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Which counties in West Virginia are adding jobs fastest?

Wirt County (+85.5%), McDowell County (+26.6%) and Barbour County (+18.4%) added private-sector jobs fastest in West Virginia between 2018 and 2023.

Data as of 2023 · updated

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All 55 ranked West Virginia counties

West Virginia counties ranked by private-sector job growth
RankCountyChange 2018–23Private jobs 2023Residents
1Wirt County+85.5%4734,879
2McDowell County+26.6%2,25316,878
3Barbour County+18.4%3,12015,414
4Hardy County+16.1%6,01414,337
5Boone County+16.0%4,34020,251
6Summers County+15.1%1,58511,532
7Berkeley County+10.8%29,303139,522
8Mineral County+9.8%6,84926,792
9Ritchie County+9.0%2,8938,034
10Marshall County+8.6%9,65429,159
11Pleasants County+8.5%2,1617,338
12Clay County+8.1%8987,538
13Putnam County+6.8%19,03656,885
14Jefferson County+6.5%13,45763,102
15Monongalia County+5.9%50,567107,991
16Doddridge County+4.8%9317,634
17Raleigh County+4.5%26,53271,775
18Lewis County+4.3%4,62216,394
19Taylor County+4.3%2,61116,287
20Pocahontas County+2.8%3,1747,602
21Morgan County+2.7%2,17318,027
22Grant County+2.7%2,67811,041
23Mason County+2.5%3,94624,707
24Logan County+2.3%8,67330,375
25Tucker County+0.3%1,9276,540
26Mercer County+0.1%17,23157,503
27Mingo County−0.6%3,21121,455
28Harrison County−1.3%29,38664,221
29Wood County−1.4%29,78582,385
30Lincoln County−1.5%1,61219,177
31Wetzel County−2.3%3,89013,734
32Cabell County−2.6%45,74291,183
33Hampshire County−3.0%2,59324,105
34Fayette County−3.1%7,59338,165
35Upshur County−3.5%6,10123,758
36Nicholas County−4.4%5,91123,848
37Tyler County−4.8%1,3117,881
38Marion County−5.1%14,24955,584
39Randolph County−5.3%8,79026,882
40Jackson County−5.7%6,63027,450
41Greenbrier County−5.9%10,52831,578
42Pendleton County−6.1%1,0305,826
43Kanawha County−6.3%74,799172,381
44Wayne County−8.0%6,34337,309
45Wyoming County−8.8%2,50819,801
46Braxton County−9.4%2,75411,885
47Preston County−9.9%5,01234,004
48Calhoun County−10.0%8015,978
49Monroe County−10.4%1,18412,491
50Brooke County−12.8%6,04121,142
51Ohio County−13.7%23,64240,496
52Hancock County−14.3%7,48127,729
53Webster County−14.6%1,0307,760
54Roane County−15.6%1,99513,317
55Gilmer County−18.8%8467,085

How this is ranked

The change in paid employees of private employers in mid-March between 2018 and 2023 (Census Bureau County Business Patterns). Government jobs and the self-employed are not counted. Counties with fewer than 1,000 residents, or without a figure for the same period as the others, are not ranked.

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, County Business Patterns. Figures come from public federal statistics and are informational only, not investment advice. Check the source before relying on a number. Methodology: how ranks and figures are built. More on every layer: data sources and licences.

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Questions

Which county in West Virginia has the fastest job growth?

Wirt County: +85.5%, ahead of McDowell County (+26.6%) and Barbour County (+18.4%), of 55 West Virginia counties ranked.

How is this ranking calculated?

The change in paid employees of private employers in mid-March between 2018 and 2023 (Census Bureau County Business Patterns). Government jobs and the self-employed are not counted. Counties with fewer than 1,000 residents, or without a figure for the same period as the others, are not ranked.

More county rankings for West Virginia

Private-sector job growth in other states

Across the U.S.