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 2019, at 583,377. North Dakota had the lowest, at 5,520. The median was 43,323 and the figure for the United States was 3.77 million. Source: the U.S. Census Bureau.

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Highest583,377California
Lowest5,520North Dakota
Median43,32351 states
United States3,772,571History

Map of states, 2019

Alabama: 36,783 countAlaska: 7,183 countArizona: 76,222 countArkansas: 20,503 countCalifornia: 583,377 countColorado: 95,451 countConnecticut: 48,433 countDelaware: 10,895 countDistrict of Columbia: 17,031 countFlorida: 303,927 countGeorgia: 119,634 countHawaii: 16,664 countIdaho: 19,404 countIllinois: 131,194 countIndiana: 49,596 countIowa: 21,939 countKansas: 25,826 countKentucky: 31,414 countLouisiana: 43,323 countMaine: 15,225 countMaryland: 82,298 countMassachusetts: 104,436 countMichigan: 91,573 countMinnesota: 63,193 countMississippi: 20,361 countMissouri: 49,828 countMontana: 12,697 countNebraska: 14,866 countNevada: 36,852 countNew Hampshire: 18,382 countNew Jersey: 124,052 countNew Mexico: 17,590 countNew York: 277,768 countNorth Carolina: 102,040 countNorth Dakota: 5,520 countOhio: 103,679 countOklahoma: 33,012 countOregon: 52,733 countPennsylvania: 125,179 countRhode Island: 13,056 countSouth Carolina: 46,090 countSouth Dakota: 7,159 countTennessee: 64,668 countTexas: 324,221 countUtah: 42,860 countVermont: 9,730 countVirginia: 100,633 countWashington: 90,128 countWest Virginia: 9,705 countWisconsin: 46,887 countWyoming: 7,351 count
  • Under 14K
  • 14K to 20K
  • 20K to 43K
  • 43K to 69K
  • 69K to 100K
  • 100K and over
count, 2019. 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, 2019

California: 583,377 countCalifornia583,377Texas: 324,221 countTexas324,221Florida: 303,927 countFlorida303,927New York: 277,768 countNew York277,768Illinois: 131,194 countIllinois131,194Pennsylvania: 125,179 countPennsylvania125,179New Jersey: 124,052 countNew Jersey124,052Georgia: 119,634 countGeorgia119,634Massachusetts: 104,436 countMassachusetts104,436Ohio: 103,679 countOhio103,679North Carolina: 102,040 countNorth Carolina102,040Virginia: 100,633 countVirginia100,633Colorado: 95,451 countColorado95,451Michigan: 91,573 countMichigan91,573Washington: 90,128 countWashington90,128Maryland: 82,298 countMaryland82,298Arizona: 76,222 countArizona76,222Tennessee: 64,668 countTennessee64,668Minnesota: 63,193 countMinnesota63,193Oregon: 52,733 countOregon52,733Missouri: 49,828 countMissouri49,828Indiana: 49,596 countIndiana49,596Connecticut: 48,433 countConnecticut48,433Wisconsin: 46,887 countWisconsin46,887South Carolina: 46,090 countSouth Carolina46,090Louisiana: 43,323 countLouisiana43,323Utah: 42,860 countUtah42,860Nevada: 36,852 countNevada36,852Alabama: 36,783 countAlabama36,783Oklahoma: 33,012 countOklahoma33,012Kentucky: 31,414 countKentucky31,414Kansas: 25,826 countKansas25,826Iowa: 21,939 countIowa21,939Arkansas: 20,503 countArkansas20,503Mississippi: 20,361 countMississippi20,361Idaho: 19,404 countIdaho19,404New Hampshire: 18,382 countNew Hampshire18,382New Mexico: 17,590 countNew Mexico17,590District of Columbia: 17,031 countDistrict of Columbia17,031Hawaii: 16,664 countHawaii16,664Maine: 15,225 countMaine15,225Nebraska: 14,866 countNebraska14,866Rhode Island: 13,056 countRhode Island13,056Montana: 12,697 countMontana12,697Delaware: 10,895 countDelaware10,895Vermont: 9,730 countVermont9,730West Virginia: 9,705 countWest Virginia9,705Wyoming: 7,351 countWyoming7,351Alaska: 7,183 countAlaska7,183South Dakota: 7,159 countSouth Dakota7,159North Dakota: 5,520 countNorth Dakota5,520California: 583,377 countCalifornia583,377Texas: 324,221 countTexas324,221Florida: 303,927 countFlorida303,927New York: 277,768 countNew York277,768Illinois: 131,194 countIllinois131,194Pennsylvania: 125,179 countPennsylvania125,179New Jersey: 124,052 countNew Jersey124,052Georgia: 119,634 countGeorgia119,634Massachusetts: 104,436 countMassachusetts104,436Ohio: 103,679 countOhio103,679North Carolina: 102,040 countNorth Carolina102,040Virginia: 100,633 countVirginia100,633Colorado: 95,451 countColorado95,451Michigan: 91,573 countMichigan91,573Washington: 90,128 countWashington90,128Maryland: 82,298 countMaryland82,298Arizona: 76,222 countArizona76,222Tennessee: 64,668 countTennessee64,668Minnesota: 63,193 countMinnesota63,193Oregon: 52,733 countOregon52,733Missouri: 49,828 countMissouri49,828Indiana: 49,596 countIndiana49,596Connecticut: 48,433 countConnecticut48,433Wisconsin: 46,887 countWisconsin46,887South Carolina: 46,090 countSouth Carolina46,090Louisiana: 43,323 countLouisiana43,323Utah: 42,860 countUtah42,860Nevada: 36,852 countNevada36,852Alabama: 36,783 countAlabama36,783Oklahoma: 33,012 countOklahoma33,012Kentucky: 31,414 countKentucky31,414Kansas: 25,826 countKansas25,826Iowa: 21,939 countIowa21,939Arkansas: 20,503 countArkansas20,503Mississippi: 20,361 countMississippi20,361Idaho: 19,404 countIdaho19,404New Hampshire: 18,382 countNew Hampshire18,382New Mexico: 17,590 countNew Mexico17,590District of Columbia: 17,031 countDistrict of Columbia17,031Hawaii: 16,664 countHawaii16,664Maine: 15,225 countMaine15,225Nebraska: 14,866 countNebraska14,866Rhode Island: 13,056 countRhode Island13,056Montana: 12,697 countMontana12,697Delaware: 10,895 countDelaware10,895Vermont: 9,730 countVermont9,730West Virginia: 9,705 countWest Virginia9,705Wyoming: 7,351 countWyoming7,351Alaska: 7,183 countAlaska7,183South Dakota: 7,159 countSouth Dakota7,159North Dakota: 5,520 countNorth Dakota5,520
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

RankStates2019
count		Change on 2018
1California583,377-1.8%
2Texas324,221+4.6%
3Florida303,927+5.9%
4New York277,768-1.6%
5Illinois131,194-1.7%
6Pennsylvania125,1790%
7New Jersey124,052+0.4%
8Georgia119,634+3%
9Massachusetts104,436-1.4%
10Ohio103,679+0.5%
11North Carolina102,040+3.7%
12Virginia100,633+0.8%
13Colorado95,451+2%
14Michigan91,573+0.9%
15Washington90,128+1%
16Maryland82,298+0.8%
17Arizona76,222+5.4%
18Tennessee64,668+2.9%
19Minnesota63,193-0.1%
20Oregon52,733+1%
21Missouri49,828-0.3%
22Indiana49,596+0.8%
23Connecticut48,433+0.8%
24Wisconsin46,887-0.5%
25South Carolina46,090+4.9%
26Louisiana43,323+1.5%
27Utah42,860+4%
28Nevada36,852+7.2%
29Alabama36,783+1.9%
30Oklahoma33,012+1.1%
31Kentucky31,4140%
32Kansas25,826-0.5%
33Iowa21,939+0.4%
34Arkansas20,503+3.4%
35Mississippi20,361+2.7%
36Idaho19,404+7.3%
37New Hampshire18,382+2.1%
38New Mexico17,590+2.5%
39District of Columbia17,031-1.8%
40Hawaii16,664+3.5%
41Maine15,225+3%
42Nebraska14,866-0%
43Rhode Island13,056+2%
44Montana12,697+3.2%
45Delaware10,895+8.1%
46Vermont9,730+1.2%
47West Virginia9,705-2.3%
48Wyoming7,351+4.3%
49Alaska7,183+0.3%
50South Dakota7,159+2.8%
51North Dakota5,520-1%

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/2019/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. (2026). 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, 2019) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/nonemployer-statistics/datasets/2019/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, 2019. U.S. Census Bureau, 8 Oct. 2026, https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/nonemployer-statistics/datasets/2019/historical-datasets/. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/nonemployer-businesses-professional-services/us-states?period=2019. Accessed 12 Oct. 2026.

Chicago (author-date)

U.S. Census Bureau. 2026. 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, 2019. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/nonemployer-statistics/datasets/2019/historical-datasets/. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/nonemployer-businesses-professional-services/us-states?period=2019.

Harvard

U.S. Census Bureau (2026) 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, 2019 [Dataset]. Available at: https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/nonemployer-statistics/datasets/2019/historical-datasets/, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/nonemployer-businesses-professional-services/us-states?period=2019 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{census_us_states_by_nonemployer_2019,
  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, 2019}},
  year = {2026},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/nonemployer-statistics/datasets/2019/historical-datasets/},
  urldate = {2026-10-12},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/nonemployer-businesses-professional-services/us-states?period=2019. 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/2019/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, 2019
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/10/08
PB  - U.S. Census Bureau
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/nonemployer-statistics/datasets/2019/historical-datasets/
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/nonemployer-businesses-professional-services/us-states?period=2019
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/nonemployer-businesses-professional-services/us-states?period=2019.
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/2019/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 583,377 in 2019, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

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

North Dakota, with 5,520 in 2019.

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