Data / Rankings / Nonfarm payroll employment / US states

US states by nonfarm payroll employment

California had the highest nonfarm payroll employment of 51 states in February 2026, at 18,125,500 jobs. Wyoming had the lowest, at 294,300 jobs. The median was 2,001,200 jobs and the figure for the United States was 158,436,000 jobs. Source: the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

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Highest18,125,500California
Lowest294,300Wyoming
Median2,001,20051 states
United States158,436,000History

Map of states, February 2026

Alabama: 2,202,700 jobsAlaska: 337,100 jobsArizona: 3,272,400 jobsArkansas: 1,345,400 jobsCalifornia: 18,125,500 jobsColorado: 2,953,200 jobsConnecticut: 1,717,200 jobsDelaware: 495,000 jobsDistrict of Columbia: 720,100 jobsFlorida: 9,965,100 jobsGeorgia: 4,978,100 jobsHawaii: 643,400 jobsIdaho: 875,700 jobsIllinois: 6,137,100 jobsIndiana: 3,255,400 jobsIowa: 1,576,300 jobsKansas: 1,461,200 jobsKentucky: 2,032,100 jobsLouisiana: 2,001,200 jobsMaine: 661,200 jobsMaryland: 2,789,700 jobsMassachusetts: 3,700,600 jobsMichigan: 4,470,500 jobsMinnesota: 3,026,500 jobsMississippi: 1,191,200 jobsMissouri: 2,985,700 jobsMontana: 525,500 jobsNebraska: 1,053,800 jobsNevada: 1,605,300 jobsNew Hampshire: 698,100 jobsNew Jersey: 4,375,800 jobsNew Mexico: 892,600 jobsNew York: 9,977,100 jobsNorth Carolina: 5,069,000 jobsNorth Dakota: 448,500 jobsOhio: 5,669,200 jobsOklahoma: 1,786,700 jobsOregon: 1,967,200 jobsPennsylvania: 6,177,100 jobsRhode Island: 514,100 jobsSouth Carolina: 2,397,200 jobsSouth Dakota: 470,200 jobsTennessee: 3,366,800 jobsTexas: 14,356,700 jobsUtah: 1,773,700 jobsVermont: 311,500 jobsVirginia: 4,238,500 jobsWashington: 3,637,200 jobsWest Virginia: 715,400 jobsWisconsin: 3,020,400 jobsWyoming: 294,300 jobs
  • Under 600K
  • 600K to 1.3M
  • 1.3M to 2M
  • 2M to 3.1M
  • 3.1M to 4.8M
  • 4.8M and over
jobs, February 2026. Source: BLS, Current Employment Statistics, State and Area: all employees, total nonfarm, statewide, seasonally adjusted (SMS, state, 000000000000001). Boundaries: U.S. Census Bureau cartographic boundary files.

All states, February 2026

California: 18,125,500 jobsCalifornia18,125,500Texas: 14,356,700 jobsTexas14,356,700New York: 9,977,100 jobsNew York9,977,100Florida: 9,965,100 jobsFlorida9,965,100Pennsylvania: 6,177,100 jobsPennsylvania6,177,100Illinois: 6,137,100 jobsIllinois6,137,100Ohio: 5,669,200 jobsOhio5,669,200North Carolina: 5,069,000 jobsNorth Carolina5,069,000Georgia: 4,978,100 jobsGeorgia4,978,100Michigan: 4,470,500 jobsMichigan4,470,500New Jersey: 4,375,800 jobsNew Jersey4,375,800Virginia: 4,238,500 jobsVirginia4,238,500Massachusetts: 3,700,600 jobsMassachusetts3,700,600Washington: 3,637,200 jobsWashington3,637,200Tennessee: 3,366,800 jobsTennessee3,366,800Arizona: 3,272,400 jobsArizona3,272,400Indiana: 3,255,400 jobsIndiana3,255,400Minnesota: 3,026,500 jobsMinnesota3,026,500Wisconsin: 3,020,400 jobsWisconsin3,020,400Missouri: 2,985,700 jobsMissouri2,985,700Colorado: 2,953,200 jobsColorado2,953,200Maryland: 2,789,700 jobsMaryland2,789,700South Carolina: 2,397,200 jobsSouth Carolina2,397,200Alabama: 2,202,700 jobsAlabama2,202,700Kentucky: 2,032,100 jobsKentucky2,032,100Louisiana: 2,001,200 jobsLouisiana2,001,200Oregon: 1,967,200 jobsOregon1,967,200Oklahoma: 1,786,700 jobsOklahoma1,786,700Utah: 1,773,700 jobsUtah1,773,700Connecticut: 1,717,200 jobsConnecticut1,717,200Nevada: 1,605,300 jobsNevada1,605,300Iowa: 1,576,300 jobsIowa1,576,300Kansas: 1,461,200 jobsKansas1,461,200Arkansas: 1,345,400 jobsArkansas1,345,400Mississippi: 1,191,200 jobsMississippi1,191,200Nebraska: 1,053,800 jobsNebraska1,053,800New Mexico: 892,600 jobsNew Mexico892,600Idaho: 875,700 jobsIdaho875,700District of Columbia: 720,100 jobsDistrict of Columbia720,100West Virginia: 715,400 jobsWest Virginia715,400New Hampshire: 698,100 jobsNew Hampshire698,100Maine: 661,200 jobsMaine661,200Hawaii: 643,400 jobsHawaii643,400Montana: 525,500 jobsMontana525,500Rhode Island: 514,100 jobsRhode Island514,100Delaware: 495,000 jobsDelaware495,000South Dakota: 470,200 jobsSouth Dakota470,200North Dakota: 448,500 jobsNorth Dakota448,500Alaska: 337,100 jobsAlaska337,100Vermont: 311,500 jobsVermont311,500Wyoming: 294,300 jobsWyoming294,300California: 18,125,500 jobsCalifornia18,125,500Texas: 14,356,700 jobsTexas14,356,700New York: 9,977,100 jobsNew York9,977,100Florida: 9,965,100 jobsFlorida9,965,100Pennsylvania: 6,177,100 jobsPennsylvania6,177,100Illinois: 6,137,100 jobsIllinois6,137,100Ohio: 5,669,200 jobsOhio5,669,200North Carolina: 5,069,000 jobsNorth Carolina5,069,000Georgia: 4,978,100 jobsGeorgia4,978,100Michigan: 4,470,500 jobsMichigan4,470,500New Jersey: 4,375,800 jobsNew Jersey4,375,800Virginia: 4,238,500 jobsVirginia4,238,500Massachusetts: 3,700,600 jobsMassachusetts3,700,600Washington: 3,637,200 jobsWashington3,637,200Tennessee: 3,366,800 jobsTennessee3,366,800Arizona: 3,272,400 jobsArizona3,272,400Indiana: 3,255,400 jobsIndiana3,255,400Minnesota: 3,026,500 jobsMinnesota3,026,500Wisconsin: 3,020,400 jobsWisconsin3,020,400Missouri: 2,985,700 jobsMissouri2,985,700Colorado: 2,953,200 jobsColorado2,953,200Maryland: 2,789,700 jobsMaryland2,789,700South Carolina: 2,397,200 jobsSouth Carolina2,397,200Alabama: 2,202,700 jobsAlabama2,202,700Kentucky: 2,032,100 jobsKentucky2,032,100Louisiana: 2,001,200 jobsLouisiana2,001,200Oregon: 1,967,200 jobsOregon1,967,200Oklahoma: 1,786,700 jobsOklahoma1,786,700Utah: 1,773,700 jobsUtah1,773,700Connecticut: 1,717,200 jobsConnecticut1,717,200Nevada: 1,605,300 jobsNevada1,605,300Iowa: 1,576,300 jobsIowa1,576,300Kansas: 1,461,200 jobsKansas1,461,200Arkansas: 1,345,400 jobsArkansas1,345,400Mississippi: 1,191,200 jobsMississippi1,191,200Nebraska: 1,053,800 jobsNebraska1,053,800New Mexico: 892,600 jobsNew Mexico892,600Idaho: 875,700 jobsIdaho875,700District of Columbia: 720,100 jobsDistrict of Columbia720,100West Virginia: 715,400 jobsWest Virginia715,400New Hampshire: 698,100 jobsNew Hampshire698,100Maine: 661,200 jobsMaine661,200Hawaii: 643,400 jobsHawaii643,400Montana: 525,500 jobsMontana525,500Rhode Island: 514,100 jobsRhode Island514,100Delaware: 495,000 jobsDelaware495,000South Dakota: 470,200 jobsSouth Dakota470,200North Dakota: 448,500 jobsNorth Dakota448,500Alaska: 337,100 jobsAlaska337,100Vermont: 311,500 jobsVermont311,500Wyoming: 294,300 jobsWyoming294,300
jobs. Source: BLS, Current Employment Statistics, State and Area: all employees, total nonfarm, statewide, seasonally adjusted (SMS, state, 000000000000001). Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Full ranking

RankStatesFebruary 2026
jobs		Change on February 2025
1California18,125,500+0.7%
2Texas14,356,700+0.5%
3New York9,977,100+0.1%
4Florida9,965,100-0.4%
5Pennsylvania6,177,100+0.3%
6Illinois6,137,100-0.3%
7Ohio5,669,200+0.1%
8North Carolina5,069,000+0.7%
9Georgia4,978,100-0.1%
10Michigan4,470,500-0.3%
11New Jersey4,375,800-0%
12Virginia4,238,500-0.9%
13Massachusetts3,700,600-0.5%
14Washington3,637,200+0.2%
15Tennessee3,366,800-0.2%
16Arizona3,272,400-0%
17Indiana3,255,400-0.4%
18Minnesota3,026,500+0.2%
19Wisconsin3,020,400-0.6%
20Missouri2,985,7000%
21Colorado2,953,200-0.3%
22Maryland2,789,700-1.8%
23South Carolina2,397,200+0.8%
24Alabama2,202,700+0.3%
25Kentucky2,032,100-0.1%
26Louisiana2,001,200-0.1%
27Oregon1,967,200-1%
28Oklahoma1,786,700-0.3%
29Utah1,773,700+0.7%
30Connecticut1,717,200+0.1%
31Nevada1,605,300+2.2%
32Iowa1,576,300-1.2%
33Kansas1,461,2000%
34Arkansas1,345,400+0.7%
35Mississippi1,191,200-0.1%
36Nebraska1,053,800-0.5%
37New Mexico892,600-0%
38Idaho875,700+0.5%
39District of Columbia720,100-5.5%
40West Virginia715,400-0.4%
41New Hampshire698,100-0.7%
42Maine661,200+0.2%
43Hawaii643,400+0.3%
44Montana525,500+0.3%
45Rhode Island514,100-0.3%
46Delaware495,000-0.1%
47South Dakota470,200+0.3%
48North Dakota448,500+0.2%
49Alaska337,100-0.2%
50Vermont311,500-0.4%
51Wyoming294,300-0.2%

Other periods

About this ranking

Number of jobs on nonfarm payrolls in the month, seasonally adjusted, from the Current Employment Statistics (CES) survey of businesses and government agencies run by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

The monthly jobs count of the national Employment Situation report and the State Employment and Unemployment release. Counts jobs on nonfarm payrolls, not people: someone with two jobs counts twice. It covers full-time and part-time employees paid for any part of the pay period that includes the 12th of the month, and excludes the self-employed, farm workers, private household workers and unpaid family workers. For employed people from the household survey use employment_population_ratio; for May job counts by occupation use oews_employment.

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. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Current Employment Statistics, State and Area: all employees, total nonfarm, statewide, seasonally adjusted (SMS, state, 000000000000001). https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/sm/sm.data.55.TotalNonFarmStateWide.All. 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. Bureau of Labor Statistics. (2026). Current Employment Statistics, State and Area: all employees, total nonfarm, statewide, seasonally adjusted (SMS, state, 000000000000001) (US states by nonfarm payroll employment, 2026-02) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/sm/sm.data.55.TotalNonFarmStateWide.All

MLA 9

Current Employment Statistics, State and Area: all employees, total nonfarm, statewide, seasonally adjusted (SMS, state, 000000000000001), US states by nonfarm payroll employment, 2026-02. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 18 Sept. 2026, https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/sm/sm.data.55.TotalNonFarmStateWide.All. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/nonfarm-payroll-employment/us-states?period=2026-02. Accessed 12 Oct. 2026.

Chicago (author-date)

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. 2026. Current Employment Statistics, State and Area: all employees, total nonfarm, statewide, seasonally adjusted (SMS, state, 000000000000001). US states by nonfarm payroll employment, 2026-02. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/sm/sm.data.55.TotalNonFarmStateWide.All. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/nonfarm-payroll-employment/us-states?period=2026-02.

Harvard

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (2026) Current Employment Statistics, State and Area: all employees, total nonfarm, statewide, seasonally adjusted (SMS, state, 000000000000001), US states by nonfarm payroll employment, 2026-02 [Dataset]. Available at: https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/sm/sm.data.55.TotalNonFarmStateWide.All, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/nonfarm-payroll-employment/us-states?period=2026-02 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{bureau_us_states_by_nonfarm_2026,
  author = {{U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics}},
  title = {{Current Employment Statistics, State and Area: all employees, total nonfarm, statewide, seasonally adjusted (SMS, state, 000000000000001): US states by nonfarm payroll employment, 2026-02}},
  year = {2026},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/sm/sm.data.55.TotalNonFarmStateWide.All},
  urldate = {2026-10-12},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/nonfarm-payroll-employment/us-states?period=2026-02. Publisher attribution: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Current Employment Statistics, State and Area: all employees, total nonfarm, statewide, seasonally adjusted (SMS, state, 000000000000001). https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/sm/sm.data.55.TotalNonFarmStateWide.All. Retrieved 2026-10-12.},
}
RIS
TY  - DATA
AU  - U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
TI  - Current Employment Statistics, State and Area: all employees, total nonfarm, statewide, seasonally adjusted (SMS, state, 000000000000001): US states by nonfarm payroll employment, 2026-02
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/09/18
PB  - U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/sm/sm.data.55.TotalNonFarmStateWide.All
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/nonfarm-payroll-employment/us-states?period=2026-02
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/nonfarm-payroll-employment/us-states?period=2026-02.
N1  - Publisher attribution: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Current Employment Statistics, State and Area: all employees, total nonfarm, statewide, seasonally adjusted (SMS, state, 000000000000001). https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/sm/sm.data.55.TotalNonFarmStateWide.All. Retrieved 2026-10-12.
ER  -
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Rank US states by nonfarm payroll employment using official data, and cite the source.
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Questions

Which state has the highest nonfarm payroll employment?

California, with 18,125,500 jobs in February 2026, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Which state has the lowest nonfarm payroll employment?

Wyoming, with 294,300 jobs in February 2026.

Where does this ranking come from?

Every value comes from one source and one period, so the places are comparable: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Current Employment Statistics, State and Area: all employees, total nonfarm, statewide, seasonally adjusted (SMS, state, 000000000000001). Retrieved 2026-10-12.

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