Data / Rankings / Nonemployer businesses: manufacturing / US states

US states by nonemployer businesses: manufacturing

California had the highest nonemployer businesses: manufacturing of 51 states in 2017, at 46,344. District of Columbia had the lowest, at 271. The median was 4,408 and the figure for the United States was 348,476. Source: the U.S. Census Bureau.

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Highest46,344California
Lowest271District of Columbia
Median4,40851 states
United States348,476History

Map of states, 2017

Alabama: 4,570 countAlaska: 1,167 countArizona: 7,002 countArkansas: 2,782 countCalifornia: 46,344 countColorado: 7,569 countConnecticut: 3,397 countDelaware: 687 countDistrict of Columbia: 271 countFlorida: 24,100 countGeorgia: 10,580 countHawaii: 2,098 countIdaho: 2,808 countIllinois: 10,173 countIndiana: 6,867 countIowa: 2,983 countKansas: 2,907 countKentucky: 3,943 countLouisiana: 4,427 countMaine: 2,423 countMaryland: 4,529 countMassachusetts: 6,122 countMichigan: 12,138 countMinnesota: 7,399 countMississippi: 2,622 countMissouri: 6,199 countMontana: 2,143 countNebraska: 1,551 countNevada: 2,624 countNew Hampshire: 2,149 countNew Jersey: 6,706 countNew Mexico: 2,783 countNew York: 17,936 countNorth Carolina: 10,360 countNorth Dakota: 689 countOhio: 13,143 countOklahoma: 4,029 countOregon: 7,293 countPennsylvania: 13,994 countRhode Island: 1,123 countSouth Carolina: 4,408 countSouth Dakota: 1,021 countTennessee: 6,200 countTexas: 34,111 countUtah: 4,403 countVermont: 1,903 countVirginia: 5,976 countWashington: 8,440 countWest Virginia: 1,224 countWisconsin: 7,161 countWyoming: 999 count
  • Under 1,700
  • 1,700 to 2,800
  • 2,800 to 4,400
  • 4,400 to 6,800
  • 6,800 to 10K
  • 10K and over
count, 2017. 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, 2017

California: 46,344 countCalifornia46,344Texas: 34,111 countTexas34,111Florida: 24,100 countFlorida24,100New York: 17,936 countNew York17,936Pennsylvania: 13,994 countPennsylvania13,994Ohio: 13,143 countOhio13,143Michigan: 12,138 countMichigan12,138Georgia: 10,580 countGeorgia10,580North Carolina: 10,360 countNorth Carolina10,360Illinois: 10,173 countIllinois10,173Washington: 8,440 countWashington8,440Colorado: 7,569 countColorado7,569Minnesota: 7,399 countMinnesota7,399Oregon: 7,293 countOregon7,293Wisconsin: 7,161 countWisconsin7,161Arizona: 7,002 countArizona7,002Indiana: 6,867 countIndiana6,867New Jersey: 6,706 countNew Jersey6,706Tennessee: 6,200 countTennessee6,200Missouri: 6,199 countMissouri6,199Massachusetts: 6,122 countMassachusetts6,122Virginia: 5,976 countVirginia5,976Alabama: 4,570 countAlabama4,570Maryland: 4,529 countMaryland4,529Louisiana: 4,427 countLouisiana4,427South Carolina: 4,408 countSouth Carolina4,408Utah: 4,403 countUtah4,403Oklahoma: 4,029 countOklahoma4,029Kentucky: 3,943 countKentucky3,943Connecticut: 3,397 countConnecticut3,397Iowa: 2,983 countIowa2,983Kansas: 2,907 countKansas2,907Idaho: 2,808 countIdaho2,808New Mexico: 2,783 countNew Mexico2,783Arkansas: 2,782 countArkansas2,782Nevada: 2,624 countNevada2,624Mississippi: 2,622 countMississippi2,622Maine: 2,423 countMaine2,423New Hampshire: 2,149 countNew Hampshire2,149Montana: 2,143 countMontana2,143Hawaii: 2,098 countHawaii2,098Vermont: 1,903 countVermont1,903Nebraska: 1,551 countNebraska1,551West Virginia: 1,224 countWest Virginia1,224Alaska: 1,167 countAlaska1,167Rhode Island: 1,123 countRhode Island1,123South Dakota: 1,021 countSouth Dakota1,021Wyoming: 999 countWyoming999North Dakota: 689 countNorth Dakota689Delaware: 687 countDelaware687District of Columbia: 271 countDistrict of Columbia271California: 46,344 countCalifornia46,344Texas: 34,111 countTexas34,111Florida: 24,100 countFlorida24,100New York: 17,936 countNew York17,936Pennsylvania: 13,994 countPennsylvania13,994Ohio: 13,143 countOhio13,143Michigan: 12,138 countMichigan12,138Georgia: 10,580 countGeorgia10,580North Carolina: 10,360 countNorth Carolina10,360Illinois: 10,173 countIllinois10,173Washington: 8,440 countWashington8,440Colorado: 7,569 countColorado7,569Minnesota: 7,399 countMinnesota7,399Oregon: 7,293 countOregon7,293Wisconsin: 7,161 countWisconsin7,161Arizona: 7,002 countArizona7,002Indiana: 6,867 countIndiana6,867New Jersey: 6,706 countNew Jersey6,706Tennessee: 6,200 countTennessee6,200Missouri: 6,199 countMissouri6,199Massachusetts: 6,122 countMassachusetts6,122Virginia: 5,976 countVirginia5,976Alabama: 4,570 countAlabama4,570Maryland: 4,529 countMaryland4,529Louisiana: 4,427 countLouisiana4,427South Carolina: 4,408 countSouth Carolina4,408Utah: 4,403 countUtah4,403Oklahoma: 4,029 countOklahoma4,029Kentucky: 3,943 countKentucky3,943Connecticut: 3,397 countConnecticut3,397Iowa: 2,983 countIowa2,983Kansas: 2,907 countKansas2,907Idaho: 2,808 countIdaho2,808New Mexico: 2,783 countNew Mexico2,783Arkansas: 2,782 countArkansas2,782Nevada: 2,624 countNevada2,624Mississippi: 2,622 countMississippi2,622Maine: 2,423 countMaine2,423New Hampshire: 2,149 countNew Hampshire2,149Montana: 2,143 countMontana2,143Hawaii: 2,098 countHawaii2,098Vermont: 1,903 countVermont1,903Nebraska: 1,551 countNebraska1,551West Virginia: 1,224 countWest Virginia1,224Alaska: 1,167 countAlaska1,167Rhode Island: 1,123 countRhode Island1,123South Dakota: 1,021 countSouth Dakota1,021Wyoming: 999 countWyoming999North Dakota: 689 countNorth Dakota689Delaware: 687 countDelaware687District of Columbia: 271 countDistrict of Columbia271
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

RankStates2017
count		Change on 2016
1California46,344-0.2%
2Texas34,111+2.2%
3Florida24,100+5.5%
4New York17,936-1.6%
5Pennsylvania13,994-0.6%
6Ohio13,143+0.3%
7Michigan12,138+1%
8Georgia10,580-0.5%
9North Carolina10,360-3%
10Illinois10,173-0.9%
11Washington8,440-4.2%
12Colorado7,569-1.7%
13Minnesota7,399-0.1%
14Oregon7,293-3.3%
15Wisconsin7,161-1.2%
16Arizona7,002-3.9%
17Indiana6,867-2.7%
18New Jersey6,706-2.8%
19Tennessee6,200-4.5%
20Missouri6,199+1.5%
21Massachusetts6,122+2.2%
22Virginia5,976-3.2%
23Alabama4,570-1.6%
24Maryland4,529-2%
25Louisiana4,427-1%
26South Carolina4,408+0.8%
27Utah4,403+2.4%
28Oklahoma4,029+1.7%
29Kentucky3,943+2.1%
30Connecticut3,397-0.7%
31Iowa2,983-1.3%
32Kansas2,907+1.9%
33Idaho2,808-1.5%
34New Mexico2,783-2.7%
35Arkansas2,782-0.9%
36Nevada2,624+1.9%
37Mississippi2,622-1.4%
38Maine2,423-2.1%
39New Hampshire2,149-0.5%
40Montana2,143+3%
41Hawaii2,098-4.4%
42Vermont1,903-0.7%
43Nebraska1,551+0.7%
44West Virginia1,224+1.3%
45Alaska1,167+0.6%
46Rhode Island1,123-3.5%
47South Dakota1,021+2.4%
48Wyoming999+4.8%
49North Dakota689+6.5%
50Delaware687+2.5%
51District of Columbia271-8.8%

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/2017/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. (2019). Nonemployer Statistics, state and US files: establishments (ESTAB), manufacturing (NAICS 31-33), all legal forms (US states by nonemployer businesses: manufacturing, 2017) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/nonemployer-statistics/datasets/2017/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, 2017. U.S. Census Bureau, 27 June 2019, https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/nonemployer-statistics/datasets/2017/historical-datasets/. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/nonemployer-businesses-manufacturing/us-states?period=2017. Accessed 12 Oct. 2026.

Chicago (author-date)

U.S. Census Bureau. 2019. Nonemployer Statistics, state and US files: establishments (ESTAB), manufacturing (NAICS 31-33), all legal forms. US states by nonemployer businesses: manufacturing, 2017. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/nonemployer-statistics/datasets/2017/historical-datasets/. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/nonemployer-businesses-manufacturing/us-states?period=2017.

Harvard

U.S. Census Bureau (2019) Nonemployer Statistics, state and US files: establishments (ESTAB), manufacturing (NAICS 31-33), all legal forms, US states by nonemployer businesses: manufacturing, 2017 [Dataset]. Available at: https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/nonemployer-statistics/datasets/2017/historical-datasets/, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/nonemployer-businesses-manufacturing/us-states?period=2017 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{census_us_states_by_nonemployer_2017,
  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, 2017}},
  year = {2019},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/nonemployer-statistics/datasets/2017/historical-datasets/},
  urldate = {2026-10-12},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/nonemployer-businesses-manufacturing/us-states?period=2017. 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/2017/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, 2017
PY  - 2019
DA  - 2019/06/27
PB  - U.S. Census Bureau
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/nonemployer-statistics/datasets/2017/historical-datasets/
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/nonemployer-businesses-manufacturing/us-states?period=2017
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/nonemployer-businesses-manufacturing/us-states?period=2017.
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/2017/historical-datasets/. Retrieved 2026-10-12.
ER  -
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Questions

Which state has the highest nonemployer businesses: manufacturing?

California, with 46,344 in 2017, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

Which state has the lowest nonemployer businesses: manufacturing?

District of Columbia, with 271 in 2017.

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