Data / Rankings / Employer establishments: retail trade / US states

US states by employer establishments: retail trade

California had the highest employer establishments: retail trade of 51 states in 2019, at 105,624. District of Columbia had the lowest, at 1,694. The median was 14,841 and the figure for the United States was 1.04 million. Source: the U.S. Census Bureau.

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Highest105,624California
Lowest1,694District of Columbia
Median14,84151 states
United States1,044,957History

Map of states, 2019

Alabama: 17,725 countAlaska: 2,456 countArizona: 17,585 countArkansas: 10,709 countCalifornia: 105,624 countColorado: 18,622 countConnecticut: 11,928 countDelaware: 3,608 countDistrict of Columbia: 1,694 countFlorida: 73,481 countGeorgia: 34,132 countHawaii: 4,559 countIdaho: 6,099 countIllinois: 36,948 countIndiana: 20,935 countIowa: 11,355 countKansas: 9,762 countKentucky: 14,841 countLouisiana: 16,248 countMaine: 6,088 countMaryland: 17,381 countMassachusetts: 23,323 countMichigan: 33,678 countMinnesota: 18,247 countMississippi: 11,324 countMissouri: 20,210 countMontana: 4,631 countNebraska: 7,032 countNevada: 8,591 countNew Hampshire: 5,833 countNew Jersey: 30,548 countNew Mexico: 6,207 countNew York: 75,882 countNorth Carolina: 34,594 countNorth Dakota: 3,154 countOhio: 34,752 countOklahoma: 13,027 countOregon: 14,167 countPennsylvania: 41,641 countRhode Island: 3,647 countSouth Carolina: 17,717 countSouth Dakota: 3,802 countTennessee: 22,653 countTexas: 80,878 countUtah: 10,152 countVermont: 3,062 countVirginia: 26,384 countWashington: 21,324 countWest Virginia: 5,779 countWisconsin: 18,379 countWyoming: 2,559 count
  • Under 5,000
  • 5,000 to 9,000
  • 9,000 to 15K
  • 15K to 19K
  • 19K to 34K
  • 34K and over
count, 2019. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, County Business Patterns, state and US files: establishments (EST), retail trade (NAICS 44-45), all legal forms. Boundaries: U.S. Census Bureau cartographic boundary files.

All states, 2019

California: 105,624 countCalifornia105,624Texas: 80,878 countTexas80,878New York: 75,882 countNew York75,882Florida: 73,481 countFlorida73,481Pennsylvania: 41,641 countPennsylvania41,641Illinois: 36,948 countIllinois36,948Ohio: 34,752 countOhio34,752North Carolina: 34,594 countNorth Carolina34,594Georgia: 34,132 countGeorgia34,132Michigan: 33,678 countMichigan33,678New Jersey: 30,548 countNew Jersey30,548Virginia: 26,384 countVirginia26,384Massachusetts: 23,323 countMassachusetts23,323Tennessee: 22,653 countTennessee22,653Washington: 21,324 countWashington21,324Indiana: 20,935 countIndiana20,935Missouri: 20,210 countMissouri20,210Colorado: 18,622 countColorado18,622Wisconsin: 18,379 countWisconsin18,379Minnesota: 18,247 countMinnesota18,247Alabama: 17,725 countAlabama17,725South Carolina: 17,717 countSouth Carolina17,717Arizona: 17,585 countArizona17,585Maryland: 17,381 countMaryland17,381Louisiana: 16,248 countLouisiana16,248Kentucky: 14,841 countKentucky14,841Oregon: 14,167 countOregon14,167Oklahoma: 13,027 countOklahoma13,027Connecticut: 11,928 countConnecticut11,928Iowa: 11,355 countIowa11,355Mississippi: 11,324 countMississippi11,324Arkansas: 10,709 countArkansas10,709Utah: 10,152 countUtah10,152Kansas: 9,762 countKansas9,762Nevada: 8,591 countNevada8,591Nebraska: 7,032 countNebraska7,032New Mexico: 6,207 countNew Mexico6,207Idaho: 6,099 countIdaho6,099Maine: 6,088 countMaine6,088New Hampshire: 5,833 countNew Hampshire5,833West Virginia: 5,779 countWest Virginia5,779Montana: 4,631 countMontana4,631Hawaii: 4,559 countHawaii4,559South Dakota: 3,802 countSouth Dakota3,802Rhode Island: 3,647 countRhode Island3,647Delaware: 3,608 countDelaware3,608North Dakota: 3,154 countNorth Dakota3,154Vermont: 3,062 countVermont3,062Wyoming: 2,559 countWyoming2,559Alaska: 2,456 countAlaska2,456District of Columbia: 1,694 countDistrict of Columbia1,694California: 105,624 countCalifornia105,624Texas: 80,878 countTexas80,878New York: 75,882 countNew York75,882Florida: 73,481 countFlorida73,481Pennsylvania: 41,641 countPennsylvania41,641Illinois: 36,948 countIllinois36,948Ohio: 34,752 countOhio34,752North Carolina: 34,594 countNorth Carolina34,594Georgia: 34,132 countGeorgia34,132Michigan: 33,678 countMichigan33,678New Jersey: 30,548 countNew Jersey30,548Virginia: 26,384 countVirginia26,384Massachusetts: 23,323 countMassachusetts23,323Tennessee: 22,653 countTennessee22,653Washington: 21,324 countWashington21,324Indiana: 20,935 countIndiana20,935Missouri: 20,210 countMissouri20,210Colorado: 18,622 countColorado18,622Wisconsin: 18,379 countWisconsin18,379Minnesota: 18,247 countMinnesota18,247Alabama: 17,725 countAlabama17,725South Carolina: 17,717 countSouth Carolina17,717Arizona: 17,585 countArizona17,585Maryland: 17,381 countMaryland17,381Louisiana: 16,248 countLouisiana16,248Kentucky: 14,841 countKentucky14,841Oregon: 14,167 countOregon14,167Oklahoma: 13,027 countOklahoma13,027Connecticut: 11,928 countConnecticut11,928Iowa: 11,355 countIowa11,355Mississippi: 11,324 countMississippi11,324Arkansas: 10,709 countArkansas10,709Utah: 10,152 countUtah10,152Kansas: 9,762 countKansas9,762Nevada: 8,591 countNevada8,591Nebraska: 7,032 countNebraska7,032New Mexico: 6,207 countNew Mexico6,207Idaho: 6,099 countIdaho6,099Maine: 6,088 countMaine6,088New Hampshire: 5,833 countNew Hampshire5,833West Virginia: 5,779 countWest Virginia5,779Montana: 4,631 countMontana4,631Hawaii: 4,559 countHawaii4,559South Dakota: 3,802 countSouth Dakota3,802Rhode Island: 3,647 countRhode Island3,647Delaware: 3,608 countDelaware3,608North Dakota: 3,154 countNorth Dakota3,154Vermont: 3,062 countVermont3,062Wyoming: 2,559 countWyoming2,559Alaska: 2,456 countAlaska2,456District of Columbia: 1,694 countDistrict of Columbia1,694
count. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, County Business Patterns, state and US files: establishments (EST), retail trade (NAICS 44-45), all legal forms. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Full ranking

RankStates2019
count		Change on 2018
1California105,624-0.7%
2Texas80,878+0.5%
3New York75,882-1.5%
4Florida73,481-0.3%
5Pennsylvania41,641-0.9%
6Illinois36,948-1.6%
7Ohio34,752-0.4%
8North Carolina34,594+0.3%
9Georgia34,132+0.2%
10Michigan33,678-0.3%
11New Jersey30,548-0.8%
12Virginia26,384-0.5%
13Massachusetts23,323-0.7%
14Tennessee22,653+0.4%
15Washington21,324-1%
16Indiana20,935-0%
17Missouri20,210-1%
18Colorado18,622-0.3%
19Wisconsin18,379-0.8%
20Minnesota18,247-1.5%
21Alabama17,725-0.3%
22South Carolina17,717+0.6%
23Arizona17,585+0.1%
24Maryland17,381-0.9%
25Louisiana16,248-0%
26Kentucky14,841-0.2%
27Oregon14,167-0%
28Oklahoma13,027+1.1%
29Connecticut11,928-1.8%
30Iowa11,355-0.8%
31Mississippi11,324-0.9%
32Arkansas10,709-0.7%
33Utah10,152+1%
34Kansas9,762-1.1%
35Nevada8,591-0.3%
36Nebraska7,032-0%
37New Mexico6,207-0.9%
38Idaho6,099-0.5%
39Maine6,088-0.7%
40New Hampshire5,833-1.5%
41West Virginia5,779-1.2%
42Montana4,631-0.4%
43Hawaii4,559-1.8%
44South Dakota3,802-0.7%
45Rhode Island3,647-0.8%
46Delaware3,608-0.8%
47North Dakota3,154-0.3%
48Vermont3,062-2.5%
49Wyoming2,559+0.8%
50Alaska2,456-0.4%
51District of Columbia1,694-0.3%

Other periods

About this ranking

Number of establishments with paid employees in retail trade (NAICS 44-45), 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), retail trade (NAICS 44-45), all legal forms. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/cbp/datasets/2019/. 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. (2021). County Business Patterns, state and US files: establishments (EST), retail trade (NAICS 44-45), all legal forms (US states by employer establishments: retail trade, 2019) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/cbp/datasets/2019/

MLA 9

County Business Patterns, state and US files: establishments (EST), retail trade (NAICS 44-45), all legal forms, US states by employer establishments: retail trade, 2019. U.S. Census Bureau, 22 Apr. 2021, https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/cbp/datasets/2019/. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/employer-establishments-retail-trade/us-states?period=2019. Accessed 12 Oct. 2026.

Chicago (author-date)

U.S. Census Bureau. 2021. County Business Patterns, state and US files: establishments (EST), retail trade (NAICS 44-45), all legal forms. US states by employer establishments: retail trade, 2019. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/cbp/datasets/2019/. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/employer-establishments-retail-trade/us-states?period=2019.

Harvard

U.S. Census Bureau (2021) County Business Patterns, state and US files: establishments (EST), retail trade (NAICS 44-45), all legal forms, US states by employer establishments: retail trade, 2019 [Dataset]. Available at: https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/cbp/datasets/2019/, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/employer-establishments-retail-trade/us-states?period=2019 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{census_us_states_by_employer_2019,
  author = {{U.S. Census Bureau}},
  title = {{County Business Patterns, state and US files: establishments (EST), retail trade (NAICS 44-45), all legal forms: US states by employer establishments: retail trade, 2019}},
  year = {2021},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/cbp/datasets/2019/},
  urldate = {2026-10-12},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/employer-establishments-retail-trade/us-states?period=2019. Publisher attribution: U.S. Census Bureau. County Business Patterns, state and US files: establishments (EST), retail trade (NAICS 44-45), all legal forms. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/cbp/datasets/2019/. Retrieved 2026-10-12.},
}
RIS
TY  - DATA
AU  - U.S. Census Bureau
TI  - County Business Patterns, state and US files: establishments (EST), retail trade (NAICS 44-45), all legal forms: US states by employer establishments: retail trade, 2019
PY  - 2021
DA  - 2021/04/22
PB  - U.S. Census Bureau
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/cbp/datasets/2019/
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/employer-establishments-retail-trade/us-states?period=2019
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/employer-establishments-retail-trade/us-states?period=2019.
N1  - Publisher attribution: U.S. Census Bureau. County Business Patterns, state and US files: establishments (EST), retail trade (NAICS 44-45), all legal forms. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/cbp/datasets/2019/. Retrieved 2026-10-12.
ER  -
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Questions

Which state has the highest employer establishments: retail trade?

California, with 105,624 in 2019, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

Which state has the lowest employer establishments: retail trade?

District of Columbia, with 1,694 in 2019.

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), retail trade (NAICS 44-45), all legal forms. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

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