Data / Rankings / Government payroll employment / US states

US states by government payroll employment

California had the highest government payroll employment of 51 states in November 2025, at 2,658,100 jobs. Vermont had the lowest, at 56,200 jobs. The median was 324,800 jobs and the figure for the United States was 23,359,000 jobs. Source: the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

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Highest2,658,100California
Lowest56,200Vermont
Median324,80051 states
United States23,359,000History

Map of states, November 2025

Alabama: 426,400 jobsAlaska: 77,900 jobsArizona: 427,800 jobsArkansas: 204,400 jobsCalifornia: 2,658,100 jobsColorado: 487,800 jobsConnecticut: 234,800 jobsDelaware: 71,600 jobsDistrict of Columbia: 213,100 jobsFlorida: 1,139,300 jobsGeorgia: 709,800 jobsHawaii: 125,400 jobsIdaho: 130,200 jobsIllinois: 853,900 jobsIndiana: 422,200 jobsIowa: 267,600 jobsKansas: 259,900 jobsKentucky: 315,900 jobsLouisiana: 324,800 jobsMaine: 101,900 jobsMaryland: 526,300 jobsMassachusetts: 472,100 jobsMichigan: 630,700 jobsMinnesota: 434,700 jobsMississippi: 236,900 jobsMissouri: 432,100 jobsMontana: 91,700 jobsNebraska: 178,900 jobsNevada: 184,500 jobsNew Hampshire: 86,200 jobsNew Jersey: 621,500 jobsNew Mexico: 190,700 jobsNew York: 1,521,400 jobsNorth Carolina: 773,900 jobsNorth Dakota: 85,700 jobsOhio: 792,700 jobsOklahoma: 370,400 jobsOregon: 315,500 jobsPennsylvania: 699,600 jobsRhode Island: 64,800 jobsSouth Carolina: 396,600 jobsSouth Dakota: 81,400 jobsTennessee: 456,000 jobsTexas: 2,131,000 jobsUtah: 275,600 jobsVermont: 56,200 jobsVirginia: 759,800 jobsWashington: 613,300 jobsWest Virginia: 146,400 jobsWisconsin: 407,800 jobsWyoming: 71,800 jobs
  • Under 100K
  • 100K to 210K
  • 210K to 320K
  • 320K to 440K
  • 440K to 710K
  • 710K and over
jobs, November 2025. 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, November 2025

California: 2,658,100 jobsCalifornia2,658,100Texas: 2,131,000 jobsTexas2,131,000New York: 1,521,400 jobsNew York1,521,400Florida: 1,139,300 jobsFlorida1,139,300Illinois: 853,900 jobsIllinois853,900Ohio: 792,700 jobsOhio792,700North Carolina: 773,900 jobsNorth Carolina773,900Virginia: 759,800 jobsVirginia759,800Georgia: 709,800 jobsGeorgia709,800Pennsylvania: 699,600 jobsPennsylvania699,600Michigan: 630,700 jobsMichigan630,700New Jersey: 621,500 jobsNew Jersey621,500Washington: 613,300 jobsWashington613,300Maryland: 526,300 jobsMaryland526,300Colorado: 487,800 jobsColorado487,800Massachusetts: 472,100 jobsMassachusetts472,100Tennessee: 456,000 jobsTennessee456,000Minnesota: 434,700 jobsMinnesota434,700Missouri: 432,100 jobsMissouri432,100Arizona: 427,800 jobsArizona427,800Alabama: 426,400 jobsAlabama426,400Indiana: 422,200 jobsIndiana422,200Wisconsin: 407,800 jobsWisconsin407,800South Carolina: 396,600 jobsSouth Carolina396,600Oklahoma: 370,400 jobsOklahoma370,400Louisiana: 324,800 jobsLouisiana324,800Kentucky: 315,900 jobsKentucky315,900Oregon: 315,500 jobsOregon315,500Utah: 275,600 jobsUtah275,600Iowa: 267,600 jobsIowa267,600Kansas: 259,900 jobsKansas259,900Mississippi: 236,900 jobsMississippi236,900Connecticut: 234,800 jobsConnecticut234,800District of Columbia: 213,100 jobsDistrict of Columbia213,100Arkansas: 204,400 jobsArkansas204,400New Mexico: 190,700 jobsNew Mexico190,700Nevada: 184,500 jobsNevada184,500Nebraska: 178,900 jobsNebraska178,900West Virginia: 146,400 jobsWest Virginia146,400Idaho: 130,200 jobsIdaho130,200Hawaii: 125,400 jobsHawaii125,400Maine: 101,900 jobsMaine101,900Montana: 91,700 jobsMontana91,700New Hampshire: 86,200 jobsNew Hampshire86,200North Dakota: 85,700 jobsNorth Dakota85,700South Dakota: 81,400 jobsSouth Dakota81,400Alaska: 77,900 jobsAlaska77,900Wyoming: 71,800 jobsWyoming71,800Delaware: 71,600 jobsDelaware71,600Rhode Island: 64,800 jobsRhode Island64,800Vermont: 56,200 jobsVermont56,200California: 2,658,100 jobsCalifornia2,658,100Texas: 2,131,000 jobsTexas2,131,000New York: 1,521,400 jobsNew York1,521,400Florida: 1,139,300 jobsFlorida1,139,300Illinois: 853,900 jobsIllinois853,900Ohio: 792,700 jobsOhio792,700North Carolina: 773,900 jobsNorth Carolina773,900Virginia: 759,800 jobsVirginia759,800Georgia: 709,800 jobsGeorgia709,800Pennsylvania: 699,600 jobsPennsylvania699,600Michigan: 630,700 jobsMichigan630,700New Jersey: 621,500 jobsNew Jersey621,500Washington: 613,300 jobsWashington613,300Maryland: 526,300 jobsMaryland526,300Colorado: 487,800 jobsColorado487,800Massachusetts: 472,100 jobsMassachusetts472,100Tennessee: 456,000 jobsTennessee456,000Minnesota: 434,700 jobsMinnesota434,700Missouri: 432,100 jobsMissouri432,100Arizona: 427,800 jobsArizona427,800Alabama: 426,400 jobsAlabama426,400Indiana: 422,200 jobsIndiana422,200Wisconsin: 407,800 jobsWisconsin407,800South Carolina: 396,600 jobsSouth Carolina396,600Oklahoma: 370,400 jobsOklahoma370,400Louisiana: 324,800 jobsLouisiana324,800Kentucky: 315,900 jobsKentucky315,900Oregon: 315,500 jobsOregon315,500Utah: 275,600 jobsUtah275,600Iowa: 267,600 jobsIowa267,600Kansas: 259,900 jobsKansas259,900Mississippi: 236,900 jobsMississippi236,900Connecticut: 234,800 jobsConnecticut234,800District of Columbia: 213,100 jobsDistrict of Columbia213,100Arkansas: 204,400 jobsArkansas204,400New Mexico: 190,700 jobsNew Mexico190,700Nevada: 184,500 jobsNevada184,500Nebraska: 178,900 jobsNebraska178,900West Virginia: 146,400 jobsWest Virginia146,400Idaho: 130,200 jobsIdaho130,200Hawaii: 125,400 jobsHawaii125,400Maine: 101,900 jobsMaine101,900Montana: 91,700 jobsMontana91,700New Hampshire: 86,200 jobsNew Hampshire86,200North Dakota: 85,700 jobsNorth Dakota85,700South Dakota: 81,400 jobsSouth Dakota81,400Alaska: 77,900 jobsAlaska77,900Wyoming: 71,800 jobsWyoming71,800Delaware: 71,600 jobsDelaware71,600Rhode Island: 64,800 jobsRhode Island64,800Vermont: 56,200 jobsVermont56,200
jobs. Source: BLS, Current Employment Statistics, State and Area: all employees, government, statewide, seasonally adjusted (SMS, state, 000009000000001). Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Full ranking

RankStatesNovember 2025
jobs		Change on November 2024
1California2,658,100-2.1%
2Texas2,131,000+0.3%
3New York1,521,400+1.3%
4Florida1,139,300-0.8%
5Illinois853,900+0.6%
6Ohio792,700-0.3%
7North Carolina773,900+0.2%
8Virginia759,800-0.4%
9Georgia709,800-0.8%
10Pennsylvania699,600-0.4%
11Michigan630,700+1.2%
12New Jersey621,500-0.4%
13Washington613,300-1.4%
14Maryland526,300-3.6%
15Colorado487,800-0.9%
16Massachusetts472,100-0.4%
17Tennessee456,000+0.3%
18Minnesota434,7000%
19Missouri432,100-1.5%
20Arizona427,800-1.7%
21Alabama426,400+0.7%
22Indiana422,200-2.8%
23Wisconsin407,800-3.5%
24South Carolina396,600+1.3%
25Oklahoma370,400-0.2%
26Louisiana324,800+0.1%
27Kentucky315,900-0.3%
28Oregon315,500-0%
29Utah275,6000%
30Iowa267,600-0.3%
31Kansas259,9000%
32Mississippi236,900-1.1%
33Connecticut234,800-1.1%
34District of Columbia213,100-9.6%
35Arkansas204,400-1.3%
36New Mexico190,700-1.2%
37Nevada184,500+0.2%
38Nebraska178,900+0.2%
39West Virginia146,400-3%
40Idaho130,200+0.9%
41Hawaii125,400-1.6%
42Maine101,900-0.6%
43Montana91,700-1.6%
44New Hampshire86,200-3%
45North Dakota85,700-0.2%
46South Dakota81,400-0.9%
47Alaska77,900-2.5%
48Wyoming71,8000%
49Delaware71,600+0.4%
50Rhode Island64,800-1.7%
51Vermont56,200+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, 2025-11) [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, 2025-11. 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?period=2025-11. 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, 2025-11. 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?period=2025-11.

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, 2025-11 [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?period=2025-11 (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, 2025-11}},
  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?period=2025-11. 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, 2025-11
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?period=2025-11
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/government-jobs/us-states?period=2025-11.
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 2,658,100 jobs in November 2025, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Which state has the lowest government payroll employment?

Vermont, with 56,200 jobs in November 2025.

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.

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