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

Counties in North Carolina by job destruction rate

Camden County had the highest job destruction rate of 100 counties in 2017, at 27.25%. Bertie County had the lowest, at 6.275%. The median was 10.764% and the figure for North Carolina was 11.009%. Source: the U.S. Census Bureau.

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Highest27.25Camden County
Lowest6.275Bertie County
Median10.764100 counties
North Carolina11.009History

Map of counties, 2017

Alamance County: 8.418 %Alexander County: 10.956 %Alleghany County: 22.462 %Anson County: 13.971 %Ashe County: 10.713 %Avery County: 9.507 %Beaufort County: 12.773 %Bertie County: 6.275 %Bladen County: 7.577 %Brunswick County: 11.359 %Buncombe County: 10.234 %Burke County: 7 %Cabarrus County: 9.284 %Caldwell County: 12.211 %Camden County: 27.25 %Carteret County: 9.806 %Caswell County: 10.477 %Catawba County: 8.2 %Chatham County: 10.835 %Cherokee County: 11.353 %Chowan County: 9.855 %Clay County: 9.574 %Cleveland County: 7.895 %Columbus County: 12.623 %Craven County: 11.337 %Cumberland County: 10.949 %Currituck County: 11.754 %Dare County: 12.594 %Davidson County: 9.278 %Davie County: 11.446 %Duplin County: 8.086 %Durham County: 8.581 %Edgecombe County: 12.234 %Forsyth County: 10.997 %Franklin County: 9.398 %Gaston County: 11.663 %Gates County: 15.926 %Graham County: 8.779 %Granville County: 7.539 %Greene County: 11.737 %Guilford County: 10.262 %Halifax County: 12.154 %Harnett County: 11.567 %Haywood County: 10.63 %Henderson County: 13.352 %Hertford County: 8.72 %Hoke County: 12.108 %Hyde County: 16.741 %Iredell County: 12.243 %Jackson County: 12.832 %Johnston County: 12.438 %Jones County: 10.957 %Lee County: 13.834 %Lenoir County: 8.171 %Lincoln County: 8.72 %McDowell County: 7.634 %Macon County: 9.253 %Madison County: 8.697 %Martin County: 11.206 %Mecklenburg County: 11.989 %Mitchell County: 10.87 %Montgomery County: 10.834 %Moore County: 10.624 %Nash County: 12.429 %New Hanover County: 12.082 %Northampton County: 7.045 %Onslow County: 10.352 %Orange County: 9.731 %Pamlico County: 14.422 %Pasquotank County: 12.216 %Pender County: 10.795 %Perquimans County: 10.408 %Person County: 10.001 %Pitt County: 12.008 %Polk County: 9.254 %Randolph County: 9.806 %Richmond County: 12.855 %Robeson County: 10.135 %Rockingham County: 10.946 %Rowan County: 9.597 %Rutherford County: 12.782 %Sampson County: 11.196 %Scotland County: 7.69 %Stanly County: 10.014 %Stokes County: 7.743 %Surry County: 8.635 %Swain County: 12.642 %Transylvania County: 10.732 %Tyrrell County: 11.022 %Union County: 10.044 %Vance County: 7.458 %Wake County: 12.501 %Warren County: 17.145 %Washington County: 8.743 %Watauga County: 9.8 %Wayne County: 11.187 %Wilkes County: 7.435 %Wilson County: 11.387 %Yadkin County: 7.209 %Yancey County: 7.827 %
  • Under 8.5
  • 8.5 to 9.8
  • 9.8 to 11
  • 11 to 12
  • 12 and over
%, 2017. 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, 2017

Camden County: 27.25 %Camden County27.25Alleghany County: 22.462 %Alleghany County22.462Warren County: 17.145 %Warren County17.145Hyde County: 16.741 %Hyde County16.741Gates County: 15.926 %Gates County15.926Pamlico County: 14.422 %Pamlico County14.422Anson County: 13.971 %Anson County13.971Lee County: 13.834 %Lee County13.834Henderson County: 13.352 %Henderson County13.352Richmond County: 12.855 %Richmond County12.855Jackson County: 12.832 %Jackson County12.832Rutherford County: 12.782 %Rutherford County12.782Beaufort County: 12.773 %Beaufort County12.773Swain County: 12.642 %Swain County12.642Columbus County: 12.623 %Columbus County12.623Dare County: 12.594 %Dare County12.594Wake County: 12.501 %Wake County12.501Johnston County: 12.438 %Johnston County12.438Nash County: 12.429 %Nash County12.429Iredell County: 12.243 %Iredell County12.243Edgecombe County: 12.234 %Edgecombe County12.234Pasquotank County: 12.216 %Pasquotank County12.216Caldwell County: 12.211 %Caldwell County12.211Halifax County: 12.154 %Halifax County12.154Hoke County: 12.108 %Hoke County12.108New Hanover County: 12.082 %New Hanover County12.082Pitt County: 12.008 %Pitt County12.008Mecklenburg County: 11.989 %Mecklenburg County11.989Currituck County: 11.754 %Currituck County11.754Greene County: 11.737 %Greene County11.737Gaston County: 11.663 %Gaston County11.663Harnett County: 11.567 %Harnett County11.567Davie County: 11.446 %Davie County11.446Wilson County: 11.387 %Wilson County11.387Brunswick County: 11.359 %Brunswick County11.359Cherokee County: 11.353 %Cherokee County11.353Craven County: 11.337 %Craven County11.337Martin County: 11.206 %Martin County11.206Sampson County: 11.196 %Sampson County11.196Wayne County: 11.187 %Wayne County11.187Camden County: 27.25 %Camden County27.25Alleghany County: 22.462 %Alleghany County22.462Warren County: 17.145 %Warren County17.145Hyde County: 16.741 %Hyde County16.741Gates County: 15.926 %Gates County15.926Pamlico County: 14.422 %Pamlico County14.422Anson County: 13.971 %Anson County13.971Lee County: 13.834 %Lee County13.834Henderson County: 13.352 %Henderson County13.352Richmond County: 12.855 %Richmond County12.855Jackson County: 12.832 %Jackson County12.832Rutherford County: 12.782 %Rutherford County12.782Beaufort County: 12.773 %Beaufort County12.773Swain County: 12.642 %Swain County12.642Columbus County: 12.623 %Columbus County12.623Dare County: 12.594 %Dare County12.594Wake County: 12.501 %Wake County12.501Johnston County: 12.438 %Johnston County12.438Nash County: 12.429 %Nash County12.429Iredell County: 12.243 %Iredell County12.243Edgecombe County: 12.234 %Edgecombe County12.234Pasquotank County: 12.216 %Pasquotank County12.216Caldwell County: 12.211 %Caldwell County12.211Halifax County: 12.154 %Halifax County12.154Hoke County: 12.108 %Hoke County12.108New Hanover County: 12.082 %New Hanover County12.082Pitt County: 12.008 %Pitt County12.008Mecklenburg County: 11.989 %Mecklenburg County11.989Currituck County: 11.754 %Currituck County11.754Greene County: 11.737 %Greene County11.737Gaston County: 11.663 %Gaston County11.663Harnett County: 11.567 %Harnett County11.567Davie County: 11.446 %Davie County11.446Wilson County: 11.387 %Wilson County11.387Brunswick County: 11.359 %Brunswick County11.359Cherokee County: 11.353 %Cherokee County11.353Craven County: 11.337 %Craven County11.337Martin County: 11.206 %Martin County11.206Sampson County: 11.196 %Sampson County11.196Wayne County: 11.187 %Wayne County11.187
%. 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

RankCounties2017 (%)Change on 2016
1Camden County27.25+12.69 pts
2Alleghany County22.462+16.39 pts
3Warren County17.145+4 pts
4Hyde County16.741+2.11 pts
5Gates County15.926+5.12 pts
6Pamlico County14.422+3.24 pts
7Anson County13.971+4.68 pts
8Lee County13.834+3.3 pts
9Henderson County13.352+6.12 pts
10Richmond County12.855+6.13 pts
11Jackson County12.832+0.37 pts
12Rutherford County12.782+2.57 pts
13Beaufort County12.773+0.49 pts
14Swain County12.642+1.15 pts
15Columbus County12.623+2.87 pts
16Dare County12.594+1.51 pts
17Wake County12.501+2.11 pts
18Johnston County12.438+1.75 pts
19Nash County12.429+4.1 pts
20Iredell County12.243+3.11 pts
21Edgecombe County12.234+5.91 pts
22Pasquotank County12.216-3.56 pts
23Caldwell County12.211+4.68 pts
24Halifax County12.154+5.13 pts
25Hoke County12.108+4 pts
26New Hanover County12.082+2.19 pts
27Pitt County12.008+2.16 pts
28Mecklenburg County11.989+0.23 pts
29Currituck County11.754-9.49 pts
30Greene County11.737-2.11 pts
31Gaston County11.663+2.76 pts
32Harnett County11.567+2.97 pts
33Davie County11.446+3.71 pts
34Wilson County11.387+0.8 pts
35Brunswick County11.359+0.34 pts
36Cherokee County11.353+4.31 pts
37Craven County11.337+2.01 pts
38Martin County11.206+0.54 pts
39Sampson County11.196+3.09 pts
40Wayne County11.187+3.01 pts
41Tyrrell County11.022+1.4 pts
42Forsyth County10.997+1.63 pts
43Jones County10.957+1.77 pts
44Alexander County10.956+3.42 pts
45Cumberland County10.949+1.02 pts
46Rockingham County10.946+1.11 pts
47Mitchell County10.87-1.41 pts
48Chatham County10.835+1.45 pts
49Montgomery County10.834+3.02 pts
50Pender County10.795-2.64 pts
51Transylvania County10.732+3.69 pts
52Ashe County10.713+4.9 pts
53Haywood County10.63+1.9 pts
54Moore County10.624+2.87 pts
55Caswell County10.477-1.96 pts
56Perquimans County10.408+0.87 pts
57Onslow County10.352-1.9 pts
58Guilford County10.262+1.23 pts
59Buncombe County10.234+1.03 pts
60Robeson County10.135+3.57 pts
61Union County10.044+0.5 pts
62Stanly County10.014+1.45 pts
63Person County10.001+2.82 pts
64Chowan County9.855+1.43 pts
65Carteret County9.806-0.05 pts
65Randolph County9.806+1.04 pts
67Watauga County9.8+0.17 pts
68Orange County9.731+1.44 pts
69Rowan County9.597-1.02 pts
70Clay County9.574-2.16 pts
71Avery County9.507-3.72 pts
72Franklin County9.398-1.11 pts
73Cabarrus County9.284-1.9 pts
74Davidson County9.278-0.61 pts
75Polk County9.254-1.27 pts
76Macon County9.253-1.88 pts
77Graham County8.779-11.83 pts
78Washington County8.743-1.65 pts
79Hertford County8.72+1.11 pts
79Lincoln County8.72+0.06 pts
81Madison County8.697-15.63 pts
82Surry County8.635+0.38 pts
83Durham County8.581+1.45 pts
84Alamance County8.418+0.97 pts
85Catawba County8.2+0.3 pts
86Lenoir County8.171+0.04 pts
87Duplin County8.086+0.99 pts
88Cleveland County7.895+0.63 pts
89Yancey County7.827+1.07 pts
90Stokes County7.743-2.34 pts
91Scotland County7.69-0.58 pts
92McDowell County7.634+0.48 pts
93Bladen County7.577+1.14 pts
94Granville County7.539-0.55 pts
95Vance County7.458-0.75 pts
96Wilkes County7.435-1.23 pts
97Yadkin County7.209-8.63 pts
98Northampton County7.045-1.2 pts
99Burke County7-3 pts
100Bertie County6.275-8.99 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, 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 destruction rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010, Counties in North Carolina by job destruction 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-destruction-rate/north-carolina-counties?period=2017. 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, 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-destruction-rate/north-carolina-counties?period=2017.

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, 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-destruction-rate/north-carolina-counties?period=2017 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{census_counties_in_north_carolina_2017,
  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, 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-destruction-rate/north-carolina-counties?period=2017. 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, 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-destruction-rate/north-carolina-counties?period=2017
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/job-destruction-rate/north-carolina-counties?period=2017.
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?

Camden County, with 27.25% in 2017, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

Which county has the lowest job destruction rate?

Bertie County, with 6.275% 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 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