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.
Salt Lake County is a county of Utah with 1,196,523 residents. Its economy produced $153,846 million in 2024 (ranked #1 of 29 counties) and had 796,203 jobs with an average annual pay of $77,495 (#1 for pay). The unemployment rate was 3.2% in 2026M09. It is part of the Salt Lake City-Murray, UT metropolitan area (central county).
Salt Lake County produced about $153,846 million of goods and services in 2024, which is 51.4% of the combined output of the 29 counties of Utah that BEA reports (about 35.3% of the state's population lives here), and ranks it 1st of 29 on that measure. Per resident that is $128,578, 46% above the state average; the average for all counties of the state taken together is $88,279. In current dollars output grew 5.0% from 2023 to 2024, before adjusting for inflation.
BLS counts 796,203 jobs located in Salt Lake County on average in 2024, spread over 67,066 employer sites (about 12 jobs per site). That is 0.67 jobs for every resident, above the 0.42 of the typical county in Utah, 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 $77,495, 16% above the average of all counties in the state ($77,495 against $66,894). 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 1.1% from 2023 to 2024.
The three largest private industries are health care and social assistance (11.2% of private jobs, $64,501 a year on average), professional and technical services (11.1% of private jobs, $119,573 a year on average), retail trade (10.6% of private jobs, $49,848 a year on average). Together they hold 32.9% of private-sector jobs. Among industries with at least 3% of jobs, the best paying is information at $124,691 a year, followed by professional and technical services ($119,573). The county is specialised in several industries: finance and insurance (1.6 times the US share, 51,138 jobs); information (1.5 times the US share, 22,015 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 ($49,848), accommodation and food services ($28,147). Jobs there are plentiful but the pay is lower than the headline average suggests.
In 2026M09 the unemployment rate in Salt Lake County was 3.2%, about the same as the average of the state's counties (3.2% against 3.2%). The labour force (people working or looking for work) numbered 705,101. Over the last 12 months it ranged from 3.2% (2026M09) to 4.1% (2026M02); 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 $97,494 (ACS 2020–2024), about the same as the state median ($97,494 against $95,166). The guide covers 18 cities with this as the main county: Salt Lake City, West Valley City, West Jordan, Sandy, South Jordan, Millcreek, Herriman, Taylorsville. Open any of them for rent, home values, commuting and climate. Within the county, median rent runs from $1,414 in Salt Lake City to $2,137 in Riverton, so where you live matters as much as which county you pick.
Counties close to Salt Lake County in output are Utah County, Davis County. Compare their jobs, pay and unemployment on their own pages.
| Measure ⇅ | Value ⇅ | Rank among the 29 counties of Utah ⇅ |
|---|---|---|
| Population | 1,196,523 | 1 of 29 |
| GDP 2024 | $153,846 million | 1 of 29 |
| GDP per resident | $128,578 | 4 of 29 |
| Jobs (QCEW 2024) | 796,203 | 1 of 29 |
| Average annual pay | $77,495 | 1 of 29 |
| Job change vs 2023 | +1.1% | 20 of 29 |
| Unemployment rate (lower is better) | 3.2% | 16 of 29 |
| Median household income | $97,494 | 8 of 29 |
Federal jobs in Utah (798) →All cities of UtahState guide: Utah
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 Salt Lake County.
| City ⇅ | Population ⇅ | Median household income ⇅ | Median rent ⇅ | Median home value ⇅ | Bachelor's+ ⇅ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Salt Lake City | 208,007 | $75,090 | $1,414 | $539,500 | 51.5% |
| West Valley City | 138,437 | $92,209 | $1,504 | $419,100 | 16.1% |
| West Jordan | 116,692 | $108,153 | $1,757 | $492,500 | 29.1% |
| Sandy | 94,291 | $112,176 | $1,777 | $614,100 | 46.0% |
| South Jordan | 82,686 | $134,047 | $1,991 | $650,500 | 47.9% |
| Millcreek | 63,648 | $98,045 | $1,492 | $627,200 | 54.2% |
| Herriman | 59,346 | $122,650 | $2,019 | $590,700 | 42.6% |
| Taylorsville | 58,678 | $86,413 | $1,482 | $433,800 | 24.3% |
| Draper | 50,278 | $128,910 | $1,894 | $784,800 | 51.9% |
| Murray | 50,188 | $90,746 | $1,500 | $507,500 | 41.9% |
| Riverton | 45,457 | $126,910 | $2,137 | $592,700 | 37.7% |
| Kearns metro township | 37,696 | $86,968 | $1,744 | $373,700 | 13.7% |
| Midvale | 35,989 | $75,084 | $1,597 | $436,600 | 33.8% |
| Cottonwood Heights | 32,828 | $119,422 | $1,730 | $694,100 | 53.8% |
| Holladay | 31,099 | $117,043 | $1,704 | $763,400 | 59.2% |
| Magna metro township | 30,031 | $90,346 | $1,625 | $376,200 | 13.0% |
| South Salt Lake | 26,352 | $72,152 | $1,451 | $410,200 | 35.8% |
| Bluffdale | 18,797 | $129,531 | $1,915 | $685,500 | 41.4% |
| Industry ⇅ | Jobs ⇅ | Share of private jobs ⇅ | Average annual pay ⇅ | Concentration vs US (location quotient) ⇅ |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Health care and social assistance | 76,844 | 11.2% | $64,501 | 0.67 |
| Professional and technical services | 75,877 | 11.1% | $119,573 | 1.37 |
| Retail trade | 72,710 | 10.6% | $49,848 | 0.91 |
| Manufacturing | 60,293 | 8.8% | $80,383 | 0.92 |
| Accommodation and food services | 57,213 | 8.3% | $28,147 | 0.79 |
| Construction | 54,838 | 8.0% | $78,570 | 1.31 |
| Finance and insurance | 51,138 | 7.5% | $111,923 | 1.58 |
| Administrative and waste services | 49,801 | 7.3% | $62,409 | 1.06 |
| Transportation and warehousing | 42,664 | 6.2% | $70,577 | 1.27 |
| Wholesale trade | 40,138 | 5.9% | $97,389 | 1.28 |
| Information | 22,015 | 3.2% | $124,691 | 1.48 |
| Other services (except public administration) | 19,642 | 2.9% | $54,070 | 0.82 |
| Educational services | 16,925 | 2.5% | $54,757 | 1.03 |
| Management of companies | 15,019 | 2.2% | $121,862 | 1.12 |
| Real estate and rental | 12,882 | 1.9% | $79,209 | 1.04 |
| Arts, entertainment, recreation | 11,829 | 1.7% | $51,094 | 0.88 |
| Mining, oil and gas | 3,476 | 0.5% | $122,239 | 1.15 |
| Utilities | 1,461 | 0.2% | $133,566 | 0.48 |
| Agriculture, forestry, fishing | 572 | 0.1% | $44,600 | 0.09 |
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 | 705,101 |
| Employed residents | 682,592 |
| Unemployed residents | 22,509 |
| Unemployment rate | 3.2% |
| Jobs located in the county (QCEW) | 796,203 |
| Employer sites | 67,066 |
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 ⇅ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Salt Lake County | 1,196,523 | $153,846 million | $128,578 | 796,203 | $77,495 | 3.2% |
| Utah County | 705,400 | $47,943 million | $67,966 | 295,152 | $62,648 | 3.3% |
| Davis County | 370,924 | $23,322 million | $62,874 | 144,747 | $59,003 | 3.0% |
| Weber County | 269,648 | $18,120 million | $67,197 | 121,786 | $58,684 | 3.1% |
| Washington County | 196,431 | $11,555 million | $58,824 | 86,508 | $48,688 | 3.2% |
| Cache County | 140,046 | $9,088 million | $64,895 | 63,167 | $52,281 | 2.7% |
| Tooele County | 79,347 | $3,249 million | $40,950 | 20,615 | $53,737 | 3.3% |
| Iron County | 62,252 | $3,193 million | $51,297 | 24,829 | $48,239 | 2.9% |
| Box Elder County | 61,246 | $3,553 million | $58,016 | 23,942 | $59,175 | 3.0% |
| Summit County | 42,970 | $6,080 million | $141,492 | 31,820 | $67,235 | 2.6% |
| Uintah County | 37,056 | $2,879 million | $77,693 | 15,177 | $57,108 | 3.2% |
| Wasatch County | 36,642 | $1,875 million | $51,184 | 12,108 | $56,807 | 2.8% |
| Sanpete County | 29,719 | $1,506 million | $50,660 | 9,381 | $44,420 | 3.1% |
| Sevier County | 22,085 | $1,657 million | $75,026 | 9,927 | $47,714 | 3.4% |
| Carbon County | 20,517 | $1,284 million | $62,565 | 8,653 | $50,378 | 4.2% |
| Duchesne County | 20,185 | $1,858 million | $92,055 | 8,970 | $57,898 | 3.2% |
| San Juan County | 14,483 | $823 million | $56,829 | 4,647 | $49,715 | 3.7% |
| Millard County | 13,315 | $1,494 million | $112,214 | 5,495 | $55,610 | 3.5% |
| Morgan County | 12,802 | $575 million | $44,950 | 3,306 | $53,990 | 2.8% |
| Juab County | 12,586 | $895 million | $71,106 | 4,543 | $46,736 | 2.9% |
| Emery County | 10,046 | $1,456 million | $144,902 | 3,675 | $57,193 | 3.5% |
| Grand County | 9,754 | $939 million | $96,260 | 6,934 | $47,058 | 2.7% |
| Kane County | 8,170 | $586 million | $71,745 | 4,062 | $43,909 | 2.6% |
| Beaver County | 7,273 | $587 million | $80,644 | 2,715 | $44,316 | 2.8% |
| Garfield County | 5,219 | $417 million | $79,937 | 2,517 | $41,748 | 4.8% |
| Rich County | 2,631 | $253 million | $96,298 | 1,174 | $43,704 | 2.7% |
| Wayne County | 2,584 | $160 million | $62,050 | 1,232 | $43,295 | 3.4% |
| Piute County | 1,694 | $131 million | $77,460 | 315 | $35,949 | 5.0% |
| Daggett County | 783 | $146 million | $186,985 | 410 | $41,037 | 1.8% |
1,196,523 (Census Bureau ACS 2020–2024).
$153,846 million in 2024 (BEA, current dollars).
3.2% in 2026M09 (BLS, not seasonally adjusted; the latest month may be revised).
796,203 jobs on average in 2024 with an average annual pay of $77,495 (BLS QCEW).