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 April 2026, at 2,049,900 jobs. Vermont had the lowest, at 35,300 jobs. The median was 218,600 jobs and the figure for the United States was 16,972,000 jobs. Source: the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

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Highest2,049,900California
Lowest35,300Vermont
Median218,60051 states
United States16,972,000History

Map of states, April 2026

Alabama: 218,600 jobsAlaska: 36,900 jobsArizona: 367,600 jobsArkansas: 134,600 jobsCalifornia: 2,049,900 jobsColorado: 351,200 jobsConnecticut: 155,000 jobsDelaware: 51,500 jobsDistrict of Columbia: 75,800 jobsFlorida: 1,335,700 jobsGeorgia: 520,500 jobsHawaii: 121,900 jobsIdaho: 91,900 jobsIllinois: 605,200 jobsIndiana: 304,100 jobsIowa: 141,600 jobsKansas: 134,300 jobsKentucky: 207,700 jobsLouisiana: 227,600 jobsMaine: 71,300 jobsMaryland: 270,600 jobsMassachusetts: 365,700 jobsMichigan: 428,900 jobsMinnesota: 270,900 jobsMississippi: 137,500 jobsMissouri: 312,800 jobsMontana: 72,600 jobsNebraska: 101,800 jobsNevada: 361,800 jobsNew Hampshire: 76,500 jobsNew Jersey: 406,700 jobsNew Mexico: 99,600 jobsNew York: 927,200 jobsNorth Carolina: 553,900 jobsNorth Dakota: 40,700 jobsOhio: 572,800 jobsOklahoma: 181,800 jobsOregon: 205,800 jobsPennsylvania: 576,900 jobsRhode Island: 61,400 jobsSouth Carolina: 285,700 jobsSouth Dakota: 53,900 jobsTennessee: 370,900 jobsTexas: 1,540,200 jobsUtah: 178,500 jobsVermont: 35,300 jobsVirginia: 417,500 jobsWashington: 346,000 jobsWest Virginia: 71,400 jobsWisconsin: 296,000 jobsWyoming: 38,500 jobs
  • Under 70K
  • 70K to 130K
  • 130K to 220K
  • 220K to 350K
  • 350K to 490K
  • 490K and over
jobs, April 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, April 2026

California: 2,049,900 jobsCalifornia2,049,900Texas: 1,540,200 jobsTexas1,540,200Florida: 1,335,700 jobsFlorida1,335,700New York: 927,200 jobsNew York927,200Illinois: 605,200 jobsIllinois605,200Pennsylvania: 576,900 jobsPennsylvania576,900Ohio: 572,800 jobsOhio572,800North Carolina: 553,900 jobsNorth Carolina553,900Georgia: 520,500 jobsGeorgia520,500Michigan: 428,900 jobsMichigan428,900Virginia: 417,500 jobsVirginia417,500New Jersey: 406,700 jobsNew Jersey406,700Tennessee: 370,900 jobsTennessee370,900Arizona: 367,600 jobsArizona367,600Massachusetts: 365,700 jobsMassachusetts365,700Nevada: 361,800 jobsNevada361,800Colorado: 351,200 jobsColorado351,200Washington: 346,000 jobsWashington346,000Missouri: 312,800 jobsMissouri312,800Indiana: 304,100 jobsIndiana304,100Wisconsin: 296,000 jobsWisconsin296,000South Carolina: 285,700 jobsSouth Carolina285,700Minnesota: 270,900 jobsMinnesota270,900Maryland: 270,600 jobsMaryland270,600Louisiana: 227,600 jobsLouisiana227,600Alabama: 218,600 jobsAlabama218,600Kentucky: 207,700 jobsKentucky207,700Oregon: 205,800 jobsOregon205,800Oklahoma: 181,800 jobsOklahoma181,800Utah: 178,500 jobsUtah178,500Connecticut: 155,000 jobsConnecticut155,000Iowa: 141,600 jobsIowa141,600Mississippi: 137,500 jobsMississippi137,500Arkansas: 134,600 jobsArkansas134,600Kansas: 134,300 jobsKansas134,300Hawaii: 121,900 jobsHawaii121,900Nebraska: 101,800 jobsNebraska101,800New Mexico: 99,600 jobsNew Mexico99,600Idaho: 91,900 jobsIdaho91,900New Hampshire: 76,500 jobsNew Hampshire76,500District of Columbia: 75,800 jobsDistrict of Columbia75,800Montana: 72,600 jobsMontana72,600West Virginia: 71,400 jobsWest Virginia71,400Maine: 71,300 jobsMaine71,300Rhode Island: 61,400 jobsRhode Island61,400South Dakota: 53,900 jobsSouth Dakota53,900Delaware: 51,500 jobsDelaware51,500North Dakota: 40,700 jobsNorth Dakota40,700Wyoming: 38,500 jobsWyoming38,500Alaska: 36,900 jobsAlaska36,900Vermont: 35,300 jobsVermont35,300California: 2,049,900 jobsCalifornia2,049,900Texas: 1,540,200 jobsTexas1,540,200Florida: 1,335,700 jobsFlorida1,335,700New York: 927,200 jobsNew York927,200Illinois: 605,200 jobsIllinois605,200Pennsylvania: 576,900 jobsPennsylvania576,900Ohio: 572,800 jobsOhio572,800North Carolina: 553,900 jobsNorth Carolina553,900Georgia: 520,500 jobsGeorgia520,500Michigan: 428,900 jobsMichigan428,900Virginia: 417,500 jobsVirginia417,500New Jersey: 406,700 jobsNew Jersey406,700Tennessee: 370,900 jobsTennessee370,900Arizona: 367,600 jobsArizona367,600Massachusetts: 365,700 jobsMassachusetts365,700Nevada: 361,800 jobsNevada361,800Colorado: 351,200 jobsColorado351,200Washington: 346,000 jobsWashington346,000Missouri: 312,800 jobsMissouri312,800Indiana: 304,100 jobsIndiana304,100Wisconsin: 296,000 jobsWisconsin296,000South Carolina: 285,700 jobsSouth Carolina285,700Minnesota: 270,900 jobsMinnesota270,900Maryland: 270,600 jobsMaryland270,600Louisiana: 227,600 jobsLouisiana227,600Alabama: 218,600 jobsAlabama218,600Kentucky: 207,700 jobsKentucky207,700Oregon: 205,800 jobsOregon205,800Oklahoma: 181,800 jobsOklahoma181,800Utah: 178,500 jobsUtah178,500Connecticut: 155,000 jobsConnecticut155,000Iowa: 141,600 jobsIowa141,600Mississippi: 137,500 jobsMississippi137,500Arkansas: 134,600 jobsArkansas134,600Kansas: 134,300 jobsKansas134,300Hawaii: 121,900 jobsHawaii121,900Nebraska: 101,800 jobsNebraska101,800New Mexico: 99,600 jobsNew Mexico99,600Idaho: 91,900 jobsIdaho91,900New Hampshire: 76,500 jobsNew Hampshire76,500District of Columbia: 75,800 jobsDistrict of Columbia75,800Montana: 72,600 jobsMontana72,600West Virginia: 71,400 jobsWest Virginia71,400Maine: 71,300 jobsMaine71,300Rhode Island: 61,400 jobsRhode Island61,400South Dakota: 53,900 jobsSouth Dakota53,900Delaware: 51,500 jobsDelaware51,500North Dakota: 40,700 jobsNorth Dakota40,700Wyoming: 38,500 jobsWyoming38,500Alaska: 36,900 jobsAlaska36,900Vermont: 35,300 jobsVermont35,300
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

RankStatesApril 2026
jobs		Change on April 2025
1California2,049,900+1.7%
2Texas1,540,200+0.5%
3Florida1,335,700+0.1%
4New York927,200+0.3%
5Illinois605,200+0.1%
6Pennsylvania576,900+1%
7Ohio572,800+0.8%
8North Carolina553,900+2.2%
9Georgia520,5000%
10Michigan428,900-0.2%
11Virginia417,500-0.5%
12New Jersey406,700-0.6%
13Tennessee370,900+0.5%
14Arizona367,600-0.3%
15Massachusetts365,700+0.7%
16Nevada361,800+0.4%
17Colorado351,200+0.3%
18Washington346,000+0.7%
19Missouri312,800+0.9%
20Indiana304,100-3.2%
21Wisconsin296,000+2.5%
22South Carolina285,700+1.1%
23Minnesota270,900-1.3%
24Maryland270,600+0.2%
25Louisiana227,600+0.2%
26Alabama218,600+2.1%
27Kentucky207,700+0.7%
28Oregon205,800-0.8%
29Oklahoma181,800-2%
30Utah178,5000%
31Connecticut155,000-0.6%
32Iowa141,600-2.5%
33Mississippi137,500+1%
34Arkansas134,600+2.3%
35Kansas134,300-0.3%
36Hawaii121,900+1%
37Nebraska101,800+0.9%
38New Mexico99,600+1.2%
39Idaho91,900-3%
40New Hampshire76,500+0.8%
41District of Columbia75,800-1.8%
42Montana72,600-1.1%
43West Virginia71,400-0.8%
44Maine71,300+2.9%
45Rhode Island61,400+0.5%
46South Dakota53,900+6.1%
47Delaware51,500-3%
48North Dakota40,700-0.5%
49Wyoming38,500+0.8%
50Alaska36,900+3.4%
51Vermont35,300+2%

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, 2026-04) [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, 2026-04. 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=2026-04. 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, 2026-04. 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=2026-04.

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, 2026-04 [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=2026-04 (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, 2026-04}},
  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=2026-04. 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, 2026-04
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=2026-04
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/leisure-hospitality-jobs/us-states?period=2026-04.
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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Rank US states by leisure and hospitality payroll employment using official data, and cite the source.
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Questions

Which state has the highest leisure and hospitality payroll employment?

California, with 2,049,900 jobs in April 2026, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Which state has the lowest leisure and hospitality payroll employment?

Vermont, with 35,300 jobs in April 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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