Counties in Missouri by employer firm births, 2023

St. Louis County had the highest employer firm births of 114 counties in 2023, at 1,497. Schuyler County had the lowest, at 3. The median was 24 and the figure for Missouri was 8,453. Source: the U.S. Census Bureau.

Keep it in a collection in your library.
Highest1,497St. Louis County
Median24114 counties
Missouri8,453History

Map of counties, 2023

Adair County: 24 countAndrew County: 14 countAtchison County: 3 countAudrain County: 23 countBarry County: 59 countBarton County: 9 countBates County: 25 countBenton County: 28 countBollinger County: 8 countBoone County: 278 countBuchanan County: 73 countButler County: 64 countCaldwell County: 10 countCallaway County: 47 countCamden County: 134 countCape Girardeau County: 115 countCarroll County: 9 countCarter County: 11 countCass County: 150 countCedar County: 19 countChariton County: 5 countChristian County: 162 countClark County: 3 countClay County: 360 countClinton County: 24 countCole County: 100 countCooper County: 25 countCrawford County: 23 countDade County: 6 countDallas County: 22 countDaviess County: 7 countDeKalb County: 9 countDent County: 23 countDouglas County: 24 countDunklin County: 37 countFranklin County: 148 countGasconade County: 31 countGentry County: 11 countGreene County: 490 countGrundy County: 12 countHarrison County: 10 countHenry County: 30 countHickory County: 6 countHolt County: 12 countHoward County: 6 countHowell County: 43 countIron County: 11 countJackson County: 1,084 countJasper County: 154 countJefferson County: 228 countJohnson County: 49 countKnox County: 10 countLaclede County: 27 countLafayette County: 49 countLawrence County: 42 countLewis County: 10 countLincoln County: 68 countLinn County: 13 countLivingston County: 16 countMcDonald County: 11 countMacon County: 17 countMadison County: 13 countMaries County: 5 countMarion County: 38 countMercer County: 3 countMiller County: 49 countMississippi County: 9 countMoniteau County: 20 countMonroe County: 16 countMontgomery County: 15 countMorgan County: 36 countNew Madrid County: 15 countNewton County: 85 countNodaway County: 21 countOregon County: 8 countOsage County: 16 countOzark County: 13 countPemiscot County: 21 countPerry County: 24 countPettis County: 55 countPhelps County: 54 countPike County: 21 countPlatte County: 167 countPolk County: 37 countPulaski County: 38 countPutnam County: 7 countRalls County: 15 countRandolph County: 29 countRay County: 27 countReynolds County: 12 countRipley County: 18 countSt. Charles County: 499 countSt. Clair County: 9 countSte. Genevieve County: 28 countSt. Francois County: 91 countSt. Louis County: 1,497 countSaline County: 17 countSchuyler County: 3 countScotland County: 10 countScott County: 39 countShannon County: 6 countShelby County: 8 countStoddard County: 31 countStone County: 47 countSullivan County: 6 countTaney County: 119 countTexas County: 25 countVernon County: 19 countWarren County: 49 countWashington County: 30 countWayne County: 14 countWebster County: 52 countWright County: 42 countSt. Louis city: 425 count
  • Under 10
  • 10 to 20
  • 20 to 40
  • 40 to 80
  • 80 and over
  • No data
count, 2023. Hatched areas have no value for this period. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Business Dynamics Statistics by firm age: employer firms of age zero, all covered industries, nation, states and counties from 1978. Boundaries: U.S. Census Bureau cartographic boundary files.

Top 40 counties, 2023

St. Louis County: 1,497 countSt. Louis County1,497Jackson County: 1,084 countJackson County1,084St. Charles County: 499 countSt. Charles County499Greene County: 490 countGreene County490St. Louis city: 425 countSt. Louis city425Clay County: 360 countClay County360Boone County: 278 countBoone County278Jefferson County: 228 countJefferson County228Platte County: 167 countPlatte County167Christian County: 162 countChristian County162Jasper County: 154 countJasper County154Cass County: 150 countCass County150Franklin County: 148 countFranklin County148Camden County: 134 countCamden County134Taney County: 119 countTaney County119Cape Girardeau County: 115 countCape Girardeau County115Cole County: 100 countCole County100St. Francois County: 91 countSt. Francois County91Newton County: 85 countNewton County85Buchanan County: 73 countBuchanan County73Lincoln County: 68 countLincoln County68Butler County: 64 countButler County64Barry County: 59 countBarry County59Pettis County: 55 countPettis County55Phelps County: 54 countPhelps County54Webster County: 52 countWebster County52Johnson County: 49 countJohnson County49Lafayette County: 49 countLafayette County49Miller County: 49 countMiller County49Warren County: 49 countWarren County49Callaway County: 47 countCallaway County47Stone County: 47 countStone County47Howell County: 43 countHowell County43Lawrence County: 42 countLawrence County42Wright County: 42 countWright County42Scott County: 39 countScott County39Marion County: 38 countMarion County38Pulaski County: 38 countPulaski County38Dunklin County: 37 countDunklin County37Polk County: 37 countPolk County37St. Louis County: 1,497 countSt. Louis County1,497Jackson County: 1,084 countJackson County1,084St. Charles County: 499 countSt. Charles County499Greene County: 490 countGreene County490St. Louis city: 425 countSt. Louis city425Clay County: 360 countClay County360Boone County: 278 countBoone County278Jefferson County: 228 countJefferson County228Platte County: 167 countPlatte County167Christian County: 162 countChristian County162Jasper County: 154 countJasper County154Cass County: 150 countCass County150Franklin County: 148 countFranklin County148Camden County: 134 countCamden County134Taney County: 119 countTaney County119Cape Girardeau County: 115 countCape Girardeau County115Cole County: 100 countCole County100St. Francois County: 91 countSt. Francois County91Newton County: 85 countNewton County85Buchanan County: 73 countBuchanan County73Lincoln County: 68 countLincoln County68Butler County: 64 countButler County64Barry County: 59 countBarry County59Pettis County: 55 countPettis County55Phelps County: 54 countPhelps County54Webster County: 52 countWebster County52Johnson County: 49 countJohnson County49Lafayette County: 49 countLafayette County49Miller County: 49 countMiller County49Warren County: 49 countWarren County49Callaway County: 47 countCallaway County47Stone County: 47 countStone County47Howell County: 43 countHowell County43Lawrence County: 42 countLawrence County42Wright County: 42 countWright County42Scott County: 39 countScott County39Marion County: 38 countMarion County38Pulaski County: 38 countPulaski County38Dunklin County: 37 countDunklin County37Polk County: 37 countPolk County37
count. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Business Dynamics Statistics by firm age: employer firms of age zero, all covered industries, nation, states and counties from 1978. Retrieved 2026-10-22.

Full ranking

RankCounties2023
count
Change on 2022
1St. Louis County1,497-8%
2Jackson County1,084-3.3%
3St. Charles County499-12.1%
4Greene County490-3.9%
5St. Louis city425-24.4%
6Clay County360-1.9%
7Boone County278+20.9%
8Jefferson County228+5.6%
9Platte County167-7.2%
10Christian County162-8.5%
11Jasper County154-1.9%
12Cass County150-5.1%
13Franklin County148+7.2%
14Camden County134+10.7%
15Taney County119-6.3%
16Cape Girardeau County115+8.5%
17Cole County100+2%
18St. Francois County91-6.2%
19Newton County85+19.7%
20Buchanan County73-15.1%
21Lincoln County68+1.5%
22Butler County64+14.3%
23Barry County59+28.3%
24Pettis County55-20.3%
25Phelps County54-6.9%
26Webster County52-8.8%
27Johnson County49-18.3%
27Lafayette County49-7.5%
27Miller County49-12.5%
27Warren County49+19.5%
31Callaway County47-17.5%
31Stone County47-29.9%
33Howell County43-27.1%
34Lawrence County42+13.5%
34Wright County42+110%
36Scott County39-7.1%
37Marion County38-24%
37Pulaski County38-2.6%
39Dunklin County37+2.8%
39Polk County37+12.1%
41Morgan County360%
42Gasconade County31+24%
42Stoddard County31-22.5%
44Henry County300%
44Washington County30+30.4%
46Randolph County29+16%
47Benton County280%
47Ste. Genevieve County28+33.3%
49Laclede County27-25%
49Ray County270%
51Bates County25+38.9%
51Cooper County25+127.3%
51Texas County25-13.8%
54Adair County24+9.1%
54Clinton County24+4.3%
54Douglas County24+41.2%
54Perry County24+41.2%
58Audrain County23+15%
58Crawford County23-17.9%
58Dent County23+228.6%
61Dallas County22+4.8%
62Nodaway County210%
62Pemiscot County21+16.7%
62Pike County21+5%
65Moniteau County20+11.1%
66Cedar County19-29.6%
66Vernon County19-47.2%
68Ripley County18-14.3%
69Macon County17+13.3%
69Saline County17-19%
71Livingston County16-11.1%
71Monroe County16+100%
71Osage County16+6.7%
74Montgomery County15-21.1%
74New Madrid County15-28.6%
74Ralls County15+15.4%
77Andrew County14-26.3%
77Wayne County14+55.6%
79Linn County13-13.3%
79Madison County130%
79Ozark County13+18.2%
82Grundy County12+100%
82Holt County12-20%
82Reynolds County12+71.4%
85Carter County11+120%
85Gentry County11+57.1%
85Iron County11+37.5%
85McDonald County11-50%
89Caldwell County10-9.1%
89Harrison County10+11.1%
89Knox County10+233.3%
89Lewis County10+42.9%
89Scotland County10+11.1%
94Barton County9-25%
94Carroll County9+28.6%
94DeKalb County9-40%
94Mississippi County9-35.7%
94St. Clair County9+28.6%
99Bollinger County8-33.3%
99Oregon County8-20%
99Shelby County8+14.3%
102Daviess County7-36.4%
102Putnam County7+16.7%
104Dade County6-14.3%
104Hickory County6-62.5%
104Howard County6-53.8%
104Shannon County6-14.3%
104Sullivan County6-40%
109Chariton County5-37.5%
109Maries County5-61.5%
111Atchison County3-40%
111Clark County3-62.5%
111Mercer County3-50%
111Schuyler County3n/a

Other periods

About this ranking

New employer firms: firms of age zero in March of the year, meaning that every establishment of the firm had its first employees during the previous twelve months. United States: Census Bureau Business Dynamics Statistics, which calls these firms startups.

A firm counts only when it has employees, so a business without staff is not a birth, and a new branch, merger or change of ownership of an existing firm is not a birth either. Not the same as business_applications (requests for an employer number) or enterprise_births (European business demography). The year is the twelve months to March: 2023 compares March 2022 with March 2023.

Every value in the ranking comes from the same publisher and the same period, so the counties are compared on one definition. 1 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. Census Bureau. Business Dynamics Statistics by firm age: employer firms of age zero, all covered industries, nation, states and counties from 1978. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/bds/tables/time-series/2023/bds2023_st_cty_fac.csv. Retrieved 2026-10-22.

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. Census Bureau. (2025). Business Dynamics Statistics by firm age: employer firms of age zero, all covered industries, nation, states and counties from 1978 (Counties in Missouri by employer firm births, 2023) [Data set]. Retrieved October 22, 2026, from https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/bds/tables/time-series/2023/bds2023_st_cty_fac.csv

MLA 9

Business Dynamics Statistics by firm age: employer firms of age zero, all covered industries, nation, states and counties from 1978, Counties in Missouri by employer firm births, 2023. U.S. Census Bureau, 25 Sept. 2025, https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/bds/tables/time-series/2023/bds2023_st_cty_fac.csv. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/employer-firm-births/missouri-counties. Accessed 22 Oct. 2026.

Chicago (author-date)

U.S. Census Bureau. 2025. Business Dynamics Statistics by firm age: employer firms of age zero, all covered industries, nation, states and counties from 1978. Counties in Missouri by employer firm births, 2023. Dataset. Accessed October 22, 2026. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/bds/tables/time-series/2023/bds2023_st_cty_fac.csv. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/employer-firm-births/missouri-counties.

Harvard

U.S. Census Bureau (2025) Business Dynamics Statistics by firm age: employer firms of age zero, all covered industries, nation, states and counties from 1978, Counties in Missouri by employer firm births, 2023 [Dataset]. Available at: https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/bds/tables/time-series/2023/bds2023_st_cty_fac.csv, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/employer-firm-births/missouri-counties (Accessed: 22 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{census_counties_in_missouri_by_2023,
  author = {{U.S. Census Bureau}},
  title = {{Business Dynamics Statistics by firm age: employer firms of age zero, all covered industries, nation, states and counties from 1978: Counties in Missouri by employer firm births, 2023}},
  year = {2025},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/bds/tables/time-series/2023/bds2023_st_cty_fac.csv},
  urldate = {2026-10-22},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/employer-firm-births/missouri-counties. Publisher attribution: U.S. Census Bureau. Business Dynamics Statistics by firm age: employer firms of age zero, all covered industries, nation, states and counties from 1978. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/bds/tables/time-series/2023/bds2023\_st\_cty\_fac.csv. Retrieved 2026-10-22.},
}
RIS
TY  - DATA
AU  - U.S. Census Bureau
TI  - Business Dynamics Statistics by firm age: employer firms of age zero, all covered industries, nation, states and counties from 1978: Counties in Missouri by employer firm births, 2023
PY  - 2025
DA  - 2025/09/25
PB  - U.S. Census Bureau
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/bds/tables/time-series/2023/bds2023_st_cty_fac.csv
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/employer-firm-births/missouri-counties
Y2  - 2026/10/22
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/employer-firm-births/missouri-counties.
N1  - Publisher attribution: U.S. Census Bureau. Business Dynamics Statistics by firm age: employer firms of age zero, all covered industries, nation, states and counties from 1978. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/bds/tables/time-series/2023/bds2023_st_cty_fac.csv. Retrieved 2026-10-22.
ER  - 
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Rank Counties in Missouri by employer firm births using official data, and cite the source.
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Questions

Which county has the highest employer firm births?

St. Louis County, with 1,497 in 2023, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

Which county has the lowest employer firm births?

Schuyler County, with 3 in 2023.

Where does this ranking come from?

Every value comes from one source and one period, so the places are comparable: U.S. Census Bureau, Business Dynamics Statistics by firm age: employer firms of age zero, all covered industries, nation, states and counties from 1978. Retrieved 2026-10-22. 1 counties have no value for 2023 and are not ranked.

Employer firm births: other rankings

Counties in Missouri: more rankings