Data / Rankings / Job creation rate / Counties in Illinois

Counties in Illinois by job creation rate, 2023

Alexander County had the highest job creation rate of 102 counties in 2023, at 31.329%. Effingham County had the lowest, at 6.089%. The median was 12.161% and the figure for Illinois was 12.927%. Source: the U.S. Census Bureau.

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Highest31.329Alexander County
Lowest6.089Effingham County
Median12.161102 counties
Illinois12.927History

Map of counties, 2023

Adams County: 11.736 %Alexander County: 31.329 %Bond County: 15.433 %Boone County: 7.954 %Brown County: 7.143 %Bureau County: 8.241 %Calhoun County: 14.883 %Carroll County: 11.771 %Cass County: 6.765 %Champaign County: 14.101 %Christian County: 10.39 %Clark County: 12.919 %Clay County: 11.818 %Clinton County: 12.162 %Coles County: 16.093 %Cook County: 13.297 %Crawford County: 21.056 %Cumberland County: 9.589 %DeKalb County: 12.16 %De Witt County: 7.678 %Douglas County: 8.307 %DuPage County: 12.955 %Edgar County: 12.615 %Edwards County: 17.827 %Effingham County: 6.089 %Fayette County: 11.264 %Ford County: 12.021 %Franklin County: 12.612 %Fulton County: 12.913 %Gallatin County: 17.066 %Greene County: 7.527 %Grundy County: 10.718 %Hamilton County: 13.101 %Hancock County: 14.283 %Hardin County: 12.695 %Henderson County: 16.185 %Henry County: 7.672 %Iroquois County: 10.918 %Jackson County: 14.408 %Jasper County: 16.604 %Jefferson County: 9.762 %Jersey County: 8.782 %Jo Daviess County: 11.035 %Johnson County: 15.612 %Kane County: 14.443 %Kankakee County: 9.419 %Kendall County: 14.414 %Knox County: 10.694 %Lake County: 15.345 %LaSalle County: 12.473 %Lawrence County: 9.803 %Lee County: 10.848 %Livingston County: 11.3 %Logan County: 11.583 %McDonough County: 9.935 %McHenry County: 13.159 %McLean County: 11.295 %Macon County: 9.553 %Macoupin County: 14.32 %Madison County: 11.277 %Marion County: 13.867 %Marshall County: 12.981 %Mason County: 19.181 %Massac County: 8.693 %Menard County: 13.814 %Mercer County: 8.794 %Monroe County: 13.742 %Montgomery County: 12.614 %Morgan County: 11.033 %Moultrie County: 8.941 %Ogle County: 11.984 %Peoria County: 12.16 %Perry County: 15.344 %Piatt County: 13.703 %Pike County: 14.908 %Pope County: 6.608 %Pulaski County: 8.723 %Putnam County: 9.566 %Randolph County: 11.017 %Richland County: 15.354 %Rock Island County: 12.966 %St. Clair County: 12.462 %Saline County: 13.009 %Sangamon County: 12.82 %Schuyler County: 12.02 %Scott County: 9.061 %Shelby County: 11.373 %Stark County: 17.391 %Stephenson County: 14.287 %Tazewell County: 11.578 %Union County: 14.388 %Vermilion County: 10.941 %Wabash County: 7.606 %Warren County: 14.014 %Washington County: 14.522 %Wayne County: 12.514 %White County: 13.694 %Whiteside County: 11.175 %Will County: 13.45 %Williamson County: 13.922 %Winnebago County: 11.329 %Woodford County: 10.479 %
  • Under 9.4
  • 9.4 to 11
  • 11 to 12
  • 12 to 13
  • 13 to 14
  • 14 and over
%, 2023. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Business Dynamics Statistics: job creation rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010. Boundaries: U.S. Census Bureau cartographic boundary files.

Top 40 counties, 2023

Alexander County: 31.329 %Alexander County31.329Crawford County: 21.056 %Crawford County21.056Mason County: 19.181 %Mason County19.181Edwards County: 17.827 %Edwards County17.827Stark County: 17.391 %Stark County17.391Gallatin County: 17.066 %Gallatin County17.066Jasper County: 16.604 %Jasper County16.604Henderson County: 16.185 %Henderson County16.185Coles County: 16.093 %Coles County16.093Johnson County: 15.612 %Johnson County15.612Bond County: 15.433 %Bond County15.433Richland County: 15.354 %Richland County15.354Lake County: 15.345 %Lake County15.345Perry County: 15.344 %Perry County15.344Pike County: 14.908 %Pike County14.908Calhoun County: 14.883 %Calhoun County14.883Washington County: 14.522 %Washington County14.522Kane County: 14.443 %Kane County14.443Kendall County: 14.414 %Kendall County14.414Jackson County: 14.408 %Jackson County14.408Union County: 14.388 %Union County14.388Macoupin County: 14.32 %Macoupin County14.32Stephenson County: 14.287 %Stephenson County14.287Hancock County: 14.283 %Hancock County14.283Champaign County: 14.101 %Champaign County14.101Warren County: 14.014 %Warren County14.014Williamson County: 13.922 %Williamson County13.922Marion County: 13.867 %Marion County13.867Menard County: 13.814 %Menard County13.814Monroe County: 13.742 %Monroe County13.742Piatt County: 13.703 %Piatt County13.703White County: 13.694 %White County13.694Will County: 13.45 %Will County13.45Cook County: 13.297 %Cook County13.297McHenry County: 13.159 %McHenry County13.159Hamilton County: 13.101 %Hamilton County13.101Saline County: 13.009 %Saline County13.009Marshall County: 12.981 %Marshall County12.981Rock Island County: 12.966 %Rock Island County12.966DuPage County: 12.955 %DuPage County12.955Alexander County: 31.329 %Alexander County31.329Crawford County: 21.056 %Crawford County21.056Mason County: 19.181 %Mason County19.181Edwards County: 17.827 %Edwards County17.827Stark County: 17.391 %Stark County17.391Gallatin County: 17.066 %Gallatin County17.066Jasper County: 16.604 %Jasper County16.604Henderson County: 16.185 %Henderson County16.185Coles County: 16.093 %Coles County16.093Johnson County: 15.612 %Johnson County15.612Bond County: 15.433 %Bond County15.433Richland County: 15.354 %Richland County15.354Lake County: 15.345 %Lake County15.345Perry County: 15.344 %Perry County15.344Pike County: 14.908 %Pike County14.908Calhoun County: 14.883 %Calhoun County14.883Washington County: 14.522 %Washington County14.522Kane County: 14.443 %Kane County14.443Kendall County: 14.414 %Kendall County14.414Jackson County: 14.408 %Jackson County14.408Union County: 14.388 %Union County14.388Macoupin County: 14.32 %Macoupin County14.32Stephenson County: 14.287 %Stephenson County14.287Hancock County: 14.283 %Hancock County14.283Champaign County: 14.101 %Champaign County14.101Warren County: 14.014 %Warren County14.014Williamson County: 13.922 %Williamson County13.922Marion County: 13.867 %Marion County13.867Menard County: 13.814 %Menard County13.814Monroe County: 13.742 %Monroe County13.742Piatt County: 13.703 %Piatt County13.703White County: 13.694 %White County13.694Will County: 13.45 %Will County13.45Cook County: 13.297 %Cook County13.297McHenry County: 13.159 %McHenry County13.159Hamilton County: 13.101 %Hamilton County13.101Saline County: 13.009 %Saline County13.009Marshall County: 12.981 %Marshall County12.981Rock Island County: 12.966 %Rock Island County12.966DuPage County: 12.955 %DuPage County12.955
%. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Business Dynamics Statistics: job creation rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Full ranking

RankCounties2023 (%)Change on 2022
1Alexander County31.329+22.21 pts
2Crawford County21.056+6.57 pts
3Mason County19.181+5.52 pts
4Edwards County17.827+14.89 pts
5Stark County17.391+0.44 pts
6Gallatin County17.066+2.46 pts
7Jasper County16.604+3.42 pts
8Henderson County16.185-1.97 pts
9Coles County16.093+6.39 pts
10Johnson County15.612-5.35 pts
11Bond County15.433+5.12 pts
12Richland County15.354+4.71 pts
13Lake County15.345+1.69 pts
14Perry County15.344+3.24 pts
15Pike County14.908+0.03 pts
16Calhoun County14.883-1.57 pts
17Washington County14.522+6.98 pts
18Kane County14.443-1.59 pts
19Kendall County14.414+0.2 pts
20Jackson County14.408-3.84 pts
21Union County14.388-2.49 pts
22Macoupin County14.32+2.73 pts
23Stephenson County14.287+2.8 pts
24Hancock County14.283-1.64 pts
25Champaign County14.101-0.79 pts
26Warren County14.014+3.7 pts
27Williamson County13.922-5.45 pts
28Marion County13.867+1.61 pts
29Menard County13.814-3.72 pts
30Monroe County13.742-0.46 pts
31Piatt County13.703+3.11 pts
32White County13.694+1.72 pts
33Will County13.45-3.67 pts
34Cook County13.297-4.48 pts
35McHenry County13.159-3.09 pts
36Hamilton County13.101-1.68 pts
37Saline County13.009-1.05 pts
38Marshall County12.981-7.6 pts
39Rock Island County12.966-2.51 pts
40DuPage County12.955-1.98 pts
41Clark County12.919-0.02 pts
42Fulton County12.913-4.76 pts
43Sangamon County12.82-2.25 pts
44Hardin County12.695+2.99 pts
45Edgar County12.615+3.83 pts
46Montgomery County12.614-3.42 pts
47Franklin County12.612-2.07 pts
48Wayne County12.514-12.56 pts
49LaSalle County12.473+0.52 pts
50St. Clair County12.462-3.1 pts
51Clinton County12.162-3.51 pts
52DeKalb County12.16-2.28 pts
52Peoria County12.16-2.14 pts
54Ford County12.021+1.33 pts
55Schuyler County12.02+1.73 pts
56Ogle County11.984+0.95 pts
57Clay County11.818+3.65 pts
58Carroll County11.771-1.13 pts
59Adams County11.736-2.02 pts
60Logan County11.583+0.59 pts
61Tazewell County11.578-3.81 pts
62Shelby County11.373+0.9 pts
63Winnebago County11.329-2.87 pts
64Livingston County11.3+0.39 pts
65McLean County11.295-5.06 pts
66Madison County11.277-4.34 pts
67Fayette County11.264-3.12 pts
68Whiteside County11.175+0.73 pts
69Jo Daviess County11.035-9.44 pts
70Morgan County11.033-5.23 pts
71Randolph County11.017-1.59 pts
72Vermilion County10.941-0.44 pts
73Iroquois County10.918-2.23 pts
74Lee County10.848-2.26 pts
75Grundy County10.718-4.79 pts
76Knox County10.694-1.57 pts
77Woodford County10.479-0.44 pts
78Christian County10.39-2.38 pts
79McDonough County9.935-4.79 pts
80Lawrence County9.803+5.11 pts
81Jefferson County9.762-0.66 pts
82Cumberland County9.589-1.82 pts
83Putnam County9.566+1.63 pts
84Macon County9.553-7.03 pts
85Kankakee County9.419-1.75 pts
86Scott County9.061-6.52 pts
87Moultrie County8.941-0.81 pts
88Mercer County8.794-10.27 pts
89Jersey County8.782-2.8 pts
90Pulaski County8.723-7.5 pts
91Massac County8.693-1.84 pts
92Douglas County8.307-6.07 pts
93Bureau County8.241+0.2 pts
94Boone County7.954-2.96 pts
95De Witt County7.678-2.73 pts
96Henry County7.672-1.49 pts
97Wabash County7.606-14.18 pts
98Greene County7.527-8.44 pts
99Brown County7.143-3.43 pts
100Cass County6.765+0.68 pts
101Pope County6.608-8.31 pts
102Effingham County6.089-12.16 pts

Other periods

About this ranking

Jobs added at opening and expanding establishments during the year, as a percentage of average employment in the two years. United States: Census Bureau Business Dynamics Statistics.

A gross flow: jobs lost elsewhere are not subtracted, so the net change is this rate minus job_destruction_rate. Not the same as payroll job growth from the monthly employment surveys. 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: job creation 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: job creation rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010 (Counties in Illinois by job creation rate, 2023) [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: job creation rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010, Counties in Illinois by job creation rate, 2023. 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/job-creation-rate/illinois-counties. Accessed 12 Oct. 2026.

Chicago (author-date)

U.S. Census Bureau. 2025. Business Dynamics Statistics: job creation rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010. Counties in Illinois by job creation rate, 2023. 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/job-creation-rate/illinois-counties.

Harvard

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

BibTeX
@misc{census_counties_in_illinois_by_2023,
  author = {{U.S. Census Bureau}},
  title = {{Business Dynamics Statistics: job creation rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010: Counties in Illinois by job creation rate, 2023}},
  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/job-creation-rate/illinois-counties. Publisher attribution: U.S. Census Bureau. Business Dynamics Statistics: job creation 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: job creation rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010: Counties in Illinois by job creation rate, 2023
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/job-creation-rate/illinois-counties
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/job-creation-rate/illinois-counties.
N1  - Publisher attribution: U.S. Census Bureau. Business Dynamics Statistics: job creation 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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Rank Counties in Illinois by job creation rate using official data, and cite the source.
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Questions

Which county has the highest job creation rate?

Alexander County, with 31.329% in 2023, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

Which county has the lowest job creation rate?

Effingham County, with 6.089% in 2023.

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: job creation rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Job creation rate: other rankings

Counties in Illinois: more rankings