Data / Rankings / Nonemployer businesses: retail trade / US states

US states by nonemployer businesses: retail trade

California had the highest nonemployer businesses: retail trade of 51 states in 2023, at 222,576. District of Columbia had the lowest, at 2,459. The median was 26,046 and the figure for the United States was 2.08 million. Source: the U.S. Census Bureau.

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Highest222,576California
Lowest2,459District of Columbia
Median26,04651 states
United States2,081,566History

Map of states, 2023

Alabama: 30,268 countAlaska: 3,717 countArizona: 40,467 countArkansas: 19,650 countCalifornia: 222,576 countColorado: 35,624 countConnecticut: 19,180 countDelaware: 6,969 countDistrict of Columbia: 2,459 countFlorida: 176,457 countGeorgia: 77,432 countHawaii: 9,243 countIdaho: 13,502 countIllinois: 83,615 countIndiana: 37,875 countIowa: 19,566 countKansas: 17,992 countKentucky: 26,046 countLouisiana: 27,691 countMaine: 8,623 countMaryland: 40,819 countMassachusetts: 40,780 countMichigan: 58,759 countMinnesota: 34,058 countMississippi: 18,611 countMissouri: 42,612 countMontana: 8,231 countNebraska: 12,336 countNevada: 20,065 countNew Hampshire: 8,061 countNew Jersey: 67,940 countNew Mexico: 10,003 countNew York: 116,072 countNorth Carolina: 62,519 countNorth Dakota: 5,048 countOhio: 64,952 countOklahoma: 24,287 countOregon: 23,686 countPennsylvania: 72,230 countRhode Island: 5,257 countSouth Carolina: 31,507 countSouth Dakota: 7,120 countTennessee: 45,814 countTexas: 210,043 countUtah: 24,714 countVermont: 4,722 countVirginia: 54,964 countWashington: 37,241 countWest Virginia: 8,960 countWisconsin: 36,153 countWyoming: 5,050 count
  • Under 8,000
  • 8,000 to 18K
  • 18K to 26K
  • 26K to 39K
  • 39K to 64K
  • 64K and over
count, 2023. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Nonemployer Statistics, state and US files: establishments (ESTAB), retail trade (NAICS 44-45), all legal forms. Boundaries: U.S. Census Bureau cartographic boundary files.

All states, 2023

California: 222,576 countCalifornia222,576Texas: 210,043 countTexas210,043Florida: 176,457 countFlorida176,457New York: 116,072 countNew York116,072Illinois: 83,615 countIllinois83,615Georgia: 77,432 countGeorgia77,432Pennsylvania: 72,230 countPennsylvania72,230New Jersey: 67,940 countNew Jersey67,940Ohio: 64,952 countOhio64,952North Carolina: 62,519 countNorth Carolina62,519Michigan: 58,759 countMichigan58,759Virginia: 54,964 countVirginia54,964Tennessee: 45,814 countTennessee45,814Missouri: 42,612 countMissouri42,612Maryland: 40,819 countMaryland40,819Massachusetts: 40,780 countMassachusetts40,780Arizona: 40,467 countArizona40,467Indiana: 37,875 countIndiana37,875Washington: 37,241 countWashington37,241Wisconsin: 36,153 countWisconsin36,153Colorado: 35,624 countColorado35,624Minnesota: 34,058 countMinnesota34,058South Carolina: 31,507 countSouth Carolina31,507Alabama: 30,268 countAlabama30,268Louisiana: 27,691 countLouisiana27,691Kentucky: 26,046 countKentucky26,046Utah: 24,714 countUtah24,714Oklahoma: 24,287 countOklahoma24,287Oregon: 23,686 countOregon23,686Nevada: 20,065 countNevada20,065Arkansas: 19,650 countArkansas19,650Iowa: 19,566 countIowa19,566Connecticut: 19,180 countConnecticut19,180Mississippi: 18,611 countMississippi18,611Kansas: 17,992 countKansas17,992Idaho: 13,502 countIdaho13,502Nebraska: 12,336 countNebraska12,336New Mexico: 10,003 countNew Mexico10,003Hawaii: 9,243 countHawaii9,243West Virginia: 8,960 countWest Virginia8,960Maine: 8,623 countMaine8,623Montana: 8,231 countMontana8,231New Hampshire: 8,061 countNew Hampshire8,061South Dakota: 7,120 countSouth Dakota7,120Delaware: 6,969 countDelaware6,969Rhode Island: 5,257 countRhode Island5,257Wyoming: 5,050 countWyoming5,050North Dakota: 5,048 countNorth Dakota5,048Vermont: 4,722 countVermont4,722Alaska: 3,717 countAlaska3,717District of Columbia: 2,459 countDistrict of Columbia2,459California: 222,576 countCalifornia222,576Texas: 210,043 countTexas210,043Florida: 176,457 countFlorida176,457New York: 116,072 countNew York116,072Illinois: 83,615 countIllinois83,615Georgia: 77,432 countGeorgia77,432Pennsylvania: 72,230 countPennsylvania72,230New Jersey: 67,940 countNew Jersey67,940Ohio: 64,952 countOhio64,952North Carolina: 62,519 countNorth Carolina62,519Michigan: 58,759 countMichigan58,759Virginia: 54,964 countVirginia54,964Tennessee: 45,814 countTennessee45,814Missouri: 42,612 countMissouri42,612Maryland: 40,819 countMaryland40,819Massachusetts: 40,780 countMassachusetts40,780Arizona: 40,467 countArizona40,467Indiana: 37,875 countIndiana37,875Washington: 37,241 countWashington37,241Wisconsin: 36,153 countWisconsin36,153Colorado: 35,624 countColorado35,624Minnesota: 34,058 countMinnesota34,058South Carolina: 31,507 countSouth Carolina31,507Alabama: 30,268 countAlabama30,268Louisiana: 27,691 countLouisiana27,691Kentucky: 26,046 countKentucky26,046Utah: 24,714 countUtah24,714Oklahoma: 24,287 countOklahoma24,287Oregon: 23,686 countOregon23,686Nevada: 20,065 countNevada20,065Arkansas: 19,650 countArkansas19,650Iowa: 19,566 countIowa19,566Connecticut: 19,180 countConnecticut19,180Mississippi: 18,611 countMississippi18,611Kansas: 17,992 countKansas17,992Idaho: 13,502 countIdaho13,502Nebraska: 12,336 countNebraska12,336New Mexico: 10,003 countNew Mexico10,003Hawaii: 9,243 countHawaii9,243West Virginia: 8,960 countWest Virginia8,960Maine: 8,623 countMaine8,623Montana: 8,231 countMontana8,231New Hampshire: 8,061 countNew Hampshire8,061South Dakota: 7,120 countSouth Dakota7,120Delaware: 6,969 countDelaware6,969Rhode Island: 5,257 countRhode Island5,257Wyoming: 5,050 countWyoming5,050North Dakota: 5,048 countNorth Dakota5,048Vermont: 4,722 countVermont4,722Alaska: 3,717 countAlaska3,717District of Columbia: 2,459 countDistrict of Columbia2,459
count. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Nonemployer Statistics, state and US files: establishments (ESTAB), retail trade (NAICS 44-45), all legal forms. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Full ranking

RankStates2023
count		Change on 2022
1California222,576-5.4%
2Texas210,043-3%
3Florida176,457-2.5%
4New York116,072-3.3%
5Illinois83,615-3%
6Georgia77,432-5.2%
7Pennsylvania72,230-5.6%
8New Jersey67,940+0.1%
9Ohio64,952-5.3%
10North Carolina62,519-6.2%
11Michigan58,759-4.4%
12Virginia54,964-5.1%
13Tennessee45,814-5%
14Missouri42,612+2.5%
15Maryland40,819-5.8%
16Massachusetts40,780-5.5%
17Arizona40,467-3.8%
18Indiana37,875-5.1%
19Washington37,241-3.5%
20Wisconsin36,153-5.3%
21Colorado35,624-2.1%
22Minnesota34,058-5.3%
23South Carolina31,507-6.4%
24Alabama30,268-4.8%
25Louisiana27,691-5.7%
26Kentucky26,046-4.5%
27Utah24,714-4.3%
28Oklahoma24,287-4.3%
29Oregon23,686-4.1%
30Nevada20,065-6%
31Arkansas19,650-5.1%
32Iowa19,566-6%
33Connecticut19,180-2.2%
34Mississippi18,611-3.2%
35Kansas17,992-5.7%
36Idaho13,502-3.7%
37Nebraska12,336-5.1%
38New Mexico10,003-5.3%
39Hawaii9,243-5.4%
40West Virginia8,960-5%
41Maine8,623-6.7%
42Montana8,231+1.5%
43New Hampshire8,061-5.1%
44South Dakota7,120-4.6%
45Delaware6,969+0.4%
46Rhode Island5,257-4.6%
47Wyoming5,050-0.9%
48North Dakota5,048-7.2%
49Vermont4,722-7.7%
50Alaska3,717-5%
51District of Columbia2,459-2.7%

Other periods

About this ranking

Number of businesses without paid employees in retail trade (NAICS 44-45), 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), retail trade (NAICS 44-45), all legal forms. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/nonemployer-statistics/datasets/2023/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. (2025). Nonemployer Statistics, state and US files: establishments (ESTAB), retail trade (NAICS 44-45), all legal forms (US states by nonemployer businesses: retail trade, 2023) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/nonemployer-statistics/datasets/2023/historical-datasets/

MLA 9

Nonemployer Statistics, state and US files: establishments (ESTAB), retail trade (NAICS 44-45), all legal forms, US states by nonemployer businesses: retail trade, 2023. U.S. Census Bureau, 15 May 2025, https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/nonemployer-statistics/datasets/2023/historical-datasets/. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/nonemployer-businesses-retail-trade/us-states?period=2023. Accessed 12 Oct. 2026.

Chicago (author-date)

U.S. Census Bureau. 2025. Nonemployer Statistics, state and US files: establishments (ESTAB), retail trade (NAICS 44-45), all legal forms. US states by nonemployer businesses: retail trade, 2023. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/nonemployer-statistics/datasets/2023/historical-datasets/. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/nonemployer-businesses-retail-trade/us-states?period=2023.

Harvard

U.S. Census Bureau (2025) Nonemployer Statistics, state and US files: establishments (ESTAB), retail trade (NAICS 44-45), all legal forms, US states by nonemployer businesses: retail trade, 2023 [Dataset]. Available at: https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/nonemployer-statistics/datasets/2023/historical-datasets/, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/nonemployer-businesses-retail-trade/us-states?period=2023 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{census_us_states_by_nonemployer_2023,
  author = {{U.S. Census Bureau}},
  title = {{Nonemployer Statistics, state and US files: establishments (ESTAB), retail trade (NAICS 44-45), all legal forms: US states by nonemployer businesses: retail trade, 2023}},
  year = {2025},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/nonemployer-statistics/datasets/2023/historical-datasets/},
  urldate = {2026-10-12},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/nonemployer-businesses-retail-trade/us-states?period=2023. Publisher attribution: U.S. Census Bureau. Nonemployer Statistics, state and US files: establishments (ESTAB), retail trade (NAICS 44-45), all legal forms. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/nonemployer-statistics/datasets/2023/historical-datasets/. Retrieved 2026-10-12.},
}
RIS
TY  - DATA
AU  - U.S. Census Bureau
TI  - Nonemployer Statistics, state and US files: establishments (ESTAB), retail trade (NAICS 44-45), all legal forms: US states by nonemployer businesses: retail trade, 2023
PY  - 2025
DA  - 2025/05/15
PB  - U.S. Census Bureau
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/nonemployer-statistics/datasets/2023/historical-datasets/
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/nonemployer-businesses-retail-trade/us-states?period=2023
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/nonemployer-businesses-retail-trade/us-states?period=2023.
N1  - Publisher attribution: U.S. Census Bureau. Nonemployer Statistics, state and US files: establishments (ESTAB), retail trade (NAICS 44-45), all legal forms. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/nonemployer-statistics/datasets/2023/historical-datasets/. Retrieved 2026-10-12.
ER  -
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Questions

Which state has the highest nonemployer businesses: retail trade?

California, with 222,576 in 2023, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

Which state has the lowest nonemployer businesses: retail trade?

District of Columbia, with 2,459 in 2023.

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), retail trade (NAICS 44-45), all legal forms. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

US states: more rankings