Data / Rankings / Employed residents / US cities

US cities by employed residents

New York, NY had the highest employed residents of 1685 cities in 2021, at 3.72 million. Paradise, CA had the lowest, at 1,573. The median was 22,035. Source: the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Keep it in a collection in your library.
Highest3,719,735New York, NY
Lowest1,573Paradise, CA
Median22,0351685 cities

Top 40 cities, 2021

New York, NY: 3,719,735 personsNew York, NY3,719,735Los Angeles, CA: 1,841,017 personsLos Angeles, CA1,841,017Chicago, IL: 1,311,429 personsChicago, IL1,311,429Houston, TX: 1,075,397 personsHouston, TX1,075,397Phoenix, AZ: 824,107 personsPhoenix, AZ824,107Philadelphia, PA: 707,367 personsPhiladelphia, PA707,367San Antonio, TX: 659,198 personsSan Antonio, TX659,198San Diego, CA: 656,457 personsSan Diego, CA656,457Dallas, TX: 645,107 personsDallas, TX645,107Austin, TX: 565,439 personsAustin, TX565,439San Jose, CA: 493,322 personsSan Jose, CA493,322San Francisco, CA: 472,945 personsSan Francisco, CA472,945Columbus, OH: 465,213 personsColumbus, OH465,213Charlotte, NC: 456,533 personsCharlotte, NC456,533Fort Worth, TX: 452,424 personsFort Worth, TX452,424Jacksonville, FL: 451,234 personsJacksonville, FL451,234Seattle, WA: 446,382 personsSeattle, WA446,382Indianapolis, IN: 428,732 personsIndianapolis, IN428,732Denver, CO: 409,294 personsDenver, CO409,294Boston, MA: 362,150 personsBoston, MA362,150Portland, OR: 359,623 personsPortland, OR359,623Oklahoma City, OK: 334,621 personsOklahoma City, OK334,621El Paso, TX: 289,197 personsEl Paso, TX289,197Las Vegas, NV: 280,897 personsLas Vegas, NV280,897Memphis, TN: 274,814 personsMemphis, TN274,814Albuquerque, NM: 267,663 personsAlbuquerque, NM267,663Baltimore, MD: 262,054 personsBaltimore, MD262,054Atlanta, GA: 258,326 personsAtlanta, GA258,326Kansas City, MO: 257,032 personsKansas City, MO257,032Milwaukee, WI: 256,914 personsMilwaukee, WI256,914Mesa, AZ: 250,940 personsMesa, AZ250,940Omaha, NE: 249,991 personsOmaha, NE249,991Raleigh, NC: 249,925 personsRaleigh, NC249,925Tucson, AZ: 248,540 personsTucson, AZ248,540Sacramento, CA: 239,999 personsSacramento, CA239,999Minneapolis, MN: 239,436 personsMinneapolis, MN239,436Colorado Springs, CO: 237,996 personsColorado Springs, CO237,996Detroit, MI: 224,066 personsDetroit, MI224,066Miami, FL: 222,961 personsMiami, FL222,961Long Beach, CA: 220,626 personsLong Beach, CA220,626New York, NY: 3,719,735 personsNew York, NY3,719,735Los Angeles, CA: 1,841,017 personsLos Angeles, CA1,841,017Chicago, IL: 1,311,429 personsChicago, IL1,311,429Houston, TX: 1,075,397 personsHouston, TX1,075,397Phoenix, AZ: 824,107 personsPhoenix, AZ824,107Philadelphia, PA: 707,367 personsPhiladelphia, PA707,367San Antonio, TX: 659,198 personsSan Antonio, TX659,198San Diego, CA: 656,457 personsSan Diego, CA656,457Dallas, TX: 645,107 personsDallas, TX645,107Austin, TX: 565,439 personsAustin, TX565,439San Jose, CA: 493,322 personsSan Jose, CA493,322San Francisco, CA: 472,945 personsSan Francisco, CA472,945Columbus, OH: 465,213 personsColumbus, OH465,213Charlotte, NC: 456,533 personsCharlotte, NC456,533Fort Worth, TX: 452,424 personsFort Worth, TX452,424Jacksonville, FL: 451,234 personsJacksonville, FL451,234Seattle, WA: 446,382 personsSeattle, WA446,382Indianapolis, IN: 428,732 personsIndianapolis, IN428,732Denver, CO: 409,294 personsDenver, CO409,294Boston, MA: 362,150 personsBoston, MA362,150Portland, OR: 359,623 personsPortland, OR359,623Oklahoma City, OK: 334,621 personsOklahoma City, OK334,621El Paso, TX: 289,197 personsEl Paso, TX289,197Las Vegas, NV: 280,897 personsLas Vegas, NV280,897Memphis, TN: 274,814 personsMemphis, TN274,814Albuquerque, NM: 267,663 personsAlbuquerque, NM267,663Baltimore, MD: 262,054 personsBaltimore, MD262,054Atlanta, GA: 258,326 personsAtlanta, GA258,326Kansas City, MO: 257,032 personsKansas City, MO257,032Milwaukee, WI: 256,914 personsMilwaukee, WI256,914Mesa, AZ: 250,940 personsMesa, AZ250,940Omaha, NE: 249,991 personsOmaha, NE249,991Raleigh, NC: 249,925 personsRaleigh, NC249,925Tucson, AZ: 248,540 personsTucson, AZ248,540Sacramento, CA: 239,999 personsSacramento, CA239,999Minneapolis, MN: 239,436 personsMinneapolis, MN239,436Colorado Springs, CO: 237,996 personsColorado Springs, CO237,996Detroit, MI: 224,066 personsDetroit, MI224,066Miami, FL: 222,961 personsMiami, FL222,961Long Beach, CA: 220,626 personsLong Beach, CA220,626
persons. Source: BLS, Local Area Unemployment Statistics, cities and towns, not seasonally adjusted: employment (measure 05), annual average. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Full ranking

RankCities2021
persons		Change on 2020
1New York, NY3,719,735+3.9%
2Los Angeles, CA1,841,017+4.9%
3Chicago, IL1,311,429+5%
4Houston, TX1,075,397+2.7%
5Phoenix, AZ824,107+4.2%
6Philadelphia, PA707,367+2.1%
7San Antonio, TX659,198+4.8%
8San Diego, CA656,457+3.6%
9Dallas, TX645,107+3.9%
10Austin, TX565,439+6.8%
11San Jose, CA493,322+0.9%
12San Francisco, CA472,945-0.7%
13Columbus, OH465,213+3.3%
14Charlotte, NC456,533+4.6%
15Fort Worth, TX452,424+6%
16Jacksonville, FL451,234+4.2%
17Seattle, WA446,382+4.3%
18Indianapolis, IN428,732+3.7%
19Denver, CO409,294+3.1%
20Boston, MA362,150+2.3%
21Portland, OR359,623+2.9%
22Oklahoma City, OK334,621+4.6%
23El Paso, TX289,197+3.9%
24Las Vegas, NV280,897+7.8%
25Memphis, TN274,814+2.4%
26Albuquerque, NM267,663+2.7%
27Baltimore, MD262,054-1.5%
28Atlanta, GA258,326+3.6%
29Kansas City, MO257,032+2.4%
30Milwaukee, WI256,914+1.1%
31Mesa, AZ250,940+4%
32Omaha, NE249,991+0.9%
33Raleigh, NC249,925+6.1%
34Tucson, AZ248,540+1.9%
35Sacramento, CA239,999+3.6%
36Minneapolis, MN239,436+0.3%
37Colorado Springs, CO237,996+4.5%
38Detroit, MI224,066+6.1%
39Miami, FL222,961+7.7%
40Long Beach, CA220,626+4.3%
41Fresno, CA218,368+2.5%
42Virginia Beach, VA217,921+1.9%
43Oakland, CA215,885+2.8%
44Aurora, CO200,682+5%
45Arlington, TX197,121+4.2%
46Tampa, FL193,906+5.5%
47Wichita, KS191,571+2.8%
48Tulsa, OK191,219+2.5%
49Bakersfield, CA168,867+3.7%
50New Orleans, LA164,950+3%
51Orlando, FL162,475+7.1%
52Anaheim, CA162,303+3.4%
53Lexington, KY160,986+2.2%
54St. Paul, MN158,297-0.2%
55Lincoln, NE157,956+1.5%
56Madison, WI157,820+2.2%
57Pittsburgh, PA153,009+2.4%
58Chandler, AZ152,214+4.2%
59Plano, TX151,921+5.8%
60St. Louis, MO150,458+0.6%
61Cincinnati, OH149,451+3.5%
62Cleveland, OH148,701+3.4%
63Durham, NC147,394+5.6%
64Jersey City, NJ147,279+2.2%
65Santa Ana, CA144,760+3.9%
66Riverside, CA144,120+3.4%
67Gilbert, AZ142,742+5.3%
68Irvine, CA142,671+2.3%
69Anchorage, AK138,795+2.9%
70Henderson, NV137,890+8.2%
71Corpus Christi, TX136,938+2.7%
72St. Petersburg, FL136,577+5.8%
73Reno, NV136,348+6.1%
74Greensboro, NC136,123+4.1%
75Irving, TX130,859+4%
76Boise City, ID130,691+3.1%
77Stockton, CA128,008+3.3%
78Scottsdale, AZ126,220+3.7%
79Lubbock, TX125,698+5%
80Fort Wayne, IN125,470+4.1%
81Newark, NJ122,071+1.8%
82Garland, TX120,286+4.1%
83Chula Vista, CA119,332+4.3%
84Salt Lake City, UT118,011+4.1%
85Richmond, VA117,805+2.1%
86Glendale, AZ117,734+3.7%
87Chesapeake, VA115,021+3%
88North Las Vegas, NV114,695+11.1%
89Buffalo, NY114,369+2.6%
90Toledo, OH114,206+2.7%
91Overland Park, KS110,028+3.6%
92Fremont, CA109,901+2.6%
93Des Moines, IA109,695+1.6%
94Sioux Falls, SD109,653+3.1%
95Tacoma, WA109,158+4.7%
96Spokane, WA108,782+3.4%
97Winston-Salem, NC108,553+3.8%
98Tempe, AZ108,054+3%
99Frisco, TX107,939+9.3%
100Santa Clarita, CA107,436+5.5%
101Huntsville, AL107,262+4.3%
102Hialeah, FL104,668+7.3%
103Tallahassee, FL103,561+5.1%
104McKinney, TX103,479+8.1%
105Baton Rouge, LA100,281+3.5%
106Norfolk, VA100,044+0.9%
107Laredo, TX100,036+3.8%
108Yonkers, NY99,230+4.6%
109Worcester, MA98,969+5.7%
110Grand Rapids, MI98,704+0.4%
111Port St. Lucie, FL96,793+8.8%
112Huntington Beach, CA96,355+2.9%
113Amarillo, TX95,838+4.3%
114Grand Prairie, TX95,645+5.4%
115Fontana, CA95,374+5.6%
116Fort Collins, CO94,103+3%
117Little Rock, AR93,642+1.6%
118Knoxville, TN93,419+4%
119Fort Lauderdale, FL93,171+5.5%
120Cape Coral, FL93,100+8.8%
121Vancouver, WA93,065+3%
122Alexandria, VA92,548+0.1%
123Peoria, AZ92,065+5%
124Rochester, NY91,430+1.8%
125Providence, RI90,808+4.6%
126San Bernardino, CA90,638+3.3%
127Moreno Valley, CA90,378+4.9%
128Oxnard, CA90,176+2.7%
129Cary, NC89,952+6.2%
130Mobile, AL89,783+2%
131Modesto, CA88,926+2.7%
132Aurora, IL88,755+4%
133Birmingham, AL88,328+1.8%
134Glendale, CA87,532+4.6%
135Chattanooga, TN86,366+2.6%
136Lakewood, CO86,096+4.6%
137Eugene, OR85,734+4.8%
138Murfreesboro, TN85,181+7.2%
139Santa Rosa, CA84,735+2.4%
140Akron, OH84,512+2.1%
141Montgomery, AL83,992+2.5%
142Pembroke Pines, FL83,460+5%
143Rancho Cucamonga, CA82,702+4.4%
144Ontario, CA82,402+5.5%
145Newport News, VA82,314+1.4%
146Sunnyvale, CA82,274+1.9%
147Salem, OR81,960+5.4%
148Springfield, MO81,260+2.6%
149Columbus, GA81,084+1.7%
150Oceanside, CA79,797+3.7%
151Charleston, SC78,848+4%
152Hollywood, FL78,798+5.7%
153Elk Grove, CA78,538+4.4%
154Bellevue, WA78,019+3.7%
155Garden Grove, CA77,635+3.2%
156Carrollton, TX77,139+5%
157Olathe, KS77,072+4%
158Hayward, CA76,887+1%
159Denton, TX76,334+9.5%
160Thornton, CO75,940+4.5%
161Corona, CA75,723+5%
162Fargo, ND74,931+4.7%
163Brownsville, TX74,881+6.4%
164Shreveport, LA74,546+3%
165Fayetteville, NC73,734+4.2%
166Miramar, FL73,482+6.7%
167Naperville, IL72,633+6.5%
168Mesquite, TX72,618+3.6%
169Stamford, CT72,561+1.5%
170Salinas, CA72,270+2.4%
171Cedar Rapids, IA71,831+1.5%
172Joliet, IL71,709+6.4%
173Lewisville, TX71,640+5.6%
174Kansas City, KS71,487+2%
175Pasadena, CA70,727+4.9%
176Santa Clara, CA70,415+3.7%
177Roseville, CA70,261+6.3%
178West Valley City, UT69,964+3.2%
179Savannah, GA69,735+5.4%
180Clarksville, TN68,302+4.1%
181Escondido, CA68,191+3.8%
182Arvada, CO68,088+3.3%
183Gainesville, FL67,988+4.9%
184Bridgeport, CT67,813+0.7%
185Cambridge, MA67,481+3.4%
186Kent, WA67,338+4.2%
187Torrance, CA67,103+4.4%
188Coral Springs, FL66,932+5.2%
189Round Rock, TX66,676+9.4%
190Orange, CA66,557+2.7%
191Palmdale, CA66,097+4.6%
192Columbia, MO65,617+4.1%
193Surprise, AZ65,417+6.9%
194Pomona, CA65,407+3.9%
195Westminster, CO65,268+2.6%
196Rochester, MN64,773+0.4%
197Meridian, ID64,629+7.6%
198Provo, UT64,570+2.9%
199Paterson, NJ64,240+3.9%
200Norman, OK64,145+4.5%
201Manchester, NH63,987+1.3%
202Waco, TX63,748+4.8%
203Fullerton, CA63,557+1.7%
204Richardson, TX63,233+4%
205McAllen, TX63,124+6.2%
206Midland, TX62,878+5%
207Springfield, MA62,854+5.1%
208Warren, MI62,811+5.6%
209West Jordan, UT62,781+3.4%
210Sandy Springs, GA62,533+4.2%
211Lancaster, CA62,495+4.8%
212New Haven, CT62,474+3.3%
213Macon, GA61,930+2.4%
214Jackson, MS61,700+2%
215Simi Valley, CA61,668+2.3%
216Pasadena, TX61,568+1.2%
217Ann Arbor, MI61,519-1.6%
218Hampton, VA61,416+2.5%
219Sterling Heights, MI61,042+5.5%
220Columbia, SC60,976+2%
221Rockford, IL60,686+1.9%
222College Station, TX60,514+7.1%
223Elizabeth, NJ60,471+2%
224Costa Mesa, CA60,232+3%
225Pearland, TX60,078+2.9%
226Topeka, KS60,036+2.7%
227Visalia, CA59,948+2.8%
228Concord, CA59,573+3%
229Billings, MT58,706+1.7%
230Syracuse, NY58,681+1.1%
231West Palm Beach, FL58,668+6.1%
232Hillsboro, OR58,531+4.3%
233Lowell, MA58,400+6.2%
234Killeen, TX58,375+4.7%
235Thousand Oaks, CA58,180+2.1%
236Lafayette, LA57,851+4.6%
237Wilmington, NC57,668+6.7%
238Boulder, CO57,347+1.2%
239Broken Arrow, OK57,111+4.9%
240Renton, WA56,818+3.9%
241San Mateo, CA56,482+3.7%
242Centennial, CO56,405+3.2%
243Daly City, CA56,087+3.4%
244League City, TX56,022+3.8%
245North Charleston, SC55,931+5.1%
246Clearwater, FL55,880+5.5%
247Palm Bay, FL55,784+6.5%
248Berkeley, CA55,630-3.5%
249Quincy, MA55,405+4.6%
250Independence, MO55,322+1.6%

Showing the top 250 of 1685. The Excel download has every row.

Other periods

About this ranking

Residents who did any work for pay or profit in the reference week, or were temporarily absent from a job, annual average.

More on how it is measured
  • People aged 16 and over by place of residence, from the Local Area Unemployment Statistics (LAUS) program of the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
  • Active-duty military personnel and people living in institutions are excluded.

United States cities only for now. Counts people where they live, whatever the place of work, and someone with two jobs counts once. BLS estimates cities by splitting county estimates with Census Bureau employment and population data and unemployment insurance claims, so city figures are less precise than state ones. BLS publishes cities of 25,000 or more, and smaller cities in New England.

Every value in the ranking comes from the same publisher and the same period, so the cities are compared on one definition. 21 cities 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. Local Area Unemployment Statistics, cities and towns, not seasonally adjusted: employment (measure 05), annual average. https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/la/la.data.0.CurrentU20-24. 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). Local Area Unemployment Statistics, cities and towns, not seasonally adjusted: employment (measure 05), annual average (US cities by employed residents, 2021) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/la/la.data.0.CurrentU20-24

MLA 9

Local Area Unemployment Statistics, cities and towns, not seasonally adjusted: employment (measure 05), annual average, US cities by employed residents, 2021. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 30 Sept. 2026, https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/la/la.data.0.CurrentU20-24. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/employed-residents/us-cities?period=2021. Accessed 12 Oct. 2026.

Chicago (author-date)

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. 2026. Local Area Unemployment Statistics, cities and towns, not seasonally adjusted: employment (measure 05), annual average. US cities by employed residents, 2021. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/la/la.data.0.CurrentU20-24. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/employed-residents/us-cities?period=2021.

Harvard

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (2026) Local Area Unemployment Statistics, cities and towns, not seasonally adjusted: employment (measure 05), annual average, US cities by employed residents, 2021 [Dataset]. Available at: https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/la/la.data.0.CurrentU20-24, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/employed-residents/us-cities?period=2021 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{bureau_us_cities_by_employed_2021,
  author = {{U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics}},
  title = {{Local Area Unemployment Statistics, cities and towns, not seasonally adjusted: employment (measure 05), annual average: US cities by employed residents, 2021}},
  year = {2026},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/la/la.data.0.CurrentU20-24},
  urldate = {2026-10-12},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/employed-residents/us-cities?period=2021. Publisher attribution: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Local Area Unemployment Statistics, cities and towns, not seasonally adjusted: employment (measure 05), annual average. https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/la/la.data.0.CurrentU20-24. Retrieved 2026-10-12.},
}
RIS
TY  - DATA
AU  - U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
TI  - Local Area Unemployment Statistics, cities and towns, not seasonally adjusted: employment (measure 05), annual average: US cities by employed residents, 2021
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/09/30
PB  - U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/la/la.data.0.CurrentU20-24
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/employed-residents/us-cities?period=2021
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/employed-residents/us-cities?period=2021.
N1  - Publisher attribution: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Local Area Unemployment Statistics, cities and towns, not seasonally adjusted: employment (measure 05), annual average. https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/la/la.data.0.CurrentU20-24. Retrieved 2026-10-12.
ER  -
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Questions

Which city has the highest employed residents?

New York, NY, with 3.72 million in 2021, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Which city has the lowest employed residents?

Paradise, CA, with 1,573 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, Local Area Unemployment Statistics, cities and towns, not seasonally adjusted: employment (measure 05), annual average. Retrieved 2026-10-12. 21 cities have no value for 2021 and are not ranked.

Employed residents: other rankings

US cities: more rankings