The county economy from official statistics, with source and year on every table.
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By AtiveSite · Published 07/11/2026 · Updated 07/11/2026 · Every figure is linked to its source below.
Clay County is a county of Florida with 227,584 residents. Its economy produced $9,125 million in 2024 (ranked #30 of 67 counties) and had 57,413 jobs with an average annual pay of $54,688 (#30 for pay). The unemployment rate was 4.5% in 2026M09. It is part of the Jacksonville, FL metropolitan area (central county).
Clay County produced about $9,125 million of goods and services in 2024, which is 0.5% of the combined output of the 67 counties of Florida that BEA reports (about 1.0% of the state's population lives here), and ranks it 30th of 67 on that measure. Per resident that is $40,095, 48% below the state average; the average for all counties of the state taken together is $77,030. In current dollars output grew 9.1% from 2023 to 2024, before adjusting for inflation. The gap between its output rank (30th) and its output-per-resident rank (48th) shows that population is large relative to the value of what is produced here.
BLS counts 57,413 jobs located in Clay County on average in 2024, spread over 5,454 employer sites (about 11 jobs per site). That is 0.25 jobs for every resident, below the 0.28 of the typical county in Florida, 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 $54,688, 19% below the average of all counties in the state ($54,688 against $67,289). 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 2.6% from 2023 to 2024.
The three largest private industries are health care and social assistance (22.8% of private jobs, $59,822 a year on average), retail trade (18.2% of private jobs, $37,064 a year on average), accommodation and food services (14.7% of private jobs, $24,630 a year on average). Together they hold 55.7% of private-sector jobs. Among industries with at least 3% of jobs, the best paying is professional and technical services at $91,164 a year, followed by finance and insurance ($87,027). The county is specialised in several industries: arts, entertainment, recreation (1.6 times the US share, 1,581 jobs); retail trade (1.5 times the US share, 8,787 jobs); construction (1.5 times the US share, 4,554 jobs). A location quotient above 1 means an industry employs a larger share of workers here than in the whole country, so these are the industries where local employers compete hardest for skills. Several of the biggest employers pay well below the county average: retail trade ($37,064), accommodation and food services ($24,630). Jobs there are plentiful but the pay is lower than the headline average suggests.
In 2026M09 the unemployment rate in Clay County was 4.5%, 8% above the average of the state's counties (4.5% against 4.2%). The labour force (people working or looking for work) numbered 113,386. Over the last 12 months it ranged from 4.4% (2025M09) to 5.3% (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 $87,820 (ACS 2020–2024), 18% above the state median ($87,820 against $74,568). None of the largest places of the guide has this as its main county, which usually means a smaller or more rural county; the figures above still describe the whole county.
Counties close to Clay County in output are Indian River County, Charlotte County, Monroe County, Santa Rosa County. Compare their jobs, pay and unemployment on their own pages.
| Measure ⇅ | Value ⇅ | Rank among the 67 counties of Florida ⇅ |
|---|---|---|
| Population | 227,584 | 25 of 67 |
| GDP 2024 | $9,125 million | 30 of 67 |
| GDP per resident | $40,095 | 48 of 67 |
| Jobs (QCEW 2024) | 57,413 | 29 of 67 |
| Average annual pay | $54,688 | 30 of 67 |
| Job change vs 2023 | +2.6% | 21 of 67 |
| Unemployment rate (lower is better) | 4.5% | 17 of 67 |
| Median household income | $87,820 | 5 of 67 |
Federal jobs in Florida (1,228) →All cities of FloridaState guide: Florida
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.
None of the 120 largest places of Florida has this as its main county, so the guide has no city page here. County figures on the other tabs are complete.
| Industry ⇅ | Jobs ⇅ | Share of private jobs ⇅ | Average annual pay ⇅ | Concentration vs US (location quotient) ⇅ |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Health care and social assistance | 10,961 | 22.8% | $59,822 | 1.33 |
| Retail trade | 8,787 | 18.2% | $37,064 | 1.53 |
| Accommodation and food services | 7,090 | 14.7% | $24,630 | 1.36 |
| Construction | 4,554 | 9.5% | $58,526 | 1.51 |
| Professional and technical services | 3,086 | 6.4% | $91,164 | 0.77 |
| Administrative and waste services | 3,000 | 6.2% | $43,101 | 0.89 |
| Finance and insurance | 1,896 | 3.9% | $87,027 | 0.81 |
| Other services (except public administration) | 1,734 | 3.6% | $44,839 | 1.00 |
| Manufacturing | 1,705 | 3.5% | $66,819 | 0.36 |
| Arts, entertainment, recreation | 1,581 | 3.3% | $37,285 | 1.64 |
| Wholesale trade | 962 | 2.0% | $96,928 | 0.43 |
| Educational services | 961 | 2.0% | $75,368 | 0.81 |
| Real estate and rental | 922 | 1.9% | $74,219 | 1.03 |
| Information | 821 | 1.7% | $93,230 | 0.76 |
| Management of companies | 119 | 0.2% | $120,521 | 0.12 |
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 | 113,386 |
| Employed residents | 108,334 |
| Unemployed residents | 5,052 |
| Unemployment rate | 4.5% |
| Jobs located in the county (QCEW) | 57,413 |
| Employer sites | 5,454 |
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 ⇅ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Miami-Dade County | 2,738,356 | $260,837 million | $95,253 | 1,257,569 | $77,609 | 1.9% |
| Broward County | 1,977,129 | $173,651 million | $87,830 | 864,520 | $71,492 | 4.1% |
| Palm Beach County | 1,533,806 | $140,506 million | $91,606 | 666,889 | $77,246 | 4.4% |
| Hillsborough County | 1,522,748 | $152,010 million | $99,826 | 789,442 | $75,256 | 4.3% |
| Orange County | 1,471,937 | $160,400 million | $108,972 | 949,918 | $67,805 | 4.2% |
| Duval County | 1,023,153 | $105,371 million | $102,987 | 563,527 | $71,652 | 4.5% |
| Pinellas County | 963,481 | $78,131 million | $81,092 | 447,680 | $67,519 | 4.1% |
| Lee County | 817,666 | $54,160 million | $66,237 | 299,283 | $61,578 | 4.8% |
| Polk County | 790,694 | $44,304 million | $56,032 | 260,590 | $55,697 | 5.2% |
| Brevard County | 632,780 | $43,482 million | $68,716 | 242,124 | $68,051 | 4.6% |
| Pasco County | 611,444 | $24,175 million | $39,538 | 145,102 | $55,908 | 4.7% |
| Volusia County | 579,622 | $29,511 million | $50,914 | 189,265 | $54,114 | 4.9% |
| Seminole County | 481,470 | $34,435 million | $71,521 | 213,221 | $65,449 | 4.0% |
| Sarasota County | 459,547 | $35,891 million | $78,101 | 190,078 | $65,133 | 4.7% |
| Manatee County | 429,792 | $26,348 million | $61,304 | 143,894 | $60,844 | 4.6% |
| Osceola County | 427,415 | $20,398 million | $47,725 | 115,837 | $52,525 | 4.5% |
| Lake County | 412,924 | $17,949 million | $43,468 | 117,354 | $53,106 | 4.6% |
| Marion County | 400,078 | $17,641 million | $44,093 | 119,528 | $52,526 | 5.4% |
| Collier County | 398,291 | $36,077 million | $90,579 | 171,813 | $68,041 | 4.7% |
| Saint Lucie County | 360,500 | $16,683 million | $46,277 | 90,334 | $53,238 | 5.0% |
| Escambia County | 325,923 | $24,363 million | $74,750 | 145,972 | $60,268 | 4.7% |
| Saint Johns County | 306,934 | $18,621 million | $60,669 | 98,819 | $60,008 | 4.4% |
| Leon County | 297,542 | $23,568 million | $79,209 | 163,754 | $61,906 | 4.5% |
| Alachua County | 285,492 | $20,939 million | $73,343 | 139,023 | $63,829 | 4.9% |
| Clay County | 227,584 | $9,125 million | $40,095 | 57,413 | $54,688 | 4.5% |
| Okaloosa County | 216,599 | $19,003 million | $87,734 | 89,705 | $61,616 | 4.1% |
| Hernando County | 207,018 | $7,294 million | $35,235 | 50,853 | $50,502 | 5.0% |
| Charlotte County | 201,064 | $9,770 million | $48,591 | 56,024 | $54,082 | 5.6% |
| Santa Rosa County | 198,472 | $7,899 million | $39,797 | 43,548 | $51,217 | 4.5% |
| Bay County | 186,393 | $13,467 million | $72,251 | 82,632 | $53,407 | 4.2% |
| Indian River County | 166,936 | $11,152 million | $66,803 | 57,522 | $57,991 | 5.2% |
| Citrus County | 162,472 | $6,981 million | $42,965 | 34,702 | $48,953 | 6.3% |
| Martin County | 162,176 | $12,307 million | $75,889 | 76,510 | $59,415 | 4.6% |
| Sumter County | 143,408 | $7,559 million | $52,706 | 40,436 | $57,856 | 7.6% |
| Flagler County | 126,528 | $5,147 million | $40,682 | 28,244 | $50,301 | 5.2% |
| Highlands County | 105,702 | $3,825 million | $36,189 | 28,823 | $47,926 | 6.3% |
| Nassau County | 97,859 | $4,980 million | $50,891 | 27,451 | $56,807 | 4.3% |
| Walton County | 82,948 | $6,430 million | $77,522 | 34,785 | $56,144 | 4.0% |
| Monroe County | 81,860 | $8,350 million | $102,001 | 47,058 | $58,702 | 3.1% |
| Putnam County | 75,164 | $3,499 million | $46,557 | 17,320 | $51,592 | 5.1% |
| Columbia County | 71,789 | $3,523 million | $49,072 | 24,644 | $51,261 | 5.1% |
| Jackson County | 48,250 | $1,986 million | $41,164 | 14,830 | $47,323 | 4.9% |
| Levy County | 45,391 | $1,660 million | $36,580 | 9,153 | $43,623 | 5.0% |
| Suwannee County | 45,342 | $2,103 million | $46,384 | 12,030 | $47,639 | 5.1% |
| Gadsden County | 43,710 | $1,708 million | $39,065 | 16,317 | $51,813 | 5.3% |
| Hendry County | 42,382 | $1,891 million | $44,625 | 12,377 | $55,090 | 5.1% |
| Okeechobee County | 40,816 | $2,754 million | $67,484 | 12,349 | $48,406 | 4.9% |
| Wakulla County | 35,387 | $1,161 million | $32,810 | 6,620 | $48,580 | 3.7% |
| DeSoto County | 35,386 | $1,419 million | $40,097 | 9,915 | $49,347 | 5.6% |
| Baker County | 28,430 | $1,054 million | $37,061 | 7,548 | $44,619 | 4.5% |
| Bradford County | 27,885 | $976 million | $34,992 | 6,314 | $48,898 | 5.1% |
| Hardee County | 25,675 | $1,476 million | $57,470 | 7,044 | $47,192 | 5.1% |
| Washington County | 25,529 | $943 million | $36,957 | 6,230 | $45,572 | 5.0% |
| Taylor County | 21,503 | $840 million | $39,063 | 5,715 | $46,934 | 7.7% |
| Holmes County | 19,513 | $562 million | $28,804 | 3,627 | $41,883 | 4.5% |
| Gilchrist County | 19,040 | $576 million | $30,272 | 3,814 | $46,829 | 4.5% |
| Madison County | 18,089 | $748 million | $41,368 | 4,811 | $44,239 | 5.1% |
| Dixie County | 17,058 | $426 million | $24,954 | 2,968 | $45,652 | 5.4% |
| Union County | 15,701 | $533 million | $33,927 | 3,543 | $52,907 | 6.0% |
| Gulf County | 15,131 | $652 million | $43,092 | 4,562 | $51,111 | 4.1% |
| Jefferson County | 15,091 | $441 million | $29,198 | 3,060 | $47,974 | 4.1% |
| Hamilton County | 13,616 | $782 million | $57,400 | 3,134 | $57,583 | 6.2% |
| Calhoun County | 13,492 | $506 million | $37,514 | 3,198 | $41,721 | 4.9% |
| Glades County | 12,563 | $447 million | $35,608 | 2,005 | $56,125 | 5.2% |
| Franklin County | 12,553 | $506 million | $40,300 | 3,545 | $43,873 | 4.7% |
| Lafayette County | 8,161 | $306 million | $37,473 | 1,408 | $47,254 | 6.0% |
| Liberty County | 7,687 | $492 million | $64,013 | 1,846 | $49,828 | 4.7% |
227,584 (Census Bureau ACS 2020–2024).
$9,125 million in 2024 (BEA, current dollars).
4.5% in 2026M09 (BLS, not seasonally adjusted; the latest month may be revised).
57,413 jobs on average in 2024 with an average annual pay of $54,688 (BLS QCEW).