NextChapter

Best county job markets for job seekers in the Southwest

Midland County is the best all-round county for job seekers in the Southwest, with a score of 85 / 100.November 2026 edition. Updated monthly, from public Bureau of Labor Statistics and Census data.

Key facts

  • #1 Midland County, TX: 85 / 100
  • #2 Rockwall County, TX: 84 / 100
  • #3 Travis County, TX: 79 / 100
  • 30 counties ranked in the Southwest
  • Data as of November 2026
  1. 1Midland County TX85 / 100
  2. 2Rockwall County TX84 / 100
  3. 3Travis County TX79 / 100
  4. 4Collin County TX74 / 100
  5. 5Williamson County TX70 / 100
  6. 6Taylor County TX66 / 100
  7. 7Hunt County TX66 / 100
  8. 8Washoe County NV60 / 100
  9. 9Maricopa County AZ60 / 100
  10. 10Denton County TX57 / 100

What stands out

  • The top ten is tightly packed: Midland County leads on 85 / 100, and #10 Denton County is at 57 / 100.
  • Hunt County reaches #7 on a sample of 104 openings, a smaller market than most of the top ten, so its rank can move more from month to month.
  • Travis County is the largest market in the top ten, with 5,850 openings behind its figure.
  • Counties with fewer than 100 openings are not ranked, and small differences between neighbouring ranks are not meaningful.

Why this ranking matters

What it shows

A good job market is more than one number. This list weighs openings per unemployed person, the unemployment rate, job growth and population growth, with the weights shown.

How to use it

Use it to shortlist counties to research. Open the county page for the employers, colleges and job centers behind the score.

The top 25

  1. 1

    Midland County TX

    85 / 100

    Openings per 100 unemployed
    5
    Unemployment rate
    3.2%
    Private-sector job growth since 2022
    +11.4%

    Based on 154 openings.

    Midland County job market

  2. 2

    Rockwall County TX

    84 / 100

    Openings per 100 unemployed
    4
    Unemployment rate
    3.8%
    Private-sector job growth since 2022
    +16.1%

    Based on 121 openings.

    Rockwall County job market

  3. 3

    Travis County TX

    79 / 100

    Openings per 100 unemployed
    19
    Unemployment rate
    3.6%
    Private-sector job growth since 2022
    +5.8%

    Based on 5,850 openings.

    Travis County job market

  4. 4

    Collin County TX

    74 / 100

    Openings per 100 unemployed
    5
    Unemployment rate
    4.1%
    Private-sector job growth since 2022
    +11.0%

    Based on 1,498 openings.

    Collin County job market

  5. 5

    Williamson County TX

    70 / 100

    Openings per 100 unemployed
    2
    Unemployment rate
    3.7%
    Private-sector job growth since 2022
    +14.8%

    Based on 287 openings.

    Williamson County job market

  6. 6

    Taylor County TX

    66 / 100

    Openings per 100 unemployed
    5
    Unemployment rate
    3.5%
    Private-sector job growth since 2022
    +4.7%

    Based on 128 openings.

    Taylor County job market

  7. 7

    Hunt County TX

    66 / 100

    Openings per 100 unemployed
    4
    Unemployment rate
    4.4%
    Private-sector job growth since 2022
    +11.2%

    Based on 104 openings.

    Hunt County job market

  8. 8

    Washoe County NV

    60 / 100

    Openings per 100 unemployed
    4
    Unemployment rate
    3.5%
    Private-sector job growth since 2022
    +3.5%

    Based on 416 openings.

    Washoe County job market

  9. 9

    Maricopa County AZ

    60 / 100

    Openings per 100 unemployed
    5
    Unemployment rate
    4.1%
    Private-sector job growth since 2022
    +5.4%

    Based on 5,165 openings.

    Maricopa County job market

  10. 10

    Denton County TX

    57 / 100

    Openings per 100 unemployed
    2
    Unemployment rate
    3.9%
    Private-sector job growth since 2022
    +9.0%

    Based on 416 openings.

    Denton County job market

  11. 11

    Smith County TX

    56 / 100

    Openings per 100 unemployed
    3
    Unemployment rate
    4.0%
    Private-sector job growth since 2022
    +6.4%

    Based on 130 openings.

    Smith County job market

  12. 12

    Oklahoma County OK

    54 / 100

    Openings per 100 unemployed
    4
    Unemployment rate
    3.8%
    Private-sector job growth since 2022
    +5.8%

    Based on 605 openings.

    Oklahoma County job market

  13. 13

    Montgomery County TX

    52 / 100

    Openings per 100 unemployed
    2
    Unemployment rate
    4.3%
    Private-sector job growth since 2022
    +11.0%

    Based on 271 openings.

    Montgomery County job market

  14. 14

    Tarrant County TX

    51 / 100

    Openings per 100 unemployed
    4
    Unemployment rate
    4.1%
    Private-sector job growth since 2022
    +5.3%

    Based on 1,851 openings.

    Tarrant County job market

  15. 15

    Tulsa County OK

    49 / 100

    Openings per 100 unemployed
    4
    Unemployment rate
    3.9%
    Private-sector job growth since 2022
    +3.6%

    Based on 542 openings.

    Tulsa County job market

  16. 16

    Pinal County AZ

    48 / 100

    Openings per 100 unemployed
    1
    Unemployment rate
    4.8%
    Private-sector job growth since 2022
    +17.9%

    Based on 132 openings.

    Pinal County job market

  17. 17

    Harris County TX

    46 / 100

    Openings per 100 unemployed
    4
    Unemployment rate
    4.6%
    Private-sector job growth since 2022
    +4.5%

    Based on 4,986 openings.

    Harris County job market

  18. 18

    Potter County TX

    46 / 100

    Openings per 100 unemployed
    6
    Unemployment rate
    4.0%
    Private-sector job growth since 2022
    +2.2%

    Based on 128 openings.

    Potter County job market

  19. 19

    Fort Bend County TX

    44 / 100

    Openings per 100 unemployed
    1
    Unemployment rate
    4.5%
    Private-sector job growth since 2022
    +13.3%

    Based on 183 openings.

    Fort Bend County job market

  20. 20

    Lubbock County TX

    44 / 100

    Openings per 100 unemployed
    2
    Unemployment rate
    3.7%
    Private-sector job growth since 2022
    +2.8%

    Based on 146 openings.

    Lubbock County job market

  21. 21

    Dallas County TX

    43 / 100

    Openings per 100 unemployed
    11
    Unemployment rate
    4.2%
    Private-sector job growth since 2022
    +0.9%

    Based on 6,562 openings.

    Dallas County job market

  22. 22

    Bexar County TX

    41 / 100

    Openings per 100 unemployed
    3
    Unemployment rate
    4.3%
    Private-sector job growth since 2022
    +3.4%

    Based on 1,327 openings.

    Bexar County job market

  23. 23

    McLennan County TX

    41 / 100

    Openings per 100 unemployed
    4
    Unemployment rate
    4.0%
    Private-sector job growth since 2022
    +1.4%

    Based on 209 openings.

    McLennan County job market

  24. 24

    Nueces County TX

    35 / 100

    Openings per 100 unemployed
    2
    Unemployment rate
    4.4%
    Private-sector job growth since 2022
    +7.8%

    Based on 132 openings.

    Nueces County job market

  25. 25

    Clark County NV

    35 / 100

    Openings per 100 unemployed
    2
    Unemployment rate
    4.8%
    Private-sector job growth since 2022
    +7.6%

    Based on 1,031 openings.

    Clark County job market

Full ranking

All 30 counties that qualified, with the figure each is ranked on.

RankCountyScoreSample
1Midland County TX85 / 100154
2Rockwall County TX84 / 100121
3Travis County TX79 / 1005,850
4Collin County TX74 / 1001,498
5Williamson County TX70 / 100287
6Taylor County TX66 / 100128
7Hunt County TX66 / 100104
8Washoe County NV60 / 100416
9Maricopa County AZ60 / 1005,165
10Denton County TX57 / 100416
11Smith County TX56 / 100130
12Oklahoma County OK54 / 100605
13Montgomery County TX52 / 100271
14Tarrant County TX51 / 1001,851
15Tulsa County OK49 / 100542
16Pinal County AZ48 / 100132
17Harris County TX46 / 1004,986
18Potter County TX46 / 100128
19Fort Bend County TX44 / 100183
20Lubbock County TX44 / 100146
21Dallas County TX43 / 1006,562
22Bexar County TX41 / 1001,327
23McLennan County TX41 / 100209
24Nueces County TX35 / 100132
25Clark County NV35 / 1001,031
26El Paso County TX32 / 100307
27Galveston County TX28 / 100137
28Pima County AZ21 / 100691
29Bernalillo County NM21 / 100378
30Cameron County TX10 / 100131

How this ranking works

A county's score is the weighted average of its percentile rank on each measure among the ranked counties (100 is first, 0 is last): openings per 100 unemployed 30%, unemployment rate 25%, private-sector job growth since 2022 25%, population growth since 2020 20%.

Openings are our professional roles placed in the county of the city their posting names; unemployment is BLS Local Area Unemployment Statistics, not seasonally adjusted; jobs and sectors are BLS Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages; population is Census; American Job Centers are from CareerOneStop. The measures and weights are fixed in advance and shown here.

Only counties with at least 20,000 people in the labor force, 100 openings, 500 unemployed people and 50,000 residents are ranked.

Sample bar: counties with fewer than 100 openings are not ranked.

Sources: NextChapter job data: open professional roles by county; Bureau of Labor Statistics, Local Area Unemployment Statistics and Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages; Census Bureau population estimates. Data as of November 2026.

Our job data covers professional roles on the career sites of employers we track, so figures describe that market, not every job. Spot an error? Tell us.

Questions

Which county ranks first: best county job markets for job seekers in the southwest?
Midland County is the best all-round county for job seekers in the Southwest, with a score of 85 / 100.
How many counties are ranked?
30 counties have at least 100 openings, so the list has 30 entries.
How is the ranking calculated?
A county's score is the weighted average of its percentile rank on each measure among the ranked counties (100 is first, 0 is last): openings per 100 unemployed 30%, unemployment rate 25%, private-sector job growth since 2022 25%, population growth since 2020 20%. Openings are our professional roles placed in the county of the city their posting names; unemployment is BLS Local Area Unemployment Statistics, not seasonally adjusted; jobs and sectors are BLS Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages; population is Census; American Job Centers are from CareerOneStop. The measures and weights are fixed in advance and shown here. Only counties with at least 20,000 people in the labor force, 100 openings, 500 unemployed people and 50,000 residents are ranked.
How often is it updated?
Every month. This is the November 2026 edition. Older editions stay on this site at their own dated addresses.

More rankings

Cite this ranking

NextChapter, “Best county job markets for job seekers in the Southwest,” November 2026 edition. https://launchyournextchapter.com/rankings/best-county-job-markets-in-the-southwest

Link to it: <a href="https://launchyournextchapter.com/rankings/best-county-job-markets-in-the-southwest">Best county job markets for job seekers in the Southwest (NextChapter, November 2026)</a>

Download the data: CSV · JSON. Free to use with a link back.

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