Data / Rankings / Job creation rate / Counties in Michigan

Counties in Michigan by job creation rate

Arenac County had the highest job creation rate of 83 counties in 2012, at 32.063%. Alpena County had the lowest, at 7.608%. The median was 12.385% and the figure for Michigan was 13.768%. Source: the U.S. Census Bureau.

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Highest32.063Arenac County
Lowest7.608Alpena County
Median12.38583 counties
Michigan13.768History

Map of counties, 2012

Alcona County: 10.083 %Alger County: 11.49 %Allegan County: 11.537 %Alpena County: 7.608 %Antrim County: 18.807 %Arenac County: 32.063 %Baraga County: 10.456 %Barry County: 9.574 %Bay County: 14.444 %Benzie County: 14.465 %Berrien County: 11.419 %Branch County: 10.169 %Calhoun County: 11.437 %Cass County: 13.061 %Charlevoix County: 12.104 %Cheboygan County: 14.384 %Chippewa County: 10.627 %Clare County: 11.085 %Clinton County: 16.689 %Crawford County: 9.713 %Delta County: 9.818 %Dickinson County: 9.805 %Eaton County: 10.491 %Emmet County: 11.607 %Genesee County: 13.295 %Gladwin County: 12.617 %Gogebic County: 10.562 %Grand Traverse County: 13.536 %Gratiot County: 8.566 %Hillsdale County: 12.934 %Houghton County: 11.42 %Huron County: 12.604 %Ingham County: 11.771 %Ionia County: 18.53 %Iosco County: 12.385 %Iron County: 12.856 %Isabella County: 15.331 %Jackson County: 12.79 %Kalamazoo County: 10.149 %Kalkaska County: 17.734 %Kent County: 15.124 %Keweenaw County: 11.146 %Lake County: 12.517 %Lapeer County: 14.546 %Leelanau County: 14.222 %Lenawee County: 11.817 %Livingston County: 13.159 %Luce County: 18.523 %Mackinac County: 15.062 %Macomb County: 13.869 %Manistee County: 9.717 %Marquette County: 8.485 %Mason County: 14.654 %Mecosta County: 22.611 %Menominee County: 11.236 %Midland County: 9.427 %Missaukee County: 13.422 %Monroe County: 12.017 %Montcalm County: 9.115 %Montmorency County: 8.487 %Muskegon County: 10.729 %Newaygo County: 14.741 %Oakland County: 15.32 %Oceana County: 13.349 %Ogemaw County: 9.408 %Ontonagon County: 11.229 %Osceola County: 12.823 %Oscoda County: 15.756 %Otsego County: 10.848 %Ottawa County: 14.164 %Presque Isle County: 13.462 %Roscommon County: 12.091 %Saginaw County: 12.431 %St. Clair County: 12.453 %St. Joseph County: 14.756 %Sanilac County: 11.41 %Schoolcraft County: 11.654 %Shiawassee County: 10.589 %Tuscola County: 13.48 %Van Buren County: 10.033 %Washtenaw County: 12.467 %Wayne County: 12.591 %Wexford County: 9.861 %
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%, 2012. 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, 2012

Arenac County: 32.063 %Arenac County32.063Mecosta County: 22.611 %Mecosta County22.611Antrim County: 18.807 %Antrim County18.807Ionia County: 18.53 %Ionia County18.53Luce County: 18.523 %Luce County18.523Kalkaska County: 17.734 %Kalkaska County17.734Clinton County: 16.689 %Clinton County16.689Oscoda County: 15.756 %Oscoda County15.756Isabella County: 15.331 %Isabella County15.331Oakland County: 15.32 %Oakland County15.32Kent County: 15.124 %Kent County15.124Mackinac County: 15.062 %Mackinac County15.062St. Joseph County: 14.756 %St. Joseph County14.756Newaygo County: 14.741 %Newaygo County14.741Mason County: 14.654 %Mason County14.654Lapeer County: 14.546 %Lapeer County14.546Benzie County: 14.465 %Benzie County14.465Bay County: 14.444 %Bay County14.444Cheboygan County: 14.384 %Cheboygan County14.384Leelanau County: 14.222 %Leelanau County14.222Ottawa County: 14.164 %Ottawa County14.164Macomb County: 13.869 %Macomb County13.869Grand Traverse County: 13.536 %Grand Traverse County13.536Tuscola County: 13.48 %Tuscola County13.48Presque Isle County: 13.462 %Presque Isle County13.462Missaukee County: 13.422 %Missaukee County13.422Oceana County: 13.349 %Oceana County13.349Genesee County: 13.295 %Genesee County13.295Livingston County: 13.159 %Livingston County13.159Cass County: 13.061 %Cass County13.061Hillsdale County: 12.934 %Hillsdale County12.934Iron County: 12.856 %Iron County12.856Osceola County: 12.823 %Osceola County12.823Jackson County: 12.79 %Jackson County12.79Gladwin County: 12.617 %Gladwin County12.617Huron County: 12.604 %Huron County12.604Wayne County: 12.591 %Wayne County12.591Lake County: 12.517 %Lake County12.517Washtenaw County: 12.467 %Washtenaw County12.467St. Clair County: 12.453 %St. Clair County12.453Arenac County: 32.063 %Arenac County32.063Mecosta County: 22.611 %Mecosta County22.611Antrim County: 18.807 %Antrim County18.807Ionia County: 18.53 %Ionia County18.53Luce County: 18.523 %Luce County18.523Kalkaska County: 17.734 %Kalkaska County17.734Clinton County: 16.689 %Clinton County16.689Oscoda County: 15.756 %Oscoda County15.756Isabella County: 15.331 %Isabella County15.331Oakland County: 15.32 %Oakland County15.32Kent County: 15.124 %Kent County15.124Mackinac County: 15.062 %Mackinac County15.062St. Joseph County: 14.756 %St. Joseph County14.756Newaygo County: 14.741 %Newaygo County14.741Mason County: 14.654 %Mason County14.654Lapeer County: 14.546 %Lapeer County14.546Benzie County: 14.465 %Benzie County14.465Bay County: 14.444 %Bay County14.444Cheboygan County: 14.384 %Cheboygan County14.384Leelanau County: 14.222 %Leelanau County14.222Ottawa County: 14.164 %Ottawa County14.164Macomb County: 13.869 %Macomb County13.869Grand Traverse County: 13.536 %Grand Traverse County13.536Tuscola County: 13.48 %Tuscola County13.48Presque Isle County: 13.462 %Presque Isle County13.462Missaukee County: 13.422 %Missaukee County13.422Oceana County: 13.349 %Oceana County13.349Genesee County: 13.295 %Genesee County13.295Livingston County: 13.159 %Livingston County13.159Cass County: 13.061 %Cass County13.061Hillsdale County: 12.934 %Hillsdale County12.934Iron County: 12.856 %Iron County12.856Osceola County: 12.823 %Osceola County12.823Jackson County: 12.79 %Jackson County12.79Gladwin County: 12.617 %Gladwin County12.617Huron County: 12.604 %Huron County12.604Wayne County: 12.591 %Wayne County12.591Lake County: 12.517 %Lake County12.517Washtenaw County: 12.467 %Washtenaw County12.467St. Clair County: 12.453 %St. Clair County12.453
%. 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

RankCounties2012 (%)Change on 2011
1Arenac County32.063+13.36 pts
2Mecosta County22.611+9.87 pts
3Antrim County18.807+4.77 pts
4Ionia County18.53+4.7 pts
5Luce County18.523+8.14 pts
6Kalkaska County17.734+5.29 pts
7Clinton County16.689+3.34 pts
8Oscoda County15.756+3.7 pts
9Isabella County15.331+3.88 pts
10Oakland County15.32-0.41 pts
11Kent County15.124+0.49 pts
12Mackinac County15.062-14.99 pts
13St. Joseph County14.756-2.09 pts
14Newaygo County14.741+3.14 pts
15Mason County14.654+0.1 pts
16Lapeer County14.546-3.17 pts
17Benzie County14.465-15.95 pts
18Bay County14.444+1.51 pts
19Cheboygan County14.384+3.99 pts
20Leelanau County14.222+0.44 pts
21Ottawa County14.164+0.7 pts
22Macomb County13.869-0.61 pts
23Grand Traverse County13.536+1.44 pts
24Tuscola County13.48-1.39 pts
25Presque Isle County13.462+0.9 pts
26Missaukee County13.422-0.77 pts
27Oceana County13.349-0.2 pts
28Genesee County13.295+0.85 pts
29Livingston County13.159-3.17 pts
30Cass County13.061+2.22 pts
31Hillsdale County12.934-0.99 pts
32Iron County12.856+2.44 pts
33Osceola County12.823-0.93 pts
34Jackson County12.79+1.79 pts
35Gladwin County12.617-1.37 pts
36Huron County12.604-0.23 pts
37Wayne County12.591-1.87 pts
38Lake County12.517-17.61 pts
39Washtenaw County12.467-0.15 pts
40St. Clair County12.453-0.79 pts
41Saginaw County12.431-1.24 pts
42Iosco County12.385-1.44 pts
43Charlevoix County12.104+1.82 pts
44Roscommon County12.091+1.32 pts
45Monroe County12.017-0.14 pts
46Lenawee County11.817-0.73 pts
47Ingham County11.771-0.46 pts
48Schoolcraft County11.654+1.36 pts
49Emmet County11.607-2 pts
50Allegan County11.537-0.09 pts
51Alger County11.49-1.59 pts
52Calhoun County11.437+1.72 pts
53Houghton County11.42+0.8 pts
54Berrien County11.419-2.03 pts
55Sanilac County11.41+1.28 pts
56Menominee County11.236-4.26 pts
57Ontonagon County11.229+5.35 pts
58Keweenaw County11.146-3.01 pts
59Clare County11.085-3.45 pts
60Otsego County10.848-0.61 pts
61Muskegon County10.729-4.41 pts
62Chippewa County10.627-1.27 pts
63Shiawassee County10.589+0.36 pts
64Gogebic County10.562-1.03 pts
65Eaton County10.491+0.93 pts
66Baraga County10.456-0.82 pts
67Branch County10.169-0.43 pts
68Kalamazoo County10.149-1.45 pts
69Alcona County10.083-11.33 pts
70Van Buren County10.033-0.05 pts
71Wexford County9.861-1.62 pts
72Delta County9.818+0.85 pts
73Dickinson County9.805+0.32 pts
74Manistee County9.717-1.15 pts
75Crawford County9.713-5.72 pts
76Barry County9.574-2.57 pts
77Midland County9.427-6.89 pts
78Ogemaw County9.408-4.17 pts
79Montcalm County9.115-4.38 pts
80Gratiot County8.566-3.2 pts
81Montmorency County8.487-3.86 pts
82Marquette County8.485-0.62 pts
83Alpena County7.608-0.44 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 Michigan by job creation rate, 2012) [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 Michigan by job creation rate, 2012. 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/michigan-counties?period=2012. 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 Michigan by job creation rate, 2012. 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/michigan-counties?period=2012.

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 Michigan by job creation rate, 2012 [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/michigan-counties?period=2012 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{census_counties_in_michigan_by_2012,
  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 Michigan by job creation rate, 2012}},
  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/michigan-counties?period=2012. 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 Michigan by job creation rate, 2012
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/michigan-counties?period=2012
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/job-creation-rate/michigan-counties?period=2012.
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?

Arenac County, with 32.063% in 2012, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

Which county has the lowest job creation rate?

Alpena County, with 7.608% in 2012.

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 Michigan: more rankings