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

US states by covered employment (QCEW)

California had the highest covered employment (QCEW) of 51 states in 2020, at 16,378,059 jobs. Wyoming had the lowest, at 260,977 jobs. The median was 1,792,596 jobs and the figure for the United States was 139,103,773 jobs. Source: the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

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Highest16,378,059California
Lowest260,977Wyoming
Median1,792,59651 states
United States139,103,773History

Map of states, 2020

Alabama: 1,909,145 jobsAlaska: 297,429 jobsArizona: 2,823,760 jobsArkansas: 1,174,632 jobsCalifornia: 16,378,059 jobsColorado: 2,602,371 jobsConnecticut: 1,545,338 jobsDelaware: 426,661 jobsDistrict of Columbia: 726,083 jobsFlorida: 8,447,957 jobsGeorgia: 4,307,139 jobsHawaii: 560,156 jobsIdaho: 748,123 jobsIllinois: 5,570,198 jobsIndiana: 2,918,792 jobsIowa: 1,475,704 jobsKansas: 1,328,640 jobsKentucky: 1,792,596 jobsLouisiana: 1,780,574 jobsMaine: 584,271 jobsMaryland: 2,512,624 jobsMassachusetts: 3,324,192 jobsMichigan: 3,968,230 jobsMinnesota: 2,705,651 jobsMississippi: 1,089,821 jobsMissouri: 2,675,116 jobsMontana: 456,631 jobsNebraska: 948,137 jobsNevada: 1,265,675 jobsNew Hampshire: 624,550 jobsNew Jersey: 3,751,355 jobsNew Mexico: 781,771 jobsNew York: 8,585,181 jobsNorth Carolina: 4,323,325 jobsNorth Dakota: 395,956 jobsOhio: 5,123,767 jobsOklahoma: 1,549,993 jobsOregon: 1,836,208 jobsPennsylvania: 5,488,591 jobsRhode Island: 444,432 jobsSouth Carolina: 2,028,041 jobsSouth Dakota: 417,092 jobsTennessee: 2,916,181 jobsTexas: 12,070,210 jobsUtah: 1,504,751 jobsVermont: 283,506 jobsVirginia: 3,743,712 jobsWashington: 3,258,164 jobsWest Virginia: 642,018 jobsWisconsin: 2,730,289 jobsWyoming: 260,977 jobs
  • Under 600K
  • 600K to 1.1M
  • 1.1M to 1.8M
  • 1.8M to 2.8M
  • 2.8M to 4.2M
  • 4.2M and over
jobs, 2020. 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.

All states, 2020

California: 16,378,059 jobsCalifornia16,378,059Texas: 12,070,210 jobsTexas12,070,210New York: 8,585,181 jobsNew York8,585,181Florida: 8,447,957 jobsFlorida8,447,957Illinois: 5,570,198 jobsIllinois5,570,198Pennsylvania: 5,488,591 jobsPennsylvania5,488,591Ohio: 5,123,767 jobsOhio5,123,767North Carolina: 4,323,325 jobsNorth Carolina4,323,325Georgia: 4,307,139 jobsGeorgia4,307,139Michigan: 3,968,230 jobsMichigan3,968,230New Jersey: 3,751,355 jobsNew Jersey3,751,355Virginia: 3,743,712 jobsVirginia3,743,712Massachusetts: 3,324,192 jobsMassachusetts3,324,192Washington: 3,258,164 jobsWashington3,258,164Indiana: 2,918,792 jobsIndiana2,918,792Tennessee: 2,916,181 jobsTennessee2,916,181Arizona: 2,823,760 jobsArizona2,823,760Wisconsin: 2,730,289 jobsWisconsin2,730,289Minnesota: 2,705,651 jobsMinnesota2,705,651Missouri: 2,675,116 jobsMissouri2,675,116Colorado: 2,602,371 jobsColorado2,602,371Maryland: 2,512,624 jobsMaryland2,512,624South Carolina: 2,028,041 jobsSouth Carolina2,028,041Alabama: 1,909,145 jobsAlabama1,909,145Oregon: 1,836,208 jobsOregon1,836,208Kentucky: 1,792,596 jobsKentucky1,792,596Louisiana: 1,780,574 jobsLouisiana1,780,574Oklahoma: 1,549,993 jobsOklahoma1,549,993Connecticut: 1,545,338 jobsConnecticut1,545,338Utah: 1,504,751 jobsUtah1,504,751Iowa: 1,475,704 jobsIowa1,475,704Kansas: 1,328,640 jobsKansas1,328,640Nevada: 1,265,675 jobsNevada1,265,675Arkansas: 1,174,632 jobsArkansas1,174,632Mississippi: 1,089,821 jobsMississippi1,089,821Nebraska: 948,137 jobsNebraska948,137New Mexico: 781,771 jobsNew Mexico781,771Idaho: 748,123 jobsIdaho748,123District of Columbia: 726,083 jobsDistrict of Columbia726,083West Virginia: 642,018 jobsWest Virginia642,018New Hampshire: 624,550 jobsNew Hampshire624,550Maine: 584,271 jobsMaine584,271Hawaii: 560,156 jobsHawaii560,156Montana: 456,631 jobsMontana456,631Rhode Island: 444,432 jobsRhode Island444,432Delaware: 426,661 jobsDelaware426,661South Dakota: 417,092 jobsSouth Dakota417,092North Dakota: 395,956 jobsNorth Dakota395,956Alaska: 297,429 jobsAlaska297,429Vermont: 283,506 jobsVermont283,506Wyoming: 260,977 jobsWyoming260,977California: 16,378,059 jobsCalifornia16,378,059Texas: 12,070,210 jobsTexas12,070,210New York: 8,585,181 jobsNew York8,585,181Florida: 8,447,957 jobsFlorida8,447,957Illinois: 5,570,198 jobsIllinois5,570,198Pennsylvania: 5,488,591 jobsPennsylvania5,488,591Ohio: 5,123,767 jobsOhio5,123,767North Carolina: 4,323,325 jobsNorth Carolina4,323,325Georgia: 4,307,139 jobsGeorgia4,307,139Michigan: 3,968,230 jobsMichigan3,968,230New Jersey: 3,751,355 jobsNew Jersey3,751,355Virginia: 3,743,712 jobsVirginia3,743,712Massachusetts: 3,324,192 jobsMassachusetts3,324,192Washington: 3,258,164 jobsWashington3,258,164Indiana: 2,918,792 jobsIndiana2,918,792Tennessee: 2,916,181 jobsTennessee2,916,181Arizona: 2,823,760 jobsArizona2,823,760Wisconsin: 2,730,289 jobsWisconsin2,730,289Minnesota: 2,705,651 jobsMinnesota2,705,651Missouri: 2,675,116 jobsMissouri2,675,116Colorado: 2,602,371 jobsColorado2,602,371Maryland: 2,512,624 jobsMaryland2,512,624South Carolina: 2,028,041 jobsSouth Carolina2,028,041Alabama: 1,909,145 jobsAlabama1,909,145Oregon: 1,836,208 jobsOregon1,836,208Kentucky: 1,792,596 jobsKentucky1,792,596Louisiana: 1,780,574 jobsLouisiana1,780,574Oklahoma: 1,549,993 jobsOklahoma1,549,993Connecticut: 1,545,338 jobsConnecticut1,545,338Utah: 1,504,751 jobsUtah1,504,751Iowa: 1,475,704 jobsIowa1,475,704Kansas: 1,328,640 jobsKansas1,328,640Nevada: 1,265,675 jobsNevada1,265,675Arkansas: 1,174,632 jobsArkansas1,174,632Mississippi: 1,089,821 jobsMississippi1,089,821Nebraska: 948,137 jobsNebraska948,137New Mexico: 781,771 jobsNew Mexico781,771Idaho: 748,123 jobsIdaho748,123District of Columbia: 726,083 jobsDistrict of Columbia726,083West Virginia: 642,018 jobsWest Virginia642,018New Hampshire: 624,550 jobsNew Hampshire624,550Maine: 584,271 jobsMaine584,271Hawaii: 560,156 jobsHawaii560,156Montana: 456,631 jobsMontana456,631Rhode Island: 444,432 jobsRhode Island444,432Delaware: 426,661 jobsDelaware426,661South Dakota: 417,092 jobsSouth Dakota417,092North Dakota: 395,956 jobsNorth Dakota395,956Alaska: 297,429 jobsAlaska297,429Vermont: 283,506 jobsVermont283,506Wyoming: 260,977 jobsWyoming260,977
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

RankStates2020
jobs		Change on 2019
1California16,378,059-7.1%
2Texas12,070,210-4.1%
3New York8,585,181-10%
4Florida8,447,957-4.9%
5Illinois5,570,198-7.1%
6Pennsylvania5,488,591-7.4%
7Ohio5,123,767-5.8%
8North Carolina4,323,325-3.9%
9Georgia4,307,139-4.6%
10Michigan3,968,230-8.9%
11New Jersey3,751,355-8.1%
12Virginia3,743,712-5%
13Massachusetts3,324,192-8.6%
14Washington3,258,164-5.3%
15Indiana2,918,792-5.2%
16Tennessee2,916,181-3.8%
17Arizona2,823,760-2.9%
18Wisconsin2,730,289-5.4%
19Minnesota2,705,651-6.8%
20Missouri2,675,116-4.9%
21Colorado2,602,371-4.9%
22Maryland2,512,624-6.9%
23South Carolina2,028,041-4.8%
24Alabama1,909,145-4%
25Oregon1,836,208-6%
26Kentucky1,792,596-5.5%
27Louisiana1,780,574-7.4%
28Oklahoma1,549,993-4.4%
29Connecticut1,545,338-7.5%
30Utah1,504,751-1%
31Iowa1,475,704-5%
32Kansas1,328,640-4.6%
33Nevada1,265,675-10.2%
34Arkansas1,174,632-3.6%
35Mississippi1,089,821-4%
36Nebraska948,137-3.5%
37New Mexico781,771-6.6%
38Idaho748,123-0.6%
39District of Columbia726,083-6.4%
40West Virginia642,018-6.8%
41New Hampshire624,550-6.1%
42Maine584,271-6%
43Hawaii560,156-15%
44Montana456,631-3%
45Rhode Island444,432-8.5%
46Delaware426,661-5.8%
47South Dakota417,092-3%
48North Dakota395,956-6.4%
49Alaska297,429-8.1%
50Vermont283,506-8.7%
51Wyoming260,977-5.8%

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 states are compared on one definition. 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/2020/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 states by covered employment (QCEW), 2020) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2020/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 states by covered employment (QCEW), 2020. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 21 Aug. 2026, https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2020/a/industry/10.csv. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/us-states?period=2020. 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 states by covered employment (QCEW), 2020. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2020/a/industry/10.csv. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/us-states?period=2020.

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 states by covered employment (QCEW), 2020 [Dataset]. Available at: https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2020/a/industry/10.csv, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/us-states?period=2020 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{bureau_us_states_by_covered_2020,
  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 states by covered employment (QCEW), 2020}},
  year = {2026},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2020/a/industry/10.csv},
  urldate = {2026-10-12},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/us-states?period=2020. 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/2020/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 states by covered employment (QCEW), 2020
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/08/21
PB  - U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2020/a/industry/10.csv
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/us-states?period=2020
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/us-states?period=2020.
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/2020/a/industry/10.csv. Retrieved 2026-10-12.
ER  -
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Questions

Which state has the highest covered employment (QCEW)?

California, with 16,378,059 jobs in 2020, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Which state has the lowest covered employment (QCEW)?

Wyoming, with 260,977 jobs in 2020.

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.

Covered employment (QCEW): other rankings

US states: more rankings