Data / Rankings / Job creation rate / Counties in Virginia

Counties in Virginia by job creation rate

Clarke County had the highest job creation rate of 133 counties in 2020, at 18.954%. Covington city had the lowest, at 4.343%. The median was 9.989% and the figure for Virginia was 11.737%. Source: the U.S. Census Bureau.

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Highest18.954Clarke County
Lowest4.343Covington city
Median9.989133 counties
Virginia11.737History

Map of counties, 2020

Accomack County: 9.422 %Albemarle County: 10.2 %Alleghany County: 9.034 %Amelia County: 16.795 %Amherst County: 9.025 %Appomattox County: 7.958 %Arlington County: 13.309 %Augusta County: 7.761 %Bath County: 5.307 %Bedford County: 8.966 %Bland County: 9.981 %Botetourt County: 8.956 %Brunswick County: 8.742 %Buchanan County: 8.982 %Buckingham County: 11.218 %Campbell County: 9.979 %Caroline County: 7.554 %Carroll County: 14.286 %Charles City County: 16.798 %Charlotte County: 13.209 %Chesterfield County: 12.152 %Clarke County: 18.954 %Craig County: 15.065 %Culpeper County: 13.117 %Cumberland County: 10.558 %Dickenson County: 9.352 %Dinwiddie County: 9.589 %Essex County: 11.5 %Fairfax County: 13.198 %Fauquier County: 10.879 %Floyd County: 12.883 %Fluvanna County: 13.212 %Franklin County: 11.902 %Frederick County: 17.406 %Giles County: 7.699 %Gloucester County: 9.97 %Goochland County: 14.322 %Grayson County: 9.422 %Greene County: 12.951 %Greensville County: 8.182 %Halifax County: 8.439 %Hanover County: 10.661 %Henrico County: 10.571 %Henry County: 11.233 %Highland County: 8.516 %Isle of Wight County: 5.919 %James City County: 9.83 %King and Queen County: 11.819 %King George County: 11.16 %King William County: 10.092 %Lancaster County: 9.757 %Lee County: 7.112 %Loudoun County: 11.757 %Louisa County: 9.506 %Lunenburg County: 5.393 %Madison County: 16.906 %Mathews County: 12.326 %Mecklenburg County: 10.476 %Middlesex County: 14.882 %Montgomery County: 10.604 %Nelson County: 11.726 %New Kent County: 15.026 %Northampton County: 7.936 %Northumberland County: 11.303 %Nottoway County: 8.007 %Orange County: 11.036 %Page County: 10.027 %Patrick County: 9.865 %Pittsylvania County: 9.133 %Powhatan County: 11.514 %Prince Edward County: 9.264 %Prince George County: 16.509 %Prince William County: 12.075 %Pulaski County: 10.868 %Rappahannock County: 14.988 %Richmond County: 10.623 %Roanoke County: 7.629 %Rockbridge County: 15.292 %Rockingham County: 9.846 %Russell County: 7.789 %Scott County: 8.976 %Shenandoah County: 7.767 %Smyth County: 6.395 %Southampton County: 6.381 %Spotsylvania County: 11.344 %Stafford County: 14.863 %Surry County: 4.794 %Sussex County: 11.582 %Tazewell County: 7.723 %Warren County: 12.343 %Washington County: 8.575 %Westmoreland County: 7.547 %Wise County: 9.135 %Wythe County: 7.678 %York County: 9.653 %Alexandria city: 10.391 %Bristol city: 8.514 %Buena Vista city: 11.337 %Charlottesville city: 9.949 %Chesapeake city: 12.627 %Colonial Heights city: 12.857 %Covington city: 4.343 %Danville city: 7.395 %Emporia city: 10.518 %Fairfax city: 13.123 %Falls Church city: 12.188 %Franklin city: 8.308 %Fredericksburg city: 12.486 %Galax city: 5.051 %Hampton city: 9.81 %Harrisonburg city: 9.228 %Hopewell city: 9.06 %Lexington city: 6.959 %Lynchburg city: 6.889 %Manassas city: 14.725 %Manassas Park city: 12.151 %Martinsville city: 11.49 %Newport News city: 11.625 %Norfolk city: 9.828 %Norton city: 6.747 %Petersburg city: 7.857 %Poquoson city: 9.989 %Portsmouth city: 9.995 %Radford city: 5.901 %Richmond city: 11.991 %Roanoke city: 8.893 %Salem city: 9.395 %Staunton city: 6.768 %Suffolk city: 13.19 %Virginia Beach city: 12.932 %Waynesboro city: 11.073 %Williamsburg city: 9.422 %Winchester city: 7.174 %
  • Under 7.8
  • 7.8 to 9.1
  • 9.1 to 10
  • 10 to 11
  • 11 to 13
  • 13 and over
%, 2020. 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, 2020

Clarke County: 18.954 %Clarke County18.954Frederick County: 17.406 %Frederick County17.406Madison County: 16.906 %Madison County16.906Charles City County: 16.798 %Charles City County16.798Amelia County: 16.795 %Amelia County16.795Prince George County: 16.509 %Prince George County16.509Rockbridge County: 15.292 %Rockbridge County15.292Craig County: 15.065 %Craig County15.065New Kent County: 15.026 %New Kent County15.026Rappahannock County: 14.988 %Rappahannock County14.988Middlesex County: 14.882 %Middlesex County14.882Stafford County: 14.863 %Stafford County14.863Manassas city: 14.725 %Manassas city14.725Goochland County: 14.322 %Goochland County14.322Carroll County: 14.286 %Carroll County14.286Arlington County: 13.309 %Arlington County13.309Fluvanna County: 13.212 %Fluvanna County13.212Charlotte County: 13.209 %Charlotte County13.209Fairfax County: 13.198 %Fairfax County13.198Suffolk city: 13.19 %Suffolk city13.19Fairfax city: 13.123 %Fairfax city13.123Culpeper County: 13.117 %Culpeper County13.117Greene County: 12.951 %Greene County12.951Virginia Beach city: 12.932 %Virginia Beach city12.932Floyd County: 12.883 %Floyd County12.883Colonial Heights city: 12.857 %Colonial Heights city12.857Chesapeake city: 12.627 %Chesapeake city12.627Fredericksburg city: 12.486 %Fredericksburg city12.486Warren County: 12.343 %Warren County12.343Mathews County: 12.326 %Mathews County12.326Falls Church city: 12.188 %Falls Church city12.188Chesterfield County: 12.152 %Chesterfield County12.152Manassas Park city: 12.151 %Manassas Park city12.151Prince William County: 12.075 %Prince William County12.075Richmond city: 11.991 %Richmond city11.991Franklin County: 11.902 %Franklin County11.902King and Queen County: 11.819 %King and Queen County11.819Loudoun County: 11.757 %Loudoun County11.757Nelson County: 11.726 %Nelson County11.726Newport News city: 11.625 %Newport News city11.625Clarke County: 18.954 %Clarke County18.954Frederick County: 17.406 %Frederick County17.406Madison County: 16.906 %Madison County16.906Charles City County: 16.798 %Charles City County16.798Amelia County: 16.795 %Amelia County16.795Prince George County: 16.509 %Prince George County16.509Rockbridge County: 15.292 %Rockbridge County15.292Craig County: 15.065 %Craig County15.065New Kent County: 15.026 %New Kent County15.026Rappahannock County: 14.988 %Rappahannock County14.988Middlesex County: 14.882 %Middlesex County14.882Stafford County: 14.863 %Stafford County14.863Manassas city: 14.725 %Manassas city14.725Goochland County: 14.322 %Goochland County14.322Carroll County: 14.286 %Carroll County14.286Arlington County: 13.309 %Arlington County13.309Fluvanna County: 13.212 %Fluvanna County13.212Charlotte County: 13.209 %Charlotte County13.209Fairfax County: 13.198 %Fairfax County13.198Suffolk city: 13.19 %Suffolk city13.19Fairfax city: 13.123 %Fairfax city13.123Culpeper County: 13.117 %Culpeper County13.117Greene County: 12.951 %Greene County12.951Virginia Beach city: 12.932 %Virginia Beach city12.932Floyd County: 12.883 %Floyd County12.883Colonial Heights city: 12.857 %Colonial Heights city12.857Chesapeake city: 12.627 %Chesapeake city12.627Fredericksburg city: 12.486 %Fredericksburg city12.486Warren County: 12.343 %Warren County12.343Mathews County: 12.326 %Mathews County12.326Falls Church city: 12.188 %Falls Church city12.188Chesterfield County: 12.152 %Chesterfield County12.152Manassas Park city: 12.151 %Manassas Park city12.151Prince William County: 12.075 %Prince William County12.075Richmond city: 11.991 %Richmond city11.991Franklin County: 11.902 %Franklin County11.902King and Queen County: 11.819 %King and Queen County11.819Loudoun County: 11.757 %Loudoun County11.757Nelson County: 11.726 %Nelson County11.726Newport News city: 11.625 %Newport News city11.625
%. 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

RankCounties2020 (%)Change on 2019
1Clarke County18.954+8.13 pts
2Frederick County17.406+8.27 pts
3Madison County16.906+0.74 pts
4Charles City County16.798+7.2 pts
5Amelia County16.795+5.68 pts
6Prince George County16.509+2.99 pts
7Rockbridge County15.292+4.25 pts
8Craig County15.065+0.4 pts
9New Kent County15.026-0.23 pts
10Rappahannock County14.988+1.28 pts
11Middlesex County14.882+0.47 pts
12Stafford County14.863+4.25 pts
13Manassas city14.725+2.46 pts
14Goochland County14.322+6.37 pts
15Carroll County14.286+1.73 pts
16Arlington County13.309-0.6 pts
17Fluvanna County13.212+0.35 pts
18Charlotte County13.209-4.44 pts
19Fairfax County13.198-0.3 pts
20Suffolk city13.19-5.08 pts
21Fairfax city13.123+0.42 pts
22Culpeper County13.117+2.18 pts
23Greene County12.951+2.34 pts
24Virginia Beach city12.932+1.11 pts
25Floyd County12.883-3.44 pts
26Colonial Heights city12.857+4.57 pts
27Chesapeake city12.627-0.28 pts
28Fredericksburg city12.486+2.09 pts
29Warren County12.343+1.98 pts
30Mathews County12.326-7.36 pts
31Falls Church city12.188+2.27 pts
32Chesterfield County12.152+0.8 pts
33Manassas Park city12.151+2.29 pts
34Prince William County12.075-0.25 pts
35Richmond city11.991-0.94 pts
36Franklin County11.902+2.62 pts
37King and Queen County11.819+2.12 pts
38Loudoun County11.757-0.76 pts
39Nelson County11.726-1.09 pts
40Newport News city11.625+3.27 pts
41Sussex County11.582+1.32 pts
42Powhatan County11.514-3.26 pts
43Essex County11.5+4.33 pts
44Martinsville city11.49+5.12 pts
45Spotsylvania County11.344-3.45 pts
46Buena Vista city11.337+5.3 pts
47Northumberland County11.303-1.32 pts
48Henry County11.233-0.82 pts
49Buckingham County11.218+2.55 pts
50King George County11.16-2.65 pts
51Waynesboro city11.073+0.03 pts
52Orange County11.036-1.99 pts
53Fauquier County10.879+0.07 pts
54Pulaski County10.868-8.52 pts
55Hanover County10.661-3.43 pts
56Richmond County10.623+2.8 pts
57Montgomery County10.604-0.58 pts
58Henrico County10.571-0.51 pts
59Cumberland County10.558+3.13 pts
60Emporia city10.518+1.75 pts
61Mecklenburg County10.476-0.51 pts
62Alexandria city10.391+0.18 pts
63Albemarle County10.2+0.21 pts
64King William County10.092-0.53 pts
65Page County10.027-1.43 pts
66Portsmouth city9.995-1.44 pts
67Poquoson city9.989-4.75 pts
68Bland County9.981-0.81 pts
69Campbell County9.979-1.27 pts
70Gloucester County9.97-3.31 pts
71Charlottesville city9.949-1.82 pts
72Patrick County9.865-22.31 pts
73Rockingham County9.846+1.12 pts
74James City County9.83-2.82 pts
75Norfolk city9.828-1.45 pts
76Hampton city9.81-2.19 pts
77Lancaster County9.757-0.9 pts
78York County9.653-1.72 pts
79Dinwiddie County9.589-2.79 pts
80Louisa County9.506-5.68 pts
81Accomack County9.422+0.1 pts
81Grayson County9.422-2.13 pts
81Williamsburg city9.422+2.68 pts
84Salem city9.395+0.43 pts
85Dickenson County9.352-3.63 pts
86Prince Edward County9.264-3.6 pts
87Harrisonburg city9.228-1 pts
88Wise County9.135-5.25 pts
89Pittsylvania County9.133-1.68 pts
90Hopewell city9.06+2.21 pts
91Alleghany County9.034+0.16 pts
92Amherst County9.025+0.28 pts
93Buchanan County8.982-1.81 pts
94Scott County8.976-6.9 pts
95Bedford County8.966-8.65 pts
96Botetourt County8.956-4.58 pts
97Roanoke city8.893+0.62 pts
98Brunswick County8.742+1.5 pts
99Washington County8.575-1.3 pts
100Highland County8.516-5.43 pts
101Bristol city8.514-1.48 pts
102Halifax County8.439-2.79 pts
103Franklin city8.308-1.71 pts
104Greensville County8.182-0.64 pts
105Nottoway County8.007-2.04 pts
106Appomattox County7.958-1.04 pts
107Northampton County7.936-2.97 pts
108Petersburg city7.857-2.1 pts
109Russell County7.789-2.17 pts
110Shenandoah County7.767-0.3 pts
111Augusta County7.761-3.6 pts
112Tazewell County7.723-2.94 pts
113Giles County7.699+0.66 pts
114Wythe County7.678+1.01 pts
115Roanoke County7.629-2.56 pts
116Caroline County7.554-1.52 pts
117Westmoreland County7.547-0.21 pts
118Danville city7.395-2.63 pts
119Winchester city7.174+0.89 pts
120Lee County7.112-2.5 pts
121Lexington city6.959-0.01 pts
122Lynchburg city6.889-2.18 pts
123Staunton city6.768-2.54 pts
124Norton city6.747-6 pts
125Smyth County6.395-5.2 pts
126Southampton County6.381-1.93 pts
127Isle of Wight County5.919-5.34 pts
128Radford city5.901-1.77 pts
129Lunenburg County5.393-9.32 pts
130Bath County5.307-2.39 pts
131Galax city5.051-6.08 pts
132Surry County4.794-0.08 pts
133Covington city4.343-9.56 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 Virginia by job creation rate, 2020) [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 Virginia by job creation rate, 2020. 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/virginia-counties?period=2020. 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 Virginia by job creation rate, 2020. 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/virginia-counties?period=2020.

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 Virginia by job creation rate, 2020 [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/virginia-counties?period=2020 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{census_counties_in_virginia_by_2020,
  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 Virginia by job creation rate, 2020}},
  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/virginia-counties?period=2020. 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 Virginia by job creation rate, 2020
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/virginia-counties?period=2020
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/job-creation-rate/virginia-counties?period=2020.
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?

Clarke County, with 18.954% in 2020, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

Which county has the lowest job creation rate?

Covington city, with 4.343% in 2020.

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 Virginia: more rankings