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County Employment and Wages in Washington — Fourth Quarter 2024
Employment rose in 9 of the 10 largest counties in Washington from December 2023 to December 2024, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Regional Commissioner Chris Rosenlund noted that Benton County had the largest over-the-year increase in employment at 2.0 percent. (See chart 1 and table 1.)
Chart 1. Over-the-year percent change in covered employment among the largest counties in Washington, December 2024
County
Percent change, December 2024
Benton
2.0
Thurston
1.5
Pierce
1.4
Snohomish
1.1
Whatcom
1.0
Clark
0.9
Kitsap
0.5
Spokane
0.4
King
0.3
Yakima
-1.0
Among the 10 largest counties in Washington, employment was highest in King (1,462,800) in December 2024. Together, the 10 largest counties accounted for 84.7 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
Nine of the ten large Washington counties reported average weekly wage gains over the year. (See chart 2.) King had the largest gain (+13.2 percent). Over-the-year wage changes among Washington’s remaining nine large counties ranged from 7.2 percent -5.8 percent.
Chart 2. Over-the-year percent change in covered average weekly wages among the largest counties in Washington, fourth quarter 2024
County
Percent change, fourth quarter 2024
King
13.2
Kitsap
7.2
Clark
6.5
Benton
6.0
Whatcom
6.0
Yakima
5.6
Spokane
5.5
Thurston
5.0
Pierce
3.7
Snohomish
-5.8
Weekly wages in 2 of the 10 largest counties in Washington were above the national average of $1,507. Average weekly wages ranged from $2,671 in King to $1,053 in Yakima.
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 29 small counties in Washington, defined as having employment below 75,000 in 2023. (See table 2.) Wage levels in all 29 smaller counties were below the national average. Cowlitz reported the highest average weekly wage ($1,334). Wahkiakum reported the lowest average weekly wage ($884) in the state.
Among all 39 Washington counties, 11 reported average weekly wages of less than $1,100, 12 registered wages from $1,100 to $1,119, 6 had wages from $1,200 to $1,299, and 10 had average weekly wages of $1,300 or higher. (See map 1 and table 2.)
Map 1. Average weekly wages by county in Washington, 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.
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 the first quarter 2025 is scheduled to be released on Tuesday, September 9, 2025.
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 10 largest counties in Washington, fourth quarter 2024
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 Washington, fourth quarter 2024
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 2024
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
