Counties in Wisconsin by covered employment (QCEW)

Milwaukee County had the highest covered employment (QCEW) of 72 counties in 2017, at 484,696 jobs. Florence County had the lowest, at 1,042 jobs. The median was 14,798 jobs and the figure for Wisconsin was 2,850,145 jobs. Source: the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Keep it in a collection in your library.
Highest484,696Milwaukee County
Lowest1,042Florence County
Median14,79872 counties
Wisconsin2,850,145History

Map of counties, 2017

Adams County: 4,468 jobsAshland County: 8,087 jobsBarron County: 21,973 jobsBayfield County: 4,043 jobsBrown County: 156,109 jobsBuffalo County: 3,779 jobsBurnett County: 4,746 jobsCalumet County: 13,141 jobsChippewa County: 24,416 jobsClark County: 11,073 jobsColumbia County: 22,477 jobsCrawford County: 7,409 jobsDane County: 332,700 jobsDodge County: 35,480 jobsDoor County: 13,747 jobsDouglas County: 15,390 jobsDunn County: 17,419 jobsEau Claire County: 57,682 jobsFlorence County: 1,042 jobsFond du Lac County: 46,203 jobsForest County: 3,122 jobsGrant County: 17,744 jobsGreen County: 15,982 jobsGreen Lake County: 6,082 jobsIowa County: 9,977 jobsIron County: 1,658 jobsJackson County: 8,744 jobsJefferson County: 32,656 jobsJuneau County: 9,368 jobsKenosha County: 66,392 jobsKewaunee County: 7,124 jobsLa Crosse County: 69,343 jobsLafayette County: 4,263 jobsLanglade County: 7,460 jobsLincoln County: 11,069 jobsManitowoc County: 33,433 jobsMarathon County: 70,620 jobsMarinette County: 18,301 jobsMarquette County: 3,836 jobsMenominee County: 2,061 jobsMilwaukee County: 484,696 jobsMonroe County: 20,713 jobsOconto County: 9,098 jobsOneida County: 16,371 jobsOutagamie County: 107,841 jobsOzaukee County: 43,044 jobsPepin County: 2,286 jobsPierce County: 10,026 jobsPolk County: 16,060 jobsPortage County: 33,927 jobsPrice County: 5,526 jobsRacine County: 74,480 jobsRichland County: 5,808 jobsRock County: 66,088 jobsRusk County: 5,119 jobsSt. Croix County: 33,521 jobsSauk County: 36,431 jobsSawyer County: 6,861 jobsShawano County: 12,680 jobsSheboygan County: 60,772 jobsTaylor County: 8,128 jobsTrempealeau County: 14,205 jobsVernon County: 8,981 jobsVilas County: 7,817 jobsWalworth County: 41,272 jobsWashburn County: 5,804 jobsWashington County: 55,471 jobsWaukesha County: 242,167 jobsWaupaca County: 19,630 jobsWaushara County: 6,080 jobsWinnebago County: 93,771 jobsWood County: 38,093 jobs
  • Under 5,000
  • 5,000 to 9,000
  • 9,000 to 15K
  • 15K to 27K
  • 27K to 58K
  • 58K and over
jobs, 2017. 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, 2017

Milwaukee County: 484,696 jobsMilwaukee County484,696Dane County: 332,700 jobsDane County332,700Waukesha County: 242,167 jobsWaukesha County242,167Brown County: 156,109 jobsBrown County156,109Outagamie County: 107,841 jobsOutagamie County107,841Winnebago County: 93,771 jobsWinnebago County93,771Racine County: 74,480 jobsRacine County74,480Marathon County: 70,620 jobsMarathon County70,620La Crosse County: 69,343 jobsLa Crosse County69,343Kenosha County: 66,392 jobsKenosha County66,392Rock County: 66,088 jobsRock County66,088Sheboygan County: 60,772 jobsSheboygan County60,772Eau Claire County: 57,682 jobsEau Claire County57,682Washington County: 55,471 jobsWashington County55,471Fond du Lac County: 46,203 jobsFond du Lac County46,203Ozaukee County: 43,044 jobsOzaukee County43,044Walworth County: 41,272 jobsWalworth County41,272Wood County: 38,093 jobsWood County38,093Sauk County: 36,431 jobsSauk County36,431Dodge County: 35,480 jobsDodge County35,480Portage County: 33,927 jobsPortage County33,927St. Croix County: 33,521 jobsSt. Croix County33,521Manitowoc County: 33,433 jobsManitowoc County33,433Jefferson County: 32,656 jobsJefferson County32,656Chippewa County: 24,416 jobsChippewa County24,416Columbia County: 22,477 jobsColumbia County22,477Barron County: 21,973 jobsBarron County21,973Monroe County: 20,713 jobsMonroe County20,713Waupaca County: 19,630 jobsWaupaca County19,630Marinette County: 18,301 jobsMarinette County18,301Grant County: 17,744 jobsGrant County17,744Dunn County: 17,419 jobsDunn County17,419Oneida County: 16,371 jobsOneida County16,371Polk County: 16,060 jobsPolk County16,060Green County: 15,982 jobsGreen County15,982Douglas County: 15,390 jobsDouglas County15,390Trempealeau County: 14,205 jobsTrempealeau County14,205Door County: 13,747 jobsDoor County13,747Calumet County: 13,141 jobsCalumet County13,141Shawano County: 12,680 jobsShawano County12,680Milwaukee County: 484,696 jobsMilwaukee County484,696Dane County: 332,700 jobsDane County332,700Waukesha County: 242,167 jobsWaukesha County242,167Brown County: 156,109 jobsBrown County156,109Outagamie County: 107,841 jobsOutagamie County107,841Winnebago County: 93,771 jobsWinnebago County93,771Racine County: 74,480 jobsRacine County74,480Marathon County: 70,620 jobsMarathon County70,620La Crosse County: 69,343 jobsLa Crosse County69,343Kenosha County: 66,392 jobsKenosha County66,392Rock County: 66,088 jobsRock County66,088Sheboygan County: 60,772 jobsSheboygan County60,772Eau Claire County: 57,682 jobsEau Claire County57,682Washington County: 55,471 jobsWashington County55,471Fond du Lac County: 46,203 jobsFond du Lac County46,203Ozaukee County: 43,044 jobsOzaukee County43,044Walworth County: 41,272 jobsWalworth County41,272Wood County: 38,093 jobsWood County38,093Sauk County: 36,431 jobsSauk County36,431Dodge County: 35,480 jobsDodge County35,480Portage County: 33,927 jobsPortage County33,927St. Croix County: 33,521 jobsSt. Croix County33,521Manitowoc County: 33,433 jobsManitowoc County33,433Jefferson County: 32,656 jobsJefferson County32,656Chippewa County: 24,416 jobsChippewa County24,416Columbia County: 22,477 jobsColumbia County22,477Barron County: 21,973 jobsBarron County21,973Monroe County: 20,713 jobsMonroe County20,713Waupaca County: 19,630 jobsWaupaca County19,630Marinette County: 18,301 jobsMarinette County18,301Grant County: 17,744 jobsGrant County17,744Dunn County: 17,419 jobsDunn County17,419Oneida County: 16,371 jobsOneida County16,371Polk County: 16,060 jobsPolk County16,060Green County: 15,982 jobsGreen County15,982Douglas County: 15,390 jobsDouglas County15,390Trempealeau County: 14,205 jobsTrempealeau County14,205Door County: 13,747 jobsDoor County13,747Calumet County: 13,141 jobsCalumet County13,141Shawano County: 12,680 jobsShawano County12,680
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

RankCounties2017
jobs
Change on 2016
1Milwaukee County484,696+0.1%
2Dane County332,700+0.9%
3Waukesha County242,167+1.4%
4Brown County156,109+1.4%
5Outagamie County107,841+0.8%
6Winnebago County93,771+1%
7Racine County74,480+0.4%
8Marathon County70,620+0.4%
9La Crosse County69,343+0.5%
10Kenosha County66,392+4.2%
11Rock County66,088+1.6%
12Sheboygan County60,772+1.7%
13Eau Claire County57,682+0.8%
14Washington County55,471+2.1%
15Fond du Lac County46,203+0.1%
16Ozaukee County43,044-0.1%
17Walworth County41,272+0.9%
18Wood County38,0930%
19Sauk County36,431+0.8%
20Dodge County35,480+1.4%
21Portage County33,927+0.1%
22St. Croix County33,521+1.3%
23Manitowoc County33,433-0%
24Jefferson County32,656+0.8%
25Chippewa County24,416+0.4%
26Columbia County22,477+2.6%
27Barron County21,973+2.3%
28Monroe County20,713+2.5%
29Waupaca County19,630-2.5%
30Marinette County18,301-0.9%
31Grant County17,744+0.2%
32Dunn County17,419+0.8%
33Oneida County16,371-1.3%
34Polk County16,060-0%
35Green County15,982+0.5%
36Douglas County15,390-0.2%
37Trempealeau County14,205-1.5%
38Door County13,747+1%
39Calumet County13,141-5.7%
40Shawano County12,680+0.8%
41Clark County11,073+1.6%
42Lincoln County11,069+2.3%
43Pierce County10,026+0.4%
44Iowa County9,977-1.1%
45Juneau County9,368+1%
46Oconto County9,098+1.4%
47Vernon County8,981+0.6%
48Jackson County8,744+1.4%
49Taylor County8,128+0.5%
50Ashland County8,087+0.4%
51Vilas County7,817+2.7%
52Langlade County7,460+0.6%
53Crawford County7,409-0.6%
54Kewaunee County7,124+0.6%
55Sawyer County6,861+1.6%
56Green Lake County6,082-0.6%
57Waushara County6,080+0.5%
58Richland County5,808-0.5%
59Washburn County5,804-0.9%
60Price County5,526-3.1%
61Rusk County5,119-1.1%
62Burnett County4,746+2.9%
63Adams County4,468-1.4%
64Lafayette County4,263+4.7%
65Bayfield County4,043+0.1%
66Marquette County3,836+2.2%
67Buffalo County3,779-0.1%
68Forest County3,122-0.2%
69Pepin County2,286+0.4%
70Menominee County2,061-1%
71Iron County1,658-0.8%
72Florence County1,042+4.4%

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. 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/2017/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 (Counties in Wisconsin by covered employment (QCEW), 2017) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2017/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, Counties in Wisconsin by covered employment (QCEW), 2017. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 21 Aug. 2026, https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2017/a/industry/10.csv. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/wisconsin-counties?period=2017. 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. Counties in Wisconsin by covered employment (QCEW), 2017. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2017/a/industry/10.csv. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/wisconsin-counties?period=2017.

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, Counties in Wisconsin by covered employment (QCEW), 2017 [Dataset]. Available at: https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2017/a/industry/10.csv, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/wisconsin-counties?period=2017 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{bureau_counties_in_wisconsin_by_2017,
  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: Counties in Wisconsin by covered employment (QCEW), 2017}},
  year = {2026},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2017/a/industry/10.csv},
  urldate = {2026-10-12},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/wisconsin-counties?period=2017. 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/2017/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: Counties in Wisconsin by covered employment (QCEW), 2017
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/08/21
PB  - U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2017/a/industry/10.csv
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/wisconsin-counties?period=2017
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/covered-employment/wisconsin-counties?period=2017.
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/2017/a/industry/10.csv. Retrieved 2026-10-12.
ER  - 
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Questions

Which county has the highest covered employment (QCEW)?

Milwaukee County, with 484,696 jobs in 2017, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Which county has the lowest covered employment (QCEW)?

Florence County, with 1,042 jobs in 2017.

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

Counties in Wisconsin: more rankings