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News Release Information

25-935-ATL
Tuesday, June 10, 2025

Contacts Technical information: Media contact:
  • (404) 893-4220

County Employment and Wages in Georgia — Fourth Quarter 2024

Employment rose in 8 of the 11 largest counties in Georgia from December 2023 to December 2024, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Regional Commissioner Victoria G. Lee noted that Fulton County had the largest over-the-year increase in employment at 1.3 percent. (See chart 1 and table 1.)


Among the 11 largest counties in Georgia, employment was highest in Fulton (960,600) in December 2024. Together, the 11 largest counties accounted for 57.3 percent of total covered employment within the state. Nationwide, the 369 largest counties comprise 73.3 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 2023.)

Large county average weekly wages in the fourth quarter 2024

All 11 large Georgia counties reported average weekly wage gains over the year. (See chart 2.) Clayton, Hall, and Muscogee had the largest gains (+5.3 percent each). Over-the-year wage gains among Georgia’s other eight large counties ranged from 4.8 percent to 3.0 percent.


Weekly wages in 3 of the 11 largest counties in Georgia were above the national average of $1,507. Average weekly wages ranged from $1,927 in Fulton to $1,076 in Muscogee.

Smaller county average weekly wages in the fourth quarter of 2024

Employment and wage levels (but not over-the-year changes) are also available for the 148 small counties in Georgia, defined as having employment below 75,000 in 2023. (See table 2.) Wage levels in all 148 smaller counties were below the national average. Burke reported the highest average weekly wage ($1,478). Taliaferro reported the lowest average weekly wage ($711) in the state.

Among all 159 Georgia counties, 23 reported average weekly wages of less than $875, 42 registered wages from $875 to $949, 33 had wages from $950 to $1,024, 28 had wages from $1,025 to $1,099, and 33 had average weekly wages of $1,100 or higher. (See map 1 and table 2.)

Map 1. Average weekly wages by county in Georgia, fourth quarter 2024

(U.S. average = $1,507)

Additional statistics and other information

QCEW data for states have been included in this release in table 3.

Nationwide coverage of the largest counties is published in the County Employment and Wages news release. Additional information about quarterly employment and wages data is available in the news release Technical Note and from the Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages website.

Information in this release will be made available to individuals with sensory impairments upon request. Voice phone: (202) 691-5200; Telecommunications Relay Service: 7-1-1.

The County Employment and Wages release for first quarter 2025 is scheduled to be released on Tuesday, September 9, 2025, at 10:00 a.m. (ET).

QCEW Moves to One Data Release Beginning with Fourth Quarter 2024 Publication

The Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW) is streamlining its release process. Beginning with the fourth quarter 2024 national release on June 4, QCEW will publish the national County Employment and Wages news release on the same date as the QCEW full data update. Revised news release dates are available online.

Table 1. Covered establishments, employment, and wages in the United States and the 11 largest counties in Georgia, fourth quarter 2024
Area Establishments,
fourth quarter
(thousands)
Employment Average weekly wage (1)
December 2024
(thousands)
Percent change,
December
2023–24 (2)
National ranking
by percent change (3)
Fourth quarter
2024 ($)
National ranking
by level (3)
Percent change,
fourth quarter
2023–24 (2)
National ranking
by percent change (3)

United States (4)

12,265.4 156,202.9 0.8 -- 1,507 -- 5.0 --

Georgia

396.6 4,916.6 0.8 -- 1,391 21 4.7 21

Bibb

4.8 79.2 -1.4 355 1,131 329 3.5 245

Chatham

11.0 172.4 0.4 206 1,246 249 4.0 203

Clayton

5.2 130.4 -1.6 358 1,434 125 5.3 89

Cobb

28.7 386.0 1.1 91 1,533 76 4.1 193

DeKalb

23.6 313.0 0.7 159 1,531 77 4.7 140

Forsyth

9.2 89.9 1.1 91 1,322 187 3.2 276

Fulton

76.6 960.6 1.3 69 1,927 16 4.8 130

Gwinnett

34.5 390.4 0.8 144 1,337 178 3.6 242

Hall

6.0 102.7 0.2 238 1,322 187 5.3 89

Muscogee

5.5 89.7 -0.9 340 1,076 347 5.3 89

Richmond

5.2 104.9 0.3 221 1,157 320 3.0 299

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 Georgia, fourth quarter 2024
Area Establishments Employment December 2024 Average weekly wage ($) (1)

United States (2)

12,265,395 156,202,874 1,507

Georgia

396,570 4,916,620 1,391

Appling

506 7,616 1,201

Atkinson

127 2,078 990

Bacon

288 3,669 1,044

Baker

71 472 981

Baldwin

1,004 16,389 871

Banks

390 4,936 908

Barrow

1,766 24,726 1,117

Bartow

3,027 46,429 1,172

Ben Hill

369 5,603 906

Berrien

323 3,833 813

Bibb

4,786 79,222 1,131

Bleckley

221 3,348 937

Brantley

264 2,573 918

Brooks

323 3,328 1,010

Bryan

1,111 12,042 1,036

Bulloch

1,964 28,793 952

Burke

471 7,399 1,478

Butts

556 8,609 975

Calhoun

129 1,238 959

Camden

1,219 15,999 1,055

Candler

281 2,974 915

Carroll

2,779 46,308 1,130

Catoosa

1,249 16,106 925

Charlton

196 2,042 941

Chatham

10,999 172,403 1,246

Chattahoochee

134 2,052 979

Chattooga

392 5,047 866

Cherokee

8,221 75,145 1,116

Clarke

4,025 74,939 1,144

Clay

77 583 770

Clayton

5,214 130,388 1,434

Clinch

181 2,442 921

Cobb

28,662 386,018 1,533

Coffee

1,033 17,958 960

Colquitt

1,176 15,712 920

Columbia

3,578 39,778 1,029

Cook

418 4,568 878

Coweta

3,734 48,987 1,098

Crawford

154 1,267 860

Crisp

616 8,540 937

Dade

322 4,727 965

Dawson

1,054 11,759 853

Decatur

822 8,587 902

DeKalb

23,637 312,950 1,531

Dodge

384 4,907 800

Dooly

231 2,712 907

Dougherty

2,631 46,710 1,058

Douglas

3,539 51,726 1,201

Early

278 3,642 1,189

Echols

61 661 957

Effingham

1,211 14,064 1,102

Elbert

553 5,979 920

Emanuel

481 7,187 904

Evans

285 4,499 915

Fannin

839 7,546 909

Fayette

4,895 49,078 1,176

Floyd

2,465 45,372 977

Forsyth

9,191 89,875 1,322

Franklin

612 8,151 944

Fulton

76,617 960,602 1,927

Gilmer

839 8,184 867

Glascock

47 393 758

Glynn

3,346 42,534 1,072

Gordon

1,247 25,218 1,108

Grady

585 5,762 897

Greene

631 7,175 1,126

Gwinnett

34,451 390,376 1,337

Habersham

1,168 15,439 956

Hall

6,034 102,704 1,322

Hancock

98 1,481 861

Haralson

618 7,753 1,074

Harris

595 6,680 961

Hart

610 8,113 1,008

Heard

178 2,187 1,173

Henry

5,535 79,120 1,051

Houston

3,510 66,389 1,100

Irwin

164 1,877 1,006

Jackson

2,171 48,033 1,037

Jasper

272 2,459 811

Jeff Davis

287 4,240 938

Jefferson

415 4,830 977

Jenkins

131 1,637 951

Johnson

143 1,378 846

Jones

419 4,210 970

Lamar

362 4,485 1,009

Lanier

129 1,380 985

Laurens

1,239 19,933 1,049

Lee

620 7,430 982

Liberty

1,110 19,864 1,054

Lincoln

192 1,451 882

Long

142 1,432 845

Lowndes

3,340 49,552 979

Lumpkin

722 8,808 1,015

McDuffie

504 7,003 878

McIntosh

252 1,804 910

Macon

237 2,802 1,081

Madison

511 4,166 906

Marion

125 1,231 845

Meriwether

417 4,892 1,188

Miller

166 1,974 1,100

Mitchell

486 6,581 968

Monroe

692 8,295 1,083

Montgomery

144 1,561 804

Morgan

704 8,895 1,042

Murray

537 8,251 897

Muscogee

5,460 89,660 1,076

Newton

2,157 27,929 1,092

Oconee

1,647 16,305 1,070

Oglethorpe

253 2,115 916

Paulding

3,066 30,395 1,001

Peach

655 10,371 1,197

Pickens

946 9,364 1,097

Pierce

447 4,545 907

Pike

399 3,512 1,063

Polk

819 11,176 977

Pulaski

230 2,925 941

Putnam

631 6,494 1,011

Quitman

47 336 743

Rabun

629 5,626 841

Randolph

169 1,738 893

Richmond

5,176 104,943 1,157

Rockdale

2,602 35,102 1,236

Schley

80 1,038 890

Screven

301 2,950 883

Seminole

228 2,291 922

Spalding

1,503 23,601 1,007

Stephens

646 8,363 1,001

Stewart

88 1,681 1,080

Sumter

729 9,937 912

Talbot

105 942 947

Taliaferro

27 207 711

Tattnall

425 5,743 1,047

Taylor

184 1,561 1,067

Telfair

229 2,095 865

Terrell

230 2,112 933

Thomas

1,754 20,997 1,093

Tift

1,219 22,103 1,030

Toombs

781 12,358 968

Towns

373 3,375 903

Treutlen

100 1,124 922

Troup

1,850 42,989 1,185

Turner

209 1,808 938

Twiggs

118 1,662 867

Union

778 7,916 918

Upson

529 7,228 971

Walker

917 14,904 917

Walton

2,379 26,482 1,116

Ware

1,015 14,674 920

Warren

103 1,665 1,134

Washington

438 6,422 1,022

Wayne

695 8,887 1,008

Webster

45 470 1,090

Wheeler

84 1,025 912

White

862 9,318 817

Whitfield

2,755 58,236 1,092

Wilcox

116 1,223 806

Wilkes

248 2,677 1,033

Wilkinson

176 2,931 1,163

Worth

371 3,074 816

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. 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 2024
State Establishments,
fourth quarter
(thousands)
Employment Average weekly wage (1)
December 2024
(thousands)
Percent change,
December
2023–24
Fourth quarter
2024 ($)
National ranking
by level
Percent change,
fourth quarter
2023–24
National ranking
by percent change

United States (2)

12,265.4 156,202.9 0.8 1,507 -- 5.0 --

Alabama

162.3 2,122.2 0.9 1,255 36 4.1 32

Alaska

25.3 317.4 1.7 1,430 16 4.2 30

Arizona

225.5 3,272.3 1.2 1,406 19 6.4 6

Arkansas

106.1 1,312.6 1.1 1,153 50 5.9 10

California

1,903.9 18,230.8 0.5 1,872 5 6.5 5

Colorado

236.6 2,911.3 -0.3 1,594 8 5.1 16

Connecticut

150.7 1,700.7 0.5 1,716 6 5.2 15

Delaware

45.2 480.6 1.5 1,437 15 4.5 24

District of Columbia

52.4 757.2 -0.5 2,495 1 4.7 21

Florida

914.8 9,978.9 0.9 1,405 20 5.7 13

Georgia

396.6 4,916.6 0.8 1,391 21 4.7 21

Hawaii

61.4 651.3 1.1 1,345 27 4.3 26

Idaho

103.9 859.1 0.5 1,232 39 8.3 3

Illinois

411.2 6,089.1 0.5 1,538 12 4.1 32

Indiana

194.6 3,201.9 0.4 1,222 44 4.4 25

Iowa

112.5 1,559.3 -0.6 1,237 38 3.2 50

Kansas

103.5 1,445.6 0.9 1,218 45 4.3 26

Kentucky

159.0 2,008.4 0.2 1,189 46 3.8 39

Louisiana

156.8 1,936.3 1.1 1,228 40 2.8 51

Maine

66.2 643.9 0.9 1,278 33 5.9 10

Maryland

197.0 2,779.9 1.6 1,570 10 4.2 30

Massachusetts

288.5 3,646.1 -0.4 1,890 3 4.7 21

Michigan

303.4 4,406.8 -0.1 1,370 23 4.1 32

Minnesota

215.1 2,945.4 1.1 1,452 14 3.7 42

Mississippi

90.9 1,174.3 0.2 1,023 51 4.1 32

Missouri

251.5 2,922.2 0.5 1,268 35 3.8 39

Montana

65.8 512.8 0.5 1,254 37 6.4 6

Nebraska

78.0 1,024.8 0.5 1,227 41 3.5 45

Nevada

108.1 1,561.5 0.4 1,350 25 6.1 9

New Hampshire

68.7 692.4 0.4 1,577 9 3.3 49

New Jersey

339.1 4,332.2 0.9 1,629 7 3.4 47

New Mexico

68.9 873.8 0.3 1,223 42 5.0 17

New York

711.5 9,777.3 1.5 1,881 4 5.4 14

North Carolina

384.0 4,941.9 0.5 1,358 24 5.8 12

North Dakota

36.9 431.1 0.9 1,315 30 3.8 39

Ohio

346.3 5,551.7 0.6 1,305 32 4.8 20

Oklahoma

129.7 1,713.2 0.8 1,168 48 4.1 32

Oregon

190.9 1,989.6 0.0 1,424 17 6.6 4

Pennsylvania

395.1 6,076.5 0.8 1,414 18 4.0 37

Rhode Island

48.9 500.8 1.6 1,348 26 3.5 45

South Carolina

195.3 2,310.1 1.4 1,223 42 6.2 8

South Dakota

40.6 459.7 0.9 1,181 47 3.9 38

Tennessee

232.2 3,320.3 0.9 1,372 22 5.0 17

Texas

846.0 14,129.7 1.5 1,488 13 4.3 26

Utah

142.6 1,735.8 1.3 1,333 29 3.7 42

Vermont

33.7 311.2 0.0 1,311 31 4.9 19

Virginia

320.9 4,142.6 1.2 1,546 11 4.3 26

Washington

241.5 3,612.0 0.8 1,897 2 8.7 2

West Virginia

62.7 701.4 0.2 1,159 49 3.4 47

Wisconsin

212.2 2,950.8 0.4 1,278 33 3.6 44

Wyoming

31.1 279.4 0.5 1,340 28 12.4 1

Puerto Rico

51.6 975.4 -0.2 718 (3) 4.5 (3)

Virgin Islands

3.0 33.1 -8.6 1,046 (3) 1.8 (3)

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.

 

Last Modified Date: Tuesday, June 10, 2025