Counties in Minnesota by wages and salaries paid

Hennepin County had the highest wages and salaries paid of 87 counties in 2021, at $79.37 billion. Red Lake County had the lowest, at $43.99 million. The median was $425.67 million and the figure for Minnesota was $192.14 billion. Source: the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis.

Keep it in a collection in your library.
Highest79,374.6Hennepin County
Median425.787 counties
Minnesota192,135.8History

Map of counties, 2021

Aitkin County: 190.5 USD millionAnoka County: 8,205.6 USD millionBecker County: 694.1 USD millionBeltrami County: 1,013 USD millionBenton County: 916.7 USD millionBig Stone County: 81.3 USD millionBlue Earth County: 2,080.9 USD millionBrown County: 639 USD millionCarlton County: 698.4 USD millionCarver County: 2,587.9 USD millionCass County: 669.6 USD millionChippewa County: 267.5 USD millionChisago County: 872.3 USD millionClay County: 1,017.2 USD millionClearwater County: 155.7 USD millionCook County: 104.5 USD millionCottonwood County: 260.2 USD millionCrow Wing County: 1,464.7 USD millionDakota County: 12,660 USD millionDodge County: 342 USD millionDouglas County: 1,016.4 USD millionFaribault County: 225.6 USD millionFillmore County: 264.4 USD millionFreeborn County: 568.8 USD millionGoodhue County: 1,179.4 USD millionGrant County: 90.8 USD millionHennepin County: 79,374.6 USD millionHouston County: 230.5 USD millionHubbard County: 282.8 USD millionIsanti County: 545.1 USD millionItasca County: 800.7 USD millionJackson County: 241.8 USD millionKanabec County: 190 USD millionKandiyohi County: 1,086.1 USD millionKittson County: 71.1 USD millionKoochiching County: 220.1 USD millionLac qui Parle County: 97.2 USD millionLake County: 212 USD millionLake of the Woods County: 74 USD millionLe Sueur County: 444.8 USD millionLincoln County: 65.1 USD millionLyon County: 725.1 USD millionMcLeod County: 821.5 USD millionMahnomen County: 87.6 USD millionMarshall County: 125.5 USD millionMartin County: 433 USD millionMeeker County: 372.6 USD millionMille Lacs County: 425.7 USD millionMorrison County: 486.1 USD millionMower County: 919.4 USD millionMurray County: 135.5 USD millionNicollet County: 778.9 USD millionNobles County: 548.1 USD millionNorman County: 78.5 USD millionOlmsted County: 7,339.6 USD millionOtter Tail County: 1,092.9 USD millionPennington County: 591.8 USD millionPine County: 318 USD millionPipestone County: 190.7 USD millionPolk County: 587.5 USD millionPope County: 235.2 USD millionRamsey County: 23,603.4 USD millionRed Lake County: 44 USD millionRedwood County: 294.9 USD millionRenville County: 287.6 USD millionRice County: 1,352.9 USD millionRock County: 176.7 USD millionRoseau County: 463.4 USD millionSt. Louis County: 5,322.6 USD millionScott County: 3,441.7 USD millionSherburne County: 1,439.6 USD millionSibley County: 174.1 USD millionStearns County: 4,910.1 USD millionSteele County: 1,107.8 USD millionStevens County: 256.1 USD millionSwift County: 179.5 USD millionTodd County: 331.2 USD millionTraverse County: 55.6 USD millionWabasha County: 302.8 USD millionWadena County: 258.5 USD millionWaseca County: 293.5 USD millionWashington County: 5,210.1 USD millionWatonwan County: 202.6 USD millionWilkin County: 102.9 USD millionWinona County: 1,194.5 USD millionWright County: 2,474.8 USD millionYellow Medicine County: 161 USD million
  • Under 200
  • 200 to 300
  • 300 to 400
  • 400 to 700
  • 700 to 1,300
  • 1,300 and over
USD million, 2021. 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, 2021

Hennepin County: 79,374.6 USD millionHennepin County79,374.6Ramsey County: 23,603.4 USD millionRamsey County23,603.4Dakota County: 12,660 USD millionDakota County12,660Anoka County: 8,205.6 USD millionAnoka County8,205.6Olmsted County: 7,339.6 USD millionOlmsted County7,339.6St. Louis County: 5,322.6 USD millionSt. Louis County5,322.6Washington County: 5,210.1 USD millionWashington County5,210.1Stearns County: 4,910.1 USD millionStearns County4,910.1Scott County: 3,441.7 USD millionScott County3,441.7Carver County: 2,587.9 USD millionCarver County2,587.9Wright County: 2,474.8 USD millionWright County2,474.8Blue Earth County: 2,080.9 USD millionBlue Earth County2,080.9Crow Wing County: 1,464.7 USD millionCrow Wing County1,464.7Sherburne County: 1,439.6 USD millionSherburne County1,439.6Rice County: 1,352.9 USD millionRice County1,352.9Winona County: 1,194.5 USD millionWinona County1,194.5Goodhue County: 1,179.4 USD millionGoodhue County1,179.4Steele County: 1,107.8 USD millionSteele County1,107.8Otter Tail County: 1,092.9 USD millionOtter Tail County1,092.9Kandiyohi County: 1,086.1 USD millionKandiyohi County1,086.1Clay County: 1,017.2 USD millionClay County1,017.2Douglas County: 1,016.4 USD millionDouglas County1,016.4Beltrami County: 1,013 USD millionBeltrami County1,013Mower County: 919.4 USD millionMower County919.4Benton County: 916.7 USD millionBenton County916.7Chisago County: 872.3 USD millionChisago County872.3McLeod County: 821.5 USD millionMcLeod County821.5Itasca County: 800.7 USD millionItasca County800.7Nicollet County: 778.9 USD millionNicollet County778.9Lyon County: 725.1 USD millionLyon County725.1Carlton County: 698.4 USD millionCarlton County698.4Becker County: 694.1 USD millionBecker County694.1Cass County: 669.6 USD millionCass County669.6Brown County: 639 USD millionBrown County639Pennington County: 591.8 USD millionPennington County591.8Polk County: 587.5 USD millionPolk County587.5Freeborn County: 568.8 USD millionFreeborn County568.8Nobles County: 548.1 USD millionNobles County548.1Isanti County: 545.1 USD millionIsanti County545.1Morrison County: 486.1 USD millionMorrison County486.1Hennepin County: 79,374.6 USD millionHennepin County79,374.6Ramsey County: 23,603.4 USD millionRamsey County23,603.4Dakota County: 12,660 USD millionDakota County12,660Anoka County: 8,205.6 USD millionAnoka County8,205.6Olmsted County: 7,339.6 USD millionOlmsted County7,339.6St. Louis County: 5,322.6 USD millionSt. Louis County5,322.6Washington County: 5,210.1 USD millionWashington County5,210.1Stearns County: 4,910.1 USD millionStearns County4,910.1Scott County: 3,441.7 USD millionScott County3,441.7Carver County: 2,587.9 USD millionCarver County2,587.9Wright County: 2,474.8 USD millionWright County2,474.8Blue Earth County: 2,080.9 USD millionBlue Earth County2,080.9Crow Wing County: 1,464.7 USD millionCrow Wing County1,464.7Sherburne County: 1,439.6 USD millionSherburne County1,439.6Rice County: 1,352.9 USD millionRice County1,352.9Winona County: 1,194.5 USD millionWinona County1,194.5Goodhue County: 1,179.4 USD millionGoodhue County1,179.4Steele County: 1,107.8 USD millionSteele County1,107.8Otter Tail County: 1,092.9 USD millionOtter Tail County1,092.9Kandiyohi County: 1,086.1 USD millionKandiyohi County1,086.1Clay County: 1,017.2 USD millionClay County1,017.2Douglas County: 1,016.4 USD millionDouglas County1,016.4Beltrami County: 1,013 USD millionBeltrami County1,013Mower County: 919.4 USD millionMower County919.4Benton County: 916.7 USD millionBenton County916.7Chisago County: 872.3 USD millionChisago County872.3McLeod County: 821.5 USD millionMcLeod County821.5Itasca County: 800.7 USD millionItasca County800.7Nicollet County: 778.9 USD millionNicollet County778.9Lyon County: 725.1 USD millionLyon County725.1Carlton County: 698.4 USD millionCarlton County698.4Becker County: 694.1 USD millionBecker County694.1Cass County: 669.6 USD millionCass County669.6Brown County: 639 USD millionBrown County639Pennington County: 591.8 USD millionPennington County591.8Polk County: 587.5 USD millionPolk County587.5Freeborn County: 568.8 USD millionFreeborn County568.8Nobles County: 548.1 USD millionNobles County548.1Isanti County: 545.1 USD millionIsanti County545.1Morrison County: 486.1 USD millionMorrison County486.1
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

RankCounties2021
USD million
Change on 2020
1Hennepin County79,374.6+7.3%
2Ramsey County23,603.4+3.7%
3Dakota County12,660+5.5%
4Anoka County8,205.6+9.2%
5Olmsted County7,339.6+7.2%
6St. Louis County5,322.6+8%
7Washington County5,210.1+10.5%
8Stearns County4,910.1+7.2%
9Scott County3,441.7+10.5%
10Carver County2,587.9+8.5%
11Wright County2,474.8+10.1%
12Blue Earth County2,080.9+5.9%
13Crow Wing County1,464.7+8.2%
14Sherburne County1,439.6+8.3%
15Rice County1,352.9+3.2%
16Winona County1,194.5+6.4%
17Goodhue County1,179.4+8.1%
18Steele County1,107.8+7.4%
19Otter Tail County1,092.9+6%
20Kandiyohi County1,086.1+1.5%
21Clay County1,017.2+4.7%
22Douglas County1,016.4+9.5%
23Beltrami County1,013+5.9%
24Mower County919.4+4.1%
25Benton County916.7+6.8%
26Chisago County872.3+9.8%
27McLeod County821.5+5.9%
28Itasca County800.7+9.6%
29Nicollet County778.9+6.4%
30Lyon County725.1+3.5%
31Carlton County698.4+8.5%
32Becker County694.1+12.7%
33Cass County669.6+74.3%
34Brown County639+2.7%
35Pennington County591.8+14.3%
36Polk County587.5+4.2%
37Freeborn County568.8+3.2%
38Nobles County548.1+3.1%
39Isanti County545.1+5.7%
40Morrison County486.1+5.4%
41Roseau County463.4+13.3%
42Le Sueur County444.8+4.3%
43Martin County433+5.5%
44Mille Lacs County425.7+13.1%
45Meeker County372.6+11.7%
46Dodge County342+7.4%
47Todd County331.2+6.9%
48Pine County318+5.4%
49Wabasha County302.8+5%
50Redwood County294.9+6.1%
51Waseca County293.5+3.1%
52Renville County287.6+8%
53Hubbard County282.8+8.6%
54Chippewa County267.5+8.2%
55Fillmore County264.4+8%
56Cottonwood County260.2+6.3%
57Wadena County258.5+6.9%
58Stevens County256.1+2.8%
59Jackson County241.8+5.2%
60Pope County235.2+5.6%
61Houston County230.5+8.5%
62Faribault County225.6+11.5%
63Koochiching County220.1+3.6%
64Lake County212+11.3%
65Watonwan County202.6+4.9%
66Pipestone County190.7+4.7%
67Aitkin County190.5+10.4%
68Kanabec County190+5.8%
69Swift County179.5+14.1%
70Rock County176.7+9%
71Sibley County174.1+6.4%
72Yellow Medicine County161+2%
73Clearwater County155.7+29.4%
74Murray County135.5+3.8%
75Marshall County125.5+2.9%
76Cook County104.5+8.5%
77Wilkin County102.9+8.1%
78Lac qui Parle County97.2+4.3%
79Grant County90.8+2.7%
80Mahnomen County87.6+29.3%
81Big Stone County81.3+5.1%
82Norman County78.5+6.4%
83Lake of the Woods County74+6.8%
84Kittson County71.1+4.6%
85Lincoln County65.1+3.1%
86Traverse County55.6+4.4%
87Red Lake County44+0.3%

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, 2021) [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, 2021. 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=2021. 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, 2021. 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=2021.

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, 2021 [Dataset]. Available at: https://apps.bea.gov/regional/zip/CAINC4.zip, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/wages-and-salaries/minnesota-counties?period=2021 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{bureau_counties_in_minnesota_by_2021,
  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, 2021}},
  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=2021. 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, 2021
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=2021
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/wages-and-salaries/minnesota-counties?period=2021.
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 $79.37 billion in 2021, according to the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis.

Which county has the lowest wages and salaries paid?

Red Lake County, with $43.99 million in 2021.

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