Counties in Texas by employer firms

Harris County had the highest employer firms of 253 counties in 2017, at 71,111. Loving County had the lowest, at 3. The median was 315 and the figure for Texas was 393,552. Source: the U.S. Census Bureau.

Keep it in a collection in your library.
Highest71,111Harris County
Median315253 counties
Texas393,552History

Map of counties, 2017

Anderson County: 764 countAndrews County: 342 countAngelina County: 1,575 countAransas County: 477 countArcher County: 184 countArmstrong County: 41 countAtascosa County: 717 countAustin County: 567 countBailey County: 133 countBandera County: 354 countBastrop County: 1,123 countBaylor County: 91 countBee County: 431 countBell County: 3,809 countBexar County: 24,417 countBlanco County: 286 countBorden County: 12 countBosque County: 252 countBowie County: 1,693 countBrazoria County: 4,392 countBrazos County: 3,473 countBrewster County: 261 countBriscoe County: 30 countBrooks County: 96 countBrown County: 776 countBurleson County: 288 countBurnet County: 1,186 countCaldwell County: 552 countCalhoun County: 371 countCallahan County: 181 countCameron County: 4,718 countCamp County: 191 countCarson County: 116 countCass County: 421 countCastro County: 151 countChambers County: 511 countCherokee County: 659 countChildress County: 149 countClay County: 135 countCochran County: 39 countCoke County: 52 countColeman County: 191 countCollin County: 17,266 countCollingsworth County: 62 countColorado County: 503 countComal County: 3,077 countComanche County: 211 countConcho County: 43 countCooke County: 809 countCoryell County: 678 countCottle County: 28 countCrane County: 75 countCrockett County: 109 countCrosby County: 79 countCulberson County: 50 countDallam County: 183 countDallas County: 46,704 countDawson County: 240 countDeaf Smith County: 355 countDelta County: 53 countDenton County: 11,118 countDeWitt County: 378 countDickens County: 37 countDimmit County: 202 countDonley County: 70 countDuval County: 123 countEastland County: 374 countEctor County: 2,867 countEdwards County: 39 countEllis County: 2,508 countEl Paso County: 10,247 countErath County: 881 countFalls County: 209 countFannin County: 425 countFayette County: 666 countFisher County: 63 countFloyd County: 130 countFoard County: 23 countFort Bend County: 10,274 countFranklin County: 144 countFreestone County: 303 countFrio County: 285 countGaines County: 390 countGalveston County: 4,634 countGarza County: 126 countGillespie County: 913 countGlasscock County: 24 countGoliad County: 144 countGonzales County: 370 countGray County: 494 countGrayson County: 2,178 countGregg County: 3,191 countGrimes County: 391 countGuadalupe County: 1,783 countHale County: 572 countHall County: 63 countHamilton County: 188 countHansford County: 127 countHardeman County: 70 countHardin County: 672 countHarris County: 71,111 countHarrison County: 1,133 countHartley County: 108 countHaskell County: 129 countHays County: 3,390 countHemphill County: 130 countHenderson County: 1,140 countHidalgo County: 8,932 countHill County: 548 countHockley County: 426 countHood County: 1,120 countHopkins County: 662 countHouston County: 315 countHoward County: 634 countHudspeth County: 30 countHunt County: 1,305 countHutchinson County: 386 countIrion County: 49 countJack County: 206 countJackson County: 296 countJasper County: 511 countJeff Davis County: 57 countJefferson County: 4,446 countJim Hogg County: 74 countJim Wells County: 683 countJohnson County: 2,395 countJones County: 226 countKarnes County: 289 countKaufman County: 1,601 countKendall County: 1,153 countKenedy County: 12 countKent County: 14 countKerr County: 1,240 countKimble County: 118 countKinney County: 32 countKleberg County: 484 countKnox County: 77 countLamar County: 1,052 countLamb County: 201 countLampasas County: 332 countLa Salle County: 131 countLavaca County: 417 countLee County: 375 countLeon County: 295 countLiberty County: 894 countLimestone County: 326 countLipscomb County: 74 countLive Oak County: 247 countLlano County: 387 countLoving County: 3 countLubbock County: 5,612 countLynn County: 89 countMcCulloch County: 193 countMcLennan County: 4,100 countMcMullen County: 37 countMadison County: 238 countMarion County: 161 countMartin County: 109 countMason County: 130 countMatagorda County: 635 countMaverick County: 679 countMedina County: 628 countMenard County: 40 countMidland County: 4,202 countMilam County: 349 countMills County: 102 countMitchell County: 118 countMontague County: 385 countMontgomery County: 8,935 countMoore County: 384 countMorris County: 193 countMotley County: 20 countNacogdoches County: 1,101 countNavarro County: 811 countNewton County: 148 countNolan County: 317 countNueces County: 6,042 countOchiltree County: 312 countOldham County: 41 countOrange County: 1,074 countPalo Pinto County: 547 countPanola County: 423 countParker County: 2,373 countParmer County: 172 countPecos County: 268 countPolk County: 659 countPotter County: 2,799 countPresidio County: 110 countRains County: 152 countRandall County: 2,176 countReagan County: 117 countReal County: 76 countRed River County: 155 countReeves County: 250 countRefugio County: 132 countRoberts County: 18 countRobertson County: 227 countRockwall County: 1,881 countRunnels County: 187 countRusk County: 721 countSabine County: 139 countSan Augustine County: 115 countSan Jacinto County: 190 countSan Patricio County: 842 countSan Saba County: 143 countSchleicher County: 46 countScurry County: 364 countShackelford County: 125 countShelby County: 423 countSherman County: 61 countSmith County: 4,599 countSomervell County: 197 countStarr County: 453 countStephens County: 229 countSterling County: 45 countStonewall County: 44 countSutton County: 110 countSwisher County: 121 countTarrant County: 29,076 countTaylor County: 2,749 countTerrell County: 19 countTerry County: 207 countThrockmorton County: 49 countTitus County: 551 countTom Green County: 2,234 countTravis County: 25,935 countTrinity County: 147 countTyler County: 228 countUpshur County: 439 countUpton County: 65 countUvalde County: 539 countVal Verde County: 680 countVan Zandt County: 783 countVictoria County: 1,893 countWalker County: 900 countWaller County: 758 countWard County: 256 countWashington County: 767 countWebb County: 4,327 countWharton County: 863 countWheeler County: 153 countWichita County: 2,529 countWilbarger County: 271 countWillacy County: 164 countWilliamson County: 8,036 countWilson County: 593 countWinkler County: 146 countWise County: 1,158 countWood County: 721 countYoakum County: 153 countYoung County: 517 countZapata County: 125 countZavala County: 93 count
  • Under 100
  • 100 to 200
  • 200 to 300
  • 300 to 600
  • 600 to 1,600
  • 1,600 and over
  • No data
count, 2017. Hatched areas have no value for this period. 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, 2017

Harris County: 71,111 countHarris County71,111Dallas County: 46,704 countDallas County46,704Tarrant County: 29,076 countTarrant County29,076Travis County: 25,935 countTravis County25,935Bexar County: 24,417 countBexar County24,417Collin County: 17,266 countCollin County17,266Denton County: 11,118 countDenton County11,118Fort Bend County: 10,274 countFort Bend County10,274El Paso County: 10,247 countEl Paso County10,247Montgomery County: 8,935 countMontgomery County8,935Hidalgo County: 8,932 countHidalgo County8,932Williamson County: 8,036 countWilliamson County8,036Nueces County: 6,042 countNueces County6,042Lubbock County: 5,612 countLubbock County5,612Cameron County: 4,718 countCameron County4,718Galveston County: 4,634 countGalveston County4,634Smith County: 4,599 countSmith County4,599Jefferson County: 4,446 countJefferson County4,446Brazoria County: 4,392 countBrazoria County4,392Webb County: 4,327 countWebb County4,327Midland County: 4,202 countMidland County4,202McLennan County: 4,100 countMcLennan County4,100Bell County: 3,809 countBell County3,809Brazos County: 3,473 countBrazos County3,473Hays County: 3,390 countHays County3,390Gregg County: 3,191 countGregg County3,191Comal County: 3,077 countComal County3,077Ector County: 2,867 countEctor County2,867Potter County: 2,799 countPotter County2,799Taylor County: 2,749 countTaylor County2,749Wichita County: 2,529 countWichita County2,529Ellis County: 2,508 countEllis County2,508Johnson County: 2,395 countJohnson County2,395Parker County: 2,373 countParker County2,373Tom Green County: 2,234 countTom Green County2,234Grayson County: 2,178 countGrayson County2,178Randall County: 2,176 countRandall County2,176Victoria County: 1,893 countVictoria County1,893Rockwall County: 1,881 countRockwall County1,881Guadalupe County: 1,783 countGuadalupe County1,783Harris County: 71,111 countHarris County71,111Dallas County: 46,704 countDallas County46,704Tarrant County: 29,076 countTarrant County29,076Travis County: 25,935 countTravis County25,935Bexar County: 24,417 countBexar County24,417Collin County: 17,266 countCollin County17,266Denton County: 11,118 countDenton County11,118Fort Bend County: 10,274 countFort Bend County10,274El Paso County: 10,247 countEl Paso County10,247Montgomery County: 8,935 countMontgomery County8,935Hidalgo County: 8,932 countHidalgo County8,932Williamson County: 8,036 countWilliamson County8,036Nueces County: 6,042 countNueces County6,042Lubbock County: 5,612 countLubbock County5,612Cameron County: 4,718 countCameron County4,718Galveston County: 4,634 countGalveston County4,634Smith County: 4,599 countSmith County4,599Jefferson County: 4,446 countJefferson County4,446Brazoria County: 4,392 countBrazoria County4,392Webb County: 4,327 countWebb County4,327Midland County: 4,202 countMidland County4,202McLennan County: 4,100 countMcLennan County4,100Bell County: 3,809 countBell County3,809Brazos County: 3,473 countBrazos County3,473Hays County: 3,390 countHays County3,390Gregg County: 3,191 countGregg County3,191Comal County: 3,077 countComal County3,077Ector County: 2,867 countEctor County2,867Potter County: 2,799 countPotter County2,799Taylor County: 2,749 countTaylor County2,749Wichita County: 2,529 countWichita County2,529Ellis County: 2,508 countEllis County2,508Johnson County: 2,395 countJohnson County2,395Parker County: 2,373 countParker County2,373Tom Green County: 2,234 countTom Green County2,234Grayson County: 2,178 countGrayson County2,178Randall County: 2,176 countRandall County2,176Victoria County: 1,893 countVictoria County1,893Rockwall County: 1,881 countRockwall County1,881Guadalupe County: 1,783 countGuadalupe County1,783
count. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Business Dynamics Statistics: employer firms, all covered industries, nation, states and counties. Retrieved 2026-10-11.

Full ranking

RankCounties2017
count
Change on 2016
1Harris County71,111+0.5%
2Dallas County46,704+1%
3Tarrant County29,076+1.8%
4Travis County25,935+1.9%
5Bexar County24,417+1.2%
6Collin County17,266+4.3%
7Denton County11,118+4.9%
8Fort Bend County10,274+3.7%
9El Paso County10,247+0.4%
10Montgomery County8,935+2.7%
11Hidalgo County8,932+0.3%
12Williamson County8,036+4.6%
13Nueces County6,042-0.8%
14Lubbock County5,612+0.9%
15Cameron County4,718-0.7%
16Galveston County4,634+2.4%
17Smith County4,599+0.4%
18Jefferson County4,446+0.5%
19Brazoria County4,392+2.8%
20Webb County4,327+2%
21Midland County4,202-0.5%
22McLennan County4,100+1.1%
23Bell County3,809+2.5%
24Brazos County3,473+2.9%
25Hays County3,390+3.4%
26Gregg County3,191-0.5%
27Comal County3,077+4.2%
28Ector County2,867-2.2%
29Potter County2,799-1.4%
30Taylor County2,749-0.7%
31Wichita County2,529-0.5%
32Ellis County2,508+4.6%
33Johnson County2,395+2.5%
34Parker County2,373+3.2%
35Tom Green County2,234-1.4%
36Grayson County2,178+1%
37Randall County2,1760%
38Victoria County1,893-2.8%
39Rockwall County1,881+4.8%
40Guadalupe County1,783+2.1%
41Bowie County1,693-0.9%
42Kaufman County1,601+4.5%
43Angelina County1,575+0.7%
44Hunt County1,305+4.1%
45Kerr County1,2400%
46Burnet County1,186+3.9%
47Wise County1,158+0.6%
48Kendall County1,153+3.7%
49Henderson County1,140-1%
50Harrison County1,133+0.3%
51Bastrop County1,123+4.5%
52Hood County1,120-0.2%
53Nacogdoches County1,101-1.8%
54Orange County1,074-1.7%
55Lamar County1,052+1.8%
56Gillespie County913+2.2%
57Walker County900+2.2%
58Liberty County894+0.3%
59Erath County881+1.7%
60Wharton County8630%
61San Patricio County842-0.4%
62Navarro County811-2.4%
63Cooke County809+0.9%
64Van Zandt County783-1.1%
65Brown County776+0.4%
66Washington County767-2.2%
67Anderson County764-3.2%
68Waller County758+3.7%
69Rusk County721-3.4%
69Wood County721+0.3%
71Atascosa County717+3.3%
72Jim Wells County683-3.9%
73Val Verde County680+0.9%
74Maverick County679-1.9%
75Coryell County678+0.3%
76Hardin County672-0.4%
77Fayette County666+0.3%
78Hopkins County662+1.2%
79Cherokee County659-4.2%
79Polk County659-0.8%
81Matagorda County635+2.9%
82Howard County634-1.1%
83Medina County628+1.8%
84Wilson County593-0.2%
85Hale County572-3.1%
86Austin County567+2.7%
87Caldwell County5520%
88Titus County551-1.6%
89Hill County548+0.2%
90Palo Pinto County547-2.7%
91Uvalde County539-1.6%
92Young County517-1.1%
93Chambers County511+4.9%
93Jasper County511-2.3%
95Colorado County503-0.4%
96Gray County494-3.7%
97Kleberg County484-3.2%
98Aransas County477+1.5%
99Starr County453+0.9%
100Upshur County439-0.9%
101Bee County4310%
102Hockley County426-0.9%
103Fannin County425+1%
104Panola County423-2.3%
104Shelby County423-0.7%
106Cass County421+1.4%
107Lavaca County417-2.6%
108Grimes County391+2.4%
109Gaines County390+4.6%
110Llano County387+2.1%
111Hutchinson County386-5.6%
112Montague County385-1.5%
113Moore County384-1.8%
114DeWitt County378-4.1%
115Lee County375-1.1%
116Eastland County374+3.6%
117Calhoun County371-2.4%
118Gonzales County370-1.9%
119Scurry County364-2.2%
120Deaf Smith County355-0.3%
121Bandera County354+5.4%
122Milam County349-0.3%
123Andrews County342-2.3%
124Lampasas County332+2.2%
125Limestone County326+1.6%
126Nolan County317-4.2%
127Houston County315-0.3%
128Ochiltree County3120%
129Freestone County303+2.4%
130Jackson County296+4.6%
131Leon County295+2.4%
132Karnes County289-1.4%
133Burleson County288-4.3%
134Blanco County286+5.5%
135Frio County285-3.7%
136Wilbarger County271-0.4%
137Pecos County268-4.6%
138Brewster County261-0.8%
139Ward County256-0.4%
140Bosque County252+0.4%
141Reeves County250+5.5%
142Live Oak County247-5.4%
143Dawson County240-4.8%
144Madison County238+3.5%
145Stephens County2290%
146Tyler County228-0.4%
147Robertson County227-2.6%
148Jones County226-4.6%
149Comanche County211-4.1%
150Falls County209-3.2%
151Terry County207-0.5%
152Jack County206+4%
153Dimmit County202-2.9%
154Lamb County201+0.5%
155Somervell County197+7.1%
156McCulloch County193+3.8%
156Morris County193-4.5%
158Camp County191+2.1%
158Coleman County191+0.5%
160San Jacinto County190+2.2%
161Hamilton County188+5%
162Runnels County187-2.1%
163Archer County184+3.4%
164Dallam County183+0.5%
165Callahan County181-0.5%
166Parmer County172+1.2%
167Willacy County164-1.2%
168Marion County1610%
169Red River County155+8.4%
170Wheeler County153-5.6%
170Yoakum County153-1.9%
172Rains County152+2.7%
173Castro County151+0.7%
174Childress County1490%
175Newton County148-3.3%
176Trinity County147+4.3%
177Winkler County146-1.4%
178Franklin County144+2.1%
178Goliad County144-0.7%
180San Saba County1430%
181Sabine County139+2.2%
182Clay County135+0.7%
183Bailey County1330%
184Refugio County132-7.7%
185La Salle County131-5.8%
186Floyd County130-8.5%
186Hemphill County130-6.5%
186Mason County130+0.8%
189Haskell County129+3.2%
190Hansford County127-0.8%
191Garza County126-1.6%
192Shackelford County125+1.6%
192Zapata County125-8.1%
194Duval County123-6.1%
195Swisher County121-6.2%
196Kimble County118-3.3%
196Mitchell County118+2.6%
198Reagan County117-10%
199Carson County116+5.5%
200San Augustine County115-1.7%
201Presidio County110+4.8%
201Sutton County110-2.7%
203Crockett County1090%
203Martin County109-5.2%
205Hartley County108-3.6%
206Mills County102-1%
207Brooks County96-5.9%
208Zavala County930%
209Baylor County91-6.2%
210Lynn County89-1.1%
211Crosby County79+5.3%
212Knox County77+2.7%
213Real County760%
214Crane County75-8.5%
215Jim Hogg County74-1.3%
215Lipscomb County74-3.9%
217Donley County70-4.1%
217Hardeman County70-1.4%
219Upton County65-11%
220Fisher County63-3.1%
220Hall County630%
222Collingsworth County62+1.6%
223Sherman County61-1.6%
224Jeff Davis County57+1.8%
225Delta County53+1.9%
226Coke County52-3.7%
227Culberson County50+4.2%
228Irion County49-9.3%
228Throckmorton County49+4.3%
230Schleicher County46-4.2%
231Sterling County45-4.3%
232Stonewall County44-4.3%
233Concho County43-6.5%
234Armstrong County41+10.8%
234Oldham County41-6.8%
236Menard County400%
237Cochran County39-9.3%
237Edwards County39+2.6%
239Dickens County37-5.1%
239McMullen County37+2.8%
241Kinney County32+3.2%
242Briscoe County30-3.2%
242Hudspeth County30-3.2%
244Cottle County28+7.7%
245Glasscock County24-4%
246Foard County230%
247Motley County20-16.7%
248Terrell County19+5.6%
249Roberts County18-5.3%
250Kent County14-12.5%

Showing the top 250 of 253. The Excel download has every row.

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. 1 counties with data in other periods have no value for 2017 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: 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 Texas by employer firms, 2017) [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 Texas by employer firms, 2017. 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/texas-counties?period=2017. 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 Texas by employer firms, 2017. 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/texas-counties?period=2017.

Harvard

U.S. Census Bureau (2025) Business Dynamics Statistics: employer firms, all covered industries, nation, states and counties, Counties in Texas by employer firms, 2017 [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/texas-counties?period=2017 (Accessed: 11 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{census_counties_in_texas_by_2017,
  author = {{U.S. Census Bureau}},
  title = {{Business Dynamics Statistics: employer firms, all covered industries, nation, states and counties: Counties in Texas by employer firms, 2017}},
  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/texas-counties?period=2017. 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 Texas by employer firms, 2017
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/texas-counties?period=2017
Y2  - 2026/10/11
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/employer-firms/texas-counties?period=2017.
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?

Harris County, with 71,111 in 2017, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

Which county has the lowest employer firms?

Loving County, with 3 in 2017.

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. 1 counties have no value for 2017 and are not ranked.

Employer firms: other rankings

Counties in Texas: more rankings