Counties in Minnesota by wages and salaries paid

Hennepin County had the highest wages and salaries paid of 87 counties in 2020, at $74.01 billion. Red Lake County had the lowest, at $43.86 million. The median was $376.39 million and the figure for Minnesota was $179.53 billion. Source: the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis.

Keep it in a collection in your library.
Highest74,007.7Hennepin County
Lowest43.9Red Lake County
Median376.487 counties
Minnesota179,529.3History

Map of counties, 2020

Aitkin County: 172.6 USD millionAnoka County: 7,517.3 USD millionBecker County: 616.1 USD millionBeltrami County: 956.5 USD millionBenton County: 858.7 USD millionBig Stone County: 77.3 USD millionBlue Earth County: 1,964.8 USD millionBrown County: 621.9 USD millionCarlton County: 643.6 USD millionCarver County: 2,386.2 USD millionCass County: 384.2 USD millionChippewa County: 247.3 USD millionChisago County: 794.4 USD millionClay County: 971.7 USD millionClearwater County: 120.3 USD millionCook County: 96.3 USD millionCottonwood County: 244.8 USD millionCrow Wing County: 1,354.2 USD millionDakota County: 11,996.2 USD millionDodge County: 318.5 USD millionDouglas County: 928.3 USD millionFaribault County: 202.3 USD millionFillmore County: 244.7 USD millionFreeborn County: 551.1 USD millionGoodhue County: 1,091.3 USD millionGrant County: 88.4 USD millionHennepin County: 74,007.7 USD millionHouston County: 212.4 USD millionHubbard County: 260.4 USD millionIsanti County: 515.7 USD millionItasca County: 730.6 USD millionJackson County: 229.7 USD millionKanabec County: 179.6 USD millionKandiyohi County: 1,070.5 USD millionKittson County: 68 USD millionKoochiching County: 212.4 USD millionLac qui Parle County: 93.3 USD millionLake County: 190.5 USD millionLake of the Woods County: 69.2 USD millionLe Sueur County: 426.4 USD millionLincoln County: 63.1 USD millionLyon County: 700.7 USD millionMcLeod County: 775.4 USD millionMahnomen County: 67.8 USD millionMarshall County: 122 USD millionMartin County: 410.3 USD millionMeeker County: 333.4 USD millionMille Lacs County: 376.4 USD millionMorrison County: 461.1 USD millionMower County: 882.9 USD millionMurray County: 130.6 USD millionNicollet County: 732.1 USD millionNobles County: 531.7 USD millionNorman County: 73.8 USD millionOlmsted County: 6,846.7 USD millionOtter Tail County: 1,030.8 USD millionPennington County: 517.5 USD millionPine County: 301.7 USD millionPipestone County: 182.1 USD millionPolk County: 564 USD millionPope County: 222.8 USD millionRamsey County: 22,754.9 USD millionRed Lake County: 43.9 USD millionRedwood County: 278 USD millionRenville County: 266.2 USD millionRice County: 1,311.6 USD millionRock County: 162.1 USD millionRoseau County: 409.2 USD millionSt. Louis County: 4,926.2 USD millionScott County: 3,115 USD millionSherburne County: 1,329.1 USD millionSibley County: 163.7 USD millionStearns County: 4,580.3 USD millionSteele County: 1,031.6 USD millionStevens County: 249.2 USD millionSwift County: 157.4 USD millionTodd County: 309.7 USD millionTraverse County: 53.2 USD millionWabasha County: 288.3 USD millionWadena County: 241.8 USD millionWaseca County: 284.7 USD millionWashington County: 4,714.5 USD millionWatonwan County: 193.2 USD millionWilkin County: 95.1 USD millionWinona County: 1,123.1 USD millionWright County: 2,247 USD millionYellow Medicine County: 157.8 USD million
  • Under 100
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  • 1,200 and over
USD million, 2020. Source: BEA, CAINC4: personal income by major component, wages and salaries (published in thousands of dollars, shown in millions), individual counties and county equivalents. Boundaries: U.S. Census Bureau cartographic boundary files.

Top 40 counties, 2020

Hennepin County: 74,007.7 USD millionHennepin County74,007.7Ramsey County: 22,754.9 USD millionRamsey County22,754.9Dakota County: 11,996.2 USD millionDakota County11,996.2Anoka County: 7,517.3 USD millionAnoka County7,517.3Olmsted County: 6,846.7 USD millionOlmsted County6,846.7St. Louis County: 4,926.2 USD millionSt. Louis County4,926.2Washington County: 4,714.5 USD millionWashington County4,714.5Stearns County: 4,580.3 USD millionStearns County4,580.3Scott County: 3,115 USD millionScott County3,115Carver County: 2,386.2 USD millionCarver County2,386.2Wright County: 2,247 USD millionWright County2,247Blue Earth County: 1,964.8 USD millionBlue Earth County1,964.8Crow Wing County: 1,354.2 USD millionCrow Wing County1,354.2Sherburne County: 1,329.1 USD millionSherburne County1,329.1Rice County: 1,311.6 USD millionRice County1,311.6Winona County: 1,123.1 USD millionWinona County1,123.1Goodhue County: 1,091.3 USD millionGoodhue County1,091.3Kandiyohi County: 1,070.5 USD millionKandiyohi County1,070.5Steele County: 1,031.6 USD millionSteele County1,031.6Otter Tail County: 1,030.8 USD millionOtter Tail County1,030.8Clay County: 971.7 USD millionClay County971.7Beltrami County: 956.5 USD millionBeltrami County956.5Douglas County: 928.3 USD millionDouglas County928.3Mower County: 882.9 USD millionMower County882.9Benton County: 858.7 USD millionBenton County858.7Chisago County: 794.4 USD millionChisago County794.4McLeod County: 775.4 USD millionMcLeod County775.4Nicollet County: 732.1 USD millionNicollet County732.1Itasca County: 730.6 USD millionItasca County730.6Lyon County: 700.7 USD millionLyon County700.7Carlton County: 643.6 USD millionCarlton County643.6Brown County: 621.9 USD millionBrown County621.9Becker County: 616.1 USD millionBecker County616.1Polk County: 564 USD millionPolk County564Freeborn County: 551.1 USD millionFreeborn County551.1Nobles County: 531.7 USD millionNobles County531.7Pennington County: 517.5 USD millionPennington County517.5Isanti County: 515.7 USD millionIsanti County515.7Morrison County: 461.1 USD millionMorrison County461.1Le Sueur County: 426.4 USD millionLe Sueur County426.4Hennepin County: 74,007.7 USD millionHennepin County74,007.7Ramsey County: 22,754.9 USD millionRamsey County22,754.9Dakota County: 11,996.2 USD millionDakota County11,996.2Anoka County: 7,517.3 USD millionAnoka County7,517.3Olmsted County: 6,846.7 USD millionOlmsted County6,846.7St. Louis County: 4,926.2 USD millionSt. Louis County4,926.2Washington County: 4,714.5 USD millionWashington County4,714.5Stearns County: 4,580.3 USD millionStearns County4,580.3Scott County: 3,115 USD millionScott County3,115Carver County: 2,386.2 USD millionCarver County2,386.2Wright County: 2,247 USD millionWright County2,247Blue Earth County: 1,964.8 USD millionBlue Earth County1,964.8Crow Wing County: 1,354.2 USD millionCrow Wing County1,354.2Sherburne County: 1,329.1 USD millionSherburne County1,329.1Rice County: 1,311.6 USD millionRice County1,311.6Winona County: 1,123.1 USD millionWinona County1,123.1Goodhue County: 1,091.3 USD millionGoodhue County1,091.3Kandiyohi County: 1,070.5 USD millionKandiyohi County1,070.5Steele County: 1,031.6 USD millionSteele County1,031.6Otter Tail County: 1,030.8 USD millionOtter Tail County1,030.8Clay County: 971.7 USD millionClay County971.7Beltrami County: 956.5 USD millionBeltrami County956.5Douglas County: 928.3 USD millionDouglas County928.3Mower County: 882.9 USD millionMower County882.9Benton County: 858.7 USD millionBenton County858.7Chisago County: 794.4 USD millionChisago County794.4McLeod County: 775.4 USD millionMcLeod County775.4Nicollet County: 732.1 USD millionNicollet County732.1Itasca County: 730.6 USD millionItasca County730.6Lyon County: 700.7 USD millionLyon County700.7Carlton County: 643.6 USD millionCarlton County643.6Brown County: 621.9 USD millionBrown County621.9Becker County: 616.1 USD millionBecker County616.1Polk County: 564 USD millionPolk County564Freeborn County: 551.1 USD millionFreeborn County551.1Nobles County: 531.7 USD millionNobles County531.7Pennington County: 517.5 USD millionPennington County517.5Isanti County: 515.7 USD millionIsanti County515.7Morrison County: 461.1 USD millionMorrison County461.1Le Sueur County: 426.4 USD millionLe Sueur County426.4
USD million. Source: BEA, CAINC4: personal income by major component, wages and salaries (published in thousands of dollars, shown in millions), individual counties and county equivalents. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Full ranking

RankCounties2020
USD million
Change on 2019
1Hennepin County74,007.7+0.3%
2Ramsey County22,754.9-1.8%
3Dakota County11,996.2-0.3%
4Anoka County7,517.3-0.2%
5Olmsted County6,846.7+1.4%
6St. Louis County4,926.2-3.3%
7Washington County4,714.5+1.4%
8Stearns County4,580.3+1.5%
9Scott County3,115+2.8%
10Carver County2,386.2-1.8%
11Wright County2,247+4.4%
12Blue Earth County1,964.8+0.5%
13Crow Wing County1,354.2+0.7%
14Sherburne County1,329.1+1.1%
15Rice County1,311.6+2.6%
16Winona County1,123.1-0.1%
17Goodhue County1,091.3-3%
18Kandiyohi County1,070.5+3.4%
19Steele County1,031.6-5.6%
20Otter Tail County1,030.8+3%
21Clay County971.7+3.4%
22Beltrami County956.5+3.3%
23Douglas County928.3+3.2%
24Mower County882.9+2%
25Benton County858.7+4%
26Chisago County794.4+3.6%
27McLeod County775.4-1.3%
28Nicollet County732.1-1.8%
29Itasca County730.6-1.1%
30Lyon County700.7+3.9%
31Carlton County643.6+0.8%
32Brown County621.9+1.1%
33Becker County616.1-3%
34Polk County564+2.1%
35Freeborn County551.1+0.6%
36Nobles County531.7+8.3%
37Pennington County517.5-0.7%
38Isanti County515.7+4.8%
39Morrison County461.1+2.5%
40Le Sueur County426.4+0.1%
41Martin County410.3+0.2%
42Roseau County409.2+4.4%
43Cass County384.2+2.4%
44Mille Lacs County376.4-1.8%
45Meeker County333.4+1.4%
46Dodge County318.5+0.3%
47Todd County309.7+3.6%
48Pine County301.7-2.6%
49Wabasha County288.3+2.4%
50Waseca County284.7+2.9%
51Redwood County278+4%
52Renville County266.2+0.6%
53Hubbard County260.4+1.7%
54Stevens County249.2+2.5%
55Chippewa County247.3-2.2%
56Cottonwood County244.8+15.7%
57Fillmore County244.7+3.9%
58Wadena County241.8+2.6%
59Jackson County229.7+0.1%
60Pope County222.8+0.4%
61Koochiching County212.4-5.9%
62Houston County212.4+1%
63Faribault County202.3+0.8%
64Watonwan County193.2+8.6%
65Lake County190.5-6.7%
66Pipestone County182.1-6.6%
67Kanabec County179.6+3.5%
68Aitkin County172.6+5.1%
69Sibley County163.7-1.7%
70Rock County162.1+2.9%
71Yellow Medicine County157.8-1.7%
72Swift County157.4-0.4%
73Murray County130.6+1.8%
74Marshall County122+8.2%
75Clearwater County120.3+0.7%
76Cook County96.3-5.2%
77Wilkin County95.1+0.2%
78Lac qui Parle County93.3+2.2%
79Grant County88.4+3.9%
80Big Stone County77.3+6.1%
81Norman County73.8+2.5%
82Lake of the Woods County69.2+2.4%
83Kittson County68+3%
84Mahnomen County67.8-10.9%
85Lincoln County63.1-7.6%
86Traverse County53.2-0.9%
87Red Lake County43.9+5.8%

Other periods

About this ranking

Total wages and salaries paid to employees for jobs located in a place, including tips, bonuses and pay in kind, before deductions, in millions of current US dollars. United States: Bureau of Economic Analysis regional accounts, table SAINC4 line 50 for the nation and states and CAINC4 line 50 for counties.

Counted where the jobs are, not where the workers live, so places with many commuters coming in can pay more in wages than their residents receive in personal income (the District of Columbia does). Excludes employer contributions to pensions, insurance and social security, and the income of the self-employed.

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. Bureau of Economic Analysis. CAINC4: personal income by major component, wages and salaries (published in thousands of dollars, shown in millions), individual counties and county equivalents. https://apps.bea.gov/regional/zip/CAINC4.zip. 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. Bureau of Economic Analysis. (2026). CAINC4: personal income by major component, wages and salaries (published in thousands of dollars, shown in millions), individual counties and county equivalents (Counties in Minnesota by wages and salaries paid, 2020) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://apps.bea.gov/regional/zip/CAINC4.zip

MLA 9

CAINC4: personal income by major component, wages and salaries (published in thousands of dollars, shown in millions), individual counties and county equivalents, Counties in Minnesota by wages and salaries paid, 2020. U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, 5 Feb. 2026, https://apps.bea.gov/regional/zip/CAINC4.zip. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/wages-and-salaries/minnesota-counties?period=2020. Accessed 12 Oct. 2026.

Chicago (author-date)

U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis. 2026. CAINC4: personal income by major component, wages and salaries (published in thousands of dollars, shown in millions), individual counties and county equivalents. Counties in Minnesota by wages and salaries paid, 2020. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://apps.bea.gov/regional/zip/CAINC4.zip. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/wages-and-salaries/minnesota-counties?period=2020.

Harvard

U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis (2026) CAINC4: personal income by major component, wages and salaries (published in thousands of dollars, shown in millions), individual counties and county equivalents, Counties in Minnesota by wages and salaries paid, 2020 [Dataset]. Available at: https://apps.bea.gov/regional/zip/CAINC4.zip, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/wages-and-salaries/minnesota-counties?period=2020 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{bureau_counties_in_minnesota_by_2020,
  author = {{U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis}},
  title = {{CAINC4: personal income by major component, wages and salaries (published in thousands of dollars, shown in millions), individual counties and county equivalents: Counties in Minnesota by wages and salaries paid, 2020}},
  year = {2026},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://apps.bea.gov/regional/zip/CAINC4.zip},
  urldate = {2026-10-12},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/wages-and-salaries/minnesota-counties?period=2020. Publisher attribution: U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis. CAINC4: personal income by major component, wages and salaries (published in thousands of dollars, shown in millions), individual counties and county equivalents. https://apps.bea.gov/regional/zip/CAINC4.zip. Retrieved 2026-10-12.},
}
RIS
TY  - DATA
AU  - U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis
TI  - CAINC4: personal income by major component, wages and salaries (published in thousands of dollars, shown in millions), individual counties and county equivalents: Counties in Minnesota by wages and salaries paid, 2020
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/02/05
PB  - U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://apps.bea.gov/regional/zip/CAINC4.zip
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/wages-and-salaries/minnesota-counties?period=2020
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/wages-and-salaries/minnesota-counties?period=2020.
N1  - Publisher attribution: U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis. CAINC4: personal income by major component, wages and salaries (published in thousands of dollars, shown in millions), individual counties and county equivalents. https://apps.bea.gov/regional/zip/CAINC4.zip. Retrieved 2026-10-12.
ER  - 
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Questions

Which county has the highest wages and salaries paid?

Hennepin County, with $74.01 billion in 2020, according to the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis.

Which county has the lowest wages and salaries paid?

Red Lake County, with $43.86 million in 2020.

Where does this ranking come from?

Every value comes from one source and one period, so the places are comparable: U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, CAINC4: personal income by major component, wages and salaries (published in thousands of dollars, shown in millions), individual counties and county equivalents. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Wages and salaries paid: other rankings

Counties in Minnesota: more rankings