BLS - U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics

09/04/2026 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 09/04/2026 10:32

County Employment and Wages in North Dakota — First Quarter 2026

News Release Information

26-1438-CHI
Friday, September 04, 2026

Contacts Technical information: Media contact:
  • (312) 353-1138

County Employment and Wages in North Dakota - First Quarter 2026

Employment declined 0.6 percent in Cass, the only large county in North Dakota, from March 2025 to March 2026, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. North Dakota employment decreased 0.5 percent over the year to 420,700 in March 2026, as measured by the Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW) program. (see table 1.) Assistant Commissioner for Regional Operations Michael Hirniak noted that the rate of employment growth in Cass ranked 240th among the 371 largest U.S. counties with published data.

Employment in Cass stood at 126,700 in March 2026, accounting for 30.1 percent of total employment in North Dakota. Nationwide, the 376 largest counties comprise 73.5 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 2025.)

Large county average weekly wages in the first quarter 2026

The average weekly wage in Cass increased 3.1 percent over the year to $1,376. The national average was $1,654, up 3.9 percent over the year. Cass's weekly wage ranked 189th nationally, and the percent change ranked 216th among the largest U.S. counties.

Statewide, average weekly wages increased 2.4 percent over the year to $1,333. North Dakota ranked 33rd in average weekly wages among the 50 states and the District of Columbia and 49th in wage growth.

Smaller county average weekly wages in the first quarter 2026

Employment and wage levels (but not over-the-year changes) are also available for the 52 smaller counties in North Dakota, defined as having employment below 75,000 in 2025. (See table 2.) Wage levels in 47 of the 52 smaller counties were below the national average. Dunn reported the highest average weekly wage ($2,002) in the state. Logan reported the lowest average weekly wage ($773).

Among all 53 North Dakota counties, 10 reported average weekly wages less than $975, 20 had wages from $975 to $1,099, 9 had wages from $1,100 to $1,224, and 14 had average weekly wages of $1,225 or higher. (See map 1 and table 2.)

Map 1. Average weekly wages by county in North Dakota, first quarter 2026

(U.S. average = $1,654)

Additional statistics and other information

QCEW data for all 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.

If you are deaf, hard of hearing, or have a speech disability, please dial 7-1-1 to access telecommunications relay services.

The County Employment and Wages release for the second quarter 2026 is scheduled to be released on Wednesday, December 2, 2026.

County Changes for the 2026 County Employment and Wages News Releases

Counties with annual average employment of 75,000 or more in 2025 are included in this release and will be included in future 2026 releases. Five counties have been added to the publication tables: Kenton, KY; Union, NC; Licking, OH; Gregg, TX; and Kenosha, WI. One county has been dropped from the publication tables: Wood, OH.

Table 1. Covered establishments, employment, and wages in the United States and the largest county in North Dakota, first quarter 2026
Area Establishments,
first quarter
(thousands) 		Employment Average weekly wage (1)
March 2026
(thousands) 		Percent change,
March
2025-26 (2) 		National ranking
by percent change (3) 		First quarter
2026 ($) 		National ranking
by level (3) 		Percent change,
first quarter
2025-26 (2) 		National ranking
by percent change (3)

United States (4)

12,381.8 154,771.9 0.1 -- 1,654 -- 3.9 --

North Dakota

36.9 420.7 -0.5 -- 1,333 33 2.4 49

Cass

9.7 126.7 -0.6 240 1,376 189 3.1 216

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, first quarter 2026
Area Establishments Employment March 2026 Average weekly wage ($) (1)

United States (2)

12,381,750 154,771,941 1,654

North Dakota

36,905 420,702 1,333

Adams

121 837 997

Barnes

452 4,319 999

Benson

144 1,996 1,004

Billings

79 561 1,177

Bottineau

340 2,488 979

Bowman

207 1,363 1,009

Burke

127 662 1,441

Burleigh

4,501 57,385 1,346

Cass

9,668 126,659 1,376

Cavalier

178 1,238 1,002

Dickey

326 3,024 1,471

Divide

117 671 1,150

Dunn

219 1,980 2,002

Eddy

97 700 858

Emmons

172 882 1,009

Foster

179 1,520 1,050

Golden Valley

91 628 924

Grand Forks

2,818 40,695 1,204

Grant

112 622 995

Griggs

113 739 971

Hettinger

151 704 912

Kidder

125 650 967

LaMoure

241 1,426 922

Logan

113 631 773

McHenry

234 1,243 1,064

McIntosh

135 1,000 921

McKenzie

844 11,125 1,818

McLean

418 3,452 1,374

Mercer

328 4,176 1,661

Morton

1,233 12,010 1,126

Mountrail

496 5,040 1,563

Nelson

183 990 949

Oliver

68 680 1,877

Pembina

402 3,146 1,197

Pierce

192 1,605 1,013

Ramsey

531 5,380 1,017

Ransom

261 1,944 1,010

Renville

144 686 984

Richland

705 7,634 1,095

Rolette

298 4,607 1,018

Sargent

184 2,513 1,483

Sheridan

48 191 793

Sioux

81 1,515 1,138

Slope

14 91 1,093

Stark

1,588 18,719 1,349

Steele

84 504 1,151

Stutsman

882 10,828 1,175

Towner

98 654 1,007

Traill

399 3,518 1,171

Walsh

522 4,506 1,059

Ward

2,671 30,481 1,234

Wells

214 1,425 1,088

Williams

2,192 25,925 1,767

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, first quarter 2026
State Establishments,
first quarter
(thousands) 		Employment Average weekly wage (1)
March 2026
(thousands) 		Percent change,
March
2025-26 		First quarter
2026 ($) 		National ranking
by level 		Percent change,
first quarter
2025-26 		National ranking
by percent change

United States (2)

12,381.8 154,771.9 0.1 1,654 -- 3.9 --

Alabama

168.7 2,121.2 0.7 1,292 38 3.6 28

Alaska

25.4 320.1 -1.3 1,519 18 4.8 6

Arizona

227.8 3,249.1 -0.6 1,495 21 4.5 10

Arkansas

109.4 1,305.2 -0.1 1,291 39 4.6 8

California

1,990.7 18,211.8 0.9 1,986 6 2.7 44

Colorado

264.7 2,848.5 -0.7 1,774 8 5.4 4

Connecticut

150.0 1,668.2 -0.4 2,080 4 5.2 5

Delaware

47.1 473.6 -0.3 1,606 15 3.1 39

District of Columbia

51.4 715.8 -4.5 2,725 1 4.5 10

Florida

894.1 9,962.8 0.0 1,518 19 4.3 13

Georgia

397.4 4,865.2 0.0 1,539 17 3.3 34

Hawaii

64.6 643.9 -0.3 1,387 29 1.7 51

Idaho

100.8 867.9 1.9 1,254 44 6.2 2

Illinois

389.4 5,992.4 0.0 1,731 9 4.1 16

Indiana

197.7 3,160.7 -0.1 1,356 30 2.7 44

Iowa

110.8 1,537.5 -0.1 1,301 36 3.9 22

Kansas

102.2 1,425.3 0.0 1,286 41 3.1 39

Kentucky

163.0 1,979.1 -0.4 1,248 45 2.9 43

Louisiana

159.6 1,917.2 -0.5 1,274 42 4.0 17

Maine

67.5 629.1 -0.5 1,327 34 3.5 30

Maryland

201.1 2,700.3 -1.7 1,676 10 2.7 44

Massachusetts

296.4 3,552.9 -0.9 2,201 3 4.8 6

Michigan

312.6 4,357.5 0.3 1,445 24 3.9 22

Minnesota

213.9 2,878.1 -0.3 1,630 14 3.8 24

Mississippi

93.3 1,162.9 -0.2 1,051 51 3.3 34

Missouri

263.5 2,890.5 0.1 1,354 31 3.4 32

Montana

63.2 506.6 0.6 1,229 48 3.5 30

Nebraska

78.9 1,008.2 -0.1 1,274 42 3.7 26

Nevada

112.8 1,575.7 2.0 1,391 28 2.1 50

New Hampshire

66.1 675.0 -1.2 1,656 12 3.0 41

New Jersey

343.4 4,247.8 0.0 1,879 7 3.3 34

New Mexico

67.1 867.4 -0.4 1,235 46 2.7 44

New York

710.5 9,743.6 -0.3 2,363 2 6.5 1

North Carolina

375.3 4,942.7 0.8 1,515 20 3.3 34

North Dakota

36.9 420.7 -0.5 1,333 33 2.4 49

Ohio

344.6 5,458.3 -0.2 1,417 26 4.0 17

Oklahoma

130.2 1,700.6 0.0 1,235 46 3.6 28

Oregon

173.5 1,952.3 -1.3 1,481 23 4.6 8

Pennsylvania

394.1 6,002.1 -0.1 1,550 16 3.3 34

Rhode Island

49.1 486.9 -0.6 1,487 22 4.2 14

South Carolina

193.1 2,326.6 0.7 1,296 37 4.0 17

South Dakota

41.1 451.7 0.2 1,211 49 4.2 14

Tennessee

228.1 3,254.1 -0.2 1,426 25 4.4 12

Texas

868.8 14,124.6 0.6 1,646 13 3.8 24

Utah

140.6 1,737.8 0.9 1,415 27 4.0 17

Vermont

33.4 304.2 -1.0 1,322 35 3.0 41

Virginia

324.8 4,118.7 -0.2 1,665 11 4.0 17

Washington

240.6 3,558.6 -0.2 1,998 5 2.7 44

West Virginia

63.0 693.3 -0.4 1,188 50 3.4 32

Wisconsin

208.0 2,902.6 0.0 1,353 32 3.7 26

Wyoming

31.8 275.2 -0.1 1,287 40 5.8 3

Puerto Rico

52.9 944.5 -0.8 724 (3) 3.4 (3)

Virgin Islands

2.9 34.9 1.2 1,054 (3) 1.5 (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.

BLS - U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics published this content on September 04, 2026, and is solely responsible for the information contained herein. Distributed via Public Technologies (PUBT), unedited and unaltered, on September 04, 2026 at 16:32 UTC. If you believe the information included in the content is inaccurate or outdated and requires editing or removal, please contact us at [email protected]