Counties in Missouri by employer firm births

St. Louis County had the highest employer firm births of 114 counties in 2017, at 2,149. Worth County had the lowest, at 3. The median was 23 and the figure for Missouri was 9,967. Source: the U.S. Census Bureau.

Keep it in a collection in your library.
Highest2,149St. Louis County
Median23114 counties
Missouri9,967History

Map of counties, 2017

Adair County: 23 countAndrew County: 20 countAtchison County: 8 countAudrain County: 23 countBarry County: 50 countBarton County: 8 countBates County: 24 countBenton County: 26 countBollinger County: 18 countBoone County: 274 countBuchanan County: 92 countButler County: 69 countCaldwell County: 7 countCallaway County: 34 countCamden County: 91 countCape Girardeau County: 117 countCarroll County: 15 countCarter County: 17 countCass County: 131 countCedar County: 20 countChariton County: 11 countChristian County: 128 countClark County: 4 countClay County: 287 countClinton County: 22 countCole County: 78 countCooper County: 23 countCrawford County: 22 countDade County: 8 countDallas County: 34 countDaviess County: 9 countDeKalb County: 5 countDent County: 17 countDouglas County: 15 countDunklin County: 65 countFranklin County: 140 countGasconade County: 15 countGentry County: 4 countGreene County: 507 countGrundy County: 14 countHarrison County: 3 countHenry County: 35 countHickory County: 13 countHolt County: 5 countHoward County: 11 countHowell County: 61 countIron County: 15 countJackson County: 1,216 countJasper County: 133 countJefferson County: 270 countJohnson County: 66 countLaclede County: 36 countLafayette County: 43 countLawrence County: 47 countLewis County: 8 countLincoln County: 59 countLinn County: 6 countLivingston County: 15 countMcDonald County: 22 countMacon County: 17 countMadison County: 11 countMaries County: 10 countMarion County: 45 countMercer County: 7 countMiller County: 38 countMississippi County: 12 countMoniteau County: 19 countMonroe County: 4 countMontgomery County: 12 countMorgan County: 26 countNew Madrid County: 48 countNewton County: 65 countNodaway County: 27 countOregon County: 19 countOsage County: 14 countOzark County: 4 countPemiscot County: 55 countPerry County: 22 countPettis County: 66 countPhelps County: 65 countPike County: 19 countPlatte County: 133 countPolk County: 34 countPulaski County: 34 countPutnam County: 10 countRalls County: 14 countRandolph County: 33 countRay County: 15 countReynolds County: 7 countRipley County: 58 countSt. Charles County: 501 countSt. Clair County: 10 countSte. Genevieve County: 18 countSt. Francois County: 112 countSt. Louis County: 2,149 countSaline County: 16 countSchuyler County: 7 countScotland County: 8 countScott County: 65 countShannon County: 11 countShelby County: 10 countStoddard County: 30 countStone County: 49 countSullivan County: 8 countTaney County: 118 countTexas County: 33 countVernon County: 34 countWarren County: 37 countWashington County: 34 countWayne County: 19 countWebster County: 50 countWorth County: 3 countWright County: 30 countSt. Louis city: 1,162 count
  • Under 10
  • 10 to 20
  • 20 to 40
  • 40 to 70
  • 70 and over
  • No data
count, 2017. 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, 2017

St. Louis County: 2,149 countSt. Louis County2,149Jackson County: 1,216 countJackson County1,216St. Louis city: 1,162 countSt. Louis city1,162Greene County: 507 countGreene County507St. Charles County: 501 countSt. Charles County501Clay County: 287 countClay County287Boone County: 274 countBoone County274Jefferson County: 270 countJefferson County270Franklin County: 140 countFranklin County140Jasper County: 133 countJasper County133Platte County: 133 countPlatte County133Cass County: 131 countCass County131Christian County: 128 countChristian County128Taney County: 118 countTaney County118Cape Girardeau County: 117 countCape Girardeau County117St. Francois County: 112 countSt. Francois County112Buchanan County: 92 countBuchanan County92Camden County: 91 countCamden County91Cole County: 78 countCole County78Butler County: 69 countButler County69Johnson County: 66 countJohnson County66Pettis County: 66 countPettis County66Dunklin County: 65 countDunklin County65Newton County: 65 countNewton County65Phelps County: 65 countPhelps County65Scott County: 65 countScott County65Howell County: 61 countHowell County61Lincoln County: 59 countLincoln County59Ripley County: 58 countRipley County58Pemiscot County: 55 countPemiscot County55Barry County: 50 countBarry County50Webster County: 50 countWebster County50Stone County: 49 countStone County49New Madrid County: 48 countNew Madrid County48Lawrence County: 47 countLawrence County47Marion County: 45 countMarion County45Lafayette County: 43 countLafayette County43Miller County: 38 countMiller County38Warren County: 37 countWarren County37Laclede County: 36 countLaclede County36St. Louis County: 2,149 countSt. Louis County2,149Jackson County: 1,216 countJackson County1,216St. Louis city: 1,162 countSt. Louis city1,162Greene County: 507 countGreene County507St. Charles County: 501 countSt. Charles County501Clay County: 287 countClay County287Boone County: 274 countBoone County274Jefferson County: 270 countJefferson County270Franklin County: 140 countFranklin County140Jasper County: 133 countJasper County133Platte County: 133 countPlatte County133Cass County: 131 countCass County131Christian County: 128 countChristian County128Taney County: 118 countTaney County118Cape Girardeau County: 117 countCape Girardeau County117St. Francois County: 112 countSt. Francois County112Buchanan County: 92 countBuchanan County92Camden County: 91 countCamden County91Cole County: 78 countCole County78Butler County: 69 countButler County69Johnson County: 66 countJohnson County66Pettis County: 66 countPettis County66Dunklin County: 65 countDunklin County65Newton County: 65 countNewton County65Phelps County: 65 countPhelps County65Scott County: 65 countScott County65Howell County: 61 countHowell County61Lincoln County: 59 countLincoln County59Ripley County: 58 countRipley County58Pemiscot County: 55 countPemiscot County55Barry County: 50 countBarry County50Webster County: 50 countWebster County50Stone County: 49 countStone County49New Madrid County: 48 countNew Madrid County48Lawrence County: 47 countLawrence County47Marion County: 45 countMarion County45Lafayette County: 43 countLafayette County43Miller County: 38 countMiller County38Warren County: 37 countWarren County37Laclede County: 36 countLaclede County36
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

RankCounties2017
count
Change on 2016
1St. Louis County2,149-3.6%
2Jackson County1,216-8.4%
3St. Louis city1,162-11.6%
4Greene County507-2.9%
5St. Charles County501-1.2%
6Clay County287-8%
7Boone County274+7%
8Jefferson County270+13.4%
9Franklin County140+2.2%
10Jasper County133+4.7%
10Platte County133-6.3%
12Cass County131+6.5%
13Christian County128-1.5%
14Taney County118-4.1%
15Cape Girardeau County117-12%
16St. Francois County112-0.9%
17Buchanan County92-21.4%
18Camden County91-16.5%
19Cole County78-19.6%
20Butler County69-9.2%
21Johnson County66+4.8%
21Pettis County66+40.4%
23Dunklin County65-13.3%
23Newton County65-8.5%
23Phelps County65+32.7%
23Scott County65-17.7%
27Howell County61-14.1%
28Lincoln County59-3.3%
29Ripley County58+3.6%
30Pemiscot County55+71.9%
31Barry County50+31.6%
31Webster County50+2%
33Stone County49+22.5%
34New Madrid County48+29.7%
35Lawrence County47+6.8%
36Marion County45+12.5%
37Lafayette County43+19.4%
38Miller County38+11.8%
39Warren County37-11.9%
40Laclede County36-21.7%
41Henry County35+40%
42Callaway County34-8.1%
42Dallas County34-2.9%
42Polk County34-17.1%
42Pulaski County34-22.7%
42Vernon County34-2.9%
42Washington County34-2.9%
48Randolph County33-15.4%
48Texas County33-5.7%
50Stoddard County30-33.3%
50Wright County30+36.4%
52Nodaway County27+58.8%
53Benton County26+52.9%
53Morgan County26-21.2%
55Bates County24+4.3%
56Adair County23-25.8%
56Audrain County23+130%
56Cooper County23-17.9%
59Clinton County22-38.9%
59Crawford County22-40.5%
59McDonald County22-8.3%
59Perry County22-12%
63Andrew County20-4.8%
63Cedar County20+5.3%
65Moniteau County19+58.3%
65Oregon County19+35.7%
65Pike County19-20.8%
65Wayne County19-13.6%
69Bollinger County18+80%
69Ste. Genevieve County18-5.3%
71Carter County17+88.9%
71Dent County17-48.5%
71Macon County17-5.6%
74Saline County16-15.8%
75Carroll County15+114.3%
75Douglas County15+15.4%
75Gasconade County150%
75Iron County15+25%
75Livingston County15+7.1%
75Ray County15-44.4%
81Grundy County14+27.3%
81Osage County14+16.7%
81Ralls County140%
84Hickory County13-27.8%
85Mississippi County12-45.5%
85Montgomery County12-14.3%
87Chariton County110%
87Howard County11-8.3%
87Madison County11-60.7%
87Shannon County11-21.4%
91Maries County10+100%
91Putnam County10+42.9%
91Shelby County100%
91St. Clair County10+100%
95Daviess County90%
96Atchison County8+14.3%
96Barton County8-42.9%
96Dade County8+60%
96Lewis County8+14.3%
96Scotland County8-11.1%
96Sullivan County8+100%
102Caldwell County7-30%
102Mercer County7+40%
102Reynolds County7-41.7%
102Schuyler County7+75%
106Linn County6-62.5%
107DeKalb County5-54.5%
107Holt County5-28.6%
109Clark County40%
109Gentry County4-42.9%
109Monroe County4-60%
109Ozark County4-73.3%
113Harrison County3-40%
113Worth County30%

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 2017 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, 2017) [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, 2017. 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?period=2017. 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, 2017. 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?period=2017.

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, 2017 [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?period=2017 (Accessed: 22 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{census_counties_in_missouri_by_2017,
  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, 2017}},
  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?period=2017. 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, 2017
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?period=2017
Y2  - 2026/10/22
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/employer-firm-births/missouri-counties?period=2017.
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 2,149 in 2017, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

Which county has the lowest employer firm births?

Worth County, with 3 in 2017.

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 2017 and are not ranked.

Employer firm births: other rankings

Counties in Missouri: more rankings