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County Employment and Wages in North Dakota — Fourth Quarter 2025
Employment declined 0.4 percent in North Dakota’s only large county, Cass, from December 2024 to December 2025, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Assistant Commissioner for Regional Operations Michael Hirniak noted that the rate of employment growth in Cass ranked 221st among the 366 largest U.S. counties with published data. (See table 1.)
Employment in Cass stood at 129,300 in December 2025, accounting for 30 percent of total employment in North Dakota. Nationwide, the 372 largest counties comprise 73.4 percent of total covered employment in the United States. (Large counties and county equivalents are those with annual average employment levels of 75,000 or more in 2024.)
Large county average weekly wages in the fourth quarter 2025
The average weekly wage in Cass increased 3.5 percent over the year to $1,368. The national average was $1,569, up 4.2 percent over the year. Cass County’s weekly wage ranked 189th nationally, and the percent change ranked 246th among the largest U.S. counties.
Smaller county average weekly wages in the fourth quarter of 2025
Employment and wage levels (but not over-the-year changes) are also available for the 52 small counties in North Dakota, defined as having employment below 75,000 in 2024. (See table 2.) Wage levels for 47 of the 52 smaller counties were below the national average. Oliver reported the highest average weekly wage ($2,021) in the state. Sheridan reported the lowest average weekly wage ($758).
Among all 53 North Dakota counties, 10 reported average weekly wages of less than $1,050, 15 registered wages from $1,050 to $1,174, 14 had wages from $1,175 to $1,299, and 14 had average weekly wages of $1,300 or higher. (See map 1 and table 2.)
Map 1. Average weekly wages by county in North Dakota, fourth quarter 2025
(U.S. average = $1,569)
Additional statistics and other information
QCEW data for states have been included in this release in table 3.
Footnotes: (1) Average weekly wages were calculated using unrounded data. (2) Percent changes were computed from employment and pay data adjusted for noneconomic county reclassifications. (3) Ranking does not include data for Puerto Rico or the Virgin Islands. (4) Totals for the United States do not include data for Puerto Rico or the Virgin Islands.
Note: Data are preliminary. Dashes indicate data not applicable or available. Covered employment and wages include workers covered by Unemployment Insurance (UI) and Unemployment Compensation for Federal Employees (UCFE) programs.
Table 2. Covered establishments, employment, and wages in the United States and all counties in North Dakota, fourth quarter 2025
Footnotes: (1) Average weekly wages were calculated using unrounded data. (2) Totals for the United States do not include data for Puerto Rico or the Virgin Islands.
Note: Data are preliminary. Dashes indicate data not applicable or available. Covered employment and wages include workers covered by Unemployment Insurance (UI) and Unemployment Compensation for Federal Employees (UCFE) programs.
Table 3. Covered establishments, employment, and wages by state, fourth quarter 2025
Footnotes: (1) Average weekly wages were calculated using unrounded data. (2) Totals for the United States do not include data for Puerto Rico or the Virgin Islands. (3) Data not included in the national ranking.
Note: Data are preliminary. Dashes indicate data not applicable or available. Covered employment and wages include workers covered by Unemployment Insurance (UI) and Unemployment Compensation for Federal Employees (UCFE) programs.
United States Department of Labor
