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 2014, at 539,499. North Dakota had the lowest, at 5,101. The median was 36,293 and the figure for the United States was 3.36 million. Source: the U.S. Census Bureau.

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Highest539,499California
Lowest5,101North Dakota
Median36,29351 states
United States3,363,252History

Map of states, 2014

Alabama: 32,439 countAlaska: 6,897 countArizona: 64,393 countArkansas: 17,638 countCalifornia: 539,499 countColorado: 82,597 countConnecticut: 45,993 countDelaware: 8,537 countDistrict of Columbia: 15,517 countFlorida: 241,197 countGeorgia: 103,207 countHawaii: 15,186 countIdaho: 15,111 countIllinois: 127,454 countIndiana: 44,690 countIowa: 20,268 countKansas: 24,452 countKentucky: 28,846 countLouisiana: 39,702 countMaine: 13,505 countMaryland: 75,836 countMassachusetts: 98,138 countMichigan: 85,415 countMinnesota: 60,221 countMississippi: 18,067 countMissouri: 45,064 countMontana: 10,897 countNebraska: 13,279 countNevada: 29,993 countNew Hampshire: 17,079 countNew Jersey: 113,394 countNew Mexico: 16,586 countNew York: 256,610 countNorth Carolina: 87,043 countNorth Dakota: 5,101 countOhio: 96,138 countOklahoma: 30,051 countOregon: 45,950 countPennsylvania: 117,598 countRhode Island: 11,838 countSouth Carolina: 36,293 countSouth Dakota: 6,058 countTennessee: 54,756 countTexas: 270,855 countUtah: 34,349 countVermont: 9,073 countVirginia: 91,085 countWashington: 80,316 countWest Virginia: 9,413 countWisconsin: 43,644 countWyoming: 5,984 count
  • Under 12K
  • 12K to 18K
  • 18K to 36K
  • 36K to 62K
  • 62K to 97K
  • 97K and over
count, 2014. 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, 2014

California: 539,499 countCalifornia539,499Texas: 270,855 countTexas270,855New York: 256,610 countNew York256,610Florida: 241,197 countFlorida241,197Illinois: 127,454 countIllinois127,454Pennsylvania: 117,598 countPennsylvania117,598New Jersey: 113,394 countNew Jersey113,394Georgia: 103,207 countGeorgia103,207Massachusetts: 98,138 countMassachusetts98,138Ohio: 96,138 countOhio96,138Virginia: 91,085 countVirginia91,085North Carolina: 87,043 countNorth Carolina87,043Michigan: 85,415 countMichigan85,415Colorado: 82,597 countColorado82,597Washington: 80,316 countWashington80,316Maryland: 75,836 countMaryland75,836Arizona: 64,393 countArizona64,393Minnesota: 60,221 countMinnesota60,221Tennessee: 54,756 countTennessee54,756Connecticut: 45,993 countConnecticut45,993Oregon: 45,950 countOregon45,950Missouri: 45,064 countMissouri45,064Indiana: 44,690 countIndiana44,690Wisconsin: 43,644 countWisconsin43,644Louisiana: 39,702 countLouisiana39,702South Carolina: 36,293 countSouth Carolina36,293Utah: 34,349 countUtah34,349Alabama: 32,439 countAlabama32,439Oklahoma: 30,051 countOklahoma30,051Nevada: 29,993 countNevada29,993Kentucky: 28,846 countKentucky28,846Kansas: 24,452 countKansas24,452Iowa: 20,268 countIowa20,268Mississippi: 18,067 countMississippi18,067Arkansas: 17,638 countArkansas17,638New Hampshire: 17,079 countNew Hampshire17,079New Mexico: 16,586 countNew Mexico16,586District of Columbia: 15,517 countDistrict of Columbia15,517Hawaii: 15,186 countHawaii15,186Idaho: 15,111 countIdaho15,111Maine: 13,505 countMaine13,505Nebraska: 13,279 countNebraska13,279Rhode Island: 11,838 countRhode Island11,838Montana: 10,897 countMontana10,897West Virginia: 9,413 countWest Virginia9,413Vermont: 9,073 countVermont9,073Delaware: 8,537 countDelaware8,537Alaska: 6,897 countAlaska6,897South Dakota: 6,058 countSouth Dakota6,058Wyoming: 5,984 countWyoming5,984North Dakota: 5,101 countNorth Dakota5,101California: 539,499 countCalifornia539,499Texas: 270,855 countTexas270,855New York: 256,610 countNew York256,610Florida: 241,197 countFlorida241,197Illinois: 127,454 countIllinois127,454Pennsylvania: 117,598 countPennsylvania117,598New Jersey: 113,394 countNew Jersey113,394Georgia: 103,207 countGeorgia103,207Massachusetts: 98,138 countMassachusetts98,138Ohio: 96,138 countOhio96,138Virginia: 91,085 countVirginia91,085North Carolina: 87,043 countNorth Carolina87,043Michigan: 85,415 countMichigan85,415Colorado: 82,597 countColorado82,597Washington: 80,316 countWashington80,316Maryland: 75,836 countMaryland75,836Arizona: 64,393 countArizona64,393Minnesota: 60,221 countMinnesota60,221Tennessee: 54,756 countTennessee54,756Connecticut: 45,993 countConnecticut45,993Oregon: 45,950 countOregon45,950Missouri: 45,064 countMissouri45,064Indiana: 44,690 countIndiana44,690Wisconsin: 43,644 countWisconsin43,644Louisiana: 39,702 countLouisiana39,702South Carolina: 36,293 countSouth Carolina36,293Utah: 34,349 countUtah34,349Alabama: 32,439 countAlabama32,439Oklahoma: 30,051 countOklahoma30,051Nevada: 29,993 countNevada29,993Kentucky: 28,846 countKentucky28,846Kansas: 24,452 countKansas24,452Iowa: 20,268 countIowa20,268Mississippi: 18,067 countMississippi18,067Arkansas: 17,638 countArkansas17,638New Hampshire: 17,079 countNew Hampshire17,079New Mexico: 16,586 countNew Mexico16,586District of Columbia: 15,517 countDistrict of Columbia15,517Hawaii: 15,186 countHawaii15,186Idaho: 15,111 countIdaho15,111Maine: 13,505 countMaine13,505Nebraska: 13,279 countNebraska13,279Rhode Island: 11,838 countRhode Island11,838Montana: 10,897 countMontana10,897West Virginia: 9,413 countWest Virginia9,413Vermont: 9,073 countVermont9,073Delaware: 8,537 countDelaware8,537Alaska: 6,897 countAlaska6,897South Dakota: 6,058 countSouth Dakota6,058Wyoming: 5,984 countWyoming5,984North Dakota: 5,101 countNorth Dakota5,101
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

RankStates2014
count		Change on 2013
1California539,499+4.6%
2Texas270,855+5.3%
3New York256,610+3.7%
4Florida241,197+6.3%
5Illinois127,454+1.7%
6Pennsylvania117,598+2.7%
7New Jersey113,394+3%
8Georgia103,207+4%
9Massachusetts98,138+2%
10Ohio96,138+2.3%
11Virginia91,085+4.4%
12North Carolina87,043+3.9%
13Michigan85,415+2.2%
14Colorado82,597+5.1%
15Washington80,316+4.8%
16Maryland75,836+3.5%
17Arizona64,393+4.1%
18Minnesota60,221+2.3%
19Tennessee54,756+5.1%
20Connecticut45,993+2.6%
21Oregon45,950+5.2%
22Missouri45,064+1.7%
23Indiana44,690+2%
24Wisconsin43,644+1.8%
25Louisiana39,702+3.5%
26South Carolina36,293+4.1%
27Utah34,349+6.2%
28Alabama32,439+4.3%
29Oklahoma30,051+4.5%
30Nevada29,993+5.7%
31Kentucky28,846+2.3%
32Kansas24,452+2.2%
33Iowa20,268+1.7%
34Mississippi18,067+4.8%
35Arkansas17,638+2.5%
36New Hampshire17,079+1.1%
37New Mexico16,586+3.4%
38District of Columbia15,517+7.4%
39Hawaii15,186+5.9%
40Idaho15,111+4%
41Maine13,505+4%
42Nebraska13,279+3.5%
43Rhode Island11,838+2.4%
44Montana10,897+3%
45West Virginia9,413+2.4%
46Vermont9,073+2.4%
47Delaware8,537+5%
48Alaska6,897+6.1%
49South Dakota6,058+2.2%
50Wyoming5,984+5.7%
51North Dakota5,101+3.3%

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/2014/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, 2014) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/nonemployer-statistics/datasets/2014/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, 2014. U.S. Census Bureau, 6 June 2017, https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/nonemployer-statistics/datasets/2014/historical-datasets/. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/nonemployer-businesses-professional-services/us-states?period=2014. 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, 2014. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/nonemployer-statistics/datasets/2014/historical-datasets/. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/nonemployer-businesses-professional-services/us-states?period=2014.

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, 2014 [Dataset]. Available at: https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/nonemployer-statistics/datasets/2014/historical-datasets/, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/nonemployer-businesses-professional-services/us-states?period=2014 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{census_us_states_by_nonemployer_2014,
  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, 2014}},
  year = {2017},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/nonemployer-statistics/datasets/2014/historical-datasets/},
  urldate = {2026-10-12},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/nonemployer-businesses-professional-services/us-states?period=2014. 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/2014/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, 2014
PY  - 2017
DA  - 2017/06/06
PB  - U.S. Census Bureau
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/nonemployer-statistics/datasets/2014/historical-datasets/
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/nonemployer-businesses-professional-services/us-states?period=2014
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/nonemployer-businesses-professional-services/us-states?period=2014.
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/2014/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 539,499 in 2014, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

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

North Dakota, with 5,101 in 2014.

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.

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