Industry & Market Data
Electrician Business Statistics by State (2026)
The U.S. has about 243,035 electrical contracting businesses employing more than 1,015,983 people, at an average of $76,545 per year. We ranked all 50 states plus D.C. on business count, density, employment, and pay using U.S. Census data. Texas has the most businesses; Vermont the highest density.
243,035
Electrical businesses
1,015,983
Jobs
$76,545
Avg annual pay
+10.1%
Growth since 2019
Key findings
- The U.S. has roughly 243,035 electrical businesses (83,342 with employees, 159,693 solo), employing more than 1,015,983 people.
- The average electrical worker earns about $76,545/year, ranging from $59,499 (South Carolina) to $94,372 (District of Columbia) by state.
- Texas has the most electrical businesses (29,385), ahead of California and Florida.
- By density, Vermont leads at 12.7 businesses per 10,000 residents, followed by New Hampshire and Maine. New England dominates density.
- About 66% are solo operators, and electrical is among the higher-earning trades, which rewards operators who systematize estimating, scheduling, and getting paid.
Electrical contractors, mapped
Texas, California and Florida lead on count, which mostly tracks population. Hover a state for its figure.
Electrical contractors by state
All 50 states plus D.C. The cost-adjusted pay column is the one worth sorting, because a high nominal wage in an expensive state is not the same offer.
| 1 | Texas | 29,385 | 9.4 | 99,988 | $72,970 | +14.6% |
| 2 | California | 25,439 | 6.5 | 120,017 | $88,867 | +4.4% |
| 3 | Florida | 24,038 | 10.3 | 70,151 | $61,052 | +28.3% |
| 4 | New York | 13,440 | 6.8 | 54,886 | $80,429 | +3.9% |
| 5 | Georgia | 9,900 | 8.9 | 32,920 | $70,241 | +13.9% |
| 6 | Pennsylvania | 8,524 | 6.5 | 30,580 | $82,664 | +2.2% |
| 7 | North Carolina | 8,297 | 7.5 | 31,006 | $62,807 | +9.8% |
| 8 | Illinois | 7,758 | 6.1 | 32,466 | $92,462 | +1% |
| 9 | Massachusetts | 6,830 | 9.6 | 26,784 | $91,566 | +6.1% |
| 10 | New Jersey | 6,400 | 6.7 | 25,291 | $82,239 | +0.9% |
| 11 | Ohio | 5,954 | 5 | 30,197 | $76,140 | +5.1% |
| 12 | Michigan | 5,528 | 5.5 | 25,227 | $79,922 | +6.9% |
| 13 | Tennessee | 5,456 | 7.5 | 19,199 | $69,716 | +20.6% |
| 14 | Virginia | 5,323 | 6 | 26,685 | $77,676 | +10% |
| 15 | Colorado | 4,979 | 8.4 | 23,045 | $70,805 | +13.1% |
| 16 | Maryland | 4,684 | 7.5 | 25,288 | $79,644 | +1% |
| 17 | Arizona | 4,550 | 6 | 28,859 | $72,559 | +24% |
| 18 | South Carolina | 3,791 | 6.9 | 9,613 | $59,499 | +14.4% |
| 19 | Indiana | 3,696 | 5.3 | 18,742 | $72,728 | +5.3% |
| 20 | Missouri | 3,680 | 5.9 | 18,264 | $79,151 | +12.2% |
| 21 | Washington | 3,472 | 4.4 | 26,650 | $91,152 | +12.9% |
| 22 | Louisiana | 3,445 | 7.5 | 18,512 | $67,055 | +5.6% |
| 23 | Alabama | 3,287 | 6.4 | 12,467 | $59,734 | +6.7% |
| 24 | Wisconsin | 3,284 | 5.5 | 17,594 | $77,543 | +5.5% |
| 25 | Kentucky | 3,254 | 7.1 | 10,721 | $69,136 | +6.3% |
| 26 | Connecticut | 3,254 | 8.9 | 10,185 | $79,193 | +8.7% |
| 27 | Oklahoma | 2,959 | 7.2 | 10,609 | $61,644 | +11.6% |
| 28 | Minnesota | 2,802 | 4.8 | 17,317 | $88,597 | +1.1% |
| 29 | Arkansas | 2,586 | 8.4 | 8,832 | $60,821 | +10.4% |
| 30 | Mississippi | 2,269 | 7.7 | 5,161 | $62,222 | +13.7% |
| 31 | Utah | 2,251 | 6.4 | 17,748 | $66,406 | +20.5% |
| 32 | Iowa | 2,058 | 6.3 | 11,755 | $71,473 | +3.7% |
| 33 | Kansas | 1,705 | 5.7 | 9,135 | $70,667 | +6.1% |
| 34 | Nevada | 1,700 | 5.2 | 13,039 | $77,601 | +18.8% |
| 35 | New Hampshire | 1,678 | 11.9 | 4,473 | $73,469 | +9.3% |
| 36 | Oregon | 1,657 | 3.9 | 15,655 | $92,777 | +8.2% |
| 37 | Maine | 1,625 | 11.6 | 3,912 | $63,403 | +14% |
| 38 | Idaho | 1,513 | 7.6 | 6,323 | $65,290 | +16.9% |
| 39 | New Mexico | 1,470 | 6.9 | 6,729 | $71,051 | +8.3% |
| 40 | Nebraska | 1,431 | 7.1 | 8,766 | $64,794 | +3.6% |
| 41 | Hawaii | 991 | 6.9 | 4,182 | $84,517 | -0.5% |
| 42 | Montana | 990 | 8.7 | 3,874 | $69,055 | +11.9% |
| 43 | Rhode Island | 872 | 7.8 | 2,602 | $70,924 | +3.2% |
| 44 | West Virginia | 853 | 4.8 | 2,975 | $70,148 | +4.9% |
| 45 | Vermont | 826 | 12.7 | 2,025 | $63,066 | +11.6% |
| 46 | Delaware | 688 | 6.5 | 3,437 | $76,778 | +5.4% |
| 47 | South Dakota | 680 | 7.4 | 2,931 | $64,825 | +4.6% |
| 48 | North Dakota | 660 | 8.3 | 4,121 | $93,546 | +6.1% |
| 49 | Wyoming | 516 | 8.8 | 2,182 | $73,496 | +18.9% |
| 50 | Alaska | 409 | 5.5 | 1,986 | $89,762 | +6.2% |
| 51 | District of Columbia | 198 | 2.8 | 877 | $94,372 | +15.8% |
Total businesses
29,385
Rank #1 of 51
Per 10k residents
9
Rank #6 of 51
Employees
99,988
Rank #2 of 51
Avg annual pay
$72,970
Rank #25 of 51
Pay adjusted for cost of living
$75,183
Rank #31 of 51
Occupation median wage (BLS)
$58,570
Rank #45 of 51
Top 15 states by total businesses
Density, businesses per 10,000 residents
Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine lead on density, which is a rural New England pattern rather than a big-city one. Density is the clearer read on local market activity than raw count.
How much do electricians make? Pay by state
Electrical averages about $76,500, the highest of the trades here, and the licensing years are most of why.
Two ways to read pay. The chart above is the Census industry average ($76,545, everyone working at electrical firms). For the specific occupation, the BLS median wage for Electricians is $63,190 nationally. Look up the BLS occupation median for any state with the state tool above.
Where a paycheck goes furthest (cost of living adjusted)
The highest nominal pay is not the same as the best pay. Adjusting each state’s average pay for its cost of living (BEA Regional Price Parities) reranks the map: high-cost states like California fall, and affordable states rise. Use the “look up your state” tool above to see adjusted pay for any state.
Fastest-growing markets since 2019
Electrical businesses grew 10.1% nationwide since 2019 (pre-pandemic), tracking the electrification + construction boom. These large markets grew fastest. Sort the table above by “Growth since 2019” to see every state.
What this means for operators
Electrical sits at the high end of the trades on pay, and the work splits between quick service calls and larger projects: panel upgrades, rewires, new construction, EV chargers, and generators. That mix makes fast, accurate estimates and tight scheduling the difference between a booked calendar and a profitable one. The biggest markets (Texas, California, Florida) are competitive, but demand is steady and rising with electrification.
66% of electrical firms have no employees, which sounds crowded until you notice the licensing years behind every one of them. The real constraint in this trade is not competition, it is that a licensed electrician can only be in one place, so the businesses that grow are the ones that stop losing hours to estimates written in the evening and calls returned two days late.
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See howBest states for home services
Electrical pays the most and is the hardest to enter. See how that trade-off compares across every home-service trade.
Read the studyMethodology
Electrical contracting businesses = employer establishments (County Business Patterns, NAICS 238210) plus nonemployer firms (Nonemployer Statistics, NAICS 23821). Employment and average pay come from CBP (annual payroll divided by employment at employer firms). Density is businesses per 10,000 residents using 2024 ACS population. Covers the 50 states plus D.C.
Employer vs. nonemployer: County Business Patterns counts businesses with paid employees; Nonemployer Statistics counts owner-operator firms with none. We sum both for total businesses.
Pay: average annual pay is Census employer-firm annual payroll divided by employment, an industry average across all roles at electrical firms (helpers, apprentices, journeymen, office staff), not a single licensed-electrician wage. Caveats: figures are establishments and firms, not companies. NAICS 238210 (Electrical Contractors and Other Wiring Installation Contractors). Coverage is the 50 states plus D.C.
Cost of living: adjusted pay divides nominal pay by each state’s Regional Price Parity (BEA, 2024), an index where the U.S. average is 100. A state at 90 is 10% cheaper than average, so a dollar of pay there is worth more.
Occupation wage: alongside the Census industry average we show the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) median wage for Electricians (SOC 472111), the wage for that specific job. Census counts everyone at electrical firms; OEWS isolates the occupation.
Source
U.S. Census Bureau County Business Patterns (2023), Nonemployer Statistics (2023), and American Community Survey (2024).
Census programs: County Business Patterns, Nonemployer Statistics, American Community Survey. Cost of living: BEA Regional Price Parities. Occupation wages: BLS OEWS.
Frequently asked questions
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Cite this study
Free to reference with a link back. Please credit Smarfle as the source.
Ihor Lavrenenko (2026). Electrician Business Statistics by State. Smarfle. https://www.smarfle.com/small-business-statistics/electrician-business-statistics
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