Data / Rankings / Job creation rate / Counties in Illinois

Counties in Illinois by job creation rate

Cumberland County had the highest job creation rate of 102 counties in 2017, at 26.64%. Brown County had the lowest, at 3.47%. The median was 11.168% and the figure for Illinois was 12.241%. Source: the U.S. Census Bureau.

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Highest26.64Cumberland County
Lowest3.47Brown County
Median11.168102 counties
Illinois12.241History

Map of counties, 2017

Adams County: 10.902 %Alexander County: 6.03 %Bond County: 8.162 %Boone County: 11.609 %Brown County: 3.47 %Bureau County: 9.549 %Calhoun County: 10.144 %Carroll County: 9.002 %Cass County: 3.848 %Champaign County: 11.191 %Christian County: 10.305 %Clark County: 8.467 %Clay County: 15.585 %Clinton County: 11.146 %Coles County: 14.057 %Cook County: 12.131 %Crawford County: 10.923 %Cumberland County: 26.64 %DeKalb County: 9.724 %De Witt County: 10.118 %Douglas County: 10.356 %DuPage County: 12.31 %Edgar County: 11.358 %Edwards County: 5.346 %Effingham County: 10.112 %Fayette County: 14.507 %Ford County: 14.487 %Franklin County: 15.561 %Fulton County: 11.219 %Gallatin County: 21.03 %Greene County: 8.856 %Grundy County: 10.61 %Hamilton County: 17.306 %Hancock County: 14.495 %Hardin County: 3.993 %Henderson County: 17.275 %Henry County: 10.866 %Iroquois County: 8.5 %Jackson County: 16.377 %Jasper County: 17.27 %Jefferson County: 8.209 %Jersey County: 9.274 %Jo Daviess County: 9.739 %Johnson County: 11.227 %Kane County: 11.834 %Kankakee County: 13.04 %Kendall County: 13.724 %Knox County: 9.763 %Lake County: 10.907 %LaSalle County: 10.448 %Lawrence County: 13.864 %Lee County: 9.522 %Livingston County: 11.569 %Logan County: 13.06 %McDonough County: 10.376 %McHenry County: 12.217 %McLean County: 9.195 %Macon County: 9.68 %Macoupin County: 13.653 %Madison County: 14.747 %Marion County: 9.224 %Marshall County: 10.229 %Mason County: 11.657 %Massac County: 11.882 %Menard County: 17.227 %Mercer County: 10.744 %Monroe County: 10.192 %Montgomery County: 11.736 %Morgan County: 10.729 %Moultrie County: 11.643 %Ogle County: 14.195 %Peoria County: 9.291 %Perry County: 13.767 %Piatt County: 13.063 %Pike County: 10.508 %Pope County: 15.048 %Pulaski County: 12.195 %Putnam County: 7.243 %Randolph County: 10.045 %Richland County: 9.717 %Rock Island County: 9.616 %St. Clair County: 12.612 %Saline County: 14.708 %Sangamon County: 9.163 %Schuyler County: 11.15 %Scott County: 5.783 %Shelby County: 11.681 %Stark County: 14.716 %Stephenson County: 14.147 %Tazewell County: 12.083 %Union County: 11.596 %Vermilion County: 9.433 %Wabash County: 13.152 %Warren County: 7.873 %Washington County: 6.847 %Wayne County: 10.256 %White County: 15.015 %Whiteside County: 8.719 %Will County: 15.908 %Williamson County: 12.285 %Winnebago County: 11.185 %Woodford County: 11.871 %
  • Under 9.2
  • 9.2 to 10
  • 10 to 11
  • 11 to 12
  • 12 to 14
  • 14 and over
%, 2017. 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, 2017

Cumberland County: 26.64 %Cumberland County26.64Gallatin County: 21.03 %Gallatin County21.03Hamilton County: 17.306 %Hamilton County17.306Henderson County: 17.275 %Henderson County17.275Jasper County: 17.27 %Jasper County17.27Menard County: 17.227 %Menard County17.227Jackson County: 16.377 %Jackson County16.377Will County: 15.908 %Will County15.908Clay County: 15.585 %Clay County15.585Franklin County: 15.561 %Franklin County15.561Pope County: 15.048 %Pope County15.048White County: 15.015 %White County15.015Madison County: 14.747 %Madison County14.747Stark County: 14.716 %Stark County14.716Saline County: 14.708 %Saline County14.708Fayette County: 14.507 %Fayette County14.507Hancock County: 14.495 %Hancock County14.495Ford County: 14.487 %Ford County14.487Ogle County: 14.195 %Ogle County14.195Stephenson County: 14.147 %Stephenson County14.147Coles County: 14.057 %Coles County14.057Lawrence County: 13.864 %Lawrence County13.864Perry County: 13.767 %Perry County13.767Kendall County: 13.724 %Kendall County13.724Macoupin County: 13.653 %Macoupin County13.653Wabash County: 13.152 %Wabash County13.152Piatt County: 13.063 %Piatt County13.063Logan County: 13.06 %Logan County13.06Kankakee County: 13.04 %Kankakee County13.04St. Clair County: 12.612 %St. Clair County12.612DuPage County: 12.31 %DuPage County12.31Williamson County: 12.285 %Williamson County12.285McHenry County: 12.217 %McHenry County12.217Pulaski County: 12.195 %Pulaski County12.195Cook County: 12.131 %Cook County12.131Tazewell County: 12.083 %Tazewell County12.083Massac County: 11.882 %Massac County11.882Woodford County: 11.871 %Woodford County11.871Kane County: 11.834 %Kane County11.834Montgomery County: 11.736 %Montgomery County11.736Cumberland County: 26.64 %Cumberland County26.64Gallatin County: 21.03 %Gallatin County21.03Hamilton County: 17.306 %Hamilton County17.306Henderson County: 17.275 %Henderson County17.275Jasper County: 17.27 %Jasper County17.27Menard County: 17.227 %Menard County17.227Jackson County: 16.377 %Jackson County16.377Will County: 15.908 %Will County15.908Clay County: 15.585 %Clay County15.585Franklin County: 15.561 %Franklin County15.561Pope County: 15.048 %Pope County15.048White County: 15.015 %White County15.015Madison County: 14.747 %Madison County14.747Stark County: 14.716 %Stark County14.716Saline County: 14.708 %Saline County14.708Fayette County: 14.507 %Fayette County14.507Hancock County: 14.495 %Hancock County14.495Ford County: 14.487 %Ford County14.487Ogle County: 14.195 %Ogle County14.195Stephenson County: 14.147 %Stephenson County14.147Coles County: 14.057 %Coles County14.057Lawrence County: 13.864 %Lawrence County13.864Perry County: 13.767 %Perry County13.767Kendall County: 13.724 %Kendall County13.724Macoupin County: 13.653 %Macoupin County13.653Wabash County: 13.152 %Wabash County13.152Piatt County: 13.063 %Piatt County13.063Logan County: 13.06 %Logan County13.06Kankakee County: 13.04 %Kankakee County13.04St. Clair County: 12.612 %St. Clair County12.612DuPage County: 12.31 %DuPage County12.31Williamson County: 12.285 %Williamson County12.285McHenry County: 12.217 %McHenry County12.217Pulaski County: 12.195 %Pulaski County12.195Cook County: 12.131 %Cook County12.131Tazewell County: 12.083 %Tazewell County12.083Massac County: 11.882 %Massac County11.882Woodford County: 11.871 %Woodford County11.871Kane County: 11.834 %Kane County11.834Montgomery County: 11.736 %Montgomery County11.736
%. 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

RankCounties2017 (%)Change on 2016
1Cumberland County26.64+18.17 pts
2Gallatin County21.03+1.77 pts
3Hamilton County17.306-3.26 pts
4Henderson County17.275+7.82 pts
5Jasper County17.27+8.43 pts
6Menard County17.227+0.69 pts
7Jackson County16.377+2.52 pts
8Will County15.908+2.35 pts
9Clay County15.585+8.12 pts
10Franklin County15.561+3.75 pts
11Pope County15.048-14.16 pts
12White County15.015+3.62 pts
13Madison County14.747+3.4 pts
14Stark County14.716-1.46 pts
15Saline County14.708+6.11 pts
16Fayette County14.507+4.4 pts
17Hancock County14.495+5.42 pts
18Ford County14.487+6.18 pts
19Ogle County14.195+2.86 pts
20Stephenson County14.147+4.71 pts
21Coles County14.057-1.6 pts
22Lawrence County13.864+5.69 pts
23Perry County13.767+7.09 pts
24Kendall County13.724-0.15 pts
25Macoupin County13.653+5.1 pts
26Wabash County13.152+4.52 pts
27Piatt County13.063+3.38 pts
28Logan County13.06+4.4 pts
29Kankakee County13.04+3.99 pts
30St. Clair County12.612+2.07 pts
31DuPage County12.31-0.05 pts
32Williamson County12.285+0.6 pts
33McHenry County12.217-0.43 pts
34Pulaski County12.195+3.41 pts
35Cook County12.131-0.56 pts
36Tazewell County12.083+2.15 pts
37Massac County11.882+4.73 pts
38Woodford County11.871+1.8 pts
39Kane County11.834-0.49 pts
40Montgomery County11.736-0.17 pts
41Shelby County11.681+2.33 pts
42Mason County11.657+1.71 pts
43Moultrie County11.643+4.65 pts
44Boone County11.609+5.03 pts
45Union County11.596+1.54 pts
46Livingston County11.569+3.68 pts
47Edgar County11.358-5.64 pts
48Johnson County11.227+1.46 pts
49Fulton County11.219+0.4 pts
50Champaign County11.191+0.94 pts
51Winnebago County11.185+1.44 pts
52Schuyler County11.15-4.57 pts
53Clinton County11.146+2.47 pts
54Crawford County10.923-7.8 pts
55Lake County10.907-0.17 pts
56Adams County10.902+2.97 pts
57Henry County10.866+1.54 pts
58Mercer County10.744-0.66 pts
59Morgan County10.729+1.09 pts
60Grundy County10.61-1.58 pts
61Pike County10.508+0.11 pts
62LaSalle County10.448+1.87 pts
63McDonough County10.376+1.59 pts
64Douglas County10.356+0.51 pts
65Christian County10.305+2.76 pts
66Wayne County10.256-2.65 pts
67Marshall County10.229-1.1 pts
68Monroe County10.192-0.15 pts
69Calhoun County10.144+0.36 pts
70De Witt County10.118+1.88 pts
71Effingham County10.112-0.48 pts
72Randolph County10.045+1.76 pts
73Knox County9.763+0.06 pts
74Jo Daviess County9.739-1.92 pts
75DeKalb County9.724-2.21 pts
76Richland County9.717-1.09 pts
77Macon County9.68+1.7 pts
78Rock Island County9.616+0.86 pts
79Bureau County9.549-2.87 pts
80Lee County9.522-0.72 pts
81Vermilion County9.433+2.19 pts
82Peoria County9.291-2.97 pts
83Jersey County9.274-0.81 pts
84Marion County9.224-0.94 pts
85McLean County9.195-0.18 pts
86Sangamon County9.163-0.72 pts
87Carroll County9.002-1.5 pts
88Greene County8.856-1.46 pts
89Whiteside County8.719-0.4 pts
90Iroquois County8.5-2.65 pts
91Clark County8.467-0.36 pts
92Jefferson County8.209+2.18 pts
93Bond County8.162+0.91 pts
94Warren County7.873-4.35 pts
95Putnam County7.243-6.21 pts
96Washington County6.847-12.06 pts
97Alexander County6.03-7.69 pts
98Scott County5.783-1.65 pts
99Edwards County5.346-1.27 pts
100Hardin County3.993-6.83 pts
101Cass County3.848-3.12 pts
102Brown County3.47-4.85 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, 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: job creation rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010, Counties in Illinois by job creation 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/job-creation-rate/illinois-counties?period=2017. 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, 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/job-creation-rate/illinois-counties?period=2017.

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, 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/job-creation-rate/illinois-counties?period=2017 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{census_counties_in_illinois_by_2017,
  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, 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/job-creation-rate/illinois-counties?period=2017. 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, 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/job-creation-rate/illinois-counties?period=2017
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/job-creation-rate/illinois-counties?period=2017.
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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Questions

Which county has the highest job creation rate?

Cumberland County, with 26.64% in 2017, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

Which county has the lowest job creation rate?

Brown County, with 3.47% 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: 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