Data / Rankings / Establishment exit rate / Counties in North Carolina

Counties in North Carolina by establishment exit rate

Camden County had the highest establishment exit rate of 100 counties in 2017, at 11.429%. Hertford County had the lowest, at 3.413%. The median was 7.772% and the figure for North Carolina was 8.253%. Source: the U.S. Census Bureau.

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Highest11.429Camden County
Lowest3.413Hertford County
Median7.772100 counties
North Carolina8.253History

Map of counties, 2017

Alamance County: 7.808 %Alexander County: 5.32 %Alleghany County: 9.544 %Anson County: 6.267 %Ashe County: 7.937 %Avery County: 8.304 %Beaufort County: 7.905 %Bertie County: 7.599 %Bladen County: 6.405 %Brunswick County: 8.823 %Buncombe County: 8.685 %Burke County: 5.931 %Cabarrus County: 7.891 %Caldwell County: 6.051 %Camden County: 11.429 %Carteret County: 7.43 %Caswell County: 8.276 %Catawba County: 6.225 %Chatham County: 8.94 %Cherokee County: 8.553 %Chowan County: 6.607 %Clay County: 10.076 %Cleveland County: 6.039 %Columbus County: 8.378 %Craven County: 7.503 %Cumberland County: 7.981 %Currituck County: 7.958 %Dare County: 8.544 %Davidson County: 7.741 %Davie County: 7.637 %Duplin County: 7.545 %Durham County: 9.279 %Edgecombe County: 9.077 %Forsyth County: 7.983 %Franklin County: 7.48 %Gaston County: 7.503 %Gates County: 7.93 %Graham County: 3.472 %Granville County: 6.905 %Greene County: 6.276 %Guilford County: 8.295 %Halifax County: 6.148 %Harnett County: 8.171 %Haywood County: 8.829 %Henderson County: 6.496 %Hertford County: 3.413 %Hoke County: 9.547 %Hyde County: 6.667 %Iredell County: 8.674 %Jackson County: 7.94 %Johnston County: 7.276 %Jones County: 7.171 %Lee County: 8.276 %Lenoir County: 6.878 %Lincoln County: 7.841 %McDowell County: 5.852 %Macon County: 6.897 %Madison County: 9.045 %Martin County: 7.82 %Mecklenburg County: 9.674 %Mitchell County: 7.541 %Montgomery County: 7.025 %Moore County: 8.63 %Nash County: 7.803 %New Hanover County: 7.988 %Northampton County: 9.016 %Onslow County: 7.128 %Orange County: 9.954 %Pamlico County: 8.257 %Pasquotank County: 8.501 %Pender County: 7.603 %Perquimans County: 7.853 %Person County: 7.741 %Pitt County: 8.385 %Polk County: 8.772 %Randolph County: 6.319 %Richmond County: 7.256 %Robeson County: 7.506 %Rockingham County: 8.843 %Rowan County: 7.661 %Rutherford County: 8.419 %Sampson County: 7.44 %Scotland County: 6.584 %Stanly County: 6.716 %Stokes County: 6.908 %Surry County: 6.763 %Swain County: 10.891 %Transylvania County: 7.034 %Tyrrell County: 9.524 %Union County: 8.159 %Vance County: 5.946 %Wake County: 9.122 %Warren County: 8.271 %Washington County: 9.324 %Watauga County: 7.596 %Wayne County: 7.605 %Wilkes County: 6.292 %Wilson County: 6.929 %Yadkin County: 5.5 %Yancey County: 4.811 %
  • Under 6.5
  • 6.5 to 7.3
  • 7.3 to 7.8
  • 7.8 to 8.3
  • 8.3 to 8.8
  • 8.8 and over
%, 2017. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Business Dynamics Statistics: establishment exit rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010. Boundaries: U.S. Census Bureau cartographic boundary files.

Top 40 counties, 2017

Camden County: 11.429 %Camden County11.429Swain County: 10.891 %Swain County10.891Clay County: 10.076 %Clay County10.076Orange County: 9.954 %Orange County9.954Mecklenburg County: 9.674 %Mecklenburg County9.674Hoke County: 9.547 %Hoke County9.547Alleghany County: 9.544 %Alleghany County9.544Tyrrell County: 9.524 %Tyrrell County9.524Washington County: 9.324 %Washington County9.324Durham County: 9.279 %Durham County9.279Wake County: 9.122 %Wake County9.122Edgecombe County: 9.077 %Edgecombe County9.077Madison County: 9.045 %Madison County9.045Northampton County: 9.016 %Northampton County9.016Chatham County: 8.94 %Chatham County8.94Rockingham County: 8.843 %Rockingham County8.843Haywood County: 8.829 %Haywood County8.829Brunswick County: 8.823 %Brunswick County8.823Polk County: 8.772 %Polk County8.772Buncombe County: 8.685 %Buncombe County8.685Iredell County: 8.674 %Iredell County8.674Moore County: 8.63 %Moore County8.63Cherokee County: 8.553 %Cherokee County8.553Dare County: 8.544 %Dare County8.544Pasquotank County: 8.501 %Pasquotank County8.501Rutherford County: 8.419 %Rutherford County8.419Pitt County: 8.385 %Pitt County8.385Columbus County: 8.378 %Columbus County8.378Avery County: 8.304 %Avery County8.304Guilford County: 8.295 %Guilford County8.295Caswell County: 8.276 %Caswell County8.276Lee County: 8.276 %Lee County8.276Warren County: 8.271 %Warren County8.271Pamlico County: 8.257 %Pamlico County8.257Harnett County: 8.171 %Harnett County8.171Union County: 8.159 %Union County8.159New Hanover County: 7.988 %New Hanover County7.988Forsyth County: 7.983 %Forsyth County7.983Cumberland County: 7.981 %Cumberland County7.981Currituck County: 7.958 %Currituck County7.958Camden County: 11.429 %Camden County11.429Swain County: 10.891 %Swain County10.891Clay County: 10.076 %Clay County10.076Orange County: 9.954 %Orange County9.954Mecklenburg County: 9.674 %Mecklenburg County9.674Hoke County: 9.547 %Hoke County9.547Alleghany County: 9.544 %Alleghany County9.544Tyrrell County: 9.524 %Tyrrell County9.524Washington County: 9.324 %Washington County9.324Durham County: 9.279 %Durham County9.279Wake County: 9.122 %Wake County9.122Edgecombe County: 9.077 %Edgecombe County9.077Madison County: 9.045 %Madison County9.045Northampton County: 9.016 %Northampton County9.016Chatham County: 8.94 %Chatham County8.94Rockingham County: 8.843 %Rockingham County8.843Haywood County: 8.829 %Haywood County8.829Brunswick County: 8.823 %Brunswick County8.823Polk County: 8.772 %Polk County8.772Buncombe County: 8.685 %Buncombe County8.685Iredell County: 8.674 %Iredell County8.674Moore County: 8.63 %Moore County8.63Cherokee County: 8.553 %Cherokee County8.553Dare County: 8.544 %Dare County8.544Pasquotank County: 8.501 %Pasquotank County8.501Rutherford County: 8.419 %Rutherford County8.419Pitt County: 8.385 %Pitt County8.385Columbus County: 8.378 %Columbus County8.378Avery County: 8.304 %Avery County8.304Guilford County: 8.295 %Guilford County8.295Caswell County: 8.276 %Caswell County8.276Lee County: 8.276 %Lee County8.276Warren County: 8.271 %Warren County8.271Pamlico County: 8.257 %Pamlico County8.257Harnett County: 8.171 %Harnett County8.171Union County: 8.159 %Union County8.159New Hanover County: 7.988 %New Hanover County7.988Forsyth County: 7.983 %Forsyth County7.983Cumberland County: 7.981 %Cumberland County7.981Currituck County: 7.958 %Currituck County7.958
%. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Business Dynamics Statistics: establishment exit rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Full ranking

RankCounties2017 (%)Change on 2016
1Camden County11.429+1.58 pts
2Swain County10.891-2.67 pts
3Clay County10.076-0.35 pts
4Orange County9.954+1.63 pts
5Mecklenburg County9.674+1.22 pts
6Hoke County9.547+1.65 pts
7Alleghany County9.544+2.62 pts
8Tyrrell County9.524+5.44 pts
9Washington County9.324+0.75 pts
10Durham County9.279+0.88 pts
11Wake County9.122+0.88 pts
12Edgecombe County9.077+4.17 pts
13Madison County9.045+2.28 pts
14Northampton County9.016+0.25 pts
15Chatham County8.94+0.64 pts
16Rockingham County8.843+2.21 pts
17Haywood County8.829+0.39 pts
18Brunswick County8.823+0.9 pts
19Polk County8.772-0.25 pts
20Buncombe County8.685+0.68 pts
21Iredell County8.674+0.69 pts
22Moore County8.63+1.16 pts
23Cherokee County8.553+1.12 pts
24Dare County8.544+0.76 pts
25Pasquotank County8.501+0.25 pts
26Rutherford County8.419+1.7 pts
27Pitt County8.385+1.38 pts
28Columbus County8.378+0.38 pts
29Avery County8.304+1.46 pts
30Guilford County8.295+0.7 pts
31Caswell County8.276-1.45 pts
31Lee County8.276+0.44 pts
33Warren County8.271+0.05 pts
34Pamlico County8.257+1.78 pts
35Harnett County8.171+0.47 pts
36Union County8.159+0.24 pts
37New Hanover County7.988+0.38 pts
38Forsyth County7.983+0.97 pts
39Cumberland County7.981-0.65 pts
40Currituck County7.958-0.13 pts
41Jackson County7.94-1.23 pts
42Ashe County7.937+2.75 pts
43Gates County7.93-0.37 pts
44Beaufort County7.905+0.39 pts
45Cabarrus County7.891+0.22 pts
46Perquimans County7.853+1.44 pts
47Lincoln County7.841+0.36 pts
48Martin County7.82+0.7 pts
49Alamance County7.808+0.63 pts
50Nash County7.803+1.48 pts
51Davidson County7.741+0.94 pts
51Person County7.741+2.17 pts
53Rowan County7.661+0.93 pts
54Davie County7.637+1.48 pts
55Wayne County7.605+0.28 pts
56Pender County7.603-2.2 pts
57Bertie County7.599-0.9 pts
58Watauga County7.596-0.24 pts
59Duplin County7.545+0.6 pts
60Mitchell County7.541+0.24 pts
61Robeson County7.506+0.44 pts
62Craven County7.503-0.4 pts
62Gaston County7.503+0.98 pts
64Franklin County7.48+0.34 pts
65Sampson County7.44+0.43 pts
66Carteret County7.43-0.24 pts
67Johnston County7.276-1.06 pts
68Richmond County7.256+1.56 pts
69Jones County7.171+1.24 pts
70Onslow County7.128-1.29 pts
71Transylvania County7.034-0.62 pts
72Montgomery County7.025+2.21 pts
73Wilson County6.929+1.62 pts
74Stokes County6.908-2.37 pts
75Granville County6.905-0.22 pts
76Macon County6.897+0.03 pts
77Lenoir County6.878-0.39 pts
78Surry County6.763-1.09 pts
79Stanly County6.716+0.4 pts
80Hyde County6.667-0.08 pts
81Chowan County6.607+0.63 pts
82Scotland County6.584-0.88 pts
83Henderson County6.496-1.35 pts
84Bladen County6.405-1.35 pts
85Randolph County6.319-1.6 pts
86Wilkes County6.292-1.56 pts
87Greene County6.276+0.2 pts
88Anson County6.267-2.25 pts
89Catawba County6.225-0.27 pts
90Halifax County6.148-0.09 pts
91Caldwell County6.051+0.8 pts
92Cleveland County6.039-0.16 pts
93Vance County5.946-1.87 pts
94Burke County5.931-0.74 pts
95McDowell County5.852-0.96 pts
96Yadkin County5.5-2.08 pts
97Alexander County5.32-3.63 pts
98Yancey County4.811-1.29 pts
99Graham County3.472-10.1 pts
100Hertford County3.413-4.72 pts

Other periods

About this ranking

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

Counts closed locations, including branches of firms that keep operating elsewhere, so it is not a firm failure rate. Not comparable with enterprise_death_rate, which counts enterprise deaths 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. Equal values share a rank.

How to cite

U.S. Census Bureau. Business Dynamics Statistics: establishment exit 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 exit rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010 (Counties in North Carolina by establishment exit rate, 2017) [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 exit rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010, Counties in North Carolina by establishment exit rate, 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/establishment-exit-rate/north-carolina-counties?period=2017. Accessed 12 Oct. 2026.

Chicago (author-date)

U.S. Census Bureau. 2025. Business Dynamics Statistics: establishment exit rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010. Counties in North Carolina by establishment exit rate, 2017. 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-exit-rate/north-carolina-counties?period=2017.

Harvard

U.S. Census Bureau (2025) Business Dynamics Statistics: establishment exit rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010, Counties in North Carolina by establishment exit rate, 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/establishment-exit-rate/north-carolina-counties?period=2017 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{census_counties_in_north_carolina_2017,
  author = {{U.S. Census Bureau}},
  title = {{Business Dynamics Statistics: establishment exit rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010: Counties in North Carolina by establishment exit rate, 2017}},
  year = {2025},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/bds/tables/time-series/2023/bds2023_st_cty.csv},
  urldate = {2026-10-12},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/establishment-exit-rate/north-carolina-counties?period=2017. Publisher attribution: U.S. Census Bureau. Business Dynamics Statistics: establishment exit 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 exit rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010: Counties in North Carolina by establishment exit rate, 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/establishment-exit-rate/north-carolina-counties?period=2017
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/establishment-exit-rate/north-carolina-counties?period=2017.
N1  - Publisher attribution: U.S. Census Bureau. Business Dynamics Statistics: establishment exit 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 exit rate?

Camden County, with 11.429% in 2017, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

Which county has the lowest establishment exit rate?

Hertford County, with 3.413% 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: establishment exit rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Establishment exit rate: other rankings

Counties in North Carolina: more rankings