Counties in Missouri by employer firms

St. Louis County had the highest employer firms of 115 counties in 2022, at 21,944. Worth County had the lowest, at 44. The median was 331 and the figure for Missouri was 104,621. Source: the U.S. Census Bureau.

Keep it in a collection in your library.
Highest21,944St. Louis County
Lowest44Worth County
Median331115 counties
Missouri104,621History

Map of counties, 2022

Adair County: 479 countAndrew County: 243 countAtchison County: 153 countAudrain County: 407 countBarry County: 630 countBarton County: 199 countBates County: 293 countBenton County: 335 countBollinger County: 154 countBoone County: 3,702 countBuchanan County: 1,661 countButler County: 854 countCaldwell County: 133 countCallaway County: 633 countCamden County: 1,260 countCape Girardeau County: 1,914 countCarroll County: 172 countCarter County: 124 countCass County: 1,741 countCedar County: 265 countChariton County: 172 countChristian County: 1,641 countClark County: 122 countClay County: 4,383 countClinton County: 301 countCole County: 1,794 countCooper County: 322 countCrawford County: 415 countDade County: 126 countDallas County: 233 countDaviess County: 140 countDeKalb County: 194 countDent County: 258 countDouglas County: 172 countDunklin County: 509 countFranklin County: 2,145 countGasconade County: 353 countGentry County: 146 countGreene County: 6,559 countGrundy County: 194 countHarrison County: 150 countHenry County: 491 countHickory County: 127 countHolt County: 113 countHoward County: 155 countHowell County: 909 countIron County: 170 countJackson County: 13,244 countJasper County: 2,169 countJefferson County: 3,086 countJohnson County: 790 countKnox County: 75 countLaclede County: 626 countLafayette County: 584 countLawrence County: 588 countLewis County: 154 countLincoln County: 860 countLinn County: 252 countLivingston County: 346 countMcDonald County: 257 countMacon County: 284 countMadison County: 215 countMaries County: 119 countMarion County: 657 countMercer County: 69 countMiller County: 586 countMississippi County: 190 countMoniteau County: 287 countMonroe County: 137 countMontgomery County: 203 countMorgan County: 447 countNew Madrid County: 320 countNewton County: 1,077 countNodaway County: 416 countOregon County: 147 countOsage County: 240 countOzark County: 131 countPemiscot County: 243 countPerry County: 452 countPettis County: 877 countPhelps County: 860 countPike County: 331 countPlatte County: 2,063 countPolk County: 521 countPulaski County: 544 countPutnam County: 78 countRalls County: 194 countRandolph County: 453 countRay County: 300 countReynolds County: 94 countRipley County: 236 countSt. Charles County: 6,650 countSt. Clair County: 131 countSte. Genevieve County: 357 countSt. Francois County: 1,154 countSt. Louis County: 21,944 countSaline County: 386 countSchuyler County: 72 countScotland County: 120 countScott County: 846 countShannon County: 116 countShelby County: 146 countStoddard County: 560 countStone County: 630 countSullivan County: 91 countTaney County: 1,478 countTexas County: 386 countVernon County: 412 countWarren County: 533 countWashington County: 315 countWayne County: 177 countWebster County: 628 countWorth County: 44 countWright County: 341 countSt. Louis city: 6,898 count
  • Under 100
  • 100 to 200
  • 200 to 300
  • 300 to 500
  • 500 to 1,100
  • 1,100 and over
count, 2022. 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, 2022

St. Louis County: 21,944 countSt. Louis County21,944Jackson County: 13,244 countJackson County13,244St. Louis city: 6,898 countSt. Louis city6,898St. Charles County: 6,650 countSt. Charles County6,650Greene County: 6,559 countGreene County6,559Clay County: 4,383 countClay County4,383Boone County: 3,702 countBoone County3,702Jefferson County: 3,086 countJefferson County3,086Jasper County: 2,169 countJasper County2,169Franklin County: 2,145 countFranklin County2,145Platte County: 2,063 countPlatte County2,063Cape Girardeau County: 1,914 countCape Girardeau County1,914Cole County: 1,794 countCole County1,794Cass County: 1,741 countCass County1,741Buchanan County: 1,661 countBuchanan County1,661Christian County: 1,641 countChristian County1,641Taney County: 1,478 countTaney County1,478Camden County: 1,260 countCamden County1,260St. Francois County: 1,154 countSt. Francois County1,154Newton County: 1,077 countNewton County1,077Howell County: 909 countHowell County909Pettis County: 877 countPettis County877Lincoln County: 860 countLincoln County860Phelps County: 860 countPhelps County860Butler County: 854 countButler County854Scott County: 846 countScott County846Johnson County: 790 countJohnson County790Marion County: 657 countMarion County657Callaway County: 633 countCallaway County633Barry County: 630 countBarry County630Stone County: 630 countStone County630Webster County: 628 countWebster County628Laclede County: 626 countLaclede County626Lawrence County: 588 countLawrence County588Miller County: 586 countMiller County586Lafayette County: 584 countLafayette County584Stoddard County: 560 countStoddard County560Pulaski County: 544 countPulaski County544Warren County: 533 countWarren County533Polk County: 521 countPolk County521St. Louis County: 21,944 countSt. Louis County21,944Jackson County: 13,244 countJackson County13,244St. Louis city: 6,898 countSt. Louis city6,898St. Charles County: 6,650 countSt. Charles County6,650Greene County: 6,559 countGreene County6,559Clay County: 4,383 countClay County4,383Boone County: 3,702 countBoone County3,702Jefferson County: 3,086 countJefferson County3,086Jasper County: 2,169 countJasper County2,169Franklin County: 2,145 countFranklin County2,145Platte County: 2,063 countPlatte County2,063Cape Girardeau County: 1,914 countCape Girardeau County1,914Cole County: 1,794 countCole County1,794Cass County: 1,741 countCass County1,741Buchanan County: 1,661 countBuchanan County1,661Christian County: 1,641 countChristian County1,641Taney County: 1,478 countTaney County1,478Camden County: 1,260 countCamden County1,260St. Francois County: 1,154 countSt. Francois County1,154Newton County: 1,077 countNewton County1,077Howell County: 909 countHowell County909Pettis County: 877 countPettis County877Lincoln County: 860 countLincoln County860Phelps County: 860 countPhelps County860Butler County: 854 countButler County854Scott County: 846 countScott County846Johnson County: 790 countJohnson County790Marion County: 657 countMarion County657Callaway County: 633 countCallaway County633Barry County: 630 countBarry County630Stone County: 630 countStone County630Webster County: 628 countWebster County628Laclede County: 626 countLaclede County626Lawrence County: 588 countLawrence County588Miller County: 586 countMiller County586Lafayette County: 584 countLafayette County584Stoddard County: 560 countStoddard County560Pulaski County: 544 countPulaski County544Warren County: 533 countWarren County533Polk County: 521 countPolk County521
count. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Business Dynamics Statistics: employer firms, all covered industries, nation, states and counties. Retrieved 2026-10-11.

Full ranking

RankCounties2022
count
Change on 2021
1St. Louis County21,944-0.8%
2Jackson County13,244+0.7%
3St. Louis city6,898-0.7%
4St. Charles County6,650+2.2%
5Greene County6,559+0.8%
6Clay County4,383+2.6%
7Boone County3,702+0.1%
8Jefferson County3,086+0.8%
9Jasper County2,169+1.7%
10Franklin County2,145-1.5%
11Platte County2,063+4.2%
12Cape Girardeau County1,914+0.4%
13Cole County1,794+0.1%
14Cass County1,741+2.8%
15Buchanan County1,6610%
16Christian County1,641+1.6%
17Taney County1,478+1.8%
18Camden County1,260+2.6%
19St. Francois County1,154+4.3%
20Newton County1,077-1.2%
21Howell County909-1.5%
22Pettis County877+1.3%
23Lincoln County860+1.3%
23Phelps County860-0.2%
25Butler County854-2.1%
26Scott County846-0.7%
27Johnson County790+1.8%
28Marion County657-0.2%
29Callaway County633+7.5%
30Barry County630-0.2%
30Stone County630+5.9%
32Webster County628+2.8%
33Laclede County626-1.7%
34Lawrence County588+2.3%
35Miller County586+2.6%
36Lafayette County584+2.5%
37Stoddard County5600%
38Pulaski County544+0.6%
39Warren County533+0.9%
40Polk County521-1.9%
41Dunklin County509-1.9%
42Henry County491-0.2%
43Adair County479+0.4%
44Randolph County453-1.1%
45Perry County452-1.3%
46Morgan County447+0.9%
47Nodaway County416-1.2%
48Crawford County415+3.8%
49Vernon County412+0.5%
50Audrain County407-3.8%
51Saline County386-0.3%
51Texas County3860%
53Ste. Genevieve County357+1.7%
54Gasconade County353+0.3%
55Livingston County346+0.3%
56Wright County341-0.9%
57Benton County335+2.8%
58Pike County331+1.2%
59Cooper County322+1.6%
60New Madrid County320-1.8%
61Washington County315+1%
62Clinton County301+1.3%
63Ray County300+1%
64Bates County293+1.4%
65Moniteau County287-0.7%
66Macon County284-2.1%
67Cedar County265+6%
68Dent County258-4.8%
69McDonald County257+1.6%
70Linn County252+1.6%
71Andrew County243+1.3%
71Pemiscot County243-4.3%
73Osage County240-0.4%
74Ripley County236-4.1%
75Dallas County233-6.4%
76Madison County215-1.8%
77Montgomery County203-1.5%
78Barton County199-2.5%
79DeKalb County194+3.7%
79Grundy County194-1.5%
79Ralls County194-0.5%
82Mississippi County190+1.6%
83Wayne County177-9.7%
84Carroll County172-2.3%
84Chariton County172+0.6%
84Douglas County172-1.1%
87Iron County170-1.7%
88Howard County155-0.6%
89Bollinger County154-4.9%
89Lewis County154+0.7%
91Atchison County1530%
92Harrison County150+4.2%
93Oregon County147+0.7%
94Gentry County146-2%
94Shelby County146+5%
96Daviess County140+2.2%
97Monroe County137-1.4%
98Caldwell County133+0.8%
99Ozark County131-0.8%
99St. Clair County131+0.8%
101Hickory County127+2.4%
102Dade County126+3.3%
103Carter County124+4.2%
104Clark County1220%
105Scotland County120-1.6%
106Maries County119+4.4%
107Shannon County116+3.6%
108Holt County113+6.6%
109Reynolds County94+1.1%
110Sullivan County91+2.2%
111Putnam County78+5.4%
112Knox County75-3.8%
113Schuyler County72+4.3%
114Mercer County69+4.5%
115Worth County44-2.2%

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, 2022) [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, 2022. 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=2022. 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, 2022. 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=2022.

Harvard

U.S. Census Bureau (2025) Business Dynamics Statistics: employer firms, all covered industries, nation, states and counties, Counties in Missouri by employer firms, 2022 [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=2022 (Accessed: 11 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{census_counties_in_missouri_by_2022,
  author = {{U.S. Census Bureau}},
  title = {{Business Dynamics Statistics: employer firms, all covered industries, nation, states and counties: Counties in Missouri by employer firms, 2022}},
  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=2022. 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, 2022
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=2022
Y2  - 2026/10/11
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/employer-firms/missouri-counties?period=2022.
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  - 
Embed this chart

Paste this code into a web page or a blog post. The chart shows the latest figures as they are published, with the source and a link back to this page.

Sites that read oEmbed links, such as WordPress, can show the chart when you paste the link to this page.

Use this data in your AI agent

Invokely serves this figure to AI assistants through MCP and to code through a REST API, with the source and citation attached. Ask your assistant:

Rank Counties in Missouri by employer firms using official data, and cite the source.
rank_places {"indicator":"employer_firms","level":"province","within":"Missouri","limit":10}
GET https://invokely.ai/api/v1/rank?indicator=employer_firms&level=province&within=Missouri&limit=10

Connect Claude, ChatGPT or Cursor in one step. The trial answers 25 calls a day without an account.

Questions

Which county has the highest employer firms?

St. Louis County, with 21,944 in 2022, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

Which county has the lowest employer firms?

Worth County, with 44 in 2022.

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