Data / Rankings / Government payroll employment / US states

US states by government payroll employment, August 2026

California had the highest government payroll employment of 51 states in August 2026, at 2,673,200 jobs. Vermont had the lowest, at 56,300 jobs. The median was 325,900 jobs and the figure for the United States was 23,344,000 jobs. Source: the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

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Highest2,673,200California
Lowest56,300Vermont
Median325,90051 states
United States23,344,000History

Map of states, August 2026

Alabama: 431,800 jobsAlaska: 77,900 jobsArizona: 424,400 jobsArkansas: 204,900 jobsCalifornia: 2,673,200 jobsColorado: 483,800 jobsConnecticut: 234,800 jobsDelaware: 71,700 jobsDistrict of Columbia: 208,100 jobsFlorida: 1,143,900 jobsGeorgia: 710,000 jobsHawaii: 126,100 jobsIdaho: 128,700 jobsIllinois: 858,100 jobsIndiana: 422,700 jobsIowa: 267,800 jobsKansas: 257,200 jobsKentucky: 315,400 jobsLouisiana: 325,900 jobsMaine: 102,500 jobsMaryland: 527,200 jobsMassachusetts: 475,100 jobsMichigan: 643,500 jobsMinnesota: 438,800 jobsMississippi: 236,300 jobsMissouri: 432,600 jobsMontana: 91,200 jobsNebraska: 177,700 jobsNevada: 185,000 jobsNew Hampshire: 87,500 jobsNew Jersey: 622,100 jobsNew Mexico: 195,300 jobsNew York: 1,532,100 jobsNorth Carolina: 780,700 jobsNorth Dakota: 86,100 jobsOhio: 786,900 jobsOklahoma: 373,100 jobsOregon: 311,300 jobsPennsylvania: 700,600 jobsRhode Island: 64,500 jobsSouth Carolina: 403,800 jobsSouth Dakota: 80,600 jobsTennessee: 458,700 jobsTexas: 2,134,700 jobsUtah: 277,300 jobsVermont: 56,300 jobsVirginia: 755,600 jobsWashington: 606,400 jobsWest Virginia: 148,100 jobsWisconsin: 418,500 jobsWyoming: 71,400 jobs
  • Under 90K
  • 90K to 210K
  • 210K to 330K
  • 330K to 450K
  • 450K to 710K
  • 710K and over
jobs, August 2026. Source: BLS, Current Employment Statistics, State and Area: all employees, government, statewide, seasonally adjusted (SMS, state, 000009000000001). Boundaries: U.S. Census Bureau cartographic boundary files.

All states, August 2026

California: 2,673,200 jobsCalifornia2,673,200Texas: 2,134,700 jobsTexas2,134,700New York: 1,532,100 jobsNew York1,532,100Florida: 1,143,900 jobsFlorida1,143,900Illinois: 858,100 jobsIllinois858,100Ohio: 786,900 jobsOhio786,900North Carolina: 780,700 jobsNorth Carolina780,700Virginia: 755,600 jobsVirginia755,600Georgia: 710,000 jobsGeorgia710,000Pennsylvania: 700,600 jobsPennsylvania700,600Michigan: 643,500 jobsMichigan643,500New Jersey: 622,100 jobsNew Jersey622,100Washington: 606,400 jobsWashington606,400Maryland: 527,200 jobsMaryland527,200Colorado: 483,800 jobsColorado483,800Massachusetts: 475,100 jobsMassachusetts475,100Tennessee: 458,700 jobsTennessee458,700Minnesota: 438,800 jobsMinnesota438,800Missouri: 432,600 jobsMissouri432,600Alabama: 431,800 jobsAlabama431,800Arizona: 424,400 jobsArizona424,400Indiana: 422,700 jobsIndiana422,700Wisconsin: 418,500 jobsWisconsin418,500South Carolina: 403,800 jobsSouth Carolina403,800Oklahoma: 373,100 jobsOklahoma373,100Louisiana: 325,900 jobsLouisiana325,900Kentucky: 315,400 jobsKentucky315,400Oregon: 311,300 jobsOregon311,300Utah: 277,300 jobsUtah277,300Iowa: 267,800 jobsIowa267,800Kansas: 257,200 jobsKansas257,200Mississippi: 236,300 jobsMississippi236,300Connecticut: 234,800 jobsConnecticut234,800District of Columbia: 208,100 jobsDistrict of Columbia208,100Arkansas: 204,900 jobsArkansas204,900New Mexico: 195,300 jobsNew Mexico195,300Nevada: 185,000 jobsNevada185,000Nebraska: 177,700 jobsNebraska177,700West Virginia: 148,100 jobsWest Virginia148,100Idaho: 128,700 jobsIdaho128,700Hawaii: 126,100 jobsHawaii126,100Maine: 102,500 jobsMaine102,500Montana: 91,200 jobsMontana91,200New Hampshire: 87,500 jobsNew Hampshire87,500North Dakota: 86,100 jobsNorth Dakota86,100South Dakota: 80,600 jobsSouth Dakota80,600Alaska: 77,900 jobsAlaska77,900Delaware: 71,700 jobsDelaware71,700Wyoming: 71,400 jobsWyoming71,400Rhode Island: 64,500 jobsRhode Island64,500Vermont: 56,300 jobsVermont56,300California: 2,673,200 jobsCalifornia2,673,200Texas: 2,134,700 jobsTexas2,134,700New York: 1,532,100 jobsNew York1,532,100Florida: 1,143,900 jobsFlorida1,143,900Illinois: 858,100 jobsIllinois858,100Ohio: 786,900 jobsOhio786,900North Carolina: 780,700 jobsNorth Carolina780,700Virginia: 755,600 jobsVirginia755,600Georgia: 710,000 jobsGeorgia710,000Pennsylvania: 700,600 jobsPennsylvania700,600Michigan: 643,500 jobsMichigan643,500New Jersey: 622,100 jobsNew Jersey622,100Washington: 606,400 jobsWashington606,400Maryland: 527,200 jobsMaryland527,200Colorado: 483,800 jobsColorado483,800Massachusetts: 475,100 jobsMassachusetts475,100Tennessee: 458,700 jobsTennessee458,700Minnesota: 438,800 jobsMinnesota438,800Missouri: 432,600 jobsMissouri432,600Alabama: 431,800 jobsAlabama431,800Arizona: 424,400 jobsArizona424,400Indiana: 422,700 jobsIndiana422,700Wisconsin: 418,500 jobsWisconsin418,500South Carolina: 403,800 jobsSouth Carolina403,800Oklahoma: 373,100 jobsOklahoma373,100Louisiana: 325,900 jobsLouisiana325,900Kentucky: 315,400 jobsKentucky315,400Oregon: 311,300 jobsOregon311,300Utah: 277,300 jobsUtah277,300Iowa: 267,800 jobsIowa267,800Kansas: 257,200 jobsKansas257,200Mississippi: 236,300 jobsMississippi236,300Connecticut: 234,800 jobsConnecticut234,800District of Columbia: 208,100 jobsDistrict of Columbia208,100Arkansas: 204,900 jobsArkansas204,900New Mexico: 195,300 jobsNew Mexico195,300Nevada: 185,000 jobsNevada185,000Nebraska: 177,700 jobsNebraska177,700West Virginia: 148,100 jobsWest Virginia148,100Idaho: 128,700 jobsIdaho128,700Hawaii: 126,100 jobsHawaii126,100Maine: 102,500 jobsMaine102,500Montana: 91,200 jobsMontana91,200New Hampshire: 87,500 jobsNew Hampshire87,500North Dakota: 86,100 jobsNorth Dakota86,100South Dakota: 80,600 jobsSouth Dakota80,600Alaska: 77,900 jobsAlaska77,900Delaware: 71,700 jobsDelaware71,700Wyoming: 71,400 jobsWyoming71,400Rhode Island: 64,500 jobsRhode Island64,500Vermont: 56,300 jobsVermont56,300
jobs. Source: BLS, Current Employment Statistics, State and Area: all employees, government, statewide, seasonally adjusted (SMS, state, 000009000000001). Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Full ranking

RankStatesAugust 2026
jobs		Change on August 2025
1California Provisional2,673,200-0.1%
2Texas Provisional2,134,700+0.1%
3New York Provisional1,532,100+0.5%
4Florida Provisional1,143,900-0.4%
5Illinois Provisional858,100+0.4%
6Ohio Provisional786,900-1.2%
7North Carolina Provisional780,700+0.6%
8Virginia Provisional755,600-1.5%
9Georgia Provisional710,000-0.2%
10Pennsylvania Provisional700,600-0.6%
11Michigan Provisional643,500+2.5%
12New Jersey Provisional622,100+0.5%
13Washington Provisional606,400-1.7%
14Maryland Provisional527,200-1.6%
15Colorado Provisional483,800-1.1%
16Massachusetts Provisional475,100+0.1%
17Tennessee Provisional458,700+0.8%
18Minnesota Provisional438,800+1.6%
19Missouri Provisional432,600-0.5%
20Alabama Provisional431,800+1.3%
21Arizona Provisional424,400-1%
22Indiana Provisional422,700-4.6%
23Wisconsin Provisional418,500+0.8%
24South Carolina Provisional403,800+1.5%
25Oklahoma Provisional373,100-0%
26Louisiana Provisional325,900+0.2%
27Kentucky Provisional315,400-0.7%
28Oregon Provisional311,300-2%
29Utah Provisional277,300-1.3%
30Iowa Provisional267,8000%
31Kansas Provisional257,200-1.3%
32Mississippi Provisional236,300-0.6%
33Connecticut Provisional234,800-0.4%
34District of Columbia Provisional208,100-8.8%
35Arkansas Provisional204,900-0.7%
36New Mexico Provisional195,300+1.8%
37Nevada Provisional185,000+0.1%
38Nebraska Provisional177,700-0.6%
39West Virginia Provisional148,100-0.2%
40Idaho Provisional128,700-1.8%
41Hawaii Provisional126,100-0.2%
42Maine Provisional102,500-0.5%
43Montana Provisional91,200-1.3%
44New Hampshire Provisional87,500-0.6%
45North Dakota Provisional86,100+0.6%
46South Dakota Provisional80,600-1.6%
47Alaska Provisional77,900-2.4%
48Delaware Provisional71,700-1.5%
49Wyoming Provisional71,400-0.6%
50Rhode Island Provisional64,500-1.8%
51Vermont Provisional56,300-0.4%

Other periods

About this ranking

Number of jobs on government payrolls in the month, seasonally adjusted, from the Current Employment Statistics (CES) survey of the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. The supersector covers federal, state and local government, including public schools, public hospitals and the Postal Service; active-duty military personnel are excluded.

One of the eleven CES supersectors that make up nonfarm_payroll_employment. Counts jobs on nonfarm payrolls, not people: someone with two jobs counts twice. It covers full-time and part-time employees paid for any part of the pay period that includes the 12th of the month, and excludes the self-employed, farm workers, private household workers and unpaid family workers.

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. Current Employment Statistics, State and Area: all employees, government, statewide, seasonally adjusted (SMS, state, 000009000000001). https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/sm/sm.data.76.Government.Current. 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). Current Employment Statistics, State and Area: all employees, government, statewide, seasonally adjusted (SMS, state, 000009000000001) (US states by government payroll employment, 2026-08) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/sm/sm.data.76.Government.Current

MLA 9

Current Employment Statistics, State and Area: all employees, government, statewide, seasonally adjusted (SMS, state, 000009000000001), US states by government payroll employment, 2026-08. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 18 Sept. 2026, https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/sm/sm.data.76.Government.Current. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/government-jobs/us-states. Accessed 12 Oct. 2026.

Chicago (author-date)

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. 2026. Current Employment Statistics, State and Area: all employees, government, statewide, seasonally adjusted (SMS, state, 000009000000001). US states by government payroll employment, 2026-08. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/sm/sm.data.76.Government.Current. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/government-jobs/us-states.

Harvard

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (2026) Current Employment Statistics, State and Area: all employees, government, statewide, seasonally adjusted (SMS, state, 000009000000001), US states by government payroll employment, 2026-08 [Dataset]. Available at: https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/sm/sm.data.76.Government.Current, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/government-jobs/us-states (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{bureau_us_states_by_government_2026,
  author = {{U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics}},
  title = {{Current Employment Statistics, State and Area: all employees, government, statewide, seasonally adjusted (SMS, state, 000009000000001): US states by government payroll employment, 2026-08}},
  year = {2026},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/sm/sm.data.76.Government.Current},
  urldate = {2026-10-12},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/government-jobs/us-states. Publisher attribution: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Current Employment Statistics, State and Area: all employees, government, statewide, seasonally adjusted (SMS, state, 000009000000001). https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/sm/sm.data.76.Government.Current. Retrieved 2026-10-12.},
}
RIS
TY  - DATA
AU  - U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
TI  - Current Employment Statistics, State and Area: all employees, government, statewide, seasonally adjusted (SMS, state, 000009000000001): US states by government payroll employment, 2026-08
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/09/18
PB  - U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/sm/sm.data.76.Government.Current
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/government-jobs/us-states
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/government-jobs/us-states.
N1  - Publisher attribution: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Current Employment Statistics, State and Area: all employees, government, statewide, seasonally adjusted (SMS, state, 000009000000001). https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/sm/sm.data.76.Government.Current. Retrieved 2026-10-12.
ER  -
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Questions

Which state has the highest government payroll employment?

California, with 2,673,200 jobs in August 2026, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Which state has the lowest government payroll employment?

Vermont, with 56,300 jobs in August 2026.

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, Current Employment Statistics, State and Area: all employees, government, statewide, seasonally adjusted (SMS, state, 000009000000001). Retrieved 2026-10-12.

US states: more rankings