Data / Rankings / Nonemployer businesses: professional, scientific and technical services / US states

US states by nonemployer businesses: professional, scientific and technical services

California had the highest nonemployer businesses: professional, scientific and technical services of 51 states in 2013, at 515,814. North Dakota had the lowest, at 4,937. The median was 34,874 and the figure for the United States was 3.24 million. Source: the U.S. Census Bureau.

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Highest515,814California
Lowest4,937North Dakota
Median34,87451 states
United States3,235,906History

Map of states, 2013

Alabama: 31,099 countAlaska: 6,499 countArizona: 61,844 countArkansas: 17,212 countCalifornia: 515,814 countColorado: 78,573 countConnecticut: 44,836 countDelaware: 8,134 countDistrict of Columbia: 14,449 countFlorida: 226,909 countGeorgia: 99,198 countHawaii: 14,342 countIdaho: 14,530 countIllinois: 125,324 countIndiana: 43,807 countIowa: 19,930 countKansas: 23,914 countKentucky: 28,194 countLouisiana: 38,357 countMaine: 12,984 countMaryland: 73,261 countMassachusetts: 96,194 countMichigan: 83,591 countMinnesota: 58,875 countMississippi: 17,245 countMissouri: 44,331 countMontana: 10,581 countNebraska: 12,830 countNevada: 28,381 countNew Hampshire: 16,892 countNew Jersey: 110,136 countNew Mexico: 16,047 countNew York: 247,503 countNorth Carolina: 83,753 countNorth Dakota: 4,937 countOhio: 93,971 countOklahoma: 28,764 countOregon: 43,687 countPennsylvania: 114,471 countRhode Island: 11,564 countSouth Carolina: 34,874 countSouth Dakota: 5,929 countTennessee: 52,114 countTexas: 257,225 countUtah: 32,335 countVermont: 8,857 countVirginia: 87,225 countWashington: 76,665 countWest Virginia: 9,193 countWisconsin: 42,863 countWyoming: 5,663 count
  • Under 12K
  • 12K to 17K
  • 17K to 35K
  • 35K to 60K
  • 60K to 95K
  • 95K and over
count, 2013. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Nonemployer Statistics, state and US files: establishments (ESTAB), professional, scientific, and technical services (NAICS 54), all legal forms. Boundaries: U.S. Census Bureau cartographic boundary files.

All states, 2013

California: 515,814 countCalifornia515,814Texas: 257,225 countTexas257,225New York: 247,503 countNew York247,503Florida: 226,909 countFlorida226,909Illinois: 125,324 countIllinois125,324Pennsylvania: 114,471 countPennsylvania114,471New Jersey: 110,136 countNew Jersey110,136Georgia: 99,198 countGeorgia99,198Massachusetts: 96,194 countMassachusetts96,194Ohio: 93,971 countOhio93,971Virginia: 87,225 countVirginia87,225North Carolina: 83,753 countNorth Carolina83,753Michigan: 83,591 countMichigan83,591Colorado: 78,573 countColorado78,573Washington: 76,665 countWashington76,665Maryland: 73,261 countMaryland73,261Arizona: 61,844 countArizona61,844Minnesota: 58,875 countMinnesota58,875Tennessee: 52,114 countTennessee52,114Connecticut: 44,836 countConnecticut44,836Missouri: 44,331 countMissouri44,331Indiana: 43,807 countIndiana43,807Oregon: 43,687 countOregon43,687Wisconsin: 42,863 countWisconsin42,863Louisiana: 38,357 countLouisiana38,357South Carolina: 34,874 countSouth Carolina34,874Utah: 32,335 countUtah32,335Alabama: 31,099 countAlabama31,099Oklahoma: 28,764 countOklahoma28,764Nevada: 28,381 countNevada28,381Kentucky: 28,194 countKentucky28,194Kansas: 23,914 countKansas23,914Iowa: 19,930 countIowa19,930Mississippi: 17,245 countMississippi17,245Arkansas: 17,212 countArkansas17,212New Hampshire: 16,892 countNew Hampshire16,892New Mexico: 16,047 countNew Mexico16,047Idaho: 14,530 countIdaho14,530District of Columbia: 14,449 countDistrict of Columbia14,449Hawaii: 14,342 countHawaii14,342Maine: 12,984 countMaine12,984Nebraska: 12,830 countNebraska12,830Rhode Island: 11,564 countRhode Island11,564Montana: 10,581 countMontana10,581West Virginia: 9,193 countWest Virginia9,193Vermont: 8,857 countVermont8,857Delaware: 8,134 countDelaware8,134Alaska: 6,499 countAlaska6,499South Dakota: 5,929 countSouth Dakota5,929Wyoming: 5,663 countWyoming5,663North Dakota: 4,937 countNorth Dakota4,937California: 515,814 countCalifornia515,814Texas: 257,225 countTexas257,225New York: 247,503 countNew York247,503Florida: 226,909 countFlorida226,909Illinois: 125,324 countIllinois125,324Pennsylvania: 114,471 countPennsylvania114,471New Jersey: 110,136 countNew Jersey110,136Georgia: 99,198 countGeorgia99,198Massachusetts: 96,194 countMassachusetts96,194Ohio: 93,971 countOhio93,971Virginia: 87,225 countVirginia87,225North Carolina: 83,753 countNorth Carolina83,753Michigan: 83,591 countMichigan83,591Colorado: 78,573 countColorado78,573Washington: 76,665 countWashington76,665Maryland: 73,261 countMaryland73,261Arizona: 61,844 countArizona61,844Minnesota: 58,875 countMinnesota58,875Tennessee: 52,114 countTennessee52,114Connecticut: 44,836 countConnecticut44,836Missouri: 44,331 countMissouri44,331Indiana: 43,807 countIndiana43,807Oregon: 43,687 countOregon43,687Wisconsin: 42,863 countWisconsin42,863Louisiana: 38,357 countLouisiana38,357South Carolina: 34,874 countSouth Carolina34,874Utah: 32,335 countUtah32,335Alabama: 31,099 countAlabama31,099Oklahoma: 28,764 countOklahoma28,764Nevada: 28,381 countNevada28,381Kentucky: 28,194 countKentucky28,194Kansas: 23,914 countKansas23,914Iowa: 19,930 countIowa19,930Mississippi: 17,245 countMississippi17,245Arkansas: 17,212 countArkansas17,212New Hampshire: 16,892 countNew Hampshire16,892New Mexico: 16,047 countNew Mexico16,047Idaho: 14,530 countIdaho14,530District of Columbia: 14,449 countDistrict of Columbia14,449Hawaii: 14,342 countHawaii14,342Maine: 12,984 countMaine12,984Nebraska: 12,830 countNebraska12,830Rhode Island: 11,564 countRhode Island11,564Montana: 10,581 countMontana10,581West Virginia: 9,193 countWest Virginia9,193Vermont: 8,857 countVermont8,857Delaware: 8,134 countDelaware8,134Alaska: 6,499 countAlaska6,499South Dakota: 5,929 countSouth Dakota5,929Wyoming: 5,663 countWyoming5,663North Dakota: 4,937 countNorth Dakota4,937
count. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Nonemployer Statistics, state and US files: establishments (ESTAB), professional, scientific, and technical services (NAICS 54), all legal forms. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Full ranking

RankStates2013
count		Change on 2012
1California515,814+1%
2Texas257,225+0.5%
3New York247,503+1.4%
4Florida226,909+2.9%
5Illinois125,324+0.1%
6Pennsylvania114,4710%
7New Jersey110,136+0.5%
8Georgia99,198+1.6%
9Massachusetts96,194-0.5%
10Ohio93,971+0.4%
11Virginia87,225+0.5%
12North Carolina83,753+1.6%
13Michigan83,591-0.9%
14Colorado78,573+1.2%
15Washington76,665+0.1%
16Maryland73,261+0.1%
17Arizona61,844+0.2%
18Minnesota58,875+0.1%
19Tennessee52,114+0.3%
20Connecticut44,836-0.4%
21Missouri44,331-0.6%
22Indiana43,807+0.5%
23Oregon43,687+1.4%
24Wisconsin42,863+0.1%
25Louisiana38,357+0.8%
26South Carolina34,874+2.5%
27Utah32,335+2.1%
28Alabama31,099-1.2%
29Oklahoma28,764-0.7%
30Nevada28,381+1.6%
31Kentucky28,194-0%
32Kansas23,914+5%
33Iowa19,930+0.1%
34Mississippi17,245-0.9%
35Arkansas17,212-0.5%
36New Hampshire16,892-0.2%
37New Mexico16,047-3.2%
38Idaho14,530+0.9%
39District of Columbia14,449+2.8%
40Hawaii14,342+0.3%
41Maine12,984-0.2%
42Nebraska12,830+0.6%
43Rhode Island11,564+0.8%
44Montana10,581-0.5%
45West Virginia9,193-2.3%
46Vermont8,857+0.9%
47Delaware8,134+0.8%
48Alaska6,499-2%
49South Dakota5,929-0.1%
50Wyoming5,663+1.4%
51North Dakota4,937+0.3%

Other periods

About this ranking

Number of businesses without paid employees in professional, scientific, and technical services (NAICS 54), 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), professional, scientific, and technical services (NAICS 54), all legal forms. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/nonemployer-statistics/datasets/2013/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), professional, scientific, and technical services (NAICS 54), all legal forms (US states by nonemployer businesses: professional, scientific and technical services, 2013) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/nonemployer-statistics/datasets/2013/historical-datasets/

MLA 9

Nonemployer Statistics, state and US files: establishments (ESTAB), professional, scientific, and technical services (NAICS 54), all legal forms, US states by nonemployer businesses: professional, scientific and technical services, 2013. U.S. Census Bureau, 6 June 2017, https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/nonemployer-statistics/datasets/2013/historical-datasets/. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/nonemployer-businesses-professional-services/us-states?period=2013. Accessed 12 Oct. 2026.

Chicago (author-date)

U.S. Census Bureau. 2017. Nonemployer Statistics, state and US files: establishments (ESTAB), professional, scientific, and technical services (NAICS 54), all legal forms. US states by nonemployer businesses: professional, scientific and technical services, 2013. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/nonemployer-statistics/datasets/2013/historical-datasets/. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/nonemployer-businesses-professional-services/us-states?period=2013.

Harvard

U.S. Census Bureau (2017) Nonemployer Statistics, state and US files: establishments (ESTAB), professional, scientific, and technical services (NAICS 54), all legal forms, US states by nonemployer businesses: professional, scientific and technical services, 2013 [Dataset]. Available at: https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/nonemployer-statistics/datasets/2013/historical-datasets/, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/nonemployer-businesses-professional-services/us-states?period=2013 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{census_us_states_by_nonemployer_2013,
  author = {{U.S. Census Bureau}},
  title = {{Nonemployer Statistics, state and US files: establishments (ESTAB), professional, scientific, and technical services (NAICS 54), all legal forms: US states by nonemployer businesses: professional, scientific and technical services, 2013}},
  year = {2017},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/nonemployer-statistics/datasets/2013/historical-datasets/},
  urldate = {2026-10-12},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/nonemployer-businesses-professional-services/us-states?period=2013. Publisher attribution: U.S. Census Bureau. Nonemployer Statistics, state and US files: establishments (ESTAB), professional, scientific, and technical services (NAICS 54), all legal forms. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/nonemployer-statistics/datasets/2013/historical-datasets/. Retrieved 2026-10-12.},
}
RIS
TY  - DATA
AU  - U.S. Census Bureau
TI  - Nonemployer Statistics, state and US files: establishments (ESTAB), professional, scientific, and technical services (NAICS 54), all legal forms: US states by nonemployer businesses: professional, scientific and technical services, 2013
PY  - 2017
DA  - 2017/06/06
PB  - U.S. Census Bureau
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/nonemployer-statistics/datasets/2013/historical-datasets/
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/nonemployer-businesses-professional-services/us-states?period=2013
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/nonemployer-businesses-professional-services/us-states?period=2013.
N1  - Publisher attribution: U.S. Census Bureau. Nonemployer Statistics, state and US files: establishments (ESTAB), professional, scientific, and technical services (NAICS 54), all legal forms. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/nonemployer-statistics/datasets/2013/historical-datasets/. Retrieved 2026-10-12.
ER  -
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Questions

Which state has the highest nonemployer businesses: professional, scientific and technical services?

California, with 515,814 in 2013, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

Which state has the lowest nonemployer businesses: professional, scientific and technical services?

North Dakota, with 4,937 in 2013.

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), professional, scientific, and technical services (NAICS 54), all legal forms. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

US states: more rankings