Counties in Missouri by employer firms

St. Louis County had the highest employer firms of 115 counties in 2012, at 21,399. Worth County had the lowest, at 36. The median was 334 and the figure for Missouri was 101,163. Source: the U.S. Census Bureau.

Keep it in a collection in your library.
Highest21,399St. Louis County
Lowest36Worth County
Median334115 counties
Missouri101,163History

Map of counties, 2012

Adair County: 556 countAndrew County: 238 countAtchison County: 172 countAudrain County: 457 countBarry County: 628 countBarton County: 225 countBates County: 297 countBenton County: 308 countBollinger County: 162 countBoone County: 3,433 countBuchanan County: 1,753 countButler County: 949 countCaldwell County: 131 countCallaway County: 635 countCamden County: 1,230 countCape Girardeau County: 1,939 countCarroll County: 201 countCarter County: 138 countCass County: 1,525 countCedar County: 245 countChariton County: 183 countChristian County: 1,291 countClark County: 124 countClay County: 3,861 countClinton County: 290 countCole County: 1,832 countCooper County: 343 countCrawford County: 420 countDade County: 123 countDallas County: 232 countDaviess County: 130 countDeKalb County: 208 countDent County: 276 countDouglas County: 174 countDunklin County: 527 countFranklin County: 2,156 countGasconade County: 365 countGentry County: 169 countGreene County: 5,995 countGrundy County: 214 countHarrison County: 190 countHenry County: 487 countHickory County: 117 countHolt County: 107 countHoward County: 159 countHowell County: 903 countIron County: 258 countJackson County: 12,251 countJasper County: 2,201 countJefferson County: 3,091 countJohnson County: 750 countKnox County: 79 countLaclede County: 678 countLafayette County: 567 countLawrence County: 581 countLewis County: 163 countLincoln County: 787 countLinn County: 257 countLivingston County: 360 countMcDonald County: 259 countMacon County: 287 countMadison County: 227 countMaries County: 112 countMarion County: 680 countMercer County: 65 countMiller County: 511 countMississippi County: 209 countMoniteau County: 288 countMonroe County: 149 countMontgomery County: 225 countMorgan County: 385 countNew Madrid County: 319 countNewton County: 1,088 countNodaway County: 423 countOregon County: 158 countOsage County: 239 countOzark County: 141 countPemiscot County: 309 countPerry County: 429 countPettis County: 853 countPhelps County: 954 countPike County: 334 countPlatte County: 1,814 countPolk County: 506 countPulaski County: 606 countPutnam County: 82 countRalls County: 179 countRandolph County: 475 countRay County: 312 countReynolds County: 96 countRipley County: 252 countSt. Charles County: 6,045 countSt. Clair County: 142 countSte. Genevieve County: 356 countSt. Francois County: 1,096 countSt. Louis County: 21,399 countSaline County: 423 countSchuyler County: 72 countScotland County: 109 countScott County: 877 countShannon County: 116 countShelby County: 147 countStoddard County: 578 countStone County: 576 countSullivan County: 107 countTaney County: 1,392 countTexas County: 409 countVernon County: 443 countWarren County: 519 countWashington County: 292 countWayne County: 211 countWebster County: 548 countWorth County: 36 countWright County: 344 countSt. Louis city: 6,412 count
  • Under 100
  • 100 to 200
  • 200 to 300
  • 300 to 500
  • 500 to 1,100
  • 1,100 and over
count, 2012. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Business Dynamics Statistics: employer firms, all covered industries, nation, states and counties. Boundaries: U.S. Census Bureau cartographic boundary files.

Top 40 counties, 2012

St. Louis County: 21,399 countSt. Louis County21,399Jackson County: 12,251 countJackson County12,251St. Louis city: 6,412 countSt. Louis city6,412St. Charles County: 6,045 countSt. Charles County6,045Greene County: 5,995 countGreene County5,995Clay County: 3,861 countClay County3,861Boone County: 3,433 countBoone County3,433Jefferson County: 3,091 countJefferson County3,091Jasper County: 2,201 countJasper County2,201Franklin County: 2,156 countFranklin County2,156Cape Girardeau County: 1,939 countCape Girardeau County1,939Cole County: 1,832 countCole County1,832Platte County: 1,814 countPlatte County1,814Buchanan County: 1,753 countBuchanan County1,753Cass County: 1,525 countCass County1,525Taney County: 1,392 countTaney County1,392Christian County: 1,291 countChristian County1,291Camden County: 1,230 countCamden County1,230St. Francois County: 1,096 countSt. Francois County1,096Newton County: 1,088 countNewton County1,088Phelps County: 954 countPhelps County954Butler County: 949 countButler County949Howell County: 903 countHowell County903Scott County: 877 countScott County877Pettis County: 853 countPettis County853Lincoln County: 787 countLincoln County787Johnson County: 750 countJohnson County750Marion County: 680 countMarion County680Laclede County: 678 countLaclede County678Callaway County: 635 countCallaway County635Barry County: 628 countBarry County628Pulaski County: 606 countPulaski County606Lawrence County: 581 countLawrence County581Stoddard County: 578 countStoddard County578Stone County: 576 countStone County576Lafayette County: 567 countLafayette County567Adair County: 556 countAdair County556Webster County: 548 countWebster County548Dunklin County: 527 countDunklin County527Warren County: 519 countWarren County519St. Louis County: 21,399 countSt. Louis County21,399Jackson County: 12,251 countJackson County12,251St. Louis city: 6,412 countSt. Louis city6,412St. Charles County: 6,045 countSt. Charles County6,045Greene County: 5,995 countGreene County5,995Clay County: 3,861 countClay County3,861Boone County: 3,433 countBoone County3,433Jefferson County: 3,091 countJefferson County3,091Jasper County: 2,201 countJasper County2,201Franklin County: 2,156 countFranklin County2,156Cape Girardeau County: 1,939 countCape Girardeau County1,939Cole County: 1,832 countCole County1,832Platte County: 1,814 countPlatte County1,814Buchanan County: 1,753 countBuchanan County1,753Cass County: 1,525 countCass County1,525Taney County: 1,392 countTaney County1,392Christian County: 1,291 countChristian County1,291Camden County: 1,230 countCamden County1,230St. Francois County: 1,096 countSt. Francois County1,096Newton County: 1,088 countNewton County1,088Phelps County: 954 countPhelps County954Butler County: 949 countButler County949Howell County: 903 countHowell County903Scott County: 877 countScott County877Pettis County: 853 countPettis County853Lincoln County: 787 countLincoln County787Johnson County: 750 countJohnson County750Marion County: 680 countMarion County680Laclede County: 678 countLaclede County678Callaway County: 635 countCallaway County635Barry County: 628 countBarry County628Pulaski County: 606 countPulaski County606Lawrence County: 581 countLawrence County581Stoddard County: 578 countStoddard County578Stone County: 576 countStone County576Lafayette County: 567 countLafayette County567Adair County: 556 countAdair County556Webster County: 548 countWebster County548Dunklin County: 527 countDunklin County527Warren County: 519 countWarren County519
count. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Business Dynamics Statistics: employer firms, all covered industries, nation, states and counties. Retrieved 2026-10-11.

Full ranking

RankCounties2012
count
Change on 2011
1St. Louis County21,399+0.7%
2Jackson County12,251+1.6%
3St. Louis city6,412+0.7%
4St. Charles County6,045+1.3%
5Greene County5,995-0.3%
6Clay County3,861+0.1%
7Boone County3,433+0.4%
8Jefferson County3,091-0.6%
9Jasper County2,201-0.9%
10Franklin County2,156+0.8%
11Cape Girardeau County1,939+0.1%
12Cole County1,832+0.7%
13Platte County1,814+1.1%
14Buchanan County1,753-3.1%
15Cass County1,525+0.3%
16Taney County1,392+2.5%
17Christian County1,291+1.7%
18Camden County1,230+0.8%
19St. Francois County1,096-1.9%
20Newton County1,088-0.8%
21Phelps County954+1.3%
22Butler County949-6.1%
23Howell County903-0.3%
24Scott County877-5.1%
25Pettis County853-4.7%
26Lincoln County787+0.4%
27Johnson County750-13.8%
28Marion County680+2.3%
29Laclede County678-1.3%
30Callaway County635+1.4%
31Barry County628+0.6%
32Pulaski County606+0.8%
33Lawrence County581-0.3%
34Stoddard County578-4%
35Stone County576+1.2%
36Lafayette County567-2.4%
37Adair County556+0.5%
38Webster County548+0.4%
39Dunklin County527-13%
40Warren County519+6.4%
41Miller County5110%
42Polk County506+0.6%
43Henry County487-3.4%
44Randolph County475-0.2%
45Audrain County457-2.6%
46Vernon County443-1.1%
47Perry County429-3.2%
48Nodaway County423+2.2%
48Saline County423-2.8%
50Crawford County420-3.2%
51Texas County409-0.7%
52Morgan County385+0.5%
53Gasconade County365+1.1%
54Livingston County360+0.8%
55Ste. Genevieve County356-3.8%
56Wright County344-3.4%
57Cooper County343-1.7%
58Pike County334+2.1%
59New Madrid County319+1.3%
60Ray County312+2%
61Pemiscot County309-2.5%
62Benton County308-6.1%
63Bates County297-3.3%
64Washington County292+3.5%
65Clinton County290-4.3%
66Moniteau County288+2.5%
67Macon County287-1%
68Dent County276+1.8%
69McDonald County259+1.2%
70Iron County258-3.4%
71Linn County257-0.8%
72Ripley County252-15.2%
73Cedar County245+2.1%
74Osage County239+3%
75Andrew County238-4.4%
76Dallas County232+2.2%
77Madison County227-6.2%
78Barton County225-3.8%
78Montgomery County225-3.4%
80Grundy County214-0.9%
81Wayne County211-14.6%
82Mississippi County209+1.5%
83DeKalb County208-0.5%
84Carroll County2010%
85Harrison County190-5.9%
86Chariton County1830%
87Ralls County179-1.1%
88Douglas County174+4.8%
89Atchison County172-4.4%
90Gentry County169-5.6%
91Lewis County163+4.5%
92Bollinger County162-4.7%
93Howard County159+2.6%
94Oregon County158-7.6%
95Monroe County149+2.8%
96Shelby County1470%
97St. Clair County142+2.2%
98Ozark County141-2.1%
99Carter County138-9.8%
100Caldwell County131-3%
101Daviess County130-2.3%
102Clark County124-0.8%
103Dade County123+3.4%
104Hickory County117+2.6%
105Shannon County116-7.9%
106Maries County112-2.6%
107Scotland County109+0.9%
108Holt County107-1.8%
108Sullivan County107+5.9%
110Reynolds County96-8.6%
111Putnam County82-2.4%
112Knox County79-8.1%
113Schuyler County72-1.4%
114Mercer County65-4.4%
115Worth County36-5.3%

Other periods

About this ranking

Number of firms in the private nonfarm sectors covered by the US Census Bureau Business Dynamics Statistics. Establishments under common ownership form one firm.

Excludes nonemployer businesses. Differs from active_companies, the INE DIRCE count, which includes businesses without employees.

Every value in the ranking comes from the same publisher and the same period, so the counties are compared on one definition. Equal values share a rank.

How to cite

U.S. Census Bureau. Business Dynamics Statistics: employer firms, all covered industries, nation, states and counties. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/bds/tables/time-series/2023/bds2023_st_cty.csv. Retrieved 2026-10-11.

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: employer firms, all covered industries, nation, states and counties (Counties in Missouri by employer firms, 2012) [Data set]. Retrieved October 11, 2026, from https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/bds/tables/time-series/2023/bds2023_st_cty.csv

MLA 9

Business Dynamics Statistics: employer firms, all covered industries, nation, states and counties, Counties in Missouri by employer firms, 2012. U.S. Census Bureau, 25 Sept. 2025, https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/bds/tables/time-series/2023/bds2023_st_cty.csv. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/employer-firms/missouri-counties?period=2012. Accessed 11 Oct. 2026.

Chicago (author-date)

U.S. Census Bureau. 2025. Business Dynamics Statistics: employer firms, all covered industries, nation, states and counties. Counties in Missouri by employer firms, 2012. Dataset. Accessed October 11, 2026. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/bds/tables/time-series/2023/bds2023_st_cty.csv. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/employer-firms/missouri-counties?period=2012.

Harvard

U.S. Census Bureau (2025) Business Dynamics Statistics: employer firms, all covered industries, nation, states and counties, Counties in Missouri by employer firms, 2012 [Dataset]. Available at: https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/bds/tables/time-series/2023/bds2023_st_cty.csv, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/employer-firms/missouri-counties?period=2012 (Accessed: 11 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{census_counties_in_missouri_by_2012,
  author = {{U.S. Census Bureau}},
  title = {{Business Dynamics Statistics: employer firms, all covered industries, nation, states and counties: Counties in Missouri by employer firms, 2012}},
  year = {2025},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/bds/tables/time-series/2023/bds2023_st_cty.csv},
  urldate = {2026-10-11},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/employer-firms/missouri-counties?period=2012. Publisher attribution: U.S. Census Bureau. Business Dynamics Statistics: employer firms, all covered industries, nation, states and counties. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/bds/tables/time-series/2023/bds2023\_st\_cty.csv. Retrieved 2026-10-11.},
}
RIS
TY  - DATA
AU  - U.S. Census Bureau
TI  - Business Dynamics Statistics: employer firms, all covered industries, nation, states and counties: Counties in Missouri by employer firms, 2012
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.csv
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/employer-firms/missouri-counties?period=2012
Y2  - 2026/10/11
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/employer-firms/missouri-counties?period=2012.
N1  - Publisher attribution: U.S. Census Bureau. Business Dynamics Statistics: employer firms, all covered industries, nation, states and counties. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/bds/tables/time-series/2023/bds2023_st_cty.csv. Retrieved 2026-10-11.
ER  - 
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Questions

Which county has the highest employer firms?

St. Louis County, with 21,399 in 2012, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

Which county has the lowest employer firms?

Worth County, with 36 in 2012.

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: employer firms, all covered industries, nation, states and counties. Retrieved 2026-10-11.

Employer firms: other rankings

Counties in Missouri: more rankings