Data / Rankings / Nonemployer businesses: other services / US states

US states by nonemployer businesses: other services

California had the highest nonemployer businesses: other services of 51 states in 2021, at 322,246. Alaska had the lowest, at 4,419. The median was 36,413 and the figure for the United States was 2.94 million. Source: the U.S. Census Bureau.

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Highest322,246California
Lowest4,419Alaska
Median36,41351 states
United States2,935,630History

Map of states, 2021

Alabama: 52,947 countAlaska: 4,419 countArizona: 56,385 countArkansas: 30,379 countCalifornia: 322,246 countColorado: 47,417 countConnecticut: 22,211 countDelaware: 6,774 countDistrict of Columbia: 4,834 countFlorida: 313,441 countGeorgia: 154,939 countHawaii: 11,693 countIdaho: 15,630 countIllinois: 113,021 countIndiana: 53,224 countIowa: 23,196 countKansas: 20,946 countKentucky: 38,380 countLouisiana: 57,599 countMaine: 10,554 countMaryland: 49,622 countMassachusetts: 43,232 countMichigan: 94,297 countMinnesota: 35,974 countMississippi: 36,413 countMissouri: 51,824 countMontana: 9,744 countNebraska: 15,289 countNevada: 31,421 countNew Hampshire: 9,721 countNew Jersey: 53,320 countNew Mexico: 12,670 countNew York: 133,730 countNorth Carolina: 101,484 countNorth Dakota: 5,375 countOhio: 88,484 countOklahoma: 36,333 countOregon: 26,807 countPennsylvania: 78,147 countRhode Island: 8,166 countSouth Carolina: 53,483 countSouth Dakota: 6,724 countTennessee: 79,127 countTexas: 320,371 countUtah: 25,972 countVermont: 4,878 countVirginia: 67,407 countWashington: 40,401 countWest Virginia: 11,498 countWisconsin: 38,509 countWyoming: 4,972 count
  • Under 10K
  • 10K to 22K
  • 22K to 36K
  • 36K to 53K
  • 53K to 85K
  • 85K and over
count, 2021. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Nonemployer Statistics, state and US files: establishments (ESTAB), other services (NAICS 81), all legal forms. Boundaries: U.S. Census Bureau cartographic boundary files.

All states, 2021

California: 322,246 countCalifornia322,246Texas: 320,371 countTexas320,371Florida: 313,441 countFlorida313,441Georgia: 154,939 countGeorgia154,939New York: 133,730 countNew York133,730Illinois: 113,021 countIllinois113,021North Carolina: 101,484 countNorth Carolina101,484Michigan: 94,297 countMichigan94,297Ohio: 88,484 countOhio88,484Tennessee: 79,127 countTennessee79,127Pennsylvania: 78,147 countPennsylvania78,147Virginia: 67,407 countVirginia67,407Louisiana: 57,599 countLouisiana57,599Arizona: 56,385 countArizona56,385South Carolina: 53,483 countSouth Carolina53,483New Jersey: 53,320 countNew Jersey53,320Indiana: 53,224 countIndiana53,224Alabama: 52,947 countAlabama52,947Missouri: 51,824 countMissouri51,824Maryland: 49,622 countMaryland49,622Colorado: 47,417 countColorado47,417Massachusetts: 43,232 countMassachusetts43,232Washington: 40,401 countWashington40,401Wisconsin: 38,509 countWisconsin38,509Kentucky: 38,380 countKentucky38,380Mississippi: 36,413 countMississippi36,413Oklahoma: 36,333 countOklahoma36,333Minnesota: 35,974 countMinnesota35,974Nevada: 31,421 countNevada31,421Arkansas: 30,379 countArkansas30,379Oregon: 26,807 countOregon26,807Utah: 25,972 countUtah25,972Iowa: 23,196 countIowa23,196Connecticut: 22,211 countConnecticut22,211Kansas: 20,946 countKansas20,946Idaho: 15,630 countIdaho15,630Nebraska: 15,289 countNebraska15,289New Mexico: 12,670 countNew Mexico12,670Hawaii: 11,693 countHawaii11,693West Virginia: 11,498 countWest Virginia11,498Maine: 10,554 countMaine10,554Montana: 9,744 countMontana9,744New Hampshire: 9,721 countNew Hampshire9,721Rhode Island: 8,166 countRhode Island8,166Delaware: 6,774 countDelaware6,774South Dakota: 6,724 countSouth Dakota6,724North Dakota: 5,375 countNorth Dakota5,375Wyoming: 4,972 countWyoming4,972Vermont: 4,878 countVermont4,878District of Columbia: 4,834 countDistrict of Columbia4,834Alaska: 4,419 countAlaska4,419California: 322,246 countCalifornia322,246Texas: 320,371 countTexas320,371Florida: 313,441 countFlorida313,441Georgia: 154,939 countGeorgia154,939New York: 133,730 countNew York133,730Illinois: 113,021 countIllinois113,021North Carolina: 101,484 countNorth Carolina101,484Michigan: 94,297 countMichigan94,297Ohio: 88,484 countOhio88,484Tennessee: 79,127 countTennessee79,127Pennsylvania: 78,147 countPennsylvania78,147Virginia: 67,407 countVirginia67,407Louisiana: 57,599 countLouisiana57,599Arizona: 56,385 countArizona56,385South Carolina: 53,483 countSouth Carolina53,483New Jersey: 53,320 countNew Jersey53,320Indiana: 53,224 countIndiana53,224Alabama: 52,947 countAlabama52,947Missouri: 51,824 countMissouri51,824Maryland: 49,622 countMaryland49,622Colorado: 47,417 countColorado47,417Massachusetts: 43,232 countMassachusetts43,232Washington: 40,401 countWashington40,401Wisconsin: 38,509 countWisconsin38,509Kentucky: 38,380 countKentucky38,380Mississippi: 36,413 countMississippi36,413Oklahoma: 36,333 countOklahoma36,333Minnesota: 35,974 countMinnesota35,974Nevada: 31,421 countNevada31,421Arkansas: 30,379 countArkansas30,379Oregon: 26,807 countOregon26,807Utah: 25,972 countUtah25,972Iowa: 23,196 countIowa23,196Connecticut: 22,211 countConnecticut22,211Kansas: 20,946 countKansas20,946Idaho: 15,630 countIdaho15,630Nebraska: 15,289 countNebraska15,289New Mexico: 12,670 countNew Mexico12,670Hawaii: 11,693 countHawaii11,693West Virginia: 11,498 countWest Virginia11,498Maine: 10,554 countMaine10,554Montana: 9,744 countMontana9,744New Hampshire: 9,721 countNew Hampshire9,721Rhode Island: 8,166 countRhode Island8,166Delaware: 6,774 countDelaware6,774South Dakota: 6,724 countSouth Dakota6,724North Dakota: 5,375 countNorth Dakota5,375Wyoming: 4,972 countWyoming4,972Vermont: 4,878 countVermont4,878District of Columbia: 4,834 countDistrict of Columbia4,834Alaska: 4,419 countAlaska4,419
count. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Nonemployer Statistics, state and US files: establishments (ESTAB), other services (NAICS 81), all legal forms. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Full ranking

RankStates2021
count		Change on 2020
1California322,246-0.1%
2Texas320,371+6.6%
3Florida313,441+4%
4Georgia154,939+12.1%
5New York133,730-1.1%
6Illinois113,021+8.2%
7North Carolina101,484+2%
8Michigan94,297+4.3%
9Ohio88,484+8.1%
10Tennessee79,127+10%
11Pennsylvania78,147+5.1%
12Virginia67,407+2.7%
13Louisiana57,599+14.2%
14Arizona56,385+3.1%
15South Carolina53,483+5.4%
16New Jersey53,320+1.7%
17Indiana53,224+5.1%
18Alabama52,947+8.2%
19Missouri51,824+2.3%
20Maryland49,622+4.4%
21Colorado47,417+5.2%
22Massachusetts43,232+1.8%
23Washington40,401+1.8%
24Wisconsin38,509+5%
25Kentucky38,380+2.4%
26Mississippi36,413+8.3%
27Oklahoma36,333+2.1%
28Minnesota35,974+3.1%
29Nevada31,421+6.5%
30Arkansas30,379+5.1%
31Oregon26,807+0.6%
32Utah25,972+4.4%
33Iowa23,196+2.7%
34Connecticut22,211+1.6%
35Kansas20,946+1.5%
36Idaho15,630+3.9%
37Nebraska15,289+2.1%
38New Mexico12,670+0.3%
39Hawaii11,693+1.8%
40West Virginia11,498+3.4%
41Maine10,554+3.4%
42Montana9,744+3%
43New Hampshire9,721+1.3%
44Rhode Island8,166+2.1%
45Delaware6,774+5.1%
46South Dakota6,724+3.5%
47North Dakota5,375+3%
48Wyoming4,972+1.6%
49Vermont4,878+4.4%
50District of Columbia4,834+6.1%
51Alaska4,419+2.2%

Other periods

About this ranking

Number of businesses without paid employees in other services (repair and maintenance, personal and laundry services, and civic organizations) (NAICS 81), 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), other services (NAICS 81), all legal forms. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/nonemployer-statistics/datasets/2021/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. (2024). Nonemployer Statistics, state and US files: establishments (ESTAB), other services (NAICS 81), all legal forms (US states by nonemployer businesses: other services, 2021) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/nonemployer-statistics/datasets/2021/historical-datasets/

MLA 9

Nonemployer Statistics, state and US files: establishments (ESTAB), other services (NAICS 81), all legal forms, US states by nonemployer businesses: other services, 2021. U.S. Census Bureau, 14 Mar. 2024, https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/nonemployer-statistics/datasets/2021/historical-datasets/. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/nonemployer-businesses-other-services/us-states?period=2021. Accessed 12 Oct. 2026.

Chicago (author-date)

U.S. Census Bureau. 2024. Nonemployer Statistics, state and US files: establishments (ESTAB), other services (NAICS 81), all legal forms. US states by nonemployer businesses: other services, 2021. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/nonemployer-statistics/datasets/2021/historical-datasets/. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/nonemployer-businesses-other-services/us-states?period=2021.

Harvard

U.S. Census Bureau (2024) Nonemployer Statistics, state and US files: establishments (ESTAB), other services (NAICS 81), all legal forms, US states by nonemployer businesses: other services, 2021 [Dataset]. Available at: https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/nonemployer-statistics/datasets/2021/historical-datasets/, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/nonemployer-businesses-other-services/us-states?period=2021 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{census_us_states_by_nonemployer_2021,
  author = {{U.S. Census Bureau}},
  title = {{Nonemployer Statistics, state and US files: establishments (ESTAB), other services (NAICS 81), all legal forms: US states by nonemployer businesses: other services, 2021}},
  year = {2024},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/nonemployer-statistics/datasets/2021/historical-datasets/},
  urldate = {2026-10-12},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/nonemployer-businesses-other-services/us-states?period=2021. Publisher attribution: U.S. Census Bureau. Nonemployer Statistics, state and US files: establishments (ESTAB), other services (NAICS 81), all legal forms. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/nonemployer-statistics/datasets/2021/historical-datasets/. Retrieved 2026-10-12.},
}
RIS
TY  - DATA
AU  - U.S. Census Bureau
TI  - Nonemployer Statistics, state and US files: establishments (ESTAB), other services (NAICS 81), all legal forms: US states by nonemployer businesses: other services, 2021
PY  - 2024
DA  - 2024/03/14
PB  - U.S. Census Bureau
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/nonemployer-statistics/datasets/2021/historical-datasets/
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/nonemployer-businesses-other-services/us-states?period=2021
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/nonemployer-businesses-other-services/us-states?period=2021.
N1  - Publisher attribution: U.S. Census Bureau. Nonemployer Statistics, state and US files: establishments (ESTAB), other services (NAICS 81), all legal forms. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/nonemployer-statistics/datasets/2021/historical-datasets/. Retrieved 2026-10-12.
ER  -
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Questions

Which state has the highest nonemployer businesses: other services?

California, with 322,246 in 2021, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

Which state has the lowest nonemployer businesses: other services?

Alaska, with 4,419 in 2021.

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), other services (NAICS 81), all legal forms. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

US states: more rankings