The county economy from official statistics, with source and year on every table.
Click any dot to open that city: jobs, pay, rent, commute, county economy and climate. Dot size follows population; colours follow the state flag.
By AtiveSite · Published 07/11/2026 · Updated 07/11/2026 · Every figure is linked to its source below.
Chittenden County is a county of Vermont with 169,758 residents. Its economy produced $16,404 million in 2024 (ranked #1 of 14 counties) and had 103,301 jobs with an average annual pay of $73,186 (#1 for pay). The unemployment rate was 2.2% in 2026M09. It is part of the Burlington-South Burlington, VT metropolitan area (central county).
Chittenden County produced about $16,404 million of goods and services in 2024, which is 35.4% of the combined output of the 14 counties of Vermont that BEA reports (about 26.2% of the state's population lives here), and ranks it 1st of 14 on that measure. Per resident that is $96,629, 35% above the state average; the average for all counties of the state taken together is $71,512. In current dollars output grew 5.5% from 2023 to 2024, before adjusting for inflation.
BLS counts 103,301 jobs located in Chittenden County on average in 2024, spread over 9,418 employer sites (about 11 jobs per site). That is 0.61 jobs for every resident, above the 0.41 of the typical county in Vermont, which tells you whether the county is a place people mostly commute to for work or a place they commute from. The average annual pay per job was $73,186, 13% above the average of all counties in the state ($73,186 against $64,611). Average pay is total wages divided by jobs, so it is pulled up by high earners and counts part-time jobs as whole jobs; it is not the pay of a typical worker. The number of jobs rose 0.1% from 2023 to 2024.
The three largest private industries are health care and social assistance (20.3% of private jobs, $76,247 a year on average), retail trade (12.9% of private jobs, $43,817 a year on average), professional and technical services (10.4% of private jobs, $123,463 a year on average). Together they hold 43.7% of private-sector jobs. Among industries with at least 3% of jobs, the best paying is finance and insurance at $138,718 a year, followed by professional and technical services ($123,463). Several of the biggest employers pay well below the county average: retail trade ($43,817), accommodation and food services ($30,636). Jobs there are plentiful but the pay is lower than the headline average suggests.
In 2026M09 the unemployment rate in Chittenden County was 2.2%, 14% below the average of the state's counties (2.2% against 2.6%). The labour force (people working or looking for work) numbered 96,362. Over the last 12 months it ranged from 1.9% (2026M03) to 2.4% (2026M01); the latest month is preliminary and BLS revises it. These county rates are not seasonally adjusted, so compare the same month across years.
The median household income was $96,759 (ACS 2020–2024), 19% above the state median ($96,759 against $81,203). The guide covers 6 cities with this as the main county: Burlington, South Burlington, Essex Junction, Winooski, Shelburne, Milton. Open any of them for rent, home values, commuting and climate. Within the county, median rent runs from $1,439 in Shelburne to $1,787 in South Burlington, so where you live matters as much as which county you pick.
Counties close to Chittenden County in output are Washington County, Rutland County. Compare their jobs, pay and unemployment on their own pages.
| Measure ⇅ | Value ⇅ | Rank among the 14 counties of Vermont ⇅ |
|---|---|---|
| Population | 169,758 | 1 of 14 |
| GDP 2024 | $16,404 million | 1 of 14 |
| GDP per resident | $96,629 | 1 of 14 |
| Jobs (QCEW 2024) | 103,301 | 1 of 14 |
| Average annual pay | $73,186 | 1 of 14 |
| Job change vs 2023 | +0.1% | 9 of 14 |
| Unemployment rate (lower is better) | 2.2% | 1 of 14 |
| Median household income | $96,759 | 2 of 14 |
Federal jobs in Vermont (113) →All cities of VermontState guide: Vermont
These links go to official sources and open in a new window. The first one is the government's or company's own site as listed in Wikidata (property "official website"); check it before relying on it.
Cities of this guide whose main county is Chittenden County.
| City ⇅ | Population ⇅ | Median household income ⇅ | Median rent ⇅ | Median home value ⇅ | Bachelor's+ ⇅ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Burlington | 44,675 | $71,109 | $1,649 | $444,800 | 60.5% |
| South Burlington | 20,756 | $106,667 | $1,787 | $443,400 | 67.5% |
| Essex Junction | 10,803 | $89,257 | $1,544 | $407,500 | 52.4% |
| Winooski | 8,293 | $79,522 | $1,643 | $381,500 | 59.1% |
| Shelburne | 6,499 | $109,583 | $1,439 | $553,200 | 70.7% |
| Milton | 3,555 | $77,550 | $1,471 | $337,600 | 23.6% |
| Industry ⇅ | Jobs ⇅ | Share of private jobs ⇅ | Average annual pay ⇅ | Concentration vs US (location quotient) ⇅ |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Health care and social assistance | 17,558 | 20.3% | $76,247 | 1.19 |
| Retail trade | 11,152 | 12.9% | $43,817 | 1.08 |
| Professional and technical services | 9,010 | 10.4% | $123,463 | 1.25 |
| Manufacturing | 8,777 | 10.2% | $82,372 | 1.03 |
| Accommodation and food services | 8,475 | 9.8% | $30,636 | 0.90 |
| Construction | 5,304 | 6.1% | $79,234 | 0.98 |
| Administrative and waste services | 5,037 | 5.8% | $68,589 | 0.83 |
| Wholesale trade | 3,627 | 4.2% | $93,092 | 0.89 |
| Other services (except public administration) | 3,104 | 3.6% | $52,072 | 1.00 |
| Finance and insurance | 2,847 | 3.3% | $138,718 | 0.68 |
| Educational services | 2,787 | 3.2% | $43,975 | 1.30 |
| Transportation and warehousing | 2,500 | 2.9% | $60,165 | 0.57 |
| Information | 2,242 | 2.6% | $91,568 | 1.16 |
| Arts, entertainment, recreation | 1,838 | 2.1% | $30,654 | 1.06 |
| Real estate and rental | 1,132 | 1.3% | $68,035 | 0.71 |
| Management of companies | 716 | 0.8% | $142,381 | 0.41 |
| Utilities | 304 | 0.4% | $145,520 | 0.77 |
A location quotient above 1 means the industry is more concentrated here than in the US. BLS withholds sectors with too few employers.
| Measure ⇅ | Value ⇅ |
|---|---|
| Labour force | 96,362 |
| Employed residents | 94,195 |
| Unemployed residents | 2,167 |
| Unemployment rate | 2.2% |
| Jobs located in the county (QCEW) | 103,301 |
| Employer sites | 9,418 |
Residents employed and jobs located here differ: many residents commute to other counties.
| County ⇅ | Population ⇅ | GDP 2024 ⇅ | GDP per resident ⇅ | Jobs ⇅ | Average annual pay ⇅ | Unemployment ⇅ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chittenden County | 169,758 | $16,404 million | $96,629 | 103,301 | $73,186 | 2.2% |
| Rutland County | 60,425 | $3,787 million | $62,674 | 25,313 | $58,753 | 2.9% |
| Washington County | 60,017 | $5,191 million | $86,495 | 33,484 | $67,784 | 2.5% |
| Windsor County | 57,990 | $3,759 million | $64,826 | 23,153 | $62,855 | 2.6% |
| Franklin County | 50,638 | $2,856 million | $56,405 | 17,250 | $62,487 | 2.8% |
| Windham County | 45,923 | $3,098 million | $67,455 | 20,831 | $56,758 | 2.8% |
| Addison County | 37,664 | $2,305 million | $61,211 | 15,525 | $60,042 | 2.3% |
| Bennington County | 37,269 | $2,383 million | $63,928 | 16,750 | $58,906 | 3.1% |
| Caledonia County | 30,475 | $1,641 million | $53,841 | 11,117 | $55,371 | 2.3% |
| Orange County | 29,761 | $1,188 million | $39,919 | 7,898 | $55,315 | 2.4% |
| Orleans County | 27,606 | $1,563 million | $56,605 | 10,532 | $51,363 | 3.3% |
| Lamoille County | 26,148 | $1,654 million | $63,247 | 12,436 | $57,777 | 2.6% |
| Grand Isle County | 7,450 | $265 million | $35,565 | 1,383 | $50,181 | 2.9% |
| Essex County | 5,982 | $183 million | $30,572 | 1,069 | $49,646 | 3.0% |
169,758 (Census Bureau ACS 2020–2024).
$16,404 million in 2024 (BEA, current dollars).
2.2% in 2026M09 (BLS, not seasonally adjusted; the latest month may be revised).
103,301 jobs on average in 2024 with an average annual pay of $73,186 (BLS QCEW).