Location Quotients (LQs) are ratios that allow an area's distribution of employment by industry to be compared to a reference or base area's distribution. The reference area is usually the U.S., but it can also be a state or a metropolitan area. The reference or base industry is usually the All industry total. The discussion below assumes the defaults are used. LQs also allow areas to be easily compared to each other. Consider using the BLS tutorials to learn how to generate the informatin you need.
