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 2022, at 571,235. North Dakota had the lowest, at 5,865. The median was 49,879 and the figure for the United States was 4.01 million. Source: the U.S. Census Bureau.

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Highest571,235California
Lowest5,865North Dakota
Median49,87951 states
United States4,013,209History

Map of states, 2022

Alabama: 40,179 countAlaska: 7,297 countArizona: 82,566 countArkansas: 22,436 countCalifornia: 571,235 countColorado: 98,629 countConnecticut: 50,109 countDelaware: 13,373 countDistrict of Columbia: 17,910 countFlorida: 355,492 countGeorgia: 136,063 countHawaii: 16,711 countIdaho: 22,052 countIllinois: 137,580 countIndiana: 52,794 countIowa: 23,117 countKansas: 27,038 countKentucky: 33,424 countLouisiana: 45,410 countMaine: 16,080 countMaryland: 87,981 countMassachusetts: 107,105 countMichigan: 96,829 countMinnesota: 64,180 countMississippi: 21,342 countMissouri: 52,691 countMontana: 14,050 countNebraska: 15,603 countNevada: 40,579 countNew Hampshire: 19,258 countNew Jersey: 133,007 countNew Mexico: 18,146 countNew York: 289,984 countNorth Carolina: 114,536 countNorth Dakota: 5,865 countOhio: 108,974 countOklahoma: 35,300 countOregon: 53,213 countPennsylvania: 130,752 countRhode Island: 13,603 countSouth Carolina: 52,478 countSouth Dakota: 7,930 countTennessee: 72,973 countTexas: 356,676 countUtah: 50,302 countVermont: 10,013 countVirginia: 109,225 countWashington: 91,802 countWest Virginia: 10,260 countWisconsin: 49,879 countWyoming: 9,178 count
  • Under 15K
  • 15K to 22K
  • 22K to 50K
  • 50K to 76K
  • 76K to 110K
  • 110K and over
count, 2022. 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, 2022

California: 571,235 countCalifornia571,235Texas: 356,676 countTexas356,676Florida: 355,492 countFlorida355,492New York: 289,984 countNew York289,984Illinois: 137,580 countIllinois137,580Georgia: 136,063 countGeorgia136,063New Jersey: 133,007 countNew Jersey133,007Pennsylvania: 130,752 countPennsylvania130,752North Carolina: 114,536 countNorth Carolina114,536Virginia: 109,225 countVirginia109,225Ohio: 108,974 countOhio108,974Massachusetts: 107,105 countMassachusetts107,105Colorado: 98,629 countColorado98,629Michigan: 96,829 countMichigan96,829Washington: 91,802 countWashington91,802Maryland: 87,981 countMaryland87,981Arizona: 82,566 countArizona82,566Tennessee: 72,973 countTennessee72,973Minnesota: 64,180 countMinnesota64,180Oregon: 53,213 countOregon53,213Indiana: 52,794 countIndiana52,794Missouri: 52,691 countMissouri52,691South Carolina: 52,478 countSouth Carolina52,478Utah: 50,302 countUtah50,302Connecticut: 50,109 countConnecticut50,109Wisconsin: 49,879 countWisconsin49,879Louisiana: 45,410 countLouisiana45,410Nevada: 40,579 countNevada40,579Alabama: 40,179 countAlabama40,179Oklahoma: 35,300 countOklahoma35,300Kentucky: 33,424 countKentucky33,424Kansas: 27,038 countKansas27,038Iowa: 23,117 countIowa23,117Arkansas: 22,436 countArkansas22,436Idaho: 22,052 countIdaho22,052Mississippi: 21,342 countMississippi21,342New Hampshire: 19,258 countNew Hampshire19,258New Mexico: 18,146 countNew Mexico18,146District of Columbia: 17,910 countDistrict of Columbia17,910Hawaii: 16,711 countHawaii16,711Maine: 16,080 countMaine16,080Nebraska: 15,603 countNebraska15,603Montana: 14,050 countMontana14,050Rhode Island: 13,603 countRhode Island13,603Delaware: 13,373 countDelaware13,373West Virginia: 10,260 countWest Virginia10,260Vermont: 10,013 countVermont10,013Wyoming: 9,178 countWyoming9,178South Dakota: 7,930 countSouth Dakota7,930Alaska: 7,297 countAlaska7,297North Dakota: 5,865 countNorth Dakota5,865California: 571,235 countCalifornia571,235Texas: 356,676 countTexas356,676Florida: 355,492 countFlorida355,492New York: 289,984 countNew York289,984Illinois: 137,580 countIllinois137,580Georgia: 136,063 countGeorgia136,063New Jersey: 133,007 countNew Jersey133,007Pennsylvania: 130,752 countPennsylvania130,752North Carolina: 114,536 countNorth Carolina114,536Virginia: 109,225 countVirginia109,225Ohio: 108,974 countOhio108,974Massachusetts: 107,105 countMassachusetts107,105Colorado: 98,629 countColorado98,629Michigan: 96,829 countMichigan96,829Washington: 91,802 countWashington91,802Maryland: 87,981 countMaryland87,981Arizona: 82,566 countArizona82,566Tennessee: 72,973 countTennessee72,973Minnesota: 64,180 countMinnesota64,180Oregon: 53,213 countOregon53,213Indiana: 52,794 countIndiana52,794Missouri: 52,691 countMissouri52,691South Carolina: 52,478 countSouth Carolina52,478Utah: 50,302 countUtah50,302Connecticut: 50,109 countConnecticut50,109Wisconsin: 49,879 countWisconsin49,879Louisiana: 45,410 countLouisiana45,410Nevada: 40,579 countNevada40,579Alabama: 40,179 countAlabama40,179Oklahoma: 35,300 countOklahoma35,300Kentucky: 33,424 countKentucky33,424Kansas: 27,038 countKansas27,038Iowa: 23,117 countIowa23,117Arkansas: 22,436 countArkansas22,436Idaho: 22,052 countIdaho22,052Mississippi: 21,342 countMississippi21,342New Hampshire: 19,258 countNew Hampshire19,258New Mexico: 18,146 countNew Mexico18,146District of Columbia: 17,910 countDistrict of Columbia17,910Hawaii: 16,711 countHawaii16,711Maine: 16,080 countMaine16,080Nebraska: 15,603 countNebraska15,603Montana: 14,050 countMontana14,050Rhode Island: 13,603 countRhode Island13,603Delaware: 13,373 countDelaware13,373West Virginia: 10,260 countWest Virginia10,260Vermont: 10,013 countVermont10,013Wyoming: 9,178 countWyoming9,178South Dakota: 7,930 countSouth Dakota7,930Alaska: 7,297 countAlaska7,297North Dakota: 5,865 countNorth Dakota5,865
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

RankStates2022
count		Change on 2021
1California Series break571,235+2.1%
2Texas Series break356,676+5.8%
3Florida Series break355,492+9.6%
4New York Series break289,984+5.2%
5Illinois Series break137,580+3.5%
6Georgia Series break136,063+4.5%
7New Jersey Series break133,007+6.2%
8Pennsylvania Series break130,752+4%
9North Carolina Series break114,536+7.3%
10Virginia Series break109,225+4.6%
11Ohio Series break108,974+3.9%
12Massachusetts Series break107,105+2.2%
13Colorado Series break98,629+2.4%
14Michigan Series break96,829+4.1%
15Washington Series break91,802+3.1%
16Maryland Series break87,981+4.7%
17Arizona Series break82,566+5%
18Tennessee Series break72,973+5.9%
19Minnesota Series break64,180+3.5%
20Oregon Series break53,213+1.7%
21Indiana Series break52,794+4.2%
22Missouri Series break52,691+3.4%
23South Carolina Series break52,478+6.4%
24Utah Series break50,302+8.6%
25Connecticut Series break50,109+3.9%
26Wisconsin Series break49,879+3.9%
27Louisiana Series break45,410+4.5%
28Nevada Series break40,579+6.2%
29Alabama Series break40,179+5%
30Oklahoma Series break35,300+5.3%
31Kentucky Series break33,424+5.1%
32Kansas Series break27,038+3.3%
33Iowa Series break23,117+5.7%
34Arkansas Series break22,436+5.3%
35Idaho Series break22,052+6.7%
36Mississippi Series break21,342+4.7%
37New Hampshire Series break19,258+3.6%
38New Mexico Series break18,146+3.7%
39District of Columbia Series break17,910+2.2%
40Hawaii Series break16,711+4.1%
41Maine Series break16,080+2.2%
42Nebraska Series break15,603+4.1%
43Montana Series break14,050+5.1%
44Rhode Island Series break13,603+5.2%
45Delaware Series break13,373+12.5%
46West Virginia Series break10,260+4.9%
47Vermont Series break10,013+0.2%
48Wyoming Series break9,178+11.8%
49South Dakota Series break7,930+6.2%
50Alaska Series break7,297+3.6%
51North Dakota Series break5,865+4.9%

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/2022/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), professional, scientific, and technical services (NAICS 54), all legal forms (US states by nonemployer businesses: professional, scientific and technical services, 2022) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/nonemployer-statistics/datasets/2022/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, 2022. U.S. Census Bureau, 12 Dec. 2024, https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/nonemployer-statistics/datasets/2022/historical-datasets/. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/nonemployer-businesses-professional-services/us-states?period=2022. Accessed 12 Oct. 2026.

Chicago (author-date)

U.S. Census Bureau. 2024. 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, 2022. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/nonemployer-statistics/datasets/2022/historical-datasets/. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/nonemployer-businesses-professional-services/us-states?period=2022.

Harvard

U.S. Census Bureau (2024) 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, 2022 [Dataset]. Available at: https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/nonemployer-statistics/datasets/2022/historical-datasets/, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/nonemployer-businesses-professional-services/us-states?period=2022 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{census_us_states_by_nonemployer_2022,
  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, 2022}},
  year = {2024},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/nonemployer-statistics/datasets/2022/historical-datasets/},
  urldate = {2026-10-12},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/nonemployer-businesses-professional-services/us-states?period=2022. 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/2022/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, 2022
PY  - 2024
DA  - 2024/12/12
PB  - U.S. Census Bureau
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/nonemployer-statistics/datasets/2022/historical-datasets/
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/nonemployer-businesses-professional-services/us-states?period=2022
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/nonemployer-businesses-professional-services/us-states?period=2022.
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/2022/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 571,235 in 2022, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

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

North Dakota, with 5,865 in 2022.

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