Counties in Tennessee by employer firm births

Davidson County had the highest employer firm births of 90 counties in 2013, at 1,022. Trousdale County had the lowest, at 3. The median was 24 and the figure for Tennessee was 6,368. Source: the U.S. Census Bureau.

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Highest1,022Davidson County
Median2490 counties
Tennessee6,368History

Map of counties, 2013

Anderson County: 53 countBedford County: 44 countBenton County: 24 countBledsoe County: 7 countBlount County: 100 countBradley County: 74 countCampbell County: 26 countCannon County: 11 countCarroll County: 22 countCarter County: 22 countCheatham County: 29 countChester County: 8 countClaiborne County: 24 countCocke County: 22 countCoffee County: 63 countCrockett County: 13 countCumberland County: 60 countDavidson County: 1,022 countDecatur County: 6 countDeKalb County: 16 countDickson County: 39 countDyer County: 33 countFayette County: 37 countFentress County: 11 countFranklin County: 30 countGibson County: 53 countGiles County: 16 countGrainger County: 10 countGreene County: 33 countGrundy County: 9 countHamblen County: 57 countHamilton County: 424 countHardeman County: 16 countHardin County: 16 countHawkins County: 21 countHaywood County: 16 countHenderson County: 18 countHenry County: 29 countHickman County: 16 countHouston County: 6 countHumphreys County: 10 countJackson County: 5 countJefferson County: 36 countJohnson County: 11 countKnox County: 501 countLauderdale County: 13 countLawrence County: 32 countLewis County: 10 countLincoln County: 25 countLoudon County: 46 countMcMinn County: 28 countMcNairy County: 12 countMacon County: 13 countMadison County: 102 countMarion County: 18 countMarshall County: 29 countMaury County: 73 countMeigs County: 11 countMonroe County: 35 countMontgomery County: 147 countMoore County: 4 countMorgan County: 8 countObion County: 23 countOverton County: 12 countPerry County: 8 countPolk County: 5 countPutnam County: 85 countRhea County: 26 countRoane County: 30 countRobertson County: 51 countRutherford County: 261 countScott County: 7 countSequatchie County: 5 countSevier County: 158 countShelby County: 818 countSmith County: 11 countStewart County: 9 countSullivan County: 115 countSumner County: 165 countTipton County: 26 countTrousdale County: 3 countUnicoi County: 16 countUnion County: 6 countWarren County: 38 countWashington County: 109 countWayne County: 15 countWeakley County: 29 countWhite County: 18 countWilliamson County: 483 countWilson County: 139 count
  • Under 10
  • 10 to 20
  • 20 to 30
  • 30 to 80
  • 80 and over
  • No data
count, 2013. 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, 2013

Davidson County: 1,022 countDavidson County1,022Shelby County: 818 countShelby County818Knox County: 501 countKnox County501Williamson County: 483 countWilliamson County483Hamilton County: 424 countHamilton County424Rutherford County: 261 countRutherford County261Sumner County: 165 countSumner County165Sevier County: 158 countSevier County158Montgomery County: 147 countMontgomery County147Wilson County: 139 countWilson County139Sullivan County: 115 countSullivan County115Washington County: 109 countWashington County109Madison County: 102 countMadison County102Blount County: 100 countBlount County100Putnam County: 85 countPutnam County85Bradley County: 74 countBradley County74Maury County: 73 countMaury County73Coffee County: 63 countCoffee County63Cumberland County: 60 countCumberland County60Hamblen County: 57 countHamblen County57Anderson County: 53 countAnderson County53Gibson County: 53 countGibson County53Robertson County: 51 countRobertson County51Loudon County: 46 countLoudon County46Bedford County: 44 countBedford County44Dickson County: 39 countDickson County39Warren County: 38 countWarren County38Fayette County: 37 countFayette County37Jefferson County: 36 countJefferson County36Monroe County: 35 countMonroe County35Dyer County: 33 countDyer County33Greene County: 33 countGreene County33Lawrence County: 32 countLawrence County32Franklin County: 30 countFranklin County30Roane County: 30 countRoane County30Cheatham County: 29 countCheatham County29Henry County: 29 countHenry County29Marshall County: 29 countMarshall County29Weakley County: 29 countWeakley County29McMinn County: 28 countMcMinn County28Davidson County: 1,022 countDavidson County1,022Shelby County: 818 countShelby County818Knox County: 501 countKnox County501Williamson County: 483 countWilliamson County483Hamilton County: 424 countHamilton County424Rutherford County: 261 countRutherford County261Sumner County: 165 countSumner County165Sevier County: 158 countSevier County158Montgomery County: 147 countMontgomery County147Wilson County: 139 countWilson County139Sullivan County: 115 countSullivan County115Washington County: 109 countWashington County109Madison County: 102 countMadison County102Blount County: 100 countBlount County100Putnam County: 85 countPutnam County85Bradley County: 74 countBradley County74Maury County: 73 countMaury County73Coffee County: 63 countCoffee County63Cumberland County: 60 countCumberland County60Hamblen County: 57 countHamblen County57Anderson County: 53 countAnderson County53Gibson County: 53 countGibson County53Robertson County: 51 countRobertson County51Loudon County: 46 countLoudon County46Bedford County: 44 countBedford County44Dickson County: 39 countDickson County39Warren County: 38 countWarren County38Fayette County: 37 countFayette County37Jefferson County: 36 countJefferson County36Monroe County: 35 countMonroe County35Dyer County: 33 countDyer County33Greene County: 33 countGreene County33Lawrence County: 32 countLawrence County32Franklin County: 30 countFranklin County30Roane County: 30 countRoane County30Cheatham County: 29 countCheatham County29Henry County: 29 countHenry County29Marshall County: 29 countMarshall County29Weakley County: 29 countWeakley County29McMinn County: 28 countMcMinn County28
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

RankCounties2013
count
Change on 2012
1Davidson County1,022+9.8%
2Shelby County818+0.5%
3Knox County501+0.4%
4Williamson County483+15.6%
5Hamilton County424+7.6%
6Rutherford County261-11.8%
7Sumner County165-5.2%
8Sevier County158+31.7%
9Montgomery County1470%
10Wilson County139-6.7%
11Sullivan County115-12.9%
12Washington County109-24.3%
13Madison County102-8.1%
14Blount County100-22.5%
15Putnam County85-13.3%
16Bradley County74-17.8%
17Maury County730%
18Coffee County63-1.6%
19Cumberland County60+57.9%
20Hamblen County57+42.5%
21Anderson County53+1.9%
21Gibson County53+8.2%
23Robertson County51-13.6%
24Loudon County46-11.5%
25Bedford County44+15.8%
26Dickson County39-22%
27Warren County38+18.8%
28Fayette County37-5.1%
29Jefferson County36+44%
30Monroe County35+6.1%
31Dyer County33+26.9%
31Greene County33-17.5%
33Lawrence County32+33.3%
34Franklin County30-11.8%
34Roane County30+36.4%
36Cheatham County29+11.5%
36Henry County29-17.1%
36Marshall County29+31.8%
36Weakley County29+7.4%
40McMinn County28-26.3%
41Campbell County26+23.8%
41Rhea County26+18.2%
41Tipton County26-16.1%
44Lincoln County25-3.8%
45Benton County24+71.4%
45Claiborne County24+33.3%
47Obion County23-34.3%
48Carroll County22+10%
48Carter County22+4.8%
48Cocke County22+10%
51Hawkins County21-22.2%
52Henderson County18-10%
52Marion County18-25%
52White County18-25%
55DeKalb County16-27.3%
55Giles County16-27.3%
55Hardeman County16+33.3%
55Hardin County16+23.1%
55Haywood County16+128.6%
55Hickman County16+60%
55Unicoi County16+77.8%
62Wayne County15+275%
63Crockett County13+44.4%
63Lauderdale County13-23.5%
63Macon County13-31.6%
66McNairy County12-40%
66Overton County12-36.8%
68Cannon County11-8.3%
68Fentress County11-15.4%
68Johnson County11+22.2%
68Meigs County11+266.7%
68Smith County11-15.4%
73Grainger County10-37.5%
73Humphreys County10-28.6%
73Lewis County10-9.1%
76Grundy County90%
76Stewart County9+50%
78Chester County8-50%
78Morgan County8-11.1%
78Perry County8-20%
81Bledsoe County7+16.7%
81Scott County7-46.2%
83Decatur County6-57.1%
83Houston County6-33.3%
83Union County6+20%
86Jackson County5+25%
86Polk County5-37.5%
86Sequatchie County5-58.3%
89Moore County4n/a
90Trousdale County3-25%

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. 5 counties with data in other periods have no value for 2013 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, 2013) [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, 2013. 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?period=2013. 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, 2013. 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?period=2013.

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, 2013 [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?period=2013 (Accessed: 22 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{census_counties_in_tennessee_by_2013,
  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, 2013}},
  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?period=2013. 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, 2013
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?period=2013
Y2  - 2026/10/22
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/employer-firm-births/tennessee-counties?period=2013.
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 1,022 in 2013, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

Which county has the lowest employer firm births?

Trousdale County, with 3 in 2013.

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. 5 counties have no value for 2013 and are not ranked.

Employer firm births: other rankings

Counties in Tennessee: more rankings