Data / Rankings / Leisure and hospitality payroll employment / US states

US states by leisure and hospitality payroll employment

California had the highest leisure and hospitality payroll employment of 51 states in February 2026, at 2,048,300 jobs. Vermont had the lowest, at 36,200 jobs. The median was 218,200 jobs and the figure for the United States was 16,935,000 jobs. Source: the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

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Highest2,048,300California
Lowest36,200Vermont
Median218,20051 states
United States16,935,000History

Map of states, February 2026

Alabama: 218,200 jobsAlaska: 36,300 jobsArizona: 371,000 jobsArkansas: 135,100 jobsCalifornia: 2,048,300 jobsColorado: 348,300 jobsConnecticut: 155,300 jobsDelaware: 51,600 jobsDistrict of Columbia: 75,000 jobsFlorida: 1,324,800 jobsGeorgia: 516,300 jobsHawaii: 121,600 jobsIdaho: 91,600 jobsIllinois: 601,700 jobsIndiana: 304,300 jobsIowa: 139,300 jobsKansas: 133,600 jobsKentucky: 207,000 jobsLouisiana: 225,500 jobsMaine: 72,000 jobsMaryland: 269,800 jobsMassachusetts: 367,900 jobsMichigan: 423,800 jobsMinnesota: 266,600 jobsMississippi: 135,500 jobsMissouri: 313,400 jobsMontana: 73,400 jobsNebraska: 100,000 jobsNevada: 365,000 jobsNew Hampshire: 75,900 jobsNew Jersey: 408,100 jobsNew Mexico: 99,100 jobsNew York: 928,600 jobsNorth Carolina: 546,000 jobsNorth Dakota: 40,200 jobsOhio: 570,100 jobsOklahoma: 180,800 jobsOregon: 207,400 jobsPennsylvania: 575,100 jobsRhode Island: 61,800 jobsSouth Carolina: 285,800 jobsSouth Dakota: 54,000 jobsTennessee: 368,200 jobsTexas: 1,539,800 jobsUtah: 178,100 jobsVermont: 36,200 jobsVirginia: 417,900 jobsWashington: 344,400 jobsWest Virginia: 70,600 jobsWisconsin: 290,100 jobsWyoming: 38,500 jobs
  • Under 70K
  • 70K to 130K
  • 130K to 220K
  • 220K to 350K
  • 350K to 490K
  • 490K and over
jobs, February 2026. Source: BLS, Current Employment Statistics, State and Area: all employees, leisure and hospitality, statewide, seasonally adjusted (SMS, state, 000007000000001). Boundaries: U.S. Census Bureau cartographic boundary files.

All states, February 2026

California: 2,048,300 jobsCalifornia2,048,300Texas: 1,539,800 jobsTexas1,539,800Florida: 1,324,800 jobsFlorida1,324,800New York: 928,600 jobsNew York928,600Illinois: 601,700 jobsIllinois601,700Pennsylvania: 575,100 jobsPennsylvania575,100Ohio: 570,100 jobsOhio570,100North Carolina: 546,000 jobsNorth Carolina546,000Georgia: 516,300 jobsGeorgia516,300Michigan: 423,800 jobsMichigan423,800Virginia: 417,900 jobsVirginia417,900New Jersey: 408,100 jobsNew Jersey408,100Arizona: 371,000 jobsArizona371,000Tennessee: 368,200 jobsTennessee368,200Massachusetts: 367,900 jobsMassachusetts367,900Nevada: 365,000 jobsNevada365,000Colorado: 348,300 jobsColorado348,300Washington: 344,400 jobsWashington344,400Missouri: 313,400 jobsMissouri313,400Indiana: 304,300 jobsIndiana304,300Wisconsin: 290,100 jobsWisconsin290,100South Carolina: 285,800 jobsSouth Carolina285,800Maryland: 269,800 jobsMaryland269,800Minnesota: 266,600 jobsMinnesota266,600Louisiana: 225,500 jobsLouisiana225,500Alabama: 218,200 jobsAlabama218,200Oregon: 207,400 jobsOregon207,400Kentucky: 207,000 jobsKentucky207,000Oklahoma: 180,800 jobsOklahoma180,800Utah: 178,100 jobsUtah178,100Connecticut: 155,300 jobsConnecticut155,300Iowa: 139,300 jobsIowa139,300Mississippi: 135,500 jobsMississippi135,500Arkansas: 135,100 jobsArkansas135,100Kansas: 133,600 jobsKansas133,600Hawaii: 121,600 jobsHawaii121,600Nebraska: 100,000 jobsNebraska100,000New Mexico: 99,100 jobsNew Mexico99,100Idaho: 91,600 jobsIdaho91,600New Hampshire: 75,900 jobsNew Hampshire75,900District of Columbia: 75,000 jobsDistrict of Columbia75,000Montana: 73,400 jobsMontana73,400Maine: 72,000 jobsMaine72,000West Virginia: 70,600 jobsWest Virginia70,600Rhode Island: 61,800 jobsRhode Island61,800South Dakota: 54,000 jobsSouth Dakota54,000Delaware: 51,600 jobsDelaware51,600North Dakota: 40,200 jobsNorth Dakota40,200Wyoming: 38,500 jobsWyoming38,500Alaska: 36,300 jobsAlaska36,300Vermont: 36,200 jobsVermont36,200California: 2,048,300 jobsCalifornia2,048,300Texas: 1,539,800 jobsTexas1,539,800Florida: 1,324,800 jobsFlorida1,324,800New York: 928,600 jobsNew York928,600Illinois: 601,700 jobsIllinois601,700Pennsylvania: 575,100 jobsPennsylvania575,100Ohio: 570,100 jobsOhio570,100North Carolina: 546,000 jobsNorth Carolina546,000Georgia: 516,300 jobsGeorgia516,300Michigan: 423,800 jobsMichigan423,800Virginia: 417,900 jobsVirginia417,900New Jersey: 408,100 jobsNew Jersey408,100Arizona: 371,000 jobsArizona371,000Tennessee: 368,200 jobsTennessee368,200Massachusetts: 367,900 jobsMassachusetts367,900Nevada: 365,000 jobsNevada365,000Colorado: 348,300 jobsColorado348,300Washington: 344,400 jobsWashington344,400Missouri: 313,400 jobsMissouri313,400Indiana: 304,300 jobsIndiana304,300Wisconsin: 290,100 jobsWisconsin290,100South Carolina: 285,800 jobsSouth Carolina285,800Maryland: 269,800 jobsMaryland269,800Minnesota: 266,600 jobsMinnesota266,600Louisiana: 225,500 jobsLouisiana225,500Alabama: 218,200 jobsAlabama218,200Oregon: 207,400 jobsOregon207,400Kentucky: 207,000 jobsKentucky207,000Oklahoma: 180,800 jobsOklahoma180,800Utah: 178,100 jobsUtah178,100Connecticut: 155,300 jobsConnecticut155,300Iowa: 139,300 jobsIowa139,300Mississippi: 135,500 jobsMississippi135,500Arkansas: 135,100 jobsArkansas135,100Kansas: 133,600 jobsKansas133,600Hawaii: 121,600 jobsHawaii121,600Nebraska: 100,000 jobsNebraska100,000New Mexico: 99,100 jobsNew Mexico99,100Idaho: 91,600 jobsIdaho91,600New Hampshire: 75,900 jobsNew Hampshire75,900District of Columbia: 75,000 jobsDistrict of Columbia75,000Montana: 73,400 jobsMontana73,400Maine: 72,000 jobsMaine72,000West Virginia: 70,600 jobsWest Virginia70,600Rhode Island: 61,800 jobsRhode Island61,800South Dakota: 54,000 jobsSouth Dakota54,000Delaware: 51,600 jobsDelaware51,600North Dakota: 40,200 jobsNorth Dakota40,200Wyoming: 38,500 jobsWyoming38,500Alaska: 36,300 jobsAlaska36,300Vermont: 36,200 jobsVermont36,200
jobs. Source: BLS, Current Employment Statistics, State and Area: all employees, leisure and hospitality, statewide, seasonally adjusted (SMS, state, 000007000000001). Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Full ranking

RankStatesFebruary 2026
jobs		Change on February 2025
1California2,048,300+1.9%
2Texas1,539,800+0.8%
3Florida1,324,800-0.7%
4New York928,600-0.8%
5Illinois601,700-0.4%
6Pennsylvania575,100+1.3%
7Ohio570,100+0.5%
8North Carolina546,000+1.4%
9Georgia516,300-0.4%
10Michigan423,800-1.1%
11Virginia417,900-0.1%
12New Jersey408,100+0.1%
13Arizona371,000+0.1%
14Tennessee368,200+0.1%
15Massachusetts367,900+0.8%
16Nevada365,000+1.6%
17Colorado348,300-0.9%
18Washington344,400+0.2%
19Missouri313,400+2%
20Indiana304,300-2.7%
21Wisconsin290,100+0.7%
22South Carolina285,800+1.4%
23Maryland269,800-0.4%
24Minnesota266,600-1.8%
25Louisiana225,500-0.4%
26Alabama218,200+2.4%
27Oregon207,400+0.2%
28Kentucky207,000+0.7%
29Oklahoma180,800-2.2%
30Utah178,100+0.6%
31Connecticut155,300+0.4%
32Iowa139,300-3.3%
33Mississippi135,500-0.1%
34Arkansas135,100+3.1%
35Kansas133,600+0.5%
36Hawaii121,600+0.8%
37Nebraska100,000+0.1%
38New Mexico99,100-0.4%
39Idaho91,600-2.6%
40New Hampshire75,900+0.3%
41District of Columbia75,000-3.4%
42Montana73,400+0.1%
43Maine72,000+3.7%
44West Virginia70,600-1.9%
45Rhode Island61,800+1.1%
46South Dakota54,000+6.7%
47Delaware51,600-2.6%
48North Dakota40,200-2.4%
49Wyoming38,500+1.3%
50Alaska36,300+1.1%
51Vermont36,200+2.8%

Other periods

About this ranking

Number of jobs on leisure and hospitality payrolls in the month, seasonally adjusted, from the Current Employment Statistics (CES) survey of the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. The supersector covers arts, entertainment and recreation, and accommodation and food services.

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, leisure and hospitality, statewide, seasonally adjusted (SMS, state, 000007000000001). https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/sm/sm.data.74.LeisureAndHospitality.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, leisure and hospitality, statewide, seasonally adjusted (SMS, state, 000007000000001) (US states by leisure and hospitality payroll employment, 2026-02) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/sm/sm.data.74.LeisureAndHospitality.Current

MLA 9

Current Employment Statistics, State and Area: all employees, leisure and hospitality, statewide, seasonally adjusted (SMS, state, 000007000000001), US states by leisure and hospitality payroll employment, 2026-02. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 18 Sept. 2026, https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/sm/sm.data.74.LeisureAndHospitality.Current. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/leisure-hospitality-jobs/us-states?period=2026-02. Accessed 12 Oct. 2026.

Chicago (author-date)

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. 2026. Current Employment Statistics, State and Area: all employees, leisure and hospitality, statewide, seasonally adjusted (SMS, state, 000007000000001). US states by leisure and hospitality payroll employment, 2026-02. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/sm/sm.data.74.LeisureAndHospitality.Current. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/leisure-hospitality-jobs/us-states?period=2026-02.

Harvard

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (2026) Current Employment Statistics, State and Area: all employees, leisure and hospitality, statewide, seasonally adjusted (SMS, state, 000007000000001), US states by leisure and hospitality payroll employment, 2026-02 [Dataset]. Available at: https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/sm/sm.data.74.LeisureAndHospitality.Current, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/leisure-hospitality-jobs/us-states?period=2026-02 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{bureau_us_states_by_leisure_2026,
  author = {{U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics}},
  title = {{Current Employment Statistics, State and Area: all employees, leisure and hospitality, statewide, seasonally adjusted (SMS, state, 000007000000001): US states by leisure and hospitality payroll employment, 2026-02}},
  year = {2026},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/sm/sm.data.74.LeisureAndHospitality.Current},
  urldate = {2026-10-12},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/leisure-hospitality-jobs/us-states?period=2026-02. Publisher attribution: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Current Employment Statistics, State and Area: all employees, leisure and hospitality, statewide, seasonally adjusted (SMS, state, 000007000000001). https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/sm/sm.data.74.LeisureAndHospitality.Current. Retrieved 2026-10-12.},
}
RIS
TY  - DATA
AU  - U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
TI  - Current Employment Statistics, State and Area: all employees, leisure and hospitality, statewide, seasonally adjusted (SMS, state, 000007000000001): US states by leisure and hospitality payroll employment, 2026-02
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.74.LeisureAndHospitality.Current
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/leisure-hospitality-jobs/us-states?period=2026-02
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/leisure-hospitality-jobs/us-states?period=2026-02.
N1  - Publisher attribution: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Current Employment Statistics, State and Area: all employees, leisure and hospitality, statewide, seasonally adjusted (SMS, state, 000007000000001). https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/sm/sm.data.74.LeisureAndHospitality.Current. Retrieved 2026-10-12.
ER  -
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Questions

Which state has the highest leisure and hospitality payroll employment?

California, with 2,048,300 jobs in February 2026, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Which state has the lowest leisure and hospitality payroll employment?

Vermont, with 36,200 jobs in February 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, leisure and hospitality, statewide, seasonally adjusted (SMS, state, 000007000000001). Retrieved 2026-10-12.

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