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 2015, at 548,841. North Dakota had the lowest, at 5,057. The median was 38,237 and the figure for the United States was 3.41 million. Source: the U.S. Census Bureau.

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Highest548,841California
Lowest5,057North Dakota
Median38,23751 states
United States3,410,855History

Map of states, 2015

Alabama: 32,959 countAlaska: 6,933 countArizona: 65,443 countArkansas: 17,780 countCalifornia: 548,841 countColorado: 83,914 countConnecticut: 45,998 countDelaware: 8,634 countDistrict of Columbia: 15,795 countFlorida: 248,401 countGeorgia: 104,953 countHawaii: 15,327 countIdaho: 15,482 countIllinois: 127,678 countIndiana: 45,161 countIowa: 20,282 countKansas: 24,683 countKentucky: 29,153 countLouisiana: 38,777 countMaine: 13,662 countMaryland: 77,143 countMassachusetts: 98,300 countMichigan: 85,129 countMinnesota: 60,362 countMississippi: 18,264 countMissouri: 45,664 countMontana: 11,158 countNebraska: 13,534 countNevada: 30,613 countNew Hampshire: 17,233 countNew Jersey: 114,931 countNew Mexico: 16,471 countNew York: 259,153 countNorth Carolina: 89,226 countNorth Dakota: 5,057 countOhio: 97,095 countOklahoma: 29,634 countOregon: 47,603 countPennsylvania: 118,582 countRhode Island: 11,880 countSouth Carolina: 38,237 countSouth Dakota: 6,018 countTennessee: 55,760 countTexas: 275,218 countUtah: 35,499 countVermont: 9,029 countVirginia: 92,907 countWashington: 81,936 countWest Virginia: 9,455 countWisconsin: 43,922 countWyoming: 5,986 count
  • Under 12K
  • 12K to 18K
  • 18K to 38K
  • 38K to 62K
  • 62K to 98K
  • 98K and over
count, 2015. 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, 2015

California: 548,841 countCalifornia548,841Texas: 275,218 countTexas275,218New York: 259,153 countNew York259,153Florida: 248,401 countFlorida248,401Illinois: 127,678 countIllinois127,678Pennsylvania: 118,582 countPennsylvania118,582New Jersey: 114,931 countNew Jersey114,931Georgia: 104,953 countGeorgia104,953Massachusetts: 98,300 countMassachusetts98,300Ohio: 97,095 countOhio97,095Virginia: 92,907 countVirginia92,907North Carolina: 89,226 countNorth Carolina89,226Michigan: 85,129 countMichigan85,129Colorado: 83,914 countColorado83,914Washington: 81,936 countWashington81,936Maryland: 77,143 countMaryland77,143Arizona: 65,443 countArizona65,443Minnesota: 60,362 countMinnesota60,362Tennessee: 55,760 countTennessee55,760Oregon: 47,603 countOregon47,603Connecticut: 45,998 countConnecticut45,998Missouri: 45,664 countMissouri45,664Indiana: 45,161 countIndiana45,161Wisconsin: 43,922 countWisconsin43,922Louisiana: 38,777 countLouisiana38,777South Carolina: 38,237 countSouth Carolina38,237Utah: 35,499 countUtah35,499Alabama: 32,959 countAlabama32,959Nevada: 30,613 countNevada30,613Oklahoma: 29,634 countOklahoma29,634Kentucky: 29,153 countKentucky29,153Kansas: 24,683 countKansas24,683Iowa: 20,282 countIowa20,282Mississippi: 18,264 countMississippi18,264Arkansas: 17,780 countArkansas17,780New Hampshire: 17,233 countNew Hampshire17,233New Mexico: 16,471 countNew Mexico16,471District of Columbia: 15,795 countDistrict of Columbia15,795Idaho: 15,482 countIdaho15,482Hawaii: 15,327 countHawaii15,327Maine: 13,662 countMaine13,662Nebraska: 13,534 countNebraska13,534Rhode Island: 11,880 countRhode Island11,880Montana: 11,158 countMontana11,158West Virginia: 9,455 countWest Virginia9,455Vermont: 9,029 countVermont9,029Delaware: 8,634 countDelaware8,634Alaska: 6,933 countAlaska6,933South Dakota: 6,018 countSouth Dakota6,018Wyoming: 5,986 countWyoming5,986North Dakota: 5,057 countNorth Dakota5,057California: 548,841 countCalifornia548,841Texas: 275,218 countTexas275,218New York: 259,153 countNew York259,153Florida: 248,401 countFlorida248,401Illinois: 127,678 countIllinois127,678Pennsylvania: 118,582 countPennsylvania118,582New Jersey: 114,931 countNew Jersey114,931Georgia: 104,953 countGeorgia104,953Massachusetts: 98,300 countMassachusetts98,300Ohio: 97,095 countOhio97,095Virginia: 92,907 countVirginia92,907North Carolina: 89,226 countNorth Carolina89,226Michigan: 85,129 countMichigan85,129Colorado: 83,914 countColorado83,914Washington: 81,936 countWashington81,936Maryland: 77,143 countMaryland77,143Arizona: 65,443 countArizona65,443Minnesota: 60,362 countMinnesota60,362Tennessee: 55,760 countTennessee55,760Oregon: 47,603 countOregon47,603Connecticut: 45,998 countConnecticut45,998Missouri: 45,664 countMissouri45,664Indiana: 45,161 countIndiana45,161Wisconsin: 43,922 countWisconsin43,922Louisiana: 38,777 countLouisiana38,777South Carolina: 38,237 countSouth Carolina38,237Utah: 35,499 countUtah35,499Alabama: 32,959 countAlabama32,959Nevada: 30,613 countNevada30,613Oklahoma: 29,634 countOklahoma29,634Kentucky: 29,153 countKentucky29,153Kansas: 24,683 countKansas24,683Iowa: 20,282 countIowa20,282Mississippi: 18,264 countMississippi18,264Arkansas: 17,780 countArkansas17,780New Hampshire: 17,233 countNew Hampshire17,233New Mexico: 16,471 countNew Mexico16,471District of Columbia: 15,795 countDistrict of Columbia15,795Idaho: 15,482 countIdaho15,482Hawaii: 15,327 countHawaii15,327Maine: 13,662 countMaine13,662Nebraska: 13,534 countNebraska13,534Rhode Island: 11,880 countRhode Island11,880Montana: 11,158 countMontana11,158West Virginia: 9,455 countWest Virginia9,455Vermont: 9,029 countVermont9,029Delaware: 8,634 countDelaware8,634Alaska: 6,933 countAlaska6,933South Dakota: 6,018 countSouth Dakota6,018Wyoming: 5,986 countWyoming5,986North Dakota: 5,057 countNorth Dakota5,057
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

RankStates2015
count		Change on 2014
1California548,841+1.7%
2Texas275,218+1.6%
3New York259,153+1%
4Florida248,401+3%
5Illinois127,678+0.2%
6Pennsylvania118,582+0.8%
7New Jersey114,931+1.4%
8Georgia104,953+1.7%
9Massachusetts98,300+0.2%
10Ohio97,095+1%
11Virginia92,907+2%
12North Carolina89,226+2.5%
13Michigan85,129-0.3%
14Colorado83,914+1.6%
15Washington81,936+2%
16Maryland77,143+1.7%
17Arizona65,443+1.6%
18Minnesota60,362+0.2%
19Tennessee55,760+1.8%
20Oregon47,603+3.6%
21Connecticut45,9980%
22Missouri45,664+1.3%
23Indiana45,161+1.1%
24Wisconsin43,922+0.6%
25Louisiana38,777-2.3%
26South Carolina38,237+5.4%
27Utah35,499+3.3%
28Alabama32,959+1.6%
29Nevada30,613+2.1%
30Oklahoma29,634-1.4%
31Kentucky29,153+1.1%
32Kansas24,683+0.9%
33Iowa20,282+0.1%
34Mississippi18,264+1.1%
35Arkansas17,780+0.8%
36New Hampshire17,233+0.9%
37New Mexico16,471-0.7%
38District of Columbia15,795+1.8%
39Idaho15,482+2.5%
40Hawaii15,327+0.9%
41Maine13,662+1.2%
42Nebraska13,534+1.9%
43Rhode Island11,880+0.4%
44Montana11,158+2.4%
45West Virginia9,455+0.4%
46Vermont9,029-0.5%
47Delaware8,634+1.1%
48Alaska6,933+0.5%
49South Dakota6,018-0.7%
50Wyoming5,9860%
51North Dakota5,057-0.9%

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/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), professional, scientific, and technical services (NAICS 54), all legal forms (US states by nonemployer businesses: professional, scientific and technical services, 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), professional, scientific, and technical services (NAICS 54), all legal forms, US states by nonemployer businesses: professional, scientific and technical services, 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-professional-services/us-states?period=2015. 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, 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-professional-services/us-states?period=2015.

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, 2015 [Dataset]. Available at: https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/nonemployer-statistics/datasets/2015/historical-datasets/, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/nonemployer-businesses-professional-services/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), professional, scientific, and technical services (NAICS 54), all legal forms: US states by nonemployer businesses: professional, scientific and technical services, 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-professional-services/us-states?period=2015. 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/2015/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, 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-professional-services/us-states?period=2015
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/nonemployer-businesses-professional-services/us-states?period=2015.
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/2015/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 548,841 in 2015, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

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

North Dakota, with 5,057 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), professional, scientific, and technical services (NAICS 54), all legal forms. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

US states: more rankings