Data / Rankings / Establishment entry rate / Counties in Tennessee

Counties in Tennessee by establishment entry rate

Clay County had the highest establishment entry rate of 94 counties in 2016, at 15.301%. Lake County had the lowest, at 3.774%. The median was 8.203% and the figure for Tennessee was 9.131%. Source: the U.S. Census Bureau.

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Highest15.301Clay County
Lowest3.774Lake County
Median8.20394 counties
Tennessee9.131History

Map of counties, 2016

Anderson County: 7.097 %Bedford County: 6.64 %Benton County: 7.33 %Bledsoe County: 7.442 %Blount County: 8.132 %Bradley County: 7.151 %Campbell County: 6.637 %Cannon County: 12.463 %Carroll County: 9.418 %Carter County: 7.559 %Cheatham County: 14.545 %Chester County: 5.923 %Claiborne County: 10.526 %Clay County: 15.301 %Cocke County: 8.559 %Coffee County: 8.5 %Crockett County: 6.763 %Cumberland County: 9.174 %Davidson County: 10.451 %Decatur County: 11.65 %DeKalb County: 14.365 %Dickson County: 8.879 %Dyer County: 6.566 %Fayette County: 8.471 %Fentress County: 6.823 %Franklin County: 9.125 %Gibson County: 7.898 %Giles County: 7.018 %Grainger County: 7.519 %Greene County: 6.343 %Grundy County: 9.449 %Hamblen County: 8.043 %Hamilton County: 9.327 %Hancock County: 8.421 %Hardeman County: 4.275 %Hardin County: 6.806 %Hawkins County: 7.759 %Haywood County: 5.753 %Henderson County: 8.168 %Henry County: 5.81 %Hickman County: 8.13 %Houston County: 7.96 %Humphreys County: 5.556 %Jackson County: 9.091 %Jefferson County: 9.091 %Johnson County: 4.091 %Knox County: 9.313 %Lake County: 3.774 %Lauderdale County: 6.826 %Lawrence County: 8.049 %Lewis County: 8.74 %Lincoln County: 9.462 %Loudon County: 10.309 %McMinn County: 8.469 %McNairy County: 5.447 %Macon County: 10.455 %Madison County: 7.031 %Marion County: 5.807 %Marshall County: 7.547 %Maury County: 9.627 %Meigs County: 7.368 %Monroe County: 6.973 %Montgomery County: 8.735 %Moore County: 13.008 %Morgan County: 11.189 %Obion County: 6.839 %Overton County: 13.565 %Perry County: 10.959 %Pickett County: 13.158 %Polk County: 8.021 %Putnam County: 9.02 %Rhea County: 6.631 %Roane County: 8.151 %Robertson County: 9.432 %Rutherford County: 10.196 %Scott County: 8.237 %Sequatchie County: 6.358 %Sevier County: 9.87 %Shelby County: 8.115 %Smith County: 9.407 %Stewart County: 7.719 %Sullivan County: 8.021 %Sumner County: 10.723 %Tipton County: 8.371 %Trousdale County: 9.692 %Unicoi County: 9.091 %Union County: 10.256 %Warren County: 7.988 %Washington County: 7.685 %Wayne County: 9.524 %Weakley County: 6.792 %White County: 13.169 %Williamson County: 12.447 %Wilson County: 10.618 %
  • Under 6.8
  • 6.8 to 7.6
  • 7.6 to 8.2
  • 8.2 to 9.2
  • 9.2 to 10
  • 10 and over
  • No data
%, 2016. Hatched areas have no value for this period. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Business Dynamics Statistics: establishment entry rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010. Boundaries: U.S. Census Bureau cartographic boundary files.

Top 40 counties, 2016

Clay County: 15.301 %Clay County15.301Cheatham County: 14.545 %Cheatham County14.545DeKalb County: 14.365 %DeKalb County14.365Overton County: 13.565 %Overton County13.565White County: 13.169 %White County13.169Pickett County: 13.158 %Pickett County13.158Moore County: 13.008 %Moore County13.008Cannon County: 12.463 %Cannon County12.463Williamson County: 12.447 %Williamson County12.447Decatur County: 11.65 %Decatur County11.65Morgan County: 11.189 %Morgan County11.189Perry County: 10.959 %Perry County10.959Sumner County: 10.723 %Sumner County10.723Wilson County: 10.618 %Wilson County10.618Claiborne County: 10.526 %Claiborne County10.526Macon County: 10.455 %Macon County10.455Davidson County: 10.451 %Davidson County10.451Loudon County: 10.309 %Loudon County10.309Union County: 10.256 %Union County10.256Rutherford County: 10.196 %Rutherford County10.196Sevier County: 9.87 %Sevier County9.87Trousdale County: 9.692 %Trousdale County9.692Maury County: 9.627 %Maury County9.627Wayne County: 9.524 %Wayne County9.524Lincoln County: 9.462 %Lincoln County9.462Grundy County: 9.449 %Grundy County9.449Robertson County: 9.432 %Robertson County9.432Carroll County: 9.418 %Carroll County9.418Smith County: 9.407 %Smith County9.407Hamilton County: 9.327 %Hamilton County9.327Knox County: 9.313 %Knox County9.313Cumberland County: 9.174 %Cumberland County9.174Franklin County: 9.125 %Franklin County9.125Jackson County: 9.091 %Jackson County9.091Jefferson County: 9.091 %Jefferson County9.091Unicoi County: 9.091 %Unicoi County9.091Putnam County: 9.02 %Putnam County9.02Dickson County: 8.879 %Dickson County8.879Lewis County: 8.74 %Lewis County8.74Montgomery County: 8.735 %Montgomery County8.735Clay County: 15.301 %Clay County15.301Cheatham County: 14.545 %Cheatham County14.545DeKalb County: 14.365 %DeKalb County14.365Overton County: 13.565 %Overton County13.565White County: 13.169 %White County13.169Pickett County: 13.158 %Pickett County13.158Moore County: 13.008 %Moore County13.008Cannon County: 12.463 %Cannon County12.463Williamson County: 12.447 %Williamson County12.447Decatur County: 11.65 %Decatur County11.65Morgan County: 11.189 %Morgan County11.189Perry County: 10.959 %Perry County10.959Sumner County: 10.723 %Sumner County10.723Wilson County: 10.618 %Wilson County10.618Claiborne County: 10.526 %Claiborne County10.526Macon County: 10.455 %Macon County10.455Davidson County: 10.451 %Davidson County10.451Loudon County: 10.309 %Loudon County10.309Union County: 10.256 %Union County10.256Rutherford County: 10.196 %Rutherford County10.196Sevier County: 9.87 %Sevier County9.87Trousdale County: 9.692 %Trousdale County9.692Maury County: 9.627 %Maury County9.627Wayne County: 9.524 %Wayne County9.524Lincoln County: 9.462 %Lincoln County9.462Grundy County: 9.449 %Grundy County9.449Robertson County: 9.432 %Robertson County9.432Carroll County: 9.418 %Carroll County9.418Smith County: 9.407 %Smith County9.407Hamilton County: 9.327 %Hamilton County9.327Knox County: 9.313 %Knox County9.313Cumberland County: 9.174 %Cumberland County9.174Franklin County: 9.125 %Franklin County9.125Jackson County: 9.091 %Jackson County9.091Jefferson County: 9.091 %Jefferson County9.091Unicoi County: 9.091 %Unicoi County9.091Putnam County: 9.02 %Putnam County9.02Dickson County: 8.879 %Dickson County8.879Lewis County: 8.74 %Lewis County8.74Montgomery County: 8.735 %Montgomery County8.735
%. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Business Dynamics Statistics: establishment entry rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Full ranking

RankCounties2016 (%)Change on 2015
1Clay County15.301+7.35 pts
2Cheatham County14.545+3.04 pts
3DeKalb County14.365+6.96 pts
4Overton County13.565+4.93 pts
5White County13.169+2.6 pts
6Pickett County13.158+6.58 pts
7Moore County13.008+4.39 pts
8Cannon County12.463+1.74 pts
9Williamson County12.447+0.15 pts
10Decatur County11.65+3.75 pts
11Morgan County11.189+5.55 pts
12Perry County10.959+5.58 pts
13Sumner County10.723-0.3 pts
14Wilson County10.618-0.79 pts
15Claiborne County10.526+2.33 pts
16Macon County10.455+3.02 pts
17Davidson County10.451-0.51 pts
18Loudon County10.309+1.23 pts
19Union County10.256-1.92 pts
20Rutherford County10.196-0.59 pts
21Sevier County9.87-0.74 pts
22Trousdale County9.692-0.22 pts
23Maury County9.627+0.38 pts
24Wayne County9.524-1.68 pts
25Lincoln County9.462+1.85 pts
26Grundy County9.449+1.76 pts
27Robertson County9.432-0.9 pts
28Carroll County9.418+2.44 pts
29Smith County9.407-0.59 pts
30Hamilton County9.327+0.6 pts
31Knox County9.313+0.02 pts
32Cumberland County9.174+1.81 pts
33Franklin County9.125+1.65 pts
34Jackson County9.091-3.68 pts
34Jefferson County9.091-0.5 pts
34Unicoi County9.091+2.42 pts
37Putnam County9.02+0.16 pts
38Dickson County8.879+0.65 pts
39Lewis County8.74-2.81 pts
40Montgomery County8.735-1.92 pts
41Cocke County8.559+2.97 pts
42Coffee County8.5+2.48 pts
43Fayette County8.471-0.69 pts
44McMinn County8.469+1.84 pts
45Hancock County8.421-0.09 pts
46Tipton County8.371-1.47 pts
47Scott County8.237+0.24 pts
48Henderson County8.168+1.35 pts
49Roane County8.151+1.67 pts
50Blount County8.132+0.16 pts
51Hickman County8.13+0.71 pts
52Shelby County8.115-0.26 pts
53Lawrence County8.049+0.39 pts
54Hamblen County8.043-0.07 pts
55Polk County8.021-1.66 pts
55Sullivan County8.021+1.03 pts
57Warren County7.988+1.57 pts
58Houston County7.96-0.91 pts
59Gibson County7.898+0.46 pts
60Hawkins County7.759-0.63 pts
61Stewart County7.719-3.11 pts
62Washington County7.685-0.22 pts
63Carter County7.559+1.16 pts
64Marshall County7.547-2 pts
65Grainger County7.519+2.54 pts
66Bledsoe County7.442-1.65 pts
67Meigs County7.368-2.26 pts
68Benton County7.33+1.83 pts
69Bradley County7.151-0.48 pts
70Anderson County7.097-0.42 pts
71Madison County7.031+0.37 pts
72Giles County7.018+0.72 pts
73Monroe County6.973-2.13 pts
74Obion County6.839-0.54 pts
75Lauderdale County6.826+1.73 pts
76Fentress County6.823-1.99 pts
77Hardin County6.806-2.26 pts
78Weakley County6.792-1.23 pts
79Crockett County6.763-0.43 pts
80Bedford County6.64-1.96 pts
81Campbell County6.637-0.58 pts
82Rhea County6.631+0.28 pts
83Dyer County6.566-0.82 pts
84Sequatchie County6.358-2.84 pts
85Greene County6.343+0.18 pts
86Chester County5.923+0.04 pts
87Henry County5.81+0.98 pts
88Marion County5.807-2.88 pts
89Haywood County5.753-2.42 pts
90Humphreys County5.556-2.19 pts
91McNairy County5.447-4.13 pts
92Hardeman County4.275-3.5 pts
93Johnson County4.091-2.24 pts
94Lake County3.774-3.77 pts

Other periods

About this ranking

Establishments that opened during the year (employees in March of the year and none a year earlier), as a percentage of the average number of establishments in the two years. United States: Census Bureau Business Dynamics Statistics.

An establishment is a single physical location, so a new branch of an existing firm counts as an entry: this is not the rate of new firms. Not comparable with enterprise_birth_rate, which counts new enterprises in Europe. 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. 1 counties with data in other periods have no value for 2016 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: establishment entry rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/bds/tables/time-series/2023/bds2023_st_cty.csv. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

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: establishment entry rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010 (Counties in Tennessee by establishment entry rate, 2016) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/bds/tables/time-series/2023/bds2023_st_cty.csv

MLA 9

Business Dynamics Statistics: establishment entry rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010, Counties in Tennessee by establishment entry rate, 2016. 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/establishment-entry-rate/tennessee-counties?period=2016. Accessed 12 Oct. 2026.

Chicago (author-date)

U.S. Census Bureau. 2025. Business Dynamics Statistics: establishment entry rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010. Counties in Tennessee by establishment entry rate, 2016. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/bds/tables/time-series/2023/bds2023_st_cty.csv. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/establishment-entry-rate/tennessee-counties?period=2016.

Harvard

U.S. Census Bureau (2025) Business Dynamics Statistics: establishment entry rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010, Counties in Tennessee by establishment entry rate, 2016 [Dataset]. Available at: https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/bds/tables/time-series/2023/bds2023_st_cty.csv, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/establishment-entry-rate/tennessee-counties?period=2016 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{census_counties_in_tennessee_by_2016,
  author = {{U.S. Census Bureau}},
  title = {{Business Dynamics Statistics: establishment entry rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010: Counties in Tennessee by establishment entry rate, 2016}},
  year = {2025},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/bds/tables/time-series/2023/bds2023_st_cty.csv},
  urldate = {2026-10-12},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/establishment-entry-rate/tennessee-counties?period=2016. Publisher attribution: U.S. Census Bureau. Business Dynamics Statistics: establishment entry rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/bds/tables/time-series/2023/bds2023\_st\_cty.csv. Retrieved 2026-10-12.},
}
RIS
TY  - DATA
AU  - U.S. Census Bureau
TI  - Business Dynamics Statistics: establishment entry rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010: Counties in Tennessee by establishment entry rate, 2016
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/establishment-entry-rate/tennessee-counties?period=2016
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/establishment-entry-rate/tennessee-counties?period=2016.
N1  - Publisher attribution: U.S. Census Bureau. Business Dynamics Statistics: establishment entry rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/bds/tables/time-series/2023/bds2023_st_cty.csv. Retrieved 2026-10-12.
ER  -
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Questions

Which county has the highest establishment entry rate?

Clay County, with 15.301% in 2016, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

Which county has the lowest establishment entry rate?

Lake County, with 3.774% in 2016.

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: establishment entry rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010. Retrieved 2026-10-12. 1 counties have no value for 2016 and are not ranked.

Establishment entry rate: other rankings

Counties in Tennessee: more rankings