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

Counties in North Carolina by job destruction rate

Jones County had the highest job destruction rate of 100 counties in 2018, at 23.729%. Bertie County had the lowest, at 5.611%. The median was 10.392% and the figure for North Carolina was 10.978%. Source: the U.S. Census Bureau.

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Highest23.729Jones County
Lowest5.611Bertie County
Median10.392100 counties
North Carolina10.978History

Map of counties, 2018

Alamance County: 12.416 %Alexander County: 7.306 %Alleghany County: 15.696 %Anson County: 9.262 %Ashe County: 8.361 %Avery County: 13.662 %Beaufort County: 10.012 %Bertie County: 5.611 %Bladen County: 7.554 %Brunswick County: 14.796 %Buncombe County: 11.431 %Burke County: 10.182 %Cabarrus County: 10.654 %Caldwell County: 10.937 %Camden County: 19.539 %Carteret County: 10.625 %Caswell County: 7.904 %Catawba County: 8.946 %Chatham County: 12.613 %Cherokee County: 12.046 %Chowan County: 7.887 %Clay County: 8.681 %Cleveland County: 9.075 %Columbus County: 9.537 %Craven County: 8.983 %Cumberland County: 11.322 %Currituck County: 9.938 %Dare County: 11.636 %Davidson County: 10.36 %Davie County: 10.018 %Duplin County: 12.239 %Durham County: 9.126 %Edgecombe County: 11.691 %Forsyth County: 9.403 %Franklin County: 10.922 %Gaston County: 9.062 %Gates County: 17.63 %Graham County: 11.768 %Granville County: 10.427 %Greene County: 13.834 %Guilford County: 11.952 %Halifax County: 9.37 %Harnett County: 11.329 %Haywood County: 9.304 %Henderson County: 8.781 %Hertford County: 6.561 %Hoke County: 10.686 %Hyde County: 17.391 %Iredell County: 9.401 %Jackson County: 8.871 %Johnston County: 10.625 %Jones County: 23.729 %Lee County: 6.511 %Lenoir County: 8.071 %Lincoln County: 10.411 %McDowell County: 9.121 %Macon County: 11.441 %Madison County: 17.731 %Martin County: 11.449 %Mecklenburg County: 12.698 %Mitchell County: 16.966 %Montgomery County: 12.893 %Moore County: 8.317 %Nash County: 9.823 %New Hanover County: 10.856 %Northampton County: 7.324 %Onslow County: 9.456 %Orange County: 7.723 %Pamlico County: 10.059 %Pasquotank County: 12.466 %Pender County: 11.57 %Perquimans County: 19.255 %Person County: 13.248 %Pitt County: 9.631 %Polk County: 12.997 %Randolph County: 9.825 %Richmond County: 9.472 %Robeson County: 9.545 %Rockingham County: 10.969 %Rowan County: 7.602 %Rutherford County: 10.88 %Sampson County: 12.275 %Scotland County: 10.402 %Stanly County: 9.434 %Stokes County: 15.353 %Surry County: 10.382 %Swain County: 16.951 %Transylvania County: 10.861 %Tyrrell County: 7.944 %Union County: 9.885 %Vance County: 12.882 %Wake County: 11.552 %Warren County: 7.982 %Washington County: 8.413 %Watauga County: 11.595 %Wayne County: 10.219 %Wilkes County: 11.342 %Wilson County: 9.001 %Yadkin County: 8.139 %Yancey County: 9.148 %
  • Under 8.5
  • 8.5 to 9.4
  • 9.4 to 10
  • 10 to 11
  • 11 to 13
  • 13 and over
%, 2018. 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, 2018

Jones County: 23.729 %Jones County23.729Camden County: 19.539 %Camden County19.539Perquimans County: 19.255 %Perquimans County19.255Madison County: 17.731 %Madison County17.731Gates County: 17.63 %Gates County17.63Hyde County: 17.391 %Hyde County17.391Mitchell County: 16.966 %Mitchell County16.966Swain County: 16.951 %Swain County16.951Alleghany County: 15.696 %Alleghany County15.696Stokes County: 15.353 %Stokes County15.353Brunswick County: 14.796 %Brunswick County14.796Greene County: 13.834 %Greene County13.834Avery County: 13.662 %Avery County13.662Person County: 13.248 %Person County13.248Polk County: 12.997 %Polk County12.997Montgomery County: 12.893 %Montgomery County12.893Vance County: 12.882 %Vance County12.882Mecklenburg County: 12.698 %Mecklenburg County12.698Chatham County: 12.613 %Chatham County12.613Pasquotank County: 12.466 %Pasquotank County12.466Alamance County: 12.416 %Alamance County12.416Sampson County: 12.275 %Sampson County12.275Duplin County: 12.239 %Duplin County12.239Cherokee County: 12.046 %Cherokee County12.046Guilford County: 11.952 %Guilford County11.952Graham County: 11.768 %Graham County11.768Edgecombe County: 11.691 %Edgecombe County11.691Dare County: 11.636 %Dare County11.636Watauga County: 11.595 %Watauga County11.595Pender County: 11.57 %Pender County11.57Wake County: 11.552 %Wake County11.552Martin County: 11.449 %Martin County11.449Macon County: 11.441 %Macon County11.441Buncombe County: 11.431 %Buncombe County11.431Wilkes County: 11.342 %Wilkes County11.342Harnett County: 11.329 %Harnett County11.329Cumberland County: 11.322 %Cumberland County11.322Rockingham County: 10.969 %Rockingham County10.969Caldwell County: 10.937 %Caldwell County10.937Franklin County: 10.922 %Franklin County10.922Jones County: 23.729 %Jones County23.729Camden County: 19.539 %Camden County19.539Perquimans County: 19.255 %Perquimans County19.255Madison County: 17.731 %Madison County17.731Gates County: 17.63 %Gates County17.63Hyde County: 17.391 %Hyde County17.391Mitchell County: 16.966 %Mitchell County16.966Swain County: 16.951 %Swain County16.951Alleghany County: 15.696 %Alleghany County15.696Stokes County: 15.353 %Stokes County15.353Brunswick County: 14.796 %Brunswick County14.796Greene County: 13.834 %Greene County13.834Avery County: 13.662 %Avery County13.662Person County: 13.248 %Person County13.248Polk County: 12.997 %Polk County12.997Montgomery County: 12.893 %Montgomery County12.893Vance County: 12.882 %Vance County12.882Mecklenburg County: 12.698 %Mecklenburg County12.698Chatham County: 12.613 %Chatham County12.613Pasquotank County: 12.466 %Pasquotank County12.466Alamance County: 12.416 %Alamance County12.416Sampson County: 12.275 %Sampson County12.275Duplin County: 12.239 %Duplin County12.239Cherokee County: 12.046 %Cherokee County12.046Guilford County: 11.952 %Guilford County11.952Graham County: 11.768 %Graham County11.768Edgecombe County: 11.691 %Edgecombe County11.691Dare County: 11.636 %Dare County11.636Watauga County: 11.595 %Watauga County11.595Pender County: 11.57 %Pender County11.57Wake County: 11.552 %Wake County11.552Martin County: 11.449 %Martin County11.449Macon County: 11.441 %Macon County11.441Buncombe County: 11.431 %Buncombe County11.431Wilkes County: 11.342 %Wilkes County11.342Harnett County: 11.329 %Harnett County11.329Cumberland County: 11.322 %Cumberland County11.322Rockingham County: 10.969 %Rockingham County10.969Caldwell County: 10.937 %Caldwell County10.937Franklin County: 10.922 %Franklin County10.922
%. 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

RankCounties2018 (%)Change on 2017
1Jones County23.729+12.77 pts
2Camden County19.539-7.71 pts
3Perquimans County19.255+8.85 pts
4Madison County17.731+9.03 pts
5Gates County17.63+1.7 pts
6Hyde County17.391+0.65 pts
7Mitchell County16.966+6.1 pts
8Swain County16.951+4.31 pts
9Alleghany County15.696-6.77 pts
10Stokes County15.353+7.61 pts
11Brunswick County14.796+3.44 pts
12Greene County13.834+2.1 pts
13Avery County13.662+4.16 pts
14Person County13.248+3.25 pts
15Polk County12.997+3.74 pts
16Montgomery County12.893+2.06 pts
17Vance County12.882+5.42 pts
18Mecklenburg County12.698+0.71 pts
19Chatham County12.613+1.78 pts
20Pasquotank County12.466+0.25 pts
21Alamance County12.416+4 pts
22Sampson County12.275+1.08 pts
23Duplin County12.239+4.15 pts
24Cherokee County12.046+0.69 pts
25Guilford County11.952+1.69 pts
26Graham County11.768+2.99 pts
27Edgecombe County11.691-0.54 pts
28Dare County11.636-0.96 pts
29Watauga County11.595+1.79 pts
30Pender County11.57+0.78 pts
31Wake County11.552-0.95 pts
32Martin County11.449+0.24 pts
33Macon County11.441+2.19 pts
34Buncombe County11.431+1.2 pts
35Wilkes County11.342+3.91 pts
36Harnett County11.329-0.24 pts
37Cumberland County11.322+0.37 pts
38Rockingham County10.969+0.02 pts
39Caldwell County10.937-1.27 pts
40Franklin County10.922+1.52 pts
41Rutherford County10.88-1.9 pts
42Transylvania County10.861+0.13 pts
43New Hanover County10.856-1.23 pts
44Hoke County10.686-1.42 pts
45Cabarrus County10.654+1.37 pts
46Carteret County10.625+0.82 pts
46Johnston County10.625-1.81 pts
48Granville County10.427+2.89 pts
49Lincoln County10.411+1.69 pts
50Scotland County10.402+2.71 pts
51Surry County10.382+1.75 pts
52Davidson County10.36+1.08 pts
53Wayne County10.219-0.97 pts
54Burke County10.182+3.18 pts
55Pamlico County10.059-4.36 pts
56Davie County10.018-1.43 pts
57Beaufort County10.012-2.76 pts
58Currituck County9.938-1.82 pts
59Union County9.885-0.16 pts
60Randolph County9.825+0.02 pts
61Nash County9.823-2.61 pts
62Pitt County9.631-2.38 pts
63Robeson County9.545-0.59 pts
64Columbus County9.537-3.09 pts
65Richmond County9.472-3.38 pts
66Onslow County9.456-0.9 pts
67Stanly County9.434-0.58 pts
68Forsyth County9.403-1.59 pts
69Iredell County9.401-2.84 pts
70Halifax County9.37-2.78 pts
71Haywood County9.304-1.33 pts
72Anson County9.262-4.71 pts
73Yancey County9.148+1.32 pts
74Durham County9.126+0.54 pts
75McDowell County9.121+1.49 pts
76Cleveland County9.075+1.18 pts
77Gaston County9.062-2.6 pts
78Wilson County9.001-2.39 pts
79Craven County8.983-2.35 pts
80Catawba County8.946+0.75 pts
81Jackson County8.871-3.96 pts
82Henderson County8.781-4.57 pts
83Clay County8.681-0.89 pts
84Washington County8.413-0.33 pts
85Ashe County8.361-2.35 pts
86Moore County8.317-2.31 pts
87Yadkin County8.139+0.93 pts
88Lenoir County8.071-0.1 pts
89Warren County7.982-9.16 pts
90Tyrrell County7.944-3.08 pts
91Caswell County7.904-2.57 pts
92Chowan County7.887-1.97 pts
93Orange County7.723-2.01 pts
94Rowan County7.602-1.99 pts
95Bladen County7.554-0.02 pts
96Northampton County7.324+0.28 pts
97Alexander County7.306-3.65 pts
98Hertford County6.561-2.16 pts
99Lee County6.511-7.32 pts
100Bertie County5.611-0.66 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, 2018) [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, 2018. 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=2018. 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, 2018. 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=2018.

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, 2018 [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=2018 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{census_counties_in_north_carolina_2018,
  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, 2018}},
  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=2018. 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, 2018
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=2018
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/job-destruction-rate/north-carolina-counties?period=2018.
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?

Jones County, with 23.729% in 2018, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

Which county has the lowest job destruction rate?

Bertie County, with 5.611% in 2018.

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