Counties in Missouri by employer firms

St. Louis County had the highest employer firms of 115 counties in 2014, at 22,340. Worth County had the lowest, at 38. The median was 347 and the figure for Missouri was 105,296. Source: the U.S. Census Bureau.

Keep it in a collection in your library.
Highest22,340St. Louis County
Lowest38Worth County
Median347115 counties
Missouri105,296History

Map of counties, 2014

Adair County: 551 countAndrew County: 248 countAtchison County: 174 countAudrain County: 455 countBarry County: 611 countBarton County: 225 countBates County: 301 countBenton County: 313 countBollinger County: 169 countBoone County: 3,588 countBuchanan County: 1,799 countButler County: 1,062 countCaldwell County: 126 countCallaway County: 627 countCamden County: 1,198 countCape Girardeau County: 1,935 countCarroll County: 196 countCarter County: 154 countCass County: 1,544 countCedar County: 256 countChariton County: 183 countChristian County: 1,365 countClark County: 130 countClay County: 3,935 countClinton County: 289 countCole County: 1,846 countCooper County: 322 countCrawford County: 455 countDade County: 118 countDallas County: 240 countDaviess County: 119 countDeKalb County: 208 countDent County: 345 countDouglas County: 169 countDunklin County: 608 countFranklin County: 2,100 countGasconade County: 373 countGentry County: 160 countGreene County: 6,329 countGrundy County: 218 countHarrison County: 173 countHenry County: 496 countHickory County: 116 countHolt County: 109 countHoward County: 157 countHowell County: 930 countIron County: 311 countJackson County: 12,771 countJasper County: 2,133 countJefferson County: 3,154 countJohnson County: 770 countKnox County: 80 countLaclede County: 677 countLafayette County: 570 countLawrence County: 585 countLewis County: 156 countLincoln County: 800 countLinn County: 250 countLivingston County: 357 countMcDonald County: 241 countMacon County: 287 countMadison County: 251 countMaries County: 117 countMarion County: 699 countMercer County: 63 countMiller County: 520 countMississippi County: 218 countMoniteau County: 292 countMonroe County: 152 countMontgomery County: 230 countMorgan County: 401 countNew Madrid County: 335 countNewton County: 1,055 countNodaway County: 401 countOregon County: 171 countOsage County: 250 countOzark County: 147 countPemiscot County: 358 countPerry County: 433 countPettis County: 846 countPhelps County: 943 countPike County: 347 countPlatte County: 1,842 countPolk County: 506 countPulaski County: 589 countPutnam County: 76 countRalls County: 181 countRandolph County: 478 countRay County: 312 countReynolds County: 138 countRipley County: 333 countSt. Charles County: 6,097 countSt. Clair County: 150 countSte. Genevieve County: 367 countSt. Francois County: 1,246 countSt. Louis County: 22,340 countSaline County: 411 countSchuyler County: 67 countScotland County: 118 countScott County: 907 countShannon County: 135 countShelby County: 148 countStoddard County: 591 countStone County: 538 countSullivan County: 100 countTaney County: 1,379 countTexas County: 420 countVernon County: 466 countWarren County: 497 countWashington County: 417 countWayne County: 268 countWebster County: 565 countWorth County: 38 countWright County: 347 countSt. Louis city: 7,613 count
  • Under 200
  • 200 to 300
  • 300 to 500
  • 500 to 1,100
  • 1,100 and over
count, 2014. 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, 2014

St. Louis County: 22,340 countSt. Louis County22,340Jackson County: 12,771 countJackson County12,771St. Louis city: 7,613 countSt. Louis city7,613Greene County: 6,329 countGreene County6,329St. Charles County: 6,097 countSt. Charles County6,097Clay County: 3,935 countClay County3,935Boone County: 3,588 countBoone County3,588Jefferson County: 3,154 countJefferson County3,154Jasper County: 2,133 countJasper County2,133Franklin County: 2,100 countFranklin County2,100Cape Girardeau County: 1,935 countCape Girardeau County1,935Cole County: 1,846 countCole County1,846Platte County: 1,842 countPlatte County1,842Buchanan County: 1,799 countBuchanan County1,799Cass County: 1,544 countCass County1,544Taney County: 1,379 countTaney County1,379Christian County: 1,365 countChristian County1,365St. Francois County: 1,246 countSt. Francois County1,246Camden County: 1,198 countCamden County1,198Butler County: 1,062 countButler County1,062Newton County: 1,055 countNewton County1,055Phelps County: 943 countPhelps County943Howell County: 930 countHowell County930Scott County: 907 countScott County907Pettis County: 846 countPettis County846Lincoln County: 800 countLincoln County800Johnson County: 770 countJohnson County770Marion County: 699 countMarion County699Laclede County: 677 countLaclede County677Callaway County: 627 countCallaway County627Barry County: 611 countBarry County611Dunklin County: 608 countDunklin County608Stoddard County: 591 countStoddard County591Pulaski County: 589 countPulaski County589Lawrence County: 585 countLawrence County585Lafayette County: 570 countLafayette County570Webster County: 565 countWebster County565Adair County: 551 countAdair County551Stone County: 538 countStone County538Miller County: 520 countMiller County520St. Louis County: 22,340 countSt. Louis County22,340Jackson County: 12,771 countJackson County12,771St. Louis city: 7,613 countSt. Louis city7,613Greene County: 6,329 countGreene County6,329St. Charles County: 6,097 countSt. Charles County6,097Clay County: 3,935 countClay County3,935Boone County: 3,588 countBoone County3,588Jefferson County: 3,154 countJefferson County3,154Jasper County: 2,133 countJasper County2,133Franklin County: 2,100 countFranklin County2,100Cape Girardeau County: 1,935 countCape Girardeau County1,935Cole County: 1,846 countCole County1,846Platte County: 1,842 countPlatte County1,842Buchanan County: 1,799 countBuchanan County1,799Cass County: 1,544 countCass County1,544Taney County: 1,379 countTaney County1,379Christian County: 1,365 countChristian County1,365St. Francois County: 1,246 countSt. Francois County1,246Camden County: 1,198 countCamden County1,198Butler County: 1,062 countButler County1,062Newton County: 1,055 countNewton County1,055Phelps County: 943 countPhelps County943Howell County: 930 countHowell County930Scott County: 907 countScott County907Pettis County: 846 countPettis County846Lincoln County: 800 countLincoln County800Johnson County: 770 countJohnson County770Marion County: 699 countMarion County699Laclede County: 677 countLaclede County677Callaway County: 627 countCallaway County627Barry County: 611 countBarry County611Dunklin County: 608 countDunklin County608Stoddard County: 591 countStoddard County591Pulaski County: 589 countPulaski County589Lawrence County: 585 countLawrence County585Lafayette County: 570 countLafayette County570Webster County: 565 countWebster County565Adair County: 551 countAdair County551Stone County: 538 countStone County538Miller County: 520 countMiller County520
count. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Business Dynamics Statistics: employer firms, all covered industries, nation, states and counties. Retrieved 2026-10-11.

Full ranking

RankCounties2014
count
Change on 2013
1St. Louis County22,340+2.4%
2Jackson County12,771+3.6%
3St. Louis city7,613+10%
4Greene County6,329+3.7%
5St. Charles County6,097+0.3%
6Clay County3,935+1.7%
7Boone County3,588+1.8%
8Jefferson County3,154+1.3%
9Jasper County2,133-1.8%
10Franklin County2,100-0.5%
11Cape Girardeau County1,9350%
12Cole County1,846-0.2%
13Platte County1,8420%
14Buchanan County1,799+1.8%
15Cass County1,544+1%
16Taney County1,3790%
17Christian County1,365+3.1%
18St. Francois County1,246+6.9%
19Camden County1,198-1.5%
20Butler County1,062+3.5%
21Newton County1,055-5.5%
22Phelps County943+0.1%
23Howell County930+1.5%
24Scott County907-1.7%
25Pettis County846+0.6%
26Lincoln County800+0.5%
27Johnson County770+2%
28Marion County699+0.7%
29Laclede County677-1.2%
30Callaway County627-2%
31Barry County611-3.8%
32Dunklin County608+0.3%
33Stoddard County591+1.4%
34Pulaski County589-3%
35Lawrence County585-1%
36Lafayette County570+0.4%
37Webster County565+0.5%
38Adair County551+0.9%
39Stone County538-6.1%
40Miller County520+0.6%
41Polk County506+1.4%
42Warren County497-2.9%
43Henry County496+0.4%
44Randolph County478+1.1%
45Vernon County466-1.5%
46Audrain County455+1.3%
46Crawford County455+3.2%
48Perry County433+0.5%
49Texas County420+1.4%
50Washington County417+16.8%
51Saline County411-0.5%
52Morgan County401+1.3%
52Nodaway County401-4.8%
54Gasconade County373+0.3%
55Ste. Genevieve County367+3.1%
56Pemiscot County358+4.1%
57Livingston County357+0.8%
58Pike County347+2.4%
58Wright County347-0.9%
60Dent County345+14.2%
61New Madrid County335+1.2%
62Ripley County333+9.9%
63Cooper County322-3.6%
64Benton County313+0.6%
65Ray County312+3.7%
66Iron County311+10.3%
67Bates County301+1.7%
68Moniteau County292-1%
69Clinton County289+0.3%
70Macon County287-2%
71Wayne County268+6.8%
72Cedar County256+4.5%
73Madison County251+5.9%
74Linn County250-0.4%
74Osage County250+2.5%
76Andrew County248+0.4%
77McDonald County241-5.9%
78Dallas County240-1.6%
79Montgomery County230+1.3%
80Barton County225-3.8%
81Grundy County218+1.9%
81Mississippi County218+0.5%
83DeKalb County208+1.5%
84Carroll County196-1.5%
85Chariton County183-1.6%
86Ralls County1810%
87Atchison County174+3.6%
88Harrison County173-4.4%
89Oregon County171+8.2%
90Bollinger County169+1.2%
90Douglas County169+1.8%
92Gentry County160-6.4%
93Howard County157-3.7%
94Lewis County156+0.6%
95Carter County154-1.9%
96Monroe County152-1.3%
97St. Clair County150-5.1%
98Shelby County148+0.7%
99Ozark County147+2.1%
100Reynolds County138+3.8%
101Shannon County135+13.4%
102Clark County130+4.8%
103Caldwell County126+2.4%
104Daviess County119-10.5%
105Dade County118-2.5%
105Scotland County1180%
107Maries County117-0.8%
108Hickory County116-4.9%
109Holt County109+0.9%
110Sullivan County100-1%
111Knox County800%
112Putnam County76-3.8%
113Schuyler County67-1.5%
114Mercer County63-1.6%
115Worth County38+5.6%

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, 2014) [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, 2014. 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=2014. 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, 2014. 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=2014.

Harvard

U.S. Census Bureau (2025) Business Dynamics Statistics: employer firms, all covered industries, nation, states and counties, Counties in Missouri by employer firms, 2014 [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=2014 (Accessed: 11 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{census_counties_in_missouri_by_2014,
  author = {{U.S. Census Bureau}},
  title = {{Business Dynamics Statistics: employer firms, all covered industries, nation, states and counties: Counties in Missouri by employer firms, 2014}},
  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=2014. 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, 2014
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=2014
Y2  - 2026/10/11
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/employer-firms/missouri-counties?period=2014.
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 22,340 in 2014, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

Which county has the lowest employer firms?

Worth County, with 38 in 2014.

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