Data / Rankings / Business establishments (QCEW) / US states

US states by business establishments (QCEW)

California had the highest business establishments (QCEW) of 51 states in 2015, at 1.42 million. Alaska had the lowest, at 22,217. The median was 122,322 and the figure for the United States was 9.52 million. Source: the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

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Highest1,416,493California
Lowest22,217Alaska
Median122,32251 states
United States9,522,775History

Map of states, 2015

Alabama: 119,251 countAlaska: 22,217 countArizona: 148,593 countArkansas: 87,922 countCalifornia: 1,416,493 countColorado: 186,114 countConnecticut: 115,612 countDelaware: 30,883 countDistrict of Columbia: 37,997 countFlorida: 642,518 countGeorgia: 288,777 countHawaii: 39,077 countIdaho: 56,029 countIllinois: 403,205 countIndiana: 159,303 countIowa: 100,264 countKansas: 86,786 countKentucky: 122,322 countLouisiana: 125,264 countMaine: 50,769 countMaryland: 168,788 countMassachusetts: 237,928 countMichigan: 238,969 countMinnesota: 160,615 countMississippi: 71,761 countMissouri: 191,647 countMontana: 45,032 countNebraska: 70,816 countNevada: 78,902 countNew Hampshire: 50,660 countNew Jersey: 259,277 countNew Mexico: 56,911 countNew York: 627,270 countNorth Carolina: 266,421 countNorth Dakota: 32,140 countOhio: 290,876 countOklahoma: 108,626 countOregon: 141,395 countPennsylvania: 349,719 countRhode Island: 36,347 countSouth Carolina: 122,383 countSouth Dakota: 32,486 countTennessee: 150,237 countTexas: 639,721 countUtah: 93,169 countVermont: 24,624 countVirginia: 254,270 countWashington: 239,221 countWest Virginia: 50,156 countWisconsin: 166,922 countWyoming: 26,097 count
  • Under 40K
  • 40K to 80K
  • 80K to 120K
  • 120K to 170K
  • 170K to 260K
  • 260K and over
count, 2015. Source: BLS, Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW): annual average establishments, total covered, all industries (NAICS 10), nation, states and counties. Boundaries: U.S. Census Bureau cartographic boundary files.

All states, 2015

California: 1,416,493 countCalifornia1,416,493Florida: 642,518 countFlorida642,518Texas: 639,721 countTexas639,721New York: 627,270 countNew York627,270Illinois: 403,205 countIllinois403,205Pennsylvania: 349,719 countPennsylvania349,719Ohio: 290,876 countOhio290,876Georgia: 288,777 countGeorgia288,777North Carolina: 266,421 countNorth Carolina266,421New Jersey: 259,277 countNew Jersey259,277Virginia: 254,270 countVirginia254,270Washington: 239,221 countWashington239,221Michigan: 238,969 countMichigan238,969Massachusetts: 237,928 countMassachusetts237,928Missouri: 191,647 countMissouri191,647Colorado: 186,114 countColorado186,114Maryland: 168,788 countMaryland168,788Wisconsin: 166,922 countWisconsin166,922Minnesota: 160,615 countMinnesota160,615Indiana: 159,303 countIndiana159,303Tennessee: 150,237 countTennessee150,237Arizona: 148,593 countArizona148,593Oregon: 141,395 countOregon141,395Louisiana: 125,264 countLouisiana125,264South Carolina: 122,383 countSouth Carolina122,383Kentucky: 122,322 countKentucky122,322Alabama: 119,251 countAlabama119,251Connecticut: 115,612 countConnecticut115,612Oklahoma: 108,626 countOklahoma108,626Iowa: 100,264 countIowa100,264Utah: 93,169 countUtah93,169Arkansas: 87,922 countArkansas87,922Kansas: 86,786 countKansas86,786Nevada: 78,902 countNevada78,902Mississippi: 71,761 countMississippi71,761Nebraska: 70,816 countNebraska70,816New Mexico: 56,911 countNew Mexico56,911Idaho: 56,029 countIdaho56,029Maine: 50,769 countMaine50,769New Hampshire: 50,660 countNew Hampshire50,660West Virginia: 50,156 countWest Virginia50,156Montana: 45,032 countMontana45,032Hawaii: 39,077 countHawaii39,077District of Columbia: 37,997 countDistrict of Columbia37,997Rhode Island: 36,347 countRhode Island36,347South Dakota: 32,486 countSouth Dakota32,486North Dakota: 32,140 countNorth Dakota32,140Delaware: 30,883 countDelaware30,883Wyoming: 26,097 countWyoming26,097Vermont: 24,624 countVermont24,624Alaska: 22,217 countAlaska22,217California: 1,416,493 countCalifornia1,416,493Florida: 642,518 countFlorida642,518Texas: 639,721 countTexas639,721New York: 627,270 countNew York627,270Illinois: 403,205 countIllinois403,205Pennsylvania: 349,719 countPennsylvania349,719Ohio: 290,876 countOhio290,876Georgia: 288,777 countGeorgia288,777North Carolina: 266,421 countNorth Carolina266,421New Jersey: 259,277 countNew Jersey259,277Virginia: 254,270 countVirginia254,270Washington: 239,221 countWashington239,221Michigan: 238,969 countMichigan238,969Massachusetts: 237,928 countMassachusetts237,928Missouri: 191,647 countMissouri191,647Colorado: 186,114 countColorado186,114Maryland: 168,788 countMaryland168,788Wisconsin: 166,922 countWisconsin166,922Minnesota: 160,615 countMinnesota160,615Indiana: 159,303 countIndiana159,303Tennessee: 150,237 countTennessee150,237Arizona: 148,593 countArizona148,593Oregon: 141,395 countOregon141,395Louisiana: 125,264 countLouisiana125,264South Carolina: 122,383 countSouth Carolina122,383Kentucky: 122,322 countKentucky122,322Alabama: 119,251 countAlabama119,251Connecticut: 115,612 countConnecticut115,612Oklahoma: 108,626 countOklahoma108,626Iowa: 100,264 countIowa100,264Utah: 93,169 countUtah93,169Arkansas: 87,922 countArkansas87,922Kansas: 86,786 countKansas86,786Nevada: 78,902 countNevada78,902Mississippi: 71,761 countMississippi71,761Nebraska: 70,816 countNebraska70,816New Mexico: 56,911 countNew Mexico56,911Idaho: 56,029 countIdaho56,029Maine: 50,769 countMaine50,769New Hampshire: 50,660 countNew Hampshire50,660West Virginia: 50,156 countWest Virginia50,156Montana: 45,032 countMontana45,032Hawaii: 39,077 countHawaii39,077District of Columbia: 37,997 countDistrict of Columbia37,997Rhode Island: 36,347 countRhode Island36,347South Dakota: 32,486 countSouth Dakota32,486North Dakota: 32,140 countNorth Dakota32,140Delaware: 30,883 countDelaware30,883Wyoming: 26,097 countWyoming26,097Vermont: 24,624 countVermont24,624Alaska: 22,217 countAlaska22,217
count. Source: BLS, Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW): annual average establishments, total covered, all industries (NAICS 10), nation, states and counties. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Full ranking

RankStates2015
count		Change on 2014
1California1,416,493+3.2%
2Florida642,518+0.8%
3Texas639,721+2.6%
4New York627,270+1.2%
5Illinois403,205-2.5%
6Pennsylvania349,719+1%
7Ohio290,876+0.7%
8Georgia288,777+2.8%
9North Carolina266,421+2.5%
10New Jersey259,277-0.3%
11Virginia254,270+5.9%
12Washington239,221-1.5%
13Michigan238,969+1.1%
14Massachusetts237,928+2.7%
15Missouri191,647+3.7%
16Colorado186,114+3.7%
17Maryland168,788+0.9%
18Wisconsin166,922+1.8%
19Minnesota160,615-2.5%
20Indiana159,303+0.6%
21Tennessee150,237+3.1%
22Arizona148,593+1.1%
23Oregon141,395+4.8%
24Louisiana125,264+0.8%
25South Carolina122,383+3.9%
26Kentucky122,322+1%
27Alabama119,251+1.5%
28Connecticut115,612+1.5%
29Oklahoma108,626+1.5%
30Iowa100,264+0.9%
31Utah93,169+3.3%
32Arkansas87,922+1.3%
33Kansas86,786+1.7%
34Nevada78,902+3.5%
35Mississippi71,761+0.7%
36Nebraska70,816+0.7%
37New Mexico56,911+1.3%
38Idaho56,029+2.5%
39Maine50,769+3.1%
40New Hampshire50,660+1.6%
41West Virginia50,156+0.6%
42Montana45,032+2.6%
43Hawaii39,077+1.7%
44District of Columbia37,997+4.8%
45Rhode Island36,347+1.6%
46South Dakota32,486+1.6%
47North Dakota32,140+1.8%
48Delaware30,883+3%
49Wyoming26,097+2.3%
50Vermont24,624+0.9%
51Alaska22,217+0.6%

Other periods

About this ranking

Average number of establishments with jobs covered by unemployment insurance during the year, all industries, private and government, from the Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW) of the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. An establishment is a single place of business, such as a factory, store or office; a company with several locations has several.

Counts places of business, not firms: for firms use employer_firms. Changes in how large employers report their locations can move the count without any change in activity.

Every value in the ranking comes from the same publisher and the same period, so the states are compared on one definition. Equal values share a rank.

How to cite

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW): annual average establishments, total covered, all industries (NAICS 10), nation, states and counties. https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2015/a/industry/10.csv. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Citation styles

The publisher is the author. Invokely is named only as the place the figures were read, where a style asks for it.

APA 7

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. (2026). Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW): annual average establishments, total covered, all industries (NAICS 10), nation, states and counties (US states by business establishments (QCEW), 2015) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2015/a/industry/10.csv

MLA 9

Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW): annual average establishments, total covered, all industries (NAICS 10), nation, states and counties, US states by business establishments (QCEW), 2015. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 21 Aug. 2026, https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2015/a/industry/10.csv. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/business-establishments/us-states?period=2015. Accessed 12 Oct. 2026.

Chicago (author-date)

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. 2026. Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW): annual average establishments, total covered, all industries (NAICS 10), nation, states and counties. US states by business establishments (QCEW), 2015. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2015/a/industry/10.csv. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/business-establishments/us-states?period=2015.

Harvard

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (2026) Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW): annual average establishments, total covered, all industries (NAICS 10), nation, states and counties, US states by business establishments (QCEW), 2015 [Dataset]. Available at: https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2015/a/industry/10.csv, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/business-establishments/us-states?period=2015 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{bureau_us_states_by_business_2015,
  author = {{U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics}},
  title = {{Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW): annual average establishments, total covered, all industries (NAICS 10), nation, states and counties: US states by business establishments (QCEW), 2015}},
  year = {2026},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2015/a/industry/10.csv},
  urldate = {2026-10-12},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/business-establishments/us-states?period=2015. Publisher attribution: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW): annual average establishments, total covered, all industries (NAICS 10), nation, states and counties. https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2015/a/industry/10.csv. Retrieved 2026-10-12.},
}
RIS
TY  - DATA
AU  - U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
TI  - Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW): annual average establishments, total covered, all industries (NAICS 10), nation, states and counties: US states by business establishments (QCEW), 2015
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/08/21
PB  - U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2015/a/industry/10.csv
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/business-establishments/us-states?period=2015
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/business-establishments/us-states?period=2015.
N1  - Publisher attribution: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW): annual average establishments, total covered, all industries (NAICS 10), nation, states and counties. https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2015/a/industry/10.csv. Retrieved 2026-10-12.
ER  -
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Questions

Which state has the highest business establishments (QCEW)?

California, with 1.42 million in 2015, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Which state has the lowest business establishments (QCEW)?

Alaska, with 22,217 in 2015.

Where does this ranking come from?

Every value comes from one source and one period, so the places are comparable: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW): annual average establishments, total covered, all industries (NAICS 10), nation, states and counties. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Business establishments (QCEW): other rankings

US states: more rankings