King County profile

Learn about King County's unique labor market information and more.

Posted March 2025

Summary

The King County economy quickly began to bounce back from the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic. It fully recovered the jobs it lost by June 2022. Most recently, total nonfarm employment growth has slowed as policy makers shifted to contain inflation.  

Seattle is the county seat and the state’s largest city in terms of population. Its mix of older industrial companies and internet and technology companies have helped King County become the leading county employer in the state. Much of the tech employment is contained within the information industry. Over the past couple of years employment in this sector has moved from a boom period during the pandemic toward a bust period. In 2024, the information industry shed more jobs in the county than any other industry.

The Boeing Company maintains major production facilities in the Seatle area and in other parts of King County. In fall 2024, roughly 33,000 Boeing employees went on a seven-week strike through their machinist union. The strike showed up in the October numbers as a major loss. The November report reflects workers returning to their jobs.

Location

A dark blue map of Washington state with King County highlighted in orange.

King County is located on Puget Sound in western Washington state. It is bordered on the north by Snohomish County, the northeast by Chelan County, the southeast by Kittitas County, the south by Pierce County and across the Puget Sound on the west by Kitsap County.

King County is one of three Washington counties that make up the Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue metropolitan statistical area along with Pierce and Snohomish Counties. It is the most populous county in the state.

Employment situation for January 2025

Labor force and unemployment

  • The not seasonally adjusted unemployment rate was 4.0% in January 2025, up from 3.4% in December 2024 and down from 4.4% 12 months ago. The labor force expanded from January 2024 to January 2025, adding 32,763 participants (up 2.4%).

Unemployment rate, not seasonally adjusted

A chart showing the not seasonally adjusted unemployment rate for the United States, Washington and King County from January 2014 to January 2025.

Source: Employment Security Department/Labor Market Information and Research (LMIR) Division, Local area unemployment statistics

Payroll employment 

  • Total nonfarm employment decreased by 33,500 from December 2024 to January 2025.

  • Overall, employment growth has continued over the year but has been slowing.

  • Over the month, employment increased in one major industry sector and decreased in twelve. The only increase was in other services. The deepest loss was in information.

  • From January 2024 to January 2025, total nonfarm employment expanded by 7,900 or 0.5%.

  • Over the year, employment in five major industries expanded and eight contracted.

  • Employment in education and health services increased the most while employment in information declined the most.

Nonfarm employment estimates, not seasonally adjusted, King County

NAICS Industry Title Jan-25 Dec 2024 (Revised) Jan 2024 (Revised) Dec 2024 to Jan 2025 change Jan 2024 to Jan 2025 change Jan 2024 to Jan 2025 % change
Total Nonfarm  1,473,800 1,507,300 1,465,900 -33,500 7,900 0.5%
--Total Private 1,283,400 1,315,200 1,285,200 -31,800 -1,800 -0.1%
---Goods Producing 161,800 165,400 166,000 -3,600 -4,200 -2.5%
-----Mining and Logging 400 500 500 -100 -100 -20.0%
-----Construction 70,700 72,000 71,600 -1,300 -900 -1.3%
-----Manufacturing 90,700 92,900 93,900 -2,200 -3,200 -3.4%
---Service Providing 1,312,000 1,341,900 1,299,900 -29,900 12,100 0.9%
-------Wholesale Trade 59,500 60,500 60,800 -1,000 -1,300 -2.1%
-------Retail Trade 104,500 107,500 60,800 -3,000 -700 -1.2%
-------Transportation, Warehousing, and Utilities 64,100 67,800 62,300 -3,700 1,800 2.9%
-----Information 124,800 132,700 128,700 -7,900 -3,900 -3.0%
-----Financial Activities 76,000 77,700 73,000 -1,700 3,000 4.1%
-----Professional and Business Services 309,000 312,700 311,100 -3,700 -2,100 -0.7%
-----Educational and Health Services 207,700 208,400 196,600 -700 11,100 5.6%
-----Leisure and Hospitality 130,900 134,900 131,000 -4,000 -100 -0.1%
-----Other Services 51,500 51,300 48,300 200 3,200 6.6%
-----Government 190,400 192,100 180,700 -1,700 9,700 5.4%

Note: Data benchmarked through September 2024updated March 17, 2025.

Source: Employment Security Department/Labor Market Information and Research (LMIR) Division, Washington employment estimates (WA-QB & CES)

Industry employment (covered employment)

King County leads all other counties in total employment. Private sector employment accounts for about 90% of the total. The county’s largest city, Seattle, is effectively the heart of the economy. Health care is the leading private sector employer in King County as Seattle is the headquarters for many global health organizations.

Beginning in the 1980s, the Seattle area developed into a technology center. The stream of new software, biotechnology and internet companies helped move the professional, scientific and technical services sector into the second largest industry employer, and information into the third largest.

King County’s large population has encouraged employment growth in retail trade and accommodation and food services. Truck and aerospace manufacturing have also bolstered employment in the manufacturing sector.  

Employment by industry, King County 2023 annual average

 A bar graph showing the 2023 annual average industry employment in King County.

Source: Employment Security Department/Labor Market Information and Research (LMIR) Division, Covered Employment (QCEW)

Average annual covered employment in King County was 1,456,439. Covered employment refers to workers who received wages in Washington state and are eligible for state and federal unemployment insurance (UI) compensation programs.

Top five sectors in terms of employment in 2023:

  • Government (173,135)
  • Health care and social assistance (160,135)
  • Professional, scientific, and technical services (154,638)
  • Information (134,548)
  • Accommodation and food services (107,610)

Wages can vary substantially from one industry sector to another. The average annual wage in Washington state for all industries was $87,054 in 2023. The average annual wage in King County was $120,463 in 2023.

The top five sectors in terms of wage in 2023:

  • Information ($251,151)
  • Management of companies and enterprises ($212,540)
  • Professional, scientific, and technical services ($143,180)
  • Utilities ($128,826)
  • Finance and insurance ($126,493

Workforce demographics for King County

Age

Demographic characteristic Total Labor force participation rate Unemployment rate
Population 16 years and over 1,864,459 70.1% 4.6%
16 to 19 years 97,794 37.7% 15.0%
20 to 24 years 132,192 77.8% 8.2%
25 to 29 years 196,893 88.4% 4.5%
30 to 34 years 215,322 87.7% 4.3%
35 to 44 years 358,298 86.1% 3.9%
45 to 54 years 293,485 85.1% 3.5%
55 to 59 years 132,462 77.4% 3.6%
60 to 64 years 126,645 63.0% 3.6%
65 to 74 years 187,744 29.8% 3.8%
75 years and over 123,624 6.6% 3.9%

Race or Hispanic origin

Demographic characteristic Total Labor force participation rate Unemployment rate
White alone 1,102,165 68.3% 4.4%
Black or African American alone 115,064 70.1% 7.8%
American Indian and Alaska Native alone 11,177 66.8% 6.2%
Asian alone 379,899 72.2% 3.1%
Native Hawaiian and other Pacific Islander alone 13,091 72.8% 6.6%
Some other race alone 81,636 76.5% 5.6%
Two or more races 161,427 73.8% 6.2%
Hispanic or Latino origin (of any race) 176,272 76.4% 5.1%
White alone, not Hispanic or Latino 1,063,192 68.0% 4.4%
Population 20 to 64 years 1,455,297 82.9% 4.3%

Sex

Demographic characteristic Total Labor force participation rate Unemployment rate
Male 752,680 88.0% 4.4%
Female 702,617 77.4% 4.2%

Females with children

Demographic characteristic Total Labor force participation rate Unemployment rate
With own children under 18 227,645 73.2% 3.8%
With own children under 6 only 56,962 72.0% 3.5%
With own children under 6 and 6 to 17 39,256 62.8% 4.2%
With own children 6 to 17 only 131,427 76.8% 3.9%

Poverty status in the past 12 months

Demographic characteristic Total Labor force participation rate Unemployment rate
Below poverty level 113,066 48.1% 24.2%
At or above the poverty level 1,332,950 86.2% 3.3%

Disability status

Demographic characteristic Total Labor force participation rate Unemployment rate
With any disability 113,886 57.7% 10.4%

Educational attainment

Demographic characteristic Total Labor force participation rate Unemployment rate
Population 25 to 64 years 1,323,105 83.4% 3.9%
Less than high school graduate 76,288 68.9% 7.2%
High school graduate (includes equivalency) 178,879 75.7% 6.1%
Some college or associate's degree 299,536 80.1% 5.0%
Bachelor's degree or higher 768,402 87.9% 2.8%

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey, S2301 | Employment Status

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