Clark County GDP on upswingSubscriber Exclusive

Clark County has seen rapid development, a growing population and rising job numbers for years. That fueled its gross domestic product, which grew faster in 2024 than all three of the Portland metro area’s other counties, according to the latest federal data.

Clark County’s gross domestic product jumped 3.4 percent between 2023 and 2024, according to the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis. In Oregon, Multnomah County trailed that, growing only 0.5 percent over the same period. Clackamas County grew 2.4 percent, while Washington County grew 1.2 percent.

Gross domestic product, or GDP, tracks the monetary value of all finished goods and services made in an area during a specific time.

Three of the four Portland-area counties saw GDP growing closer to 1.3 percent in 2023, with Washington County as the outlier at negative 1.4.

Analysis from Scott Bailey, an economic consultant and former Washington regional labor economist, showed retail and healthcare were growing rapidly in 2024.

Healthcare grew 7 percent, which Bailey said wasn’t a surprise. Retail was the fastest-growing industry, up 12 percent compared with 2023.

A slew of new retailers moved into Clark County in 2024, including two Trader Joe’s locations, Raising Cane’s and Shake Shack in east Vancouver, as well as Salt & Straw on the Vancouver waterfront.

Construction, information technology and professional services also grew quickly, though manufacturing stayed flat, Bailey’s analysis showed.

The county’s growth in 2024 was in the middle of the pack, compared with Washington’s other 38 counties.

Gross domestic product data for 2025 won’t be available until the end of the year, but other economic measures hint that the county’s growth may have slowed that year.

The local labor force dropped in June 2026 to 252,007, compared with 254,207 in June 2025, according to data from the Washington State Employment Security Department.

Bailey said he thinks numerous federal policies like immigration raids, tariffs and federal job cuts may have contributed to a slowing local economy in 2025.

Wages, meanwhile, climbed in 2025, according to preliminary employment department data.

Total wages paid in the county were $13.8 billion in 2025, up from $12.6 billion in 2024 and $12.4 billion in 2023.

Healthcare, government, professional services, and the finance and insurance sectors saw the largest growth in wages locally between 2024 and 2025.

Information technology saw the biggest decline, at nearly $33 million.

Emily Robertson, regional labor economist for the Washington Employment Security Department, said she’s interested to see how GDP data will compare to wage growth data.

“We see a bit of this in the information industry, which has grown significantly in terms of GDP but not necessarily in terms of employment,” she said.

Unlike in Clark County, total wages in information technology statewide grew even as employment fell, Robertson said.

“Typically, when we see a decoupling like that between wage growth and employment growth, that can point to a more specialized workforce,” she said.