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 2022, at 24.949%. Surry County had the lowest, at 5.848%. The median was 10.731% and the figure for North Carolina was 11.096%. Source: the U.S. Census Bureau.

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Highest24.949Jones County
Lowest5.848Surry County
Median10.731100 counties
North Carolina11.096History

Map of counties, 2022

Alamance County: 9.612 %Alexander County: 7.643 %Alleghany County: 7.572 %Anson County: 10.721 %Ashe County: 9.925 %Avery County: 9.78 %Beaufort County: 8.909 %Bertie County: 18.098 %Bladen County: 20.14 %Brunswick County: 11.831 %Buncombe County: 9.193 %Burke County: 14.827 %Cabarrus County: 10.003 %Caldwell County: 7.912 %Camden County: 12.693 %Carteret County: 9.975 %Caswell County: 9.234 %Catawba County: 9.291 %Chatham County: 9.358 %Cherokee County: 8.132 %Chowan County: 18.597 %Clay County: 9.622 %Cleveland County: 11.217 %Columbus County: 8.614 %Craven County: 10.534 %Cumberland County: 10.815 %Currituck County: 14.443 %Dare County: 10.729 %Davidson County: 10.333 %Davie County: 7.821 %Duplin County: 11.025 %Durham County: 10.577 %Edgecombe County: 11.804 %Forsyth County: 11.765 %Franklin County: 10.508 %Gaston County: 11.116 %Gates County: 11.47 %Graham County: 22.909 %Granville County: 8.443 %Greene County: 14.656 %Guilford County: 11.328 %Halifax County: 14.516 %Harnett County: 13.044 %Haywood County: 10.64 %Henderson County: 11.783 %Hertford County: 12.821 %Hoke County: 10.749 %Hyde County: 19.291 %Iredell County: 13.641 %Jackson County: 9.125 %Johnston County: 10.724 %Jones County: 24.949 %Lee County: 10.732 %Lenoir County: 7.113 %Lincoln County: 11.45 %McDowell County: 9.847 %Macon County: 9.511 %Madison County: 8.708 %Martin County: 14.261 %Mecklenburg County: 11.917 %Mitchell County: 17.639 %Montgomery County: 9.594 %Moore County: 8.355 %Nash County: 10.435 %New Hanover County: 11.055 %Northampton County: 13.799 %Onslow County: 10.566 %Orange County: 8.835 %Pamlico County: 7.235 %Pasquotank County: 10.201 %Pender County: 14.078 %Perquimans County: 20.545 %Person County: 12.302 %Pitt County: 9.548 %Polk County: 11.095 %Randolph County: 11.953 %Richmond County: 11.401 %Robeson County: 10.685 %Rockingham County: 9.937 %Rowan County: 9.522 %Rutherford County: 8.927 %Sampson County: 12.573 %Scotland County: 9.515 %Stanly County: 10.98 %Stokes County: 16.687 %Surry County: 5.848 %Swain County: 9.999 %Transylvania County: 12.057 %Tyrrell County: 13.434 %Union County: 11.081 %Vance County: 12.831 %Wake County: 11.194 %Warren County: 12.287 %Washington County: 10.151 %Watauga County: 10.465 %Wayne County: 11.204 %Wilkes County: 7.425 %Wilson County: 14.665 %Yadkin County: 8.115 %Yancey County: 17.193 %
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%, 2022. 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, 2022

Jones County: 24.949 %Jones County24.949Graham County: 22.909 %Graham County22.909Perquimans County: 20.545 %Perquimans County20.545Bladen County: 20.14 %Bladen County20.14Hyde County: 19.291 %Hyde County19.291Chowan County: 18.597 %Chowan County18.597Bertie County: 18.098 %Bertie County18.098Mitchell County: 17.639 %Mitchell County17.639Yancey County: 17.193 %Yancey County17.193Stokes County: 16.687 %Stokes County16.687Burke County: 14.827 %Burke County14.827Wilson County: 14.665 %Wilson County14.665Greene County: 14.656 %Greene County14.656Halifax County: 14.516 %Halifax County14.516Currituck County: 14.443 %Currituck County14.443Martin County: 14.261 %Martin County14.261Pender County: 14.078 %Pender County14.078Northampton County: 13.799 %Northampton County13.799Iredell County: 13.641 %Iredell County13.641Tyrrell County: 13.434 %Tyrrell County13.434Harnett County: 13.044 %Harnett County13.044Vance County: 12.831 %Vance County12.831Hertford County: 12.821 %Hertford County12.821Camden County: 12.693 %Camden County12.693Sampson County: 12.573 %Sampson County12.573Person County: 12.302 %Person County12.302Warren County: 12.287 %Warren County12.287Transylvania County: 12.057 %Transylvania County12.057Randolph County: 11.953 %Randolph County11.953Mecklenburg County: 11.917 %Mecklenburg County11.917Brunswick County: 11.831 %Brunswick County11.831Edgecombe County: 11.804 %Edgecombe County11.804Henderson County: 11.783 %Henderson County11.783Forsyth County: 11.765 %Forsyth County11.765Gates County: 11.47 %Gates County11.47Lincoln County: 11.45 %Lincoln County11.45Richmond County: 11.401 %Richmond County11.401Guilford County: 11.328 %Guilford County11.328Cleveland County: 11.217 %Cleveland County11.217Wayne County: 11.204 %Wayne County11.204Jones County: 24.949 %Jones County24.949Graham County: 22.909 %Graham County22.909Perquimans County: 20.545 %Perquimans County20.545Bladen County: 20.14 %Bladen County20.14Hyde County: 19.291 %Hyde County19.291Chowan County: 18.597 %Chowan County18.597Bertie County: 18.098 %Bertie County18.098Mitchell County: 17.639 %Mitchell County17.639Yancey County: 17.193 %Yancey County17.193Stokes County: 16.687 %Stokes County16.687Burke County: 14.827 %Burke County14.827Wilson County: 14.665 %Wilson County14.665Greene County: 14.656 %Greene County14.656Halifax County: 14.516 %Halifax County14.516Currituck County: 14.443 %Currituck County14.443Martin County: 14.261 %Martin County14.261Pender County: 14.078 %Pender County14.078Northampton County: 13.799 %Northampton County13.799Iredell County: 13.641 %Iredell County13.641Tyrrell County: 13.434 %Tyrrell County13.434Harnett County: 13.044 %Harnett County13.044Vance County: 12.831 %Vance County12.831Hertford County: 12.821 %Hertford County12.821Camden County: 12.693 %Camden County12.693Sampson County: 12.573 %Sampson County12.573Person County: 12.302 %Person County12.302Warren County: 12.287 %Warren County12.287Transylvania County: 12.057 %Transylvania County12.057Randolph County: 11.953 %Randolph County11.953Mecklenburg County: 11.917 %Mecklenburg County11.917Brunswick County: 11.831 %Brunswick County11.831Edgecombe County: 11.804 %Edgecombe County11.804Henderson County: 11.783 %Henderson County11.783Forsyth County: 11.765 %Forsyth County11.765Gates County: 11.47 %Gates County11.47Lincoln County: 11.45 %Lincoln County11.45Richmond County: 11.401 %Richmond County11.401Guilford County: 11.328 %Guilford County11.328Cleveland County: 11.217 %Cleveland County11.217Wayne County: 11.204 %Wayne County11.204
%. 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

RankCounties2022 (%)Change on 2021
1Jones County24.949+15.74 pts
2Graham County22.909-2.5 pts
3Perquimans County20.545+13.54 pts
4Bladen County20.14+13.82 pts
5Hyde County19.291+5.93 pts
6Chowan County18.597+9.93 pts
7Bertie County18.098+8.69 pts
8Mitchell County17.639+9.13 pts
9Yancey County17.193+6.91 pts
10Stokes County16.687-0.78 pts
11Burke County14.827+4.26 pts
12Wilson County14.665+1.72 pts
13Greene County14.656+4.25 pts
14Halifax County14.516+1.61 pts
15Currituck County14.443-0.85 pts
16Martin County14.261+3.49 pts
17Pender County14.078+1.65 pts
18Northampton County13.799+8.27 pts
19Iredell County13.641+1.36 pts
20Tyrrell County13.434+0.75 pts
21Harnett County13.044+1.23 pts
22Vance County12.831-1.27 pts
23Hertford County12.821+3.47 pts
24Camden County12.693-4.71 pts
25Sampson County12.573+2.47 pts
26Person County12.302-1.37 pts
27Warren County12.287+0.77 pts
28Transylvania County12.057-1.69 pts
29Randolph County11.953-0.45 pts
30Mecklenburg County11.917-4.21 pts
31Brunswick County11.831+1.49 pts
32Edgecombe County11.804+2.36 pts
33Henderson County11.783-0.82 pts
34Forsyth County11.765-1.04 pts
35Gates County11.47-5.65 pts
36Lincoln County11.45-0.99 pts
37Richmond County11.401-0.31 pts
38Guilford County11.328-2.76 pts
39Cleveland County11.217+0.53 pts
40Wayne County11.204+0.18 pts
41Wake County11.194-4.59 pts
42Gaston County11.116-3.83 pts
43Polk County11.095-4.16 pts
44Union County11.081-2.07 pts
45New Hanover County11.055-2.1 pts
46Duplin County11.025+0.41 pts
47Stanly County10.98-1.75 pts
48Cumberland County10.815-2.56 pts
49Hoke County10.749+0.06 pts
50Lee County10.732-1.91 pts
51Dare County10.729-4.23 pts
52Johnston County10.724-2.55 pts
53Anson County10.721-6.71 pts
54Robeson County10.685-3.55 pts
55Haywood County10.64-3.99 pts
56Durham County10.577-4.64 pts
57Onslow County10.566-2.88 pts
58Craven County10.534+0.59 pts
59Franklin County10.508-4.07 pts
60Watauga County10.465-2.49 pts
61Nash County10.435-2.51 pts
62Davidson County10.333-2.49 pts
63Pasquotank County10.201-3.78 pts
64Washington County10.151-1.57 pts
65Cabarrus County10.003-4.85 pts
66Swain County9.999-3.4 pts
67Carteret County9.975-1.94 pts
68Rockingham County9.937-4.44 pts
69Ashe County9.925-1.64 pts
70McDowell County9.847-1.28 pts
71Avery County9.78-1.84 pts
72Clay County9.622-5.07 pts
73Alamance County9.612-5.96 pts
74Montgomery County9.594-1.9 pts
75Pitt County9.548-2.32 pts
76Rowan County9.522-1.11 pts
77Scotland County9.515-3.71 pts
78Macon County9.511-3.88 pts
79Chatham County9.358-6.17 pts
80Catawba County9.291-2.34 pts
81Caswell County9.234-4.29 pts
82Buncombe County9.193-7.79 pts
83Jackson County9.125-2.96 pts
84Rutherford County8.927-7.11 pts
85Beaufort County8.909+0.16 pts
86Orange County8.835-5.59 pts
87Madison County8.708-7.01 pts
88Columbus County8.614-5.75 pts
89Granville County8.443+0.01 pts
90Moore County8.355-2.72 pts
91Cherokee County8.132-1.61 pts
92Yadkin County8.115-2.38 pts
93Caldwell County7.912-5.53 pts
94Davie County7.821-6.8 pts
95Alexander County7.643-0.62 pts
96Alleghany County7.572-6.77 pts
97Wilkes County7.425-5.65 pts
98Pamlico County7.235-5.61 pts
99Lenoir County7.113-3.85 pts
100Surry County5.848-3.61 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, 2022) [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, 2022. 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=2022. 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, 2022. 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=2022.

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, 2022 [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=2022 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{census_counties_in_north_carolina_2022,
  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, 2022}},
  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=2022. 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, 2022
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=2022
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/job-destruction-rate/north-carolina-counties?period=2022.
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 24.949% in 2022, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

Which county has the lowest job destruction rate?

Surry County, with 5.848% in 2022.

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