Data / Rankings / Employer establishments: manufacturing / US states

US states by employer establishments: manufacturing

California had the highest employer establishments: manufacturing of 51 states in 2015, at 38,532. District of Columbia had the lowest, at 101. The median was 3,692 and the figure for the United States was 292,825. Source: the U.S. Census Bureau.

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Highest38,532California
Lowest101District of Columbia
Median3,69251 states
United States292,825History

Map of states, 2015

Alabama: 4,158 countAlaska: 535 countArizona: 4,268 countArkansas: 2,605 countCalifornia: 38,532 countColorado: 5,040 countConnecticut: 4,135 countDelaware: 583 countDistrict of Columbia: 101 countFlorida: 13,112 countGeorgia: 7,432 countHawaii: 764 countIdaho: 1,754 countIllinois: 13,470 countIndiana: 7,991 countIowa: 3,525 countKansas: 2,817 countKentucky: 3,692 countLouisiana: 3,273 countMaine: 1,661 countMaryland: 2,968 countMassachusetts: 6,544 countMichigan: 12,437 countMinnesota: 7,311 countMississippi: 2,117 countMissouri: 5,907 countMontana: 1,276 countNebraska: 1,785 countNevada: 1,794 countNew Hampshire: 1,788 countNew Jersey: 7,413 countNew Mexico: 1,358 countNew York: 15,963 countNorth Carolina: 8,739 countNorth Dakota: 758 countOhio: 14,139 countOklahoma: 3,510 countOregon: 5,432 countPennsylvania: 13,666 countRhode Island: 1,397 countSouth Carolina: 3,750 countSouth Dakota: 1,038 countTennessee: 5,645 countTexas: 19,759 countUtah: 3,286 countVermont: 1,000 countVirginia: 4,984 countWashington: 7,021 countWest Virginia: 1,196 countWisconsin: 8,821 countWyoming: 575 count
  • Under 1,200
  • 1,200 to 2,000
  • 2,000 to 3,700
  • 3,700 to 5,700
  • 5,700 to 8,800
  • 8,800 and over
count, 2015. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, County Business Patterns, state and US files: establishments (EST), manufacturing (NAICS 31-33), all legal forms. Boundaries: U.S. Census Bureau cartographic boundary files.

All states, 2015

California: 38,532 countCalifornia38,532Texas: 19,759 countTexas19,759New York: 15,963 countNew York15,963Ohio: 14,139 countOhio14,139Pennsylvania: 13,666 countPennsylvania13,666Illinois: 13,470 countIllinois13,470Florida: 13,112 countFlorida13,112Michigan: 12,437 countMichigan12,437Wisconsin: 8,821 countWisconsin8,821North Carolina: 8,739 countNorth Carolina8,739Indiana: 7,991 countIndiana7,991Georgia: 7,432 countGeorgia7,432New Jersey: 7,413 countNew Jersey7,413Minnesota: 7,311 countMinnesota7,311Washington: 7,021 countWashington7,021Massachusetts: 6,544 countMassachusetts6,544Missouri: 5,907 countMissouri5,907Tennessee: 5,645 countTennessee5,645Oregon: 5,432 countOregon5,432Colorado: 5,040 countColorado5,040Virginia: 4,984 countVirginia4,984Arizona: 4,268 countArizona4,268Alabama: 4,158 countAlabama4,158Connecticut: 4,135 countConnecticut4,135South Carolina: 3,750 countSouth Carolina3,750Kentucky: 3,692 countKentucky3,692Iowa: 3,525 countIowa3,525Oklahoma: 3,510 countOklahoma3,510Utah: 3,286 countUtah3,286Louisiana: 3,273 countLouisiana3,273Maryland: 2,968 countMaryland2,968Kansas: 2,817 countKansas2,817Arkansas: 2,605 countArkansas2,605Mississippi: 2,117 countMississippi2,117Nevada: 1,794 countNevada1,794New Hampshire: 1,788 countNew Hampshire1,788Nebraska: 1,785 countNebraska1,785Idaho: 1,754 countIdaho1,754Maine: 1,661 countMaine1,661Rhode Island: 1,397 countRhode Island1,397New Mexico: 1,358 countNew Mexico1,358Montana: 1,276 countMontana1,276West Virginia: 1,196 countWest Virginia1,196South Dakota: 1,038 countSouth Dakota1,038Vermont: 1,000 countVermont1,000Hawaii: 764 countHawaii764North Dakota: 758 countNorth Dakota758Delaware: 583 countDelaware583Wyoming: 575 countWyoming575Alaska: 535 countAlaska535District of Columbia: 101 countDistrict of Columbia101California: 38,532 countCalifornia38,532Texas: 19,759 countTexas19,759New York: 15,963 countNew York15,963Ohio: 14,139 countOhio14,139Pennsylvania: 13,666 countPennsylvania13,666Illinois: 13,470 countIllinois13,470Florida: 13,112 countFlorida13,112Michigan: 12,437 countMichigan12,437Wisconsin: 8,821 countWisconsin8,821North Carolina: 8,739 countNorth Carolina8,739Indiana: 7,991 countIndiana7,991Georgia: 7,432 countGeorgia7,432New Jersey: 7,413 countNew Jersey7,413Minnesota: 7,311 countMinnesota7,311Washington: 7,021 countWashington7,021Massachusetts: 6,544 countMassachusetts6,544Missouri: 5,907 countMissouri5,907Tennessee: 5,645 countTennessee5,645Oregon: 5,432 countOregon5,432Colorado: 5,040 countColorado5,040Virginia: 4,984 countVirginia4,984Arizona: 4,268 countArizona4,268Alabama: 4,158 countAlabama4,158Connecticut: 4,135 countConnecticut4,135South Carolina: 3,750 countSouth Carolina3,750Kentucky: 3,692 countKentucky3,692Iowa: 3,525 countIowa3,525Oklahoma: 3,510 countOklahoma3,510Utah: 3,286 countUtah3,286Louisiana: 3,273 countLouisiana3,273Maryland: 2,968 countMaryland2,968Kansas: 2,817 countKansas2,817Arkansas: 2,605 countArkansas2,605Mississippi: 2,117 countMississippi2,117Nevada: 1,794 countNevada1,794New Hampshire: 1,788 countNew Hampshire1,788Nebraska: 1,785 countNebraska1,785Idaho: 1,754 countIdaho1,754Maine: 1,661 countMaine1,661Rhode Island: 1,397 countRhode Island1,397New Mexico: 1,358 countNew Mexico1,358Montana: 1,276 countMontana1,276West Virginia: 1,196 countWest Virginia1,196South Dakota: 1,038 countSouth Dakota1,038Vermont: 1,000 countVermont1,000Hawaii: 764 countHawaii764North Dakota: 758 countNorth Dakota758Delaware: 583 countDelaware583Wyoming: 575 countWyoming575Alaska: 535 countAlaska535District of Columbia: 101 countDistrict of Columbia101
count. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, County Business Patterns, state and US files: establishments (EST), manufacturing (NAICS 31-33), all legal forms. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Full ranking

RankStates2015
count		Change on 2014
1California38,532+0.6%
2Texas19,759+0.4%
3New York15,963-0.7%
4Ohio14,139-0.5%
5Pennsylvania13,666-0.1%
6Illinois13,470-0.5%
7Florida13,112+1.5%
8Michigan12,437+0.6%
9Wisconsin8,821-0.4%
10North Carolina8,739+0.2%
11Indiana7,991-0.6%
12Georgia7,432+1.1%
13New Jersey7,413-1.6%
14Minnesota7,311+0.5%
15Washington7,021+1.3%
16Massachusetts6,544-1.7%
17Missouri5,907-0.7%
18Tennessee5,645+0.2%
19Oregon5,432+2.2%
20Colorado5,040+1.7%
21Virginia4,984-0%
22Arizona4,268+1%
23Alabama4,158-0.5%
24Connecticut4,135-1.5%
25South Carolina3,750-0.5%
26Kentucky3,692-1.7%
27Iowa3,525-0.5%
28Oklahoma3,510-1.2%
29Utah3,286+2.7%
30Louisiana3,273+0.6%
31Maryland2,968-1.1%
32Kansas2,817-0.5%
33Arkansas2,605-0.4%
34Mississippi2,117-2.3%
35Nevada1,794+2.5%
36New Hampshire1,788-1%
37Nebraska1,785-0.6%
38Idaho1,754+0.1%
39Maine1,661+1%
40Rhode Island1,397-2.4%
41New Mexico1,358+0.6%
42Montana1,276+2%
43West Virginia1,196-0.7%
44South Dakota1,038+1%
45Vermont1,000+1.1%
46Hawaii764+0.5%
47North Dakota758-0.5%
48Delaware583-1.5%
49Wyoming575+2%
50Alaska535+1.1%
51District of Columbia101+3.1%

Other periods

About this ranking

Number of establishments with paid employees in manufacturing (NAICS 31-33), 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), manufacturing (NAICS 31-33), 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), manufacturing (NAICS 31-33), all legal forms (US states by employer establishments: manufacturing, 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), manufacturing (NAICS 31-33), all legal forms, US states by employer establishments: manufacturing, 2015. U.S. Census Bureau, 9 May 2017, https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/cbp/datasets/2015/. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/employer-establishments-manufacturing/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), manufacturing (NAICS 31-33), all legal forms. US states by employer establishments: manufacturing, 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-manufacturing/us-states?period=2015.

Harvard

U.S. Census Bureau (2017) County Business Patterns, state and US files: establishments (EST), manufacturing (NAICS 31-33), all legal forms, US states by employer establishments: manufacturing, 2015 [Dataset]. Available at: https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/cbp/datasets/2015/, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/employer-establishments-manufacturing/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), manufacturing (NAICS 31-33), all legal forms: US states by employer establishments: manufacturing, 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-manufacturing/us-states?period=2015. Publisher attribution: U.S. Census Bureau. County Business Patterns, state and US files: establishments (EST), manufacturing (NAICS 31-33), 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), manufacturing (NAICS 31-33), all legal forms: US states by employer establishments: manufacturing, 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-manufacturing/us-states?period=2015
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/employer-establishments-manufacturing/us-states?period=2015.
N1  - Publisher attribution: U.S. Census Bureau. County Business Patterns, state and US files: establishments (EST), manufacturing (NAICS 31-33), 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: manufacturing?

California, with 38,532 in 2015, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

Which state has the lowest employer establishments: manufacturing?

District of Columbia, with 101 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), manufacturing (NAICS 31-33), all legal forms. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

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