Data / Rankings / Nonemployer businesses: manufacturing / US states

US states by nonemployer businesses: manufacturing

California had the highest nonemployer businesses: manufacturing of 51 states in 2015, at 47,837. District of Columbia had the lowest, at 283. The median was 4,365 and the figure for the United States was 355,467. Source: the U.S. Census Bureau.

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Highest47,837California
Lowest283District of Columbia
Median4,36551 states
United States355,467History

Map of states, 2015

Alabama: 4,547 countAlaska: 1,167 countArizona: 7,324 countArkansas: 2,764 countCalifornia: 47,837 countColorado: 7,747 countConnecticut: 3,545 countDelaware: 670 countDistrict of Columbia: 283 countFlorida: 23,671 countGeorgia: 10,850 countHawaii: 2,228 countIdaho: 2,807 countIllinois: 10,665 countIndiana: 6,998 countIowa: 3,040 countKansas: 2,867 countKentucky: 3,966 countLouisiana: 4,512 countMaine: 2,548 countMaryland: 4,559 countMassachusetts: 6,157 countMichigan: 12,214 countMinnesota: 7,538 countMississippi: 2,602 countMissouri: 6,212 countMontana: 2,088 countNebraska: 1,557 countNevada: 2,604 countNew Hampshire: 2,249 countNew Jersey: 7,000 countNew Mexico: 3,153 countNew York: 18,432 countNorth Carolina: 10,842 countNorth Dakota: 687 countOhio: 13,549 countOklahoma: 4,068 countOregon: 7,563 countPennsylvania: 14,325 countRhode Island: 1,235 countSouth Carolina: 4,365 countSouth Dakota: 1,033 countTennessee: 6,559 countTexas: 33,962 countUtah: 4,286 countVermont: 1,958 countVirginia: 6,220 countWashington: 9,013 countWest Virginia: 1,248 countWisconsin: 7,186 countWyoming: 967 count
  • Under 1,700
  • 1,700 to 2,800
  • 2,800 to 4,400
  • 4,400 to 7,000
  • 7,000 to 11K
  • 11K and over
count, 2015. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Nonemployer Statistics, state and US files: establishments (ESTAB), manufacturing (NAICS 31-33), all legal forms. Boundaries: U.S. Census Bureau cartographic boundary files.

All states, 2015

California: 47,837 countCalifornia47,837Texas: 33,962 countTexas33,962Florida: 23,671 countFlorida23,671New York: 18,432 countNew York18,432Pennsylvania: 14,325 countPennsylvania14,325Ohio: 13,549 countOhio13,549Michigan: 12,214 countMichigan12,214Georgia: 10,850 countGeorgia10,850North Carolina: 10,842 countNorth Carolina10,842Illinois: 10,665 countIllinois10,665Washington: 9,013 countWashington9,013Colorado: 7,747 countColorado7,747Oregon: 7,563 countOregon7,563Minnesota: 7,538 countMinnesota7,538Arizona: 7,324 countArizona7,324Wisconsin: 7,186 countWisconsin7,186New Jersey: 7,000 countNew Jersey7,000Indiana: 6,998 countIndiana6,998Tennessee: 6,559 countTennessee6,559Virginia: 6,220 countVirginia6,220Missouri: 6,212 countMissouri6,212Massachusetts: 6,157 countMassachusetts6,157Maryland: 4,559 countMaryland4,559Alabama: 4,547 countAlabama4,547Louisiana: 4,512 countLouisiana4,512South Carolina: 4,365 countSouth Carolina4,365Utah: 4,286 countUtah4,286Oklahoma: 4,068 countOklahoma4,068Kentucky: 3,966 countKentucky3,966Connecticut: 3,545 countConnecticut3,545New Mexico: 3,153 countNew Mexico3,153Iowa: 3,040 countIowa3,040Kansas: 2,867 countKansas2,867Idaho: 2,807 countIdaho2,807Arkansas: 2,764 countArkansas2,764Nevada: 2,604 countNevada2,604Mississippi: 2,602 countMississippi2,602Maine: 2,548 countMaine2,548New Hampshire: 2,249 countNew Hampshire2,249Hawaii: 2,228 countHawaii2,228Montana: 2,088 countMontana2,088Vermont: 1,958 countVermont1,958Nebraska: 1,557 countNebraska1,557West Virginia: 1,248 countWest Virginia1,248Rhode Island: 1,235 countRhode Island1,235Alaska: 1,167 countAlaska1,167South Dakota: 1,033 countSouth Dakota1,033Wyoming: 967 countWyoming967North Dakota: 687 countNorth Dakota687Delaware: 670 countDelaware670District of Columbia: 283 countDistrict of Columbia283California: 47,837 countCalifornia47,837Texas: 33,962 countTexas33,962Florida: 23,671 countFlorida23,671New York: 18,432 countNew York18,432Pennsylvania: 14,325 countPennsylvania14,325Ohio: 13,549 countOhio13,549Michigan: 12,214 countMichigan12,214Georgia: 10,850 countGeorgia10,850North Carolina: 10,842 countNorth Carolina10,842Illinois: 10,665 countIllinois10,665Washington: 9,013 countWashington9,013Colorado: 7,747 countColorado7,747Oregon: 7,563 countOregon7,563Minnesota: 7,538 countMinnesota7,538Arizona: 7,324 countArizona7,324Wisconsin: 7,186 countWisconsin7,186New Jersey: 7,000 countNew Jersey7,000Indiana: 6,998 countIndiana6,998Tennessee: 6,559 countTennessee6,559Virginia: 6,220 countVirginia6,220Missouri: 6,212 countMissouri6,212Massachusetts: 6,157 countMassachusetts6,157Maryland: 4,559 countMaryland4,559Alabama: 4,547 countAlabama4,547Louisiana: 4,512 countLouisiana4,512South Carolina: 4,365 countSouth Carolina4,365Utah: 4,286 countUtah4,286Oklahoma: 4,068 countOklahoma4,068Kentucky: 3,966 countKentucky3,966Connecticut: 3,545 countConnecticut3,545New Mexico: 3,153 countNew Mexico3,153Iowa: 3,040 countIowa3,040Kansas: 2,867 countKansas2,867Idaho: 2,807 countIdaho2,807Arkansas: 2,764 countArkansas2,764Nevada: 2,604 countNevada2,604Mississippi: 2,602 countMississippi2,602Maine: 2,548 countMaine2,548New Hampshire: 2,249 countNew Hampshire2,249Hawaii: 2,228 countHawaii2,228Montana: 2,088 countMontana2,088Vermont: 1,958 countVermont1,958Nebraska: 1,557 countNebraska1,557West Virginia: 1,248 countWest Virginia1,248Rhode Island: 1,235 countRhode Island1,235Alaska: 1,167 countAlaska1,167South Dakota: 1,033 countSouth Dakota1,033Wyoming: 967 countWyoming967North Dakota: 687 countNorth Dakota687Delaware: 670 countDelaware670District of Columbia: 283 countDistrict of Columbia283
count. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Nonemployer Statistics, state and US files: establishments (ESTAB), manufacturing (NAICS 31-33), all legal forms. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Full ranking

RankStates2015
count		Change on 2014
1California47,837+0.8%
2Texas33,962+1.9%
3Florida23,671+2.9%
4New York18,432-0.9%
5Pennsylvania14,325+1%
6Ohio13,549+1.8%
7Michigan12,214+1.2%
8Georgia10,850+2.2%
9North Carolina10,842+1.6%
10Illinois10,665+0.9%
11Washington9,013+0.5%
12Colorado7,747+3.2%
13Oregon7,563+2.7%
14Minnesota7,538-0.1%
15Arizona7,324+4.8%
16Wisconsin7,186+0.4%
17New Jersey7,000+2.4%
18Indiana6,998+0.4%
19Tennessee6,559+2.6%
20Virginia6,220+5.2%
21Missouri6,212+1.9%
22Massachusetts6,157+1.3%
23Maryland4,559+1.5%
24Alabama4,547+0.6%
25Louisiana4,512+0.9%
26South Carolina4,365+4.2%
27Utah4,286+1.9%
28Oklahoma4,068-3.1%
29Kentucky3,966+4.6%
30Connecticut3,545+1.7%
31New Mexico3,153+2.1%
32Iowa3,040+0.8%
33Kansas2,867-1.1%
34Idaho2,807+3.6%
35Arkansas2,764+1.6%
36Nevada2,604+4.5%
37Mississippi2,602-0.7%
38Maine2,548-0.2%
39New Hampshire2,249-1%
40Hawaii2,228+0.2%
41Montana2,088-0.2%
42Vermont1,958-1.7%
43Nebraska1,557+3.2%
44West Virginia1,248-1.8%
45Rhode Island1,235+4.9%
46Alaska1,167+1%
47South Dakota1,033+2.7%
48Wyoming967+0.3%
49North Dakota687+7.7%
50Delaware670+3.1%
51District of Columbia283-6.9%

Other periods

About this ranking

Number of businesses without paid employees in manufacturing (NAICS 31-33), from the U.S. Census Bureau Nonemployer Statistics.

Nonemployer Statistics: businesses with no paid employees that are subject to federal income tax, mostly the self-employed, counted from tax records, with receipts above small minimum amounts. Census says some years are not comparable with earlier ones, and they are marked as series breaks: 2018 in every sector (businesses were reclassified from their descriptions, which moved many out of other services), 2022 in every sector (new receipts cutoffs) and 2017 in utilities (the same reclassification). Most nonemployers are sole proprietors whose business may be a side activity. 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. Nonemployer Statistics, state and US files: establishments (ESTAB), manufacturing (NAICS 31-33), all legal forms. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/nonemployer-statistics/datasets/2015/historical-datasets/. 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. (2017). Nonemployer Statistics, state and US files: establishments (ESTAB), manufacturing (NAICS 31-33), all legal forms (US states by nonemployer businesses: manufacturing, 2015) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/nonemployer-statistics/datasets/2015/historical-datasets/

MLA 9

Nonemployer Statistics, state and US files: establishments (ESTAB), manufacturing (NAICS 31-33), all legal forms, US states by nonemployer businesses: manufacturing, 2015. U.S. Census Bureau, 7 July 2017, https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/nonemployer-statistics/datasets/2015/historical-datasets/. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/nonemployer-businesses-manufacturing/us-states?period=2015. Accessed 12 Oct. 2026.

Chicago (author-date)

U.S. Census Bureau. 2017. Nonemployer Statistics, state and US files: establishments (ESTAB), manufacturing (NAICS 31-33), all legal forms. US states by nonemployer businesses: manufacturing, 2015. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/nonemployer-statistics/datasets/2015/historical-datasets/. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/nonemployer-businesses-manufacturing/us-states?period=2015.

Harvard

U.S. Census Bureau (2017) Nonemployer Statistics, state and US files: establishments (ESTAB), manufacturing (NAICS 31-33), all legal forms, US states by nonemployer businesses: manufacturing, 2015 [Dataset]. Available at: https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/nonemployer-statistics/datasets/2015/historical-datasets/, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/nonemployer-businesses-manufacturing/us-states?period=2015 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{census_us_states_by_nonemployer_2015,
  author = {{U.S. Census Bureau}},
  title = {{Nonemployer Statistics, state and US files: establishments (ESTAB), manufacturing (NAICS 31-33), all legal forms: US states by nonemployer businesses: manufacturing, 2015}},
  year = {2017},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/nonemployer-statistics/datasets/2015/historical-datasets/},
  urldate = {2026-10-12},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/nonemployer-businesses-manufacturing/us-states?period=2015. Publisher attribution: U.S. Census Bureau. Nonemployer Statistics, state and US files: establishments (ESTAB), manufacturing (NAICS 31-33), all legal forms. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/nonemployer-statistics/datasets/2015/historical-datasets/. Retrieved 2026-10-12.},
}
RIS
TY  - DATA
AU  - U.S. Census Bureau
TI  - Nonemployer Statistics, state and US files: establishments (ESTAB), manufacturing (NAICS 31-33), all legal forms: US states by nonemployer businesses: manufacturing, 2015
PY  - 2017
DA  - 2017/07/07
PB  - U.S. Census Bureau
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/nonemployer-statistics/datasets/2015/historical-datasets/
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/nonemployer-businesses-manufacturing/us-states?period=2015
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/nonemployer-businesses-manufacturing/us-states?period=2015.
N1  - Publisher attribution: U.S. Census Bureau. Nonemployer Statistics, state and US files: establishments (ESTAB), manufacturing (NAICS 31-33), all legal forms. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/nonemployer-statistics/datasets/2015/historical-datasets/. Retrieved 2026-10-12.
ER  -
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Questions

Which state has the highest nonemployer businesses: manufacturing?

California, with 47,837 in 2015, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

Which state has the lowest nonemployer businesses: manufacturing?

District of Columbia, with 283 in 2015.

Where does this ranking come from?

Every value comes from one source and one period, so the places are comparable: U.S. Census Bureau, Nonemployer Statistics, state and US files: establishments (ESTAB), manufacturing (NAICS 31-33), all legal forms. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

US states: more rankings