Specialty Trade Contractors: By the Numbers
592,340 establishments, 5,208,070 employees and $410.5 billion in annual payroll. Most of them run on software that records how the work gets done. Here's the industry, state by state.
Establishments
Specialty Trade Contractors worksites in the U.S.
Employees
About 9 per location on average
Average annual pay
$410.5 billion in total payroll
Job growth, 1 year
Year-over-year employment change
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW), 2025 annual averages, private ownership. Establishment counts are worksites, not companies. Pulled November 4, 2026. bls.gov/cew
Most jobs
- California: 589,300 employees
- Texas: 494,791 employees
- Florida: 435,112 employees
- New York: 246,320 employees
- North Carolina: 173,270 employees
Fastest growing
- Mississippi: +7.1% jobs in a year
- Virginia: +6.5% jobs in a year
- Ohio: +5.7% jobs in a year
- Idaho: +5.4% jobs in a year
- South Carolina: +4.9% jobs in a year
All States, Ranked by Employment
| State | Establishments | Employees | Avg. pay | 1-yr jobs | Concentration |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| California | 59,271 | 589,300 | $86,168 | -2.7% | 0.97 |
| Texas | 40,150 | 494,791 | $77,351 | +4.0% | 1.05 |
| Florida | 58,219 | 435,112 | $65,223 | +0.8% | 1.31 |
| New York | 29,836 | 246,320 | $87,846 | -1.3% | 0.75 |
| North Carolina | 21,103 | 173,270 | $71,145 | +2.5% | 1.05 |
| Ohio | 17,284 | 171,130 | $80,393 | +5.7% | 0.92 |
| Pennsylvania | 19,220 | 165,951 | $83,020 | +1.1% | 0.82 |
| Illinois | 19,478 | 156,648 | $89,986 | +0.7% | 0.77 |
| Arizona | 12,462 | 147,899 | $76,204 | -1.8% | 1.37 |
| Georgia | 17,359 | 145,950 | $78,307 | +3.3% | 0.89 |
| Virginia | 13,556 | 144,819 | $78,026 | +6.5% | 1.04 |
| Washington | 16,860 | 133,092 | $85,070 | -2.4% | 1.10 |
| Michigan | 14,471 | 129,084 | $83,690 | +3.2% | 0.88 |
| Colorado | 14,456 | 119,548 | $77,584 | -2.6% | 1.24 |
| Massachusetts | 15,461 | 116,422 | $98,125 | -2.9% | 0.96 |
| Indiana | 11,000 | 111,529 | $78,803 | +4.2% | 1.05 |
| Maryland | 10,045 | 110,712 | $83,914 | +0.6% | 1.20 |
| Tennessee | 10,477 | 107,014 | $76,956 | +1.1% | 0.98 |
| New Jersey | 13,530 | 106,689 | $87,495 | +0.6% | 0.74 |
| Utah | 10,496 | 97,550 | $69,467 | +2.8% | 1.68 |
| Missouri | 11,174 | 95,945 | $77,696 | +1.4% | 0.99 |
| Wisconsin | 11,113 | 94,641 | $80,156 | +4.1% | 0.96 |
| Minnesota | 11,879 | 90,140 | $87,473 | +3.1% | 0.92 |
| Nevada | 4,780 | 81,557 | $78,553 | +1.5% | 1.55 |
| South Carolina | 10,498 | 73,940 | $70,103 | +4.9% | 0.95 |
| Oregon | 9,199 | 69,825 | $83,698 | -3.5% | 1.05 |
| Louisiana | 8,082 | 67,441 | $74,291 | -2.2% | 1.05 |
| Alabama | 7,918 | 66,494 | $70,705 | +4.1% | 0.94 |
| Kentucky | 7,707 | 58,817 | $70,490 | -0.5% | 0.88 |
| Iowa | 6,030 | 56,183 | $74,705 | -0.4% | 1.08 |
| Oklahoma | 7,152 | 54,746 | $65,644 | +2.7% | 0.96 |
| Idaho | 8,499 | 47,242 | $66,113 | +5.4% | 1.62 |
| Kansas | 4,931 | 46,774 | $73,835 | +2.9% | 0.98 |
| Connecticut | 6,752 | 45,498 | $85,801 | +1.5% | 0.80 |
| Nebraska | 5,054 | 42,597 | $69,548 | +3.5% | 1.25 |
| Arkansas | 5,644 | 41,814 | $63,660 | 0.0% | 0.96 |
| Mississippi | 4,260 | 30,544 | $65,956 | +7.1% | 0.78 |
| New Mexico | 3,291 | 30,089 | $66,374 | -0.2% | 1.03 |
| Maine | 4,064 | 22,512 | $71,768 | +1.8% | 1.03 |
| New Hampshire | 3,748 | 21,821 | $81,910 | +1.2% | 0.95 |
| Montana | 4,496 | 21,543 | $68,434 | 0.0% | 1.26 |
| Hawaii | 2,601 | 21,389 | $88,655 | +1.8% | 0.99 |
| North Dakota | 2,476 | 18,013 | $79,002 | +3.0% | 1.25 |
| West Virginia | 2,537 | 17,832 | $69,612 | +2.5% | 0.77 |
| South Dakota | 2,647 | 17,708 | $67,339 | +2.0% | 1.15 |
| Delaware | 2,376 | 16,074 | $75,244 | +1.4% | 1.00 |
| Rhode Island | 2,591 | 15,148 | $81,513 | +2.0% | 0.91 |
| Wyoming | 2,106 | 12,969 | $69,001 | +3.5% | 1.37 |
| Vermont | 1,878 | 9,977 | $70,350 | +0.9% | 0.97 |
| District of Columbia | 657 | 8,078 | $90,639 | -1.2% | 0.33 |
| Alaska | 1,466 | 7,890 | $88,792 | +3.1% | 0.71 |
Concentration = location quotient (1.00 = the industry's national share of jobs).
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW), 2025 annual averages, private ownership. Establishment counts are worksites, not companies. Pulled November 4, 2026. bls.gov/cew
What This Means for Your Data
Buyers value data that is deep, large and fresh. An industry with 5,208,070 people working in software every day produces exactly that: years of operating history that the public internet doesn't have. Established firms (roughly 20+ staff, 2+ years, software every day) fit best today.
Builder Data never asks for personal data. See what that data looks like, or text Max for a free appraisal.
Specialty Trade Contractors: Data FAQ
How many specialty trade contractors are there in the U.S.?
About 592,340 private specialty trade contractors establishments employed 5,208,070 people in 2025 (BLS QCEW annual average).
Which state has the most specialty trade contractors jobs?
California leads with 589,300 employees across 59,271 establishments (2025, BLS QCEW).
What is the average pay in specialty trade contractors?
The average annual pay was $78,821 in 2025, according to BLS QCEW.
Is specialty trade contractors business data valuable to AI companies?
It can be. With about 5,208,070 people logging daily work in software, established specialty trade contractors create years of operating records. Builder Data helps established firms find out what their business data could be worth, free, by text with Max. Business data only, never personal data.
What's Your Company's Data Worth?
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