Data / Rankings / Employer establishments: information / US states

US states by employer establishments: information

California had the highest employer establishments: information of 51 states in 2015, at 22,943. North Dakota had the lowest, at 329. The median was 1,502 and the figure for the United States was 139,508. Source: the U.S. Census Bureau.

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Highest22,943California
Lowest329North Dakota
Median1,50251 states
United States139,508History

Map of states, 2015

Alabama: 1,502 countAlaska: 403 countArizona: 2,121 countArkansas: 1,014 countCalifornia: 22,943 countColorado: 3,217 countConnecticut: 1,754 countDelaware: 523 countDistrict of Columbia: 749 countFlorida: 8,287 countGeorgia: 4,089 countHawaii: 498 countIdaho: 634 countIllinois: 5,439 countIndiana: 2,048 countIowa: 1,473 countKansas: 1,359 countKentucky: 1,507 countLouisiana: 1,447 countMaine: 791 countMaryland: 2,486 countMassachusetts: 3,626 countMichigan: 3,760 countMinnesota: 2,516 countMississippi: 921 countMissouri: 2,392 countMontana: 638 countNebraska: 885 countNevada: 1,272 countNew Hampshire: 718 countNew Jersey: 3,715 countNew Mexico: 727 countNew York: 11,473 countNorth Carolina: 3,591 countNorth Dakota: 329 countOhio: 3,752 countOklahoma: 1,456 countOregon: 2,041 countPennsylvania: 5,047 countRhode Island: 456 countSouth Carolina: 1,376 countSouth Dakota: 445 countTennessee: 2,440 countTexas: 9,238 countUtah: 1,471 countVermont: 485 countVirginia: 3,870 countWashington: 3,387 countWest Virginia: 660 countWisconsin: 2,186 countWyoming: 351 count
  • Under 600
  • 600 to 1,000
  • 1,000 to 1,500
  • 1,500 to 2,500
  • 2,500 to 3,800
  • 3,800 and over
count, 2015. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, County Business Patterns, state and US files: establishments (EST), information (NAICS 51), all legal forms. Boundaries: U.S. Census Bureau cartographic boundary files.

All states, 2015

California: 22,943 countCalifornia22,943New York: 11,473 countNew York11,473Texas: 9,238 countTexas9,238Florida: 8,287 countFlorida8,287Illinois: 5,439 countIllinois5,439Pennsylvania: 5,047 countPennsylvania5,047Georgia: 4,089 countGeorgia4,089Virginia: 3,870 countVirginia3,870Michigan: 3,760 countMichigan3,760Ohio: 3,752 countOhio3,752New Jersey: 3,715 countNew Jersey3,715Massachusetts: 3,626 countMassachusetts3,626North Carolina: 3,591 countNorth Carolina3,591Washington: 3,387 countWashington3,387Colorado: 3,217 countColorado3,217Minnesota: 2,516 countMinnesota2,516Maryland: 2,486 countMaryland2,486Tennessee: 2,440 countTennessee2,440Missouri: 2,392 countMissouri2,392Wisconsin: 2,186 countWisconsin2,186Arizona: 2,121 countArizona2,121Indiana: 2,048 countIndiana2,048Oregon: 2,041 countOregon2,041Connecticut: 1,754 countConnecticut1,754Kentucky: 1,507 countKentucky1,507Alabama: 1,502 countAlabama1,502Iowa: 1,473 countIowa1,473Utah: 1,471 countUtah1,471Oklahoma: 1,456 countOklahoma1,456Louisiana: 1,447 countLouisiana1,447South Carolina: 1,376 countSouth Carolina1,376Kansas: 1,359 countKansas1,359Nevada: 1,272 countNevada1,272Arkansas: 1,014 countArkansas1,014Mississippi: 921 countMississippi921Nebraska: 885 countNebraska885Maine: 791 countMaine791District of Columbia: 749 countDistrict of Columbia749New Mexico: 727 countNew Mexico727New Hampshire: 718 countNew Hampshire718West Virginia: 660 countWest Virginia660Montana: 638 countMontana638Idaho: 634 countIdaho634Delaware: 523 countDelaware523Hawaii: 498 countHawaii498Vermont: 485 countVermont485Rhode Island: 456 countRhode Island456South Dakota: 445 countSouth Dakota445Alaska: 403 countAlaska403Wyoming: 351 countWyoming351North Dakota: 329 countNorth Dakota329California: 22,943 countCalifornia22,943New York: 11,473 countNew York11,473Texas: 9,238 countTexas9,238Florida: 8,287 countFlorida8,287Illinois: 5,439 countIllinois5,439Pennsylvania: 5,047 countPennsylvania5,047Georgia: 4,089 countGeorgia4,089Virginia: 3,870 countVirginia3,870Michigan: 3,760 countMichigan3,760Ohio: 3,752 countOhio3,752New Jersey: 3,715 countNew Jersey3,715Massachusetts: 3,626 countMassachusetts3,626North Carolina: 3,591 countNorth Carolina3,591Washington: 3,387 countWashington3,387Colorado: 3,217 countColorado3,217Minnesota: 2,516 countMinnesota2,516Maryland: 2,486 countMaryland2,486Tennessee: 2,440 countTennessee2,440Missouri: 2,392 countMissouri2,392Wisconsin: 2,186 countWisconsin2,186Arizona: 2,121 countArizona2,121Indiana: 2,048 countIndiana2,048Oregon: 2,041 countOregon2,041Connecticut: 1,754 countConnecticut1,754Kentucky: 1,507 countKentucky1,507Alabama: 1,502 countAlabama1,502Iowa: 1,473 countIowa1,473Utah: 1,471 countUtah1,471Oklahoma: 1,456 countOklahoma1,456Louisiana: 1,447 countLouisiana1,447South Carolina: 1,376 countSouth Carolina1,376Kansas: 1,359 countKansas1,359Nevada: 1,272 countNevada1,272Arkansas: 1,014 countArkansas1,014Mississippi: 921 countMississippi921Nebraska: 885 countNebraska885Maine: 791 countMaine791District of Columbia: 749 countDistrict of Columbia749New Mexico: 727 countNew Mexico727New Hampshire: 718 countNew Hampshire718West Virginia: 660 countWest Virginia660Montana: 638 countMontana638Idaho: 634 countIdaho634Delaware: 523 countDelaware523Hawaii: 498 countHawaii498Vermont: 485 countVermont485Rhode Island: 456 countRhode Island456South Dakota: 445 countSouth Dakota445Alaska: 403 countAlaska403Wyoming: 351 countWyoming351North Dakota: 329 countNorth Dakota329
count. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, County Business Patterns, state and US files: establishments (EST), information (NAICS 51), all legal forms. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Full ranking

RankStates2015
count		Change on 2014
1California22,943+3.6%
2New York11,473-0.3%
3Texas9,238+1.5%
4Florida8,287+2.8%
5Illinois5,439+0.2%
6Pennsylvania5,047-1.1%
7Georgia4,089+0.9%
8Virginia3,870-1%
9Michigan3,760-0.1%
10Ohio3,752-1.2%
11New Jersey3,715-0.5%
12Massachusetts3,626-2.3%
13North Carolina3,591+3.5%
14Washington3,3870%
15Colorado3,217+3.7%
16Minnesota2,516-3.5%
17Maryland2,486-2%
18Tennessee2,440+2%
19Missouri2,392-0.5%
20Wisconsin2,186-0.6%
21Arizona2,121+0.5%
22Indiana2,048-3.8%
23Oregon2,041+3.4%
24Connecticut1,754+1.9%
25Kentucky1,507-0.3%
26Alabama1,502-1.2%
27Iowa1,473-0.3%
28Utah1,471+3.5%
29Oklahoma1,456+1.5%
30Louisiana1,447+2.9%
31South Carolina1,376+1.5%
32Kansas1,359+1.8%
33Nevada1,272+2.1%
34Arkansas1,014+2.7%
35Mississippi921-1.8%
36Nebraska885-1.1%
37Maine791+3.3%
38District of Columbia749+4.8%
39New Mexico727-3.5%
40New Hampshire718-3.4%
41West Virginia660+1.9%
42Montana638-2.3%
43Idaho634-1.7%
44Delaware523+4.8%
45Hawaii498-0.6%
46Vermont485+0.8%
47Rhode Island456-4.2%
48South Dakota445-2%
49Alaska403-2.4%
50Wyoming351-7.4%
51North Dakota329-4.1%

Other periods

About this ranking

Number of establishments with paid employees in information (publishing, media, telecommunications and data processing) (NAICS 51), 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), information (NAICS 51), all legal forms. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/cbp/datasets/2015/. 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. (2017). County Business Patterns, state and US files: establishments (EST), information (NAICS 51), all legal forms (US states by employer establishments: information, 2015) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/cbp/datasets/2015/

MLA 9

County Business Patterns, state and US files: establishments (EST), information (NAICS 51), all legal forms, US states by employer establishments: information, 2015. U.S. Census Bureau, 9 May 2017, https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/cbp/datasets/2015/. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/employer-establishments-information/us-states?period=2015. Accessed 12 Oct. 2026.

Chicago (author-date)

U.S. Census Bureau. 2017. County Business Patterns, state and US files: establishments (EST), information (NAICS 51), all legal forms. US states by employer establishments: information, 2015. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/cbp/datasets/2015/. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/employer-establishments-information/us-states?period=2015.

Harvard

U.S. Census Bureau (2017) County Business Patterns, state and US files: establishments (EST), information (NAICS 51), all legal forms, US states by employer establishments: information, 2015 [Dataset]. Available at: https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/cbp/datasets/2015/, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/employer-establishments-information/us-states?period=2015 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{census_us_states_by_employer_2015,
  author = {{U.S. Census Bureau}},
  title = {{County Business Patterns, state and US files: establishments (EST), information (NAICS 51), all legal forms: US states by employer establishments: information, 2015}},
  year = {2017},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/cbp/datasets/2015/},
  urldate = {2026-10-12},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/employer-establishments-information/us-states?period=2015. Publisher attribution: U.S. Census Bureau. County Business Patterns, state and US files: establishments (EST), information (NAICS 51), all legal forms. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/cbp/datasets/2015/. Retrieved 2026-10-12.},
}
RIS
TY  - DATA
AU  - U.S. Census Bureau
TI  - County Business Patterns, state and US files: establishments (EST), information (NAICS 51), all legal forms: US states by employer establishments: information, 2015
PY  - 2017
DA  - 2017/05/09
PB  - U.S. Census Bureau
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/cbp/datasets/2015/
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/employer-establishments-information/us-states?period=2015
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/employer-establishments-information/us-states?period=2015.
N1  - Publisher attribution: U.S. Census Bureau. County Business Patterns, state and US files: establishments (EST), information (NAICS 51), all legal forms. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/cbp/datasets/2015/. Retrieved 2026-10-12.
ER  -
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Questions

Which state has the highest employer establishments: information?

California, with 22,943 in 2015, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

Which state has the lowest employer establishments: information?

North Dakota, with 329 in 2015.

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), information (NAICS 51), all legal forms. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

US states: more rankings