Counties in Tennessee by employer firm births, 2023

Davidson County had the highest employer firm births of 92 counties in 2023, at 1,394. Moore County had the lowest, at 4. The median was 33 and the figure for Tennessee was 8,740. Source: the U.S. Census Bureau.

Keep it in a collection in your library.
Highest1,394Davidson County
Median3392 counties
Tennessee8,740History

Map of counties, 2023

Anderson County: 90 countBedford County: 58 countBenton County: 8 countBledsoe County: 4 countBlount County: 138 countBradley County: 97 countCampbell County: 38 countCannon County: 14 countCarroll County: 23 countCarter County: 47 countCheatham County: 48 countChester County: 8 countClaiborne County: 25 countClay County: 6 countCocke County: 21 countCoffee County: 60 countCrockett County: 12 countCumberland County: 66 countDavidson County: 1,394 countDecatur County: 15 countDeKalb County: 24 countDickson County: 68 countDyer County: 32 countFayette County: 51 countFentress County: 25 countFranklin County: 53 countGibson County: 46 countGiles County: 31 countGrainger County: 17 countGreene County: 57 countGrundy County: 6 countHamblen County: 64 countHamilton County: 563 countHardeman County: 9 countHardin County: 36 countHawkins County: 36 countHaywood County: 14 countHenderson County: 31 countHenry County: 39 countHickman County: 20 countHouston County: 12 countHumphreys County: 14 countJackson County: 12 countJefferson County: 52 countJohnson County: 20 countKnox County: 688 countLauderdale County: 14 countLawrence County: 36 countLewis County: 15 countLincoln County: 41 countLoudon County: 71 countMcMinn County: 40 countMcNairy County: 25 countMacon County: 22 countMadison County: 108 countMarion County: 29 countMarshall County: 35 countMaury County: 127 countMeigs County: 4 countMonroe County: 45 countMontgomery County: 260 countMoore County: 4 countMorgan County: 8 countObion County: 27 countOverton County: 24 countPerry County: 9 countPickett County: 5 countPolk County: 17 countPutnam County: 106 countRhea County: 34 countRoane County: 41 countRobertson County: 101 countRutherford County: 430 countScott County: 26 countSequatchie County: 18 countSevier County: 158 countShelby County: 969 countSmith County: 24 countStewart County: 12 countSullivan County: 140 countSumner County: 285 countTipton County: 39 countTrousdale County: 9 countUnicoi County: 11 countUnion County: 10 countWarren County: 36 countWashington County: 160 countWayne County: 13 countWeakley County: 33 countWhite County: 25 countWilliamson County: 673 countWilson County: 244 count
  • Under 10
  • 10 to 20
  • 20 to 30
  • 30 to 50
  • 50 to 110
  • 110 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

Davidson County: 1,394 countDavidson County1,394Shelby County: 969 countShelby County969Knox County: 688 countKnox County688Williamson County: 673 countWilliamson County673Hamilton County: 563 countHamilton County563Rutherford County: 430 countRutherford County430Sumner County: 285 countSumner County285Montgomery County: 260 countMontgomery County260Wilson County: 244 countWilson County244Washington County: 160 countWashington County160Sevier County: 158 countSevier County158Sullivan County: 140 countSullivan County140Blount County: 138 countBlount County138Maury County: 127 countMaury County127Madison County: 108 countMadison County108Putnam County: 106 countPutnam County106Robertson County: 101 countRobertson County101Bradley County: 97 countBradley County97Anderson County: 90 countAnderson County90Loudon County: 71 countLoudon County71Dickson County: 68 countDickson County68Cumberland County: 66 countCumberland County66Hamblen County: 64 countHamblen County64Coffee County: 60 countCoffee County60Bedford County: 58 countBedford County58Greene County: 57 countGreene County57Franklin County: 53 countFranklin County53Jefferson County: 52 countJefferson County52Fayette County: 51 countFayette County51Cheatham County: 48 countCheatham County48Carter County: 47 countCarter County47Gibson County: 46 countGibson County46Monroe County: 45 countMonroe County45Lincoln County: 41 countLincoln County41Roane County: 41 countRoane County41McMinn County: 40 countMcMinn County40Henry County: 39 countHenry County39Tipton County: 39 countTipton County39Campbell County: 38 countCampbell County38Hardin County: 36 countHardin County36Davidson County: 1,394 countDavidson County1,394Shelby County: 969 countShelby County969Knox County: 688 countKnox County688Williamson County: 673 countWilliamson County673Hamilton County: 563 countHamilton County563Rutherford County: 430 countRutherford County430Sumner County: 285 countSumner County285Montgomery County: 260 countMontgomery County260Wilson County: 244 countWilson County244Washington County: 160 countWashington County160Sevier County: 158 countSevier County158Sullivan County: 140 countSullivan County140Blount County: 138 countBlount County138Maury County: 127 countMaury County127Madison County: 108 countMadison County108Putnam County: 106 countPutnam County106Robertson County: 101 countRobertson County101Bradley County: 97 countBradley County97Anderson County: 90 countAnderson County90Loudon County: 71 countLoudon County71Dickson County: 68 countDickson County68Cumberland County: 66 countCumberland County66Hamblen County: 64 countHamblen County64Coffee County: 60 countCoffee County60Bedford County: 58 countBedford County58Greene County: 57 countGreene County57Franklin County: 53 countFranklin County53Jefferson County: 52 countJefferson County52Fayette County: 51 countFayette County51Cheatham County: 48 countCheatham County48Carter County: 47 countCarter County47Gibson County: 46 countGibson County46Monroe County: 45 countMonroe County45Lincoln County: 41 countLincoln County41Roane County: 41 countRoane County41McMinn County: 40 countMcMinn County40Henry County: 39 countHenry County39Tipton County: 39 countTipton County39Campbell County: 38 countCampbell County38Hardin County: 36 countHardin 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

RankCounties2023
count
Change on 2022
1Davidson County1,394-0.8%
2Shelby County969-1%
3Knox County688-2%
4Williamson County673-0.3%
5Hamilton County563-0.4%
6Rutherford County430+7.5%
7Sumner County285+4.4%
8Montgomery County260+0.8%
9Wilson County244-0.8%
10Washington County160-9.6%
11Sevier County158-15.5%
12Sullivan County1400%
13Blount County138-13.2%
14Maury County127-9.9%
15Madison County108-18.8%
16Putnam County106+16.5%
17Robertson County101+18.8%
18Bradley County97+21.3%
19Anderson County90+36.4%
20Loudon County71+24.6%
21Dickson County68-5.6%
22Cumberland County66+17.9%
23Hamblen County64+8.5%
24Coffee County60-26.8%
25Bedford County58-19.4%
26Greene County57-13.6%
27Franklin County53+8.2%
28Jefferson County52+13%
29Fayette County51+4.1%
30Cheatham County48+17.1%
31Carter County47+4.4%
32Gibson County46-17.9%
33Monroe County45+25%
34Lincoln County41+32.3%
34Roane County41+5.1%
36McMinn County40-11.1%
37Henry County39+129.4%
37Tipton County39-27.8%
39Campbell County38+40.7%
40Hardin County36+20%
40Hawkins County36+28.6%
40Lawrence County36-10%
40Warren County36-14.3%
44Marshall County35-2.8%
45Rhea County340%
46Weakley County33+6.5%
47Dyer County320%
48Giles County31-22.5%
48Henderson County31+40.9%
50Marion County29+38.1%
51Obion County27-10%
52Scott County26+116.7%
53Claiborne County25+19%
53Fentress County25+66.7%
53McNairy County25-30.6%
53White County25+31.6%
57DeKalb County24+9.1%
57Overton County24-11.1%
57Smith County24+20%
60Carroll County23+4.5%
61Macon County22+10%
62Cocke County21-19.2%
63Hickman County20-9.1%
63Johnson County20+53.8%
65Sequatchie County18+5.9%
66Grainger County17-26.1%
66Polk County17+21.4%
68Decatur County15+36.4%
68Lewis County15+25%
70Cannon County14-36.4%
70Haywood County14+27.3%
70Humphreys County14-26.3%
70Lauderdale County14+16.7%
74Wayne County130%
75Crockett County12-36.8%
75Houston County12+100%
75Jackson County12+71.4%
75Stewart County12-7.7%
79Unicoi County11+10%
80Union County10-50%
81Hardeman County9-47.1%
81Perry County9-25%
81Trousdale County9-18.2%
84Benton County8-55.6%
84Chester County8-60%
84Morgan County8-42.9%
87Clay County60%
87Grundy County6-62.5%
89Pickett County5+66.7%
90Bledsoe County4-63.6%
90Meigs County4-20%
90Moore County4n/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. 3 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 Tennessee 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 Tennessee 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/tennessee-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 Tennessee 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/tennessee-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 Tennessee 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/tennessee-counties (Accessed: 22 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{census_counties_in_tennessee_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 Tennessee 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/tennessee-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 Tennessee 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/tennessee-counties
Y2  - 2026/10/22
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/employer-firm-births/tennessee-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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Questions

Which county has the highest employer firm births?

Davidson County, with 1,394 in 2023, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

Which county has the lowest employer firm births?

Moore County, with 4 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. 3 counties have no value for 2023 and are not ranked.

Employer firm births: other rankings

Counties in Tennessee: more rankings