,612+2.3%
211Anchorage Municipality144,835+2.2%
212Luzerne County144,397+0.8%
213Rutherford County144,317+3.1%
214Davis County144,110+3.8%
215Chesterfield County142,921+1.7%
216Douglas County142,873+1.9%
217Horry County141,154+3.1%
218Norfolk city140,889+2.5%
219Pasco County140,800+4.2%
220Manatee County140,691+5.3%
221Solano County139,939+1%
222Prince William County139,621+4.3%
223Benton County139,320+3.3%
224Alachua County138,542+2.1%
225Buncombe County138,287+1.9%
226Cumberland County136,519+0.8%
227Minnehaha County135,600+2.9%
228Lafayette Parish134,705+1.5%
229Rockland County133,567+3.2%
230Ottawa County133,191+2.5%
231Genesee County132,733+1.9%
232Anoka County132,314+2.1%
233Richmond County132,313+0.9%
234Elkhart County131,337-7%
235Montgomery County131,103+2.1%
236Clayton County131,083+8.7%
237Lexington County130,111+2.6%
238Westmoreland County130,008+0.6%
239New Hanover County129,066+3.8%
240Sangamon County128,309+0.3%
241Bell County128,182+1.8%
242Thurston County126,811+2.3%
243Linn County126,778-0.1%
244Cass County126,108+2.4%
245Winnebago County125,284+1.1%
246Atlantic County124,528+1%
247Galveston County122,592+2.6%
248Cumberland County122,493+1.9%
249Gloucester County122,435+1.4%
250Northampton County121,232+2.4%

Showing the top 250 of 3133. 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. 10 counties with data in other periods have no value for 2023 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/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 (US counties 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, US counties 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/us-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. US counties 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/us-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, US counties 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/us-counties?period=2023 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{bureau_us_counties_by_covered_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: US counties 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/us-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: US counties 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/us-counties?period=2023
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/us-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)?

Los Angeles County, with 4,470,309 jobs in 2023, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Which county has the lowest covered employment (QCEW)?

McPherson County, with 63 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. 10 counties have no value for 2023 and are not ranked.

Covered employment (QCEW): other rankings

US counties: more rankings