Data / Rankings / Job destruction rate / Counties in North Carolina

Counties in North Carolina by job destruction rate

Graham County had the highest job destruction rate of 100 counties in 2015, at 27.284%. Montgomery County had the lowest, at 4.535%. The median was 9.553% and the figure for North Carolina was 9.964%. Source: the U.S. Census Bureau.

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Highest27.284Graham County
Lowest4.535Montgomery County
Median9.553100 counties
North Carolina9.964History

Map of counties, 2015

Alamance County: 8.943 %Alexander County: 5.965 %Alleghany County: 7.285 %Anson County: 11.325 %Ashe County: 10.725 %Avery County: 10.638 %Beaufort County: 11.847 %Bertie County: 8.735 %Bladen County: 11.429 %Brunswick County: 10.134 %Buncombe County: 8.771 %Burke County: 9.469 %Cabarrus County: 9.174 %Caldwell County: 10.547 %Camden County: 14.233 %Carteret County: 9.566 %Caswell County: 9.498 %Catawba County: 9.06 %Chatham County: 7.353 %Cherokee County: 7.495 %Chowan County: 8.604 %Clay County: 12.369 %Cleveland County: 10.768 %Columbus County: 10.807 %Craven County: 10.441 %Cumberland County: 10.866 %Currituck County: 9.97 %Dare County: 11.965 %Davidson County: 9.51 %Davie County: 11.985 %Duplin County: 6.331 %Durham County: 11.184 %Edgecombe County: 11.508 %Forsyth County: 8.193 %Franklin County: 10.888 %Gaston County: 9.493 %Gates County: 22.9 %Graham County: 27.284 %Granville County: 10.869 %Greene County: 5.758 %Guilford County: 10.625 %Halifax County: 8.665 %Harnett County: 15.181 %Haywood County: 9.135 %Henderson County: 8.778 %Hertford County: 9.443 %Hoke County: 9.539 %Hyde County: 19.668 %Iredell County: 8.779 %Jackson County: 7.358 %Johnston County: 8.268 %Jones County: 13.096 %Lee County: 11.341 %Lenoir County: 8.469 %Lincoln County: 11.716 %McDowell County: 8.147 %Macon County: 10.492 %Madison County: 8.553 %Martin County: 13.532 %Mecklenburg County: 10.394 %Mitchell County: 11.439 %Montgomery County: 4.535 %Moore County: 11.335 %Nash County: 8.647 %New Hanover County: 10.073 %Northampton County: 7.016 %Onslow County: 11.958 %Orange County: 7.162 %Pamlico County: 7.692 %Pasquotank County: 12.951 %Pender County: 13.581 %Perquimans County: 14.19 %Person County: 6.221 %Pitt County: 9.091 %Polk County: 7.745 %Randolph County: 11.092 %Richmond County: 10.98 %Robeson County: 7.835 %Rockingham County: 11.862 %Rowan County: 9.163 %Rutherford County: 10.087 %Sampson County: 9.717 %Scotland County: 10.893 %Stanly County: 14.513 %Stokes County: 8.52 %Surry County: 8.783 %Swain County: 11.257 %Transylvania County: 10.108 %Tyrrell County: 21.196 %Union County: 7.81 %Vance County: 8.023 %Wake County: 11.253 %Warren County: 7.472 %Washington County: 6.538 %Watauga County: 8.191 %Wayne County: 8.354 %Wilkes County: 7.787 %Wilson County: 9.238 %Yadkin County: 4.937 %Yancey County: 7.605 %
  • Under 7.8
  • 7.8 to 8.8
  • 8.8 to 9.6
  • 9.6 to 11
  • 11 to 12
  • 12 and over
%, 2015. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Business Dynamics Statistics: job destruction rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010. Boundaries: U.S. Census Bureau cartographic boundary files.

Top 40 counties, 2015

Graham County: 27.284 %Graham County27.284Gates County: 22.9 %Gates County22.9Tyrrell County: 21.196 %Tyrrell County21.196Hyde County: 19.668 %Hyde County19.668Harnett County: 15.181 %Harnett County15.181Stanly County: 14.513 %Stanly County14.513Camden County: 14.233 %Camden County14.233Perquimans County: 14.19 %Perquimans County14.19Pender County: 13.581 %Pender County13.581Martin County: 13.532 %Martin County13.532Jones County: 13.096 %Jones County13.096Pasquotank County: 12.951 %Pasquotank County12.951Clay County: 12.369 %Clay County12.369Davie County: 11.985 %Davie County11.985Dare County: 11.965 %Dare County11.965Onslow County: 11.958 %Onslow County11.958Rockingham County: 11.862 %Rockingham County11.862Beaufort County: 11.847 %Beaufort County11.847Lincoln County: 11.716 %Lincoln County11.716Edgecombe County: 11.508 %Edgecombe County11.508Mitchell County: 11.439 %Mitchell County11.439Bladen County: 11.429 %Bladen County11.429Lee County: 11.341 %Lee County11.341Moore County: 11.335 %Moore County11.335Anson County: 11.325 %Anson County11.325Swain County: 11.257 %Swain County11.257Wake County: 11.253 %Wake County11.253Durham County: 11.184 %Durham County11.184Randolph County: 11.092 %Randolph County11.092Richmond County: 10.98 %Richmond County10.98Scotland County: 10.893 %Scotland County10.893Franklin County: 10.888 %Franklin County10.888Granville County: 10.869 %Granville County10.869Cumberland County: 10.866 %Cumberland County10.866Columbus County: 10.807 %Columbus County10.807Cleveland County: 10.768 %Cleveland County10.768Ashe County: 10.725 %Ashe County10.725Avery County: 10.638 %Avery County10.638Guilford County: 10.625 %Guilford County10.625Caldwell County: 10.547 %Caldwell County10.547Graham County: 27.284 %Graham County27.284Gates County: 22.9 %Gates County22.9Tyrrell County: 21.196 %Tyrrell County21.196Hyde County: 19.668 %Hyde County19.668Harnett County: 15.181 %Harnett County15.181Stanly County: 14.513 %Stanly County14.513Camden County: 14.233 %Camden County14.233Perquimans County: 14.19 %Perquimans County14.19Pender County: 13.581 %Pender County13.581Martin County: 13.532 %Martin County13.532Jones County: 13.096 %Jones County13.096Pasquotank County: 12.951 %Pasquotank County12.951Clay County: 12.369 %Clay County12.369Davie County: 11.985 %Davie County11.985Dare County: 11.965 %Dare County11.965Onslow County: 11.958 %Onslow County11.958Rockingham County: 11.862 %Rockingham County11.862Beaufort County: 11.847 %Beaufort County11.847Lincoln County: 11.716 %Lincoln County11.716Edgecombe County: 11.508 %Edgecombe County11.508Mitchell County: 11.439 %Mitchell County11.439Bladen County: 11.429 %Bladen County11.429Lee County: 11.341 %Lee County11.341Moore County: 11.335 %Moore County11.335Anson County: 11.325 %Anson County11.325Swain County: 11.257 %Swain County11.257Wake County: 11.253 %Wake County11.253Durham County: 11.184 %Durham County11.184Randolph County: 11.092 %Randolph County11.092Richmond County: 10.98 %Richmond County10.98Scotland County: 10.893 %Scotland County10.893Franklin County: 10.888 %Franklin County10.888Granville County: 10.869 %Granville County10.869Cumberland County: 10.866 %Cumberland County10.866Columbus County: 10.807 %Columbus County10.807Cleveland County: 10.768 %Cleveland County10.768Ashe County: 10.725 %Ashe County10.725Avery County: 10.638 %Avery County10.638Guilford County: 10.625 %Guilford County10.625Caldwell County: 10.547 %Caldwell County10.547
%. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Business Dynamics Statistics: job destruction rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Full ranking

RankCounties2015 (%)Change on 2014
1Graham County27.284+6.18 pts
2Gates County22.9+13.09 pts
3Tyrrell County21.196+10.74 pts
4Hyde County19.668+6.86 pts
5Harnett County15.181+2.61 pts
6Stanly County14.513+5.82 pts
7Camden County14.233-5.75 pts
8Perquimans County14.19+4.19 pts
9Pender County13.581+3.42 pts
10Martin County13.532+5.46 pts
11Jones County13.096+0.59 pts
12Pasquotank County12.951-5.05 pts
13Clay County12.369-5.95 pts
14Davie County11.985+1.27 pts
15Dare County11.965-2.46 pts
16Onslow County11.958-2.11 pts
17Rockingham County11.862+1.11 pts
18Beaufort County11.847+3 pts
19Lincoln County11.716+1 pts
20Edgecombe County11.508+2.34 pts
21Mitchell County11.439+3.93 pts
22Bladen County11.429-14.53 pts
23Lee County11.341+0.96 pts
24Moore County11.335-0.16 pts
25Anson County11.325+0.99 pts
26Swain County11.257+0.82 pts
27Wake County11.253-0.15 pts
28Durham County11.184+1.5 pts
29Randolph County11.092+3.28 pts
30Richmond County10.98+2.04 pts
31Scotland County10.893+1.28 pts
32Franklin County10.888+0.87 pts
33Granville County10.869-1.18 pts
34Cumberland County10.866-2.08 pts
35Columbus County10.807-0.87 pts
36Cleveland County10.768-2.04 pts
37Ashe County10.725-2.94 pts
38Avery County10.638-0.04 pts
39Guilford County10.625+0.82 pts
40Caldwell County10.547-0.46 pts
41Macon County10.492+0.21 pts
42Craven County10.441-0.07 pts
43Mecklenburg County10.394-1.16 pts
44Brunswick County10.134-0.49 pts
45Transylvania County10.108-0.67 pts
46Rutherford County10.087-1.72 pts
47New Hanover County10.073-0.01 pts
48Currituck County9.97-0.01 pts
49Sampson County9.717-2.04 pts
50Carteret County9.566+0.15 pts
51Hoke County9.539-15.89 pts
52Davidson County9.51-0.49 pts
53Caswell County9.498-6.43 pts
54Gaston County9.493-1.02 pts
55Burke County9.469+2.56 pts
56Hertford County9.443+1.42 pts
57Wilson County9.238-1.6 pts
58Cabarrus County9.174-1.69 pts
59Rowan County9.163-0.25 pts
60Haywood County9.135-2.67 pts
61Pitt County9.091-0.19 pts
62Catawba County9.06+0.92 pts
63Alamance County8.943-0.95 pts
64Surry County8.783-2.32 pts
65Iredell County8.779-0.17 pts
66Henderson County8.778-2.1 pts
67Buncombe County8.771+0.08 pts
68Bertie County8.735-4.02 pts
69Halifax County8.665-1.19 pts
70Nash County8.647-0.88 pts
71Chowan County8.604+0.17 pts
72Madison County8.553-0.89 pts
73Stokes County8.52-2.26 pts
74Lenoir County8.469-2.3 pts
75Wayne County8.354-0.6 pts
76Johnston County8.268-4.14 pts
77Forsyth County8.193-2.06 pts
78Watauga County8.191-2.95 pts
79McDowell County8.147+2.07 pts
80Vance County8.023-2.57 pts
81Robeson County7.835-1.48 pts
82Union County7.81-1.39 pts
83Wilkes County7.787-1.7 pts
84Polk County7.745-3.48 pts
85Pamlico County7.692-5.29 pts
86Yancey County7.605-1.65 pts
87Cherokee County7.495-2.76 pts
88Warren County7.472-2.24 pts
89Jackson County7.358+0.19 pts
90Chatham County7.353-2.04 pts
91Alleghany County7.285-5.01 pts
92Orange County7.162-2.51 pts
93Northampton County7.016+0.14 pts
94Washington County6.538-1.67 pts
95Duplin County6.331-1.55 pts
96Person County6.221-7.17 pts
97Alexander County5.965-3.27 pts
98Greene County5.758-9.33 pts
99Yadkin County4.937-1.81 pts
100Montgomery County4.535-1.82 pts

Other periods

About this ranking

Jobs lost at closing and shrinking 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 added elsewhere are not subtracted, so the net change is job_creation_rate minus this rate. Not a layoff rate: it counts positions lost at establishments, not people who lost a job. 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 destruction 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 destruction rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010 (Counties in North Carolina by job destruction rate, 2015) [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 destruction rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010, Counties in North Carolina by job destruction rate, 2015. 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-destruction-rate/north-carolina-counties?period=2015. Accessed 12 Oct. 2026.

Chicago (author-date)

U.S. Census Bureau. 2025. Business Dynamics Statistics: job destruction rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010. Counties in North Carolina by job destruction rate, 2015. 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-destruction-rate/north-carolina-counties?period=2015.

Harvard

U.S. Census Bureau (2025) Business Dynamics Statistics: job destruction rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010, Counties in North Carolina by job destruction rate, 2015 [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-destruction-rate/north-carolina-counties?period=2015 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{census_counties_in_north_carolina_2015,
  author = {{U.S. Census Bureau}},
  title = {{Business Dynamics Statistics: job destruction rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010: Counties in North Carolina by job destruction rate, 2015}},
  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-destruction-rate/north-carolina-counties?period=2015. Publisher attribution: U.S. Census Bureau. Business Dynamics Statistics: job destruction 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 destruction rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010: Counties in North Carolina by job destruction rate, 2015
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-destruction-rate/north-carolina-counties?period=2015
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/job-destruction-rate/north-carolina-counties?period=2015.
N1  - Publisher attribution: U.S. Census Bureau. Business Dynamics Statistics: job destruction 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 destruction rate?

Graham County, with 27.284% in 2015, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

Which county has the lowest job destruction rate?

Montgomery County, with 4.535% in 2015.

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

Job destruction rate: other rankings

Counties in North Carolina: more rankings