Data / Rankings / Employer establishments: construction / US states

US states by employer establishments: construction

California had the highest employer establishments: construction of 51 states in 2016, at 71,981. District of Columbia had the lowest, at 449. The median was 8,620 and the figure for the United States was 696,733. Source: the U.S. Census Bureau.

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Highest71,981California
Lowest449District of Columbia
Median8,62051 states
United States696,733History

Map of states, 2016

Alabama: 7,424 countAlaska: 2,521 countArizona: 11,921 countArkansas: 5,293 countCalifornia: 71,981 countColorado: 17,730 countConnecticut: 7,962 countDelaware: 2,228 countDistrict of Columbia: 449 countFlorida: 50,820 countGeorgia: 17,429 countHawaii: 2,869 countIdaho: 6,443 countIllinois: 28,904 countIndiana: 13,133 countIowa: 8,620 countKansas: 6,988 countKentucky: 7,236 countLouisiana: 8,094 countMaine: 4,941 countMaryland: 14,094 countMassachusetts: 18,618 countMichigan: 18,803 countMinnesota: 16,360 countMississippi: 3,796 countMissouri: 13,263 countMontana: 5,326 countNebraska: 6,357 countNevada: 4,839 countNew Hampshire: 4,007 countNew Jersey: 21,389 countNew Mexico: 4,329 countNew York: 48,431 countNorth Carolina: 22,292 countNorth Dakota: 3,037 countOhio: 19,727 countOklahoma: 8,244 countOregon: 12,238 countPennsylvania: 26,634 countRhode Island: 3,114 countSouth Carolina: 9,407 countSouth Dakota: 3,379 countTennessee: 9,732 countTexas: 43,163 countUtah: 9,154 countVermont: 2,708 countVirginia: 19,456 countWashington: 22,407 countWest Virginia: 3,132 countWisconsin: 13,602 countWyoming: 2,709 count
  • Under 3,200
  • 3,200 to 6,000
  • 6,000 to 8,600
  • 8,600 to 14K
  • 14K to 21K
  • 21K and over
count, 2016. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, County Business Patterns, state and US files: establishments (EST), construction (NAICS 23), all legal forms. Boundaries: U.S. Census Bureau cartographic boundary files.

All states, 2016

California: 71,981 countCalifornia71,981Florida: 50,820 countFlorida50,820New York: 48,431 countNew York48,431Texas: 43,163 countTexas43,163Illinois: 28,904 countIllinois28,904Pennsylvania: 26,634 countPennsylvania26,634Washington: 22,407 countWashington22,407North Carolina: 22,292 countNorth Carolina22,292New Jersey: 21,389 countNew Jersey21,389Ohio: 19,727 countOhio19,727Virginia: 19,456 countVirginia19,456Michigan: 18,803 countMichigan18,803Massachusetts: 18,618 countMassachusetts18,618Colorado: 17,730 countColorado17,730Georgia: 17,429 countGeorgia17,429Minnesota: 16,360 countMinnesota16,360Maryland: 14,094 countMaryland14,094Wisconsin: 13,602 countWisconsin13,602Missouri: 13,263 countMissouri13,263Indiana: 13,133 countIndiana13,133Oregon: 12,238 countOregon12,238Arizona: 11,921 countArizona11,921Tennessee: 9,732 countTennessee9,732South Carolina: 9,407 countSouth Carolina9,407Utah: 9,154 countUtah9,154Iowa: 8,620 countIowa8,620Oklahoma: 8,244 countOklahoma8,244Louisiana: 8,094 countLouisiana8,094Connecticut: 7,962 countConnecticut7,962Alabama: 7,424 countAlabama7,424Kentucky: 7,236 countKentucky7,236Kansas: 6,988 countKansas6,988Idaho: 6,443 countIdaho6,443Nebraska: 6,357 countNebraska6,357Montana: 5,326 countMontana5,326Arkansas: 5,293 countArkansas5,293Maine: 4,941 countMaine4,941Nevada: 4,839 countNevada4,839New Mexico: 4,329 countNew Mexico4,329New Hampshire: 4,007 countNew Hampshire4,007Mississippi: 3,796 countMississippi3,796South Dakota: 3,379 countSouth Dakota3,379West Virginia: 3,132 countWest Virginia3,132Rhode Island: 3,114 countRhode Island3,114North Dakota: 3,037 countNorth Dakota3,037Hawaii: 2,869 countHawaii2,869Wyoming: 2,709 countWyoming2,709Vermont: 2,708 countVermont2,708Alaska: 2,521 countAlaska2,521Delaware: 2,228 countDelaware2,228District of Columbia: 449 countDistrict of Columbia449California: 71,981 countCalifornia71,981Florida: 50,820 countFlorida50,820New York: 48,431 countNew York48,431Texas: 43,163 countTexas43,163Illinois: 28,904 countIllinois28,904Pennsylvania: 26,634 countPennsylvania26,634Washington: 22,407 countWashington22,407North Carolina: 22,292 countNorth Carolina22,292New Jersey: 21,389 countNew Jersey21,389Ohio: 19,727 countOhio19,727Virginia: 19,456 countVirginia19,456Michigan: 18,803 countMichigan18,803Massachusetts: 18,618 countMassachusetts18,618Colorado: 17,730 countColorado17,730Georgia: 17,429 countGeorgia17,429Minnesota: 16,360 countMinnesota16,360Maryland: 14,094 countMaryland14,094Wisconsin: 13,602 countWisconsin13,602Missouri: 13,263 countMissouri13,263Indiana: 13,133 countIndiana13,133Oregon: 12,238 countOregon12,238Arizona: 11,921 countArizona11,921Tennessee: 9,732 countTennessee9,732South Carolina: 9,407 countSouth Carolina9,407Utah: 9,154 countUtah9,154Iowa: 8,620 countIowa8,620Oklahoma: 8,244 countOklahoma8,244Louisiana: 8,094 countLouisiana8,094Connecticut: 7,962 countConnecticut7,962Alabama: 7,424 countAlabama7,424Kentucky: 7,236 countKentucky7,236Kansas: 6,988 countKansas6,988Idaho: 6,443 countIdaho6,443Nebraska: 6,357 countNebraska6,357Montana: 5,326 countMontana5,326Arkansas: 5,293 countArkansas5,293Maine: 4,941 countMaine4,941Nevada: 4,839 countNevada4,839New Mexico: 4,329 countNew Mexico4,329New Hampshire: 4,007 countNew Hampshire4,007Mississippi: 3,796 countMississippi3,796South Dakota: 3,379 countSouth Dakota3,379West Virginia: 3,132 countWest Virginia3,132Rhode Island: 3,114 countRhode Island3,114North Dakota: 3,037 countNorth Dakota3,037Hawaii: 2,869 countHawaii2,869Wyoming: 2,709 countWyoming2,709Vermont: 2,708 countVermont2,708Alaska: 2,521 countAlaska2,521Delaware: 2,228 countDelaware2,228District of Columbia: 449 countDistrict of Columbia449
count. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, County Business Patterns, state and US files: establishments (EST), construction (NAICS 23), all legal forms. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Full ranking

RankStates2016
count		Change on 2015
1California71,981+3%
2Florida50,820+4.3%
3New York48,431+2%
4Texas43,163+2.7%
5Illinois28,904+0.8%
6Pennsylvania26,634+0.8%
7Washington22,407+4.8%
8North Carolina22,292+2.7%
9New Jersey21,389+1.5%
10Ohio19,727-0%
11Virginia19,456+0.3%
12Michigan18,803+1.3%
13Massachusetts18,618+3.8%
14Colorado17,730+3.8%
15Georgia17,429+2.8%
16Minnesota16,360+0.7%
17Maryland14,094+0.9%
18Wisconsin13,602+0.6%
19Missouri13,263+1.6%
20Indiana13,133+0.8%
21Oregon12,238+3.7%
22Arizona11,921+2.6%
23Tennessee9,732+2.8%
24South Carolina9,407+3.6%
25Utah9,154+3.4%
26Iowa8,620+0.9%
27Oklahoma8,244+0.7%
28Louisiana8,094+1.1%
29Connecticut7,962+0.1%
30Alabama7,424+1.5%
31Kentucky7,236+1.8%
32Kansas6,988-0.4%
33Idaho6,443+4.2%
34Nebraska6,357+1.8%
35Montana5,326+0.7%
36Arkansas5,293+1.8%
37Maine4,941+2.2%
38Nevada4,839+1.1%
39New Mexico4,329+1.1%
40New Hampshire4,007+1.8%
41Mississippi3,796-0.2%
42South Dakota3,379+0.5%
43West Virginia3,132-0.7%
44Rhode Island3,114+2.5%
45North Dakota3,037-2.9%
46Hawaii2,869+3.5%
47Wyoming2,709+1.7%
48Vermont2,708+0.3%
49Alaska2,521-0.6%
50Delaware2,228+1.5%
51District of Columbia449-2.2%

Other periods

About this ranking

Number of establishments with paid employees in construction (NAICS 23), from the U.S. Census Bureau County Business Patterns.

County Business Patterns: establishments (single physical locations, not firms) with paid employees during the pay period including 12 March. Excludes the self-employed and businesses without employees (nonemployer_establishments_*), government employers, crop and animal production, rail transportation, the Postal Service and private households. Establishment counts are not perturbed; the noise Census adds since 2017 applies to employment and payroll, which are not served here. Published about 18 months after the reference year.

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. Census Bureau. County Business Patterns, state and US files: establishments (EST), construction (NAICS 23), all legal forms. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/cbp/datasets/2016/. 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. Census Bureau. (2018). County Business Patterns, state and US files: establishments (EST), construction (NAICS 23), all legal forms (US states by employer establishments: construction, 2016) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/cbp/datasets/2016/

MLA 9

County Business Patterns, state and US files: establishments (EST), construction (NAICS 23), all legal forms, US states by employer establishments: construction, 2016. U.S. Census Bureau, 19 Apr. 2018, https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/cbp/datasets/2016/. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/employer-establishments-construction/us-states?period=2016. Accessed 12 Oct. 2026.

Chicago (author-date)

U.S. Census Bureau. 2018. County Business Patterns, state and US files: establishments (EST), construction (NAICS 23), all legal forms. US states by employer establishments: construction, 2016. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/cbp/datasets/2016/. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/employer-establishments-construction/us-states?period=2016.

Harvard

U.S. Census Bureau (2018) County Business Patterns, state and US files: establishments (EST), construction (NAICS 23), all legal forms, US states by employer establishments: construction, 2016 [Dataset]. Available at: https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/cbp/datasets/2016/, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/employer-establishments-construction/us-states?period=2016 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{census_us_states_by_employer_2016,
  author = {{U.S. Census Bureau}},
  title = {{County Business Patterns, state and US files: establishments (EST), construction (NAICS 23), all legal forms: US states by employer establishments: construction, 2016}},
  year = {2018},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/cbp/datasets/2016/},
  urldate = {2026-10-12},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/employer-establishments-construction/us-states?period=2016. Publisher attribution: U.S. Census Bureau. County Business Patterns, state and US files: establishments (EST), construction (NAICS 23), all legal forms. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/cbp/datasets/2016/. Retrieved 2026-10-12.},
}
RIS
TY  - DATA
AU  - U.S. Census Bureau
TI  - County Business Patterns, state and US files: establishments (EST), construction (NAICS 23), all legal forms: US states by employer establishments: construction, 2016
PY  - 2018
DA  - 2018/04/19
PB  - U.S. Census Bureau
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/cbp/datasets/2016/
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/employer-establishments-construction/us-states?period=2016
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/employer-establishments-construction/us-states?period=2016.
N1  - Publisher attribution: U.S. Census Bureau. County Business Patterns, state and US files: establishments (EST), construction (NAICS 23), all legal forms. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/cbp/datasets/2016/. Retrieved 2026-10-12.
ER  -
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Questions

Which state has the highest employer establishments: construction?

California, with 71,981 in 2016, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

Which state has the lowest employer establishments: construction?

District of Columbia, with 449 in 2016.

Where does this ranking come from?

Every value comes from one source and one period, so the places are comparable: U.S. Census Bureau, County Business Patterns, state and US files: establishments (EST), construction (NAICS 23), all legal forms. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

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