Employment in Arizona’s three largest counties showed mixed trends between March 2024 and March 2025, according to data released by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Pinal County was the only one among them to see job growth, with a 2.2 percent increase over the year.
Maricopa County recorded the highest employment numbers in March 2025, with 2,298,000 jobs. The three largest counties—Maricopa, Pima, and Pinal—together made up nearly 85 percent of all covered employment in Arizona. Across the United States, large counties account for about 73 percent of total covered employment.
Average weekly wages rose in all three large Arizona counties during this period. Pinal County saw the biggest increase at 5 percent, while Maricopa’s wages grew by 3.6 percent and Pima’s by 2.8 percent.
Despite these gains, average weekly wages in each of these counties remained below the national average of $1,589 per week. In Maricopa County, the figure stood at $1,510; in Pinal it was $1,164.
For Arizona’s smaller counties—those with fewer than 75,000 jobs as of 2024—employment and wage levels were also reported. Greenlee County had the highest average weekly wage among small counties at $2,111. Navajo County had the lowest at $949.
Statewide analysis showed that out of all fifteen Arizona counties: three had average weekly wages under $1,000; four ranged from $1,000 to $1,099; another four were between $1,100 and $1,199; and four reached or exceeded $1,200 per week.
“Regional Commissioner Chris Rosenlund noted that Pinal County had an over-the-year increase in employment of 2.2 percent.”
Further details on county-level employment and wage statistics are available through official releases from the Bureau of Labor Statistics and its Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages program.
The next update covering data for the second quarter of 2025 is expected on December 3.
