Construction GDP by State: Share of Each Economy, Real Growth and Output per Worker, 2025

Construction GDP by state: share of each state's economy in 2025

Construction is 4.3% of US GDP, but the share ranges from 1.0% in the District of Columbia to 7.8% in Utah. Mountain West states hold most of the top places; Northeastern states and DC hold most of the bottom places.

Construction's share of state GDP is construction value added divided by the state's all-industry GDP, both in current dollars (BEA SAGDP, line 11 and line 1). In 2025 the five highest shares were Utah (7.8%), Nevada (7.7%), Idaho (6.6%), Montana (6.3%), Arizona (6.3%). The US share was 4.34%, which the national industry accounts round to 4.3% (BEA GDP by industry tables).

The lowest shares were in the District of Columbia (1.0%), New York (2.77%), Connecticut (2.78%) and New Hampshire (3.2%). A low share does not mean a small industry: New York had the fourth-largest construction economy in dollars ($68.3 billion), but its all-industry GDP of $2.47 trillion is much larger.

Construction GDP (value added): BEA defines value added as an industry's gross output less its intermediate inputs, its contribution to GDP (BEA glossary). For construction it counts the wages, profits and taxes generated by builders and trade contractors, not the full value of projects, which also includes materials bought from other industries.

All 50 states and DC: construction value added, 2025

California ($152.9 billion), Texas ($142.8 billion) and Florida ($99.1 billion) together account for 29.5% of US construction value added. Per resident, Utah and Nevada lead.

Ranked by dollars, the ten largest construction economies in 2025 were California ($152.9 billion), Texas ($142.8 billion), Florida ($99.1 billion), New York ($68.3 billion), Georgia ($47.5 billion), North Carolina ($42.9 billion), Illinois ($42.5 billion), Pennsylvania ($42.4 billion), Ohio ($40.9 billion), Virginia ($39.3 billion). Vermont ($1.8 billion) and the District of Columbia ($2.0 billion) were smallest.

Per resident, construction value added was $3,921 in the US in 2025 (Census Vintage 2025 population). It was highest in Utah ($7,063), Nevada ($6,622) and North Dakota ($5,749), and lowest in Mississippi ($2,057). For establishment counts and pay in commercial building, see our report on commercial construction companies by state; individual markets are on our state and city pages.

Which states depend most on construction?

Utah, Nevada, Idaho, Montana and Arizona rely most on construction, and three of them (Idaho, Arizona, Utah) also posted the largest share gains since 2019.

Dependence here means the construction share of state GDP. From 2019 to 2025 that share rose in 30 of 51 geographies. The largest gains were in Idaho (+1.13 points), Arizona (+1.03 points), Utah (+0.91 points). The largest declines were in West Virginia (-0.88 points), California (-0.64) and Washington (-0.52).

• Utah: 7.8% of GDP in 2025, up from 6.9% in 2019; real construction GDP +24.9% since 2019.
• Nevada: 7.7% of GDP, up from 7.5%; real construction GDP +8.7%.
• Idaho: 6.6% of GDP, up from 5.5%; the fastest real growth of any state (+36.4%).
• Wyoming (6.3%) and Louisiana (6.0%) rank high on share even though their real construction GDP fell 5.8% and 11.2% from 2019 to 2025.
• Maryland (5.9%) is the only East Coast state in the top 10 by share.

Real construction GDP growth by state, 2019 to 2025

After adjusting for prices, construction output grew in 27 of 51 geographies from 2019 to 2025. The US total fell 2.1% because large states such as California and New York shrank in real terms.

Real construction GDP is BEA's chained 2017 dollar estimate (BEA SAGDP, SAGDP9). The five fastest-growing states from 2019 to 2025 were Idaho (+36.4%), Arizona (+31.2%), Utah (+24.9%), Tennessee (+18.4%), Montana (+17.9%). The five largest declines were in the District of Columbia (-29.1%), West Virginia (-20.1%), New York (-18.6%), California (-17.4%), Massachusetts (-13.9%). Among the three largest construction states, Texas grew 1.8% and Florida 7.7%, while California fell 17.4%.

The gap between current and real dollars is the main story at the national level. US construction value added rose from $953.0 billion in 2019 to $1.34 trillion in 2025 (+40.6%), but in chained 2017 dollars it fell from $882.3 billion to $863.7 billion. In 2025 alone real construction value added slipped 0.2% nationally, in line with the -0.2% annual change in BEA GDP by industry tables. Real construction GDP rose from 2024 to 2025 in 25 of 51 geographies.

Value added per construction worker by state, 2025

Each construction payroll job corresponded to $162,407 of value added in the US in 2025. The measure is highest in Alaska, Georgia and Maryland and lowest in Maine, Vermont and Mississippi.

Value added per job divides 2025 construction GDP by the 2025 annual average of private construction payroll jobs from BLS QCEW. BLS suppressed 2025 private construction employment for 17 geographies because subsector data, in 16 of them heavy and civil engineering (NAICS 237), are confidential there; for 15 of them we use the BLS CES state data annual average instead (marked *), and Delaware and DC are left blank. Where both exist, QCEW and CES counts agree closely (ratio 0.95 to 1.01).

The top three were Alaska ($213,141), Georgia ($202,369), Maryland ($201,251); the bottom three were Maine ($106,538), Vermont ($109,681), Mississippi ($112,987). Both employment measures exclude proprietors and the unincorporated self-employed (QCEW overview), who are numerous in construction, so value added per job overstates output per person working in the industry, most in states with many self-employed trade contractors.

Nationally, real construction value added per payroll job fell from $118,404 in 2019 to $104,677 in 2025 (chained 2017 dollars), an 11.6% drop, as employment grew 10.7% and real output fell. Our construction productivity tracker covers the long-run national productivity record.

Latest quarter: second quarter 2026 compared with a year earlier

US real construction GDP in the second quarter of 2026 was 0.4% above a year earlier, slower than the 2.2% growth of the whole economy, after three quarters of decline.

Quarterly state GDP (BEA SQGDP) shows real construction value added up from a year earlier in 19 of 34 states with published data in the second quarter of 2026. The largest gains were Iowa (+12.2%), Idaho (+9.4%), West Virginia (+6.6%); the largest declines were New Hampshire (-5.2%), Washington (-4.1%), New Jersey (-3.8%). Among large states, Texas rose 2.2% while California fell 1.0% and Florida 2.0%.

BEA shows construction as (D), withheld to avoid disclosing confidential information, from the first quarter of 2025 onward for Alaska, Arkansas, Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Indiana, Louisiana, Maine, Massachusetts, Missouri, North Carolina, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Utah, Vermont, Wisconsin. National construction contributed 0.14 percentage point to second quarter real GDP growth of 2.2% (BEA news release of September 30, 2026). Spending data point the other way: the Census Bureau construction spending release shows August 2026 spending 1.7% below a year earlier. Our commercial construction spending tracker follows the nonresidential categories month by month.

Long view: 2025 construction output against each state's peak

US real construction GDP in 2025 was 7.5% below its 2005 peak. Only 4 states set a new high in 2025.

Real construction GDP was at its highest level since 1997 in 2025 in Idaho, Nebraska, Texas, Utah. At the other end, 14 states remained 25% or more below their peak year; Mississippi was furthest below at 42.8%. California was 25.5% below its 2005 peak and Florida 19.5% below its 2005 peak.

How to read state construction GDP: definitions and caveats

State construction GDP covers all construction, residential and nonresidential, and the latest year is a first annual estimate that BEA will revise.

Construction (NAICS 23): The construction sector: building construction, heavy and civil engineering construction, and specialty trade contractors, both residential and nonresidential. BEA does not publish a commercial-only GDP figure by state.

Real GDP (chained 2017 dollars): BEA's inflation-adjusted measure. Chained-dollar values are not additive, so state values do not sum to the US and shares must be computed in current dollars.

Seasonally adjusted annual rate (SAAR): Quarterly values are expressed as if the quarter's pace lasted a full year. Quarter-to-quarter changes in this report are annualized; year-over-year changes compare the same quarter in two years.

The 2025 annual and 2026 quarterly figures come from BEA's release of September 30, 2026; BEA lists December 23, 2026 as the next state GDP release (BEA GDP by State). None of the figures in this report are investment, legal or tax advice.

State-by-state findings

1. US construction value added was $1.34 trillion in 2025, 4.3% of all-industry GDP of $30.86 trillion (BEA SAGDP).^[1]
2. California had the largest construction economy in 2025 at $152.9 billion, ahead of Texas at $142.8 billion and Florida at $99.1 billion.^[1]
3. Utah had the highest construction share of state GDP in 2025 at 7.8%, followed by Nevada at 7.7% and Idaho at 6.6%.^[1]
4. 7 states had a construction share of 6% or more in 2025; New York (2.77%) and Connecticut (2.78%) had the lowest shares among the 50 states.^[1]
5. Construction's share of state GDP rose from 2019 to 2025 in 30 of 51 geographies; Idaho gained the most (+1.13 points) and West Virginia lost the most (-0.88 points).^[1]
6. Idaho's real construction GDP grew 36.4% from 2019 to 2025, the fastest of any state, followed by Arizona (31.2%) and Utah (24.9%).^[1]
7. Real construction GDP fell 29.1% in the District of Columbia, 20.1% in West Virginia, 18.6% in New York and 17.4% in California from 2019 to 2025.^[1]
8. US real construction value added fell 2.1% from 2019 to 2025 while real all-industry GDP grew 15.6%.^[1]
9. The implied price of construction value added (current dollars divided by chained dollars) rose 43.6% from 2019 to 2025 in every state, so state differences in real growth mirror differences in current-dollar growth.^[1]
10. Real construction GDP set a 1997-to-2025 high in 2025 in 4 states (Idaho, Nebraska, Texas, Utah); in 14 states it was 25% or more below its peak year.^[1]
11. Construction GDP per construction payroll job was $162,407 in the US in 2025; Alaska was highest at $213,141 and Maine lowest at $106,538.^[1][8][13]
12. US real construction GDP per payroll job fell 11.6% from 2019 to 2025 (chained 2017 dollars), as private construction employment rose 10.7% (BLS QCEW).^[1][8][9]
13. In the second quarter of 2026, real construction GDP was above its year-earlier level in 19 of the 34 states with published data, led by Iowa (+12.2%), Idaho (+9.4%), West Virginia (+6.6%).^[2]
14. BEA withheld quarterly construction GDP for 17 of 51 geographies, including DC, from 2025 onward to avoid disclosing confidential data; annual 2025 values are published for all 51.^[1][2]

Rankings and ratios we derived

Download the calculations (CSV)

Executive summary

• Construction added $1.34 trillion to US GDP in 2025, 4.3% of all-industry GDP, down from 4.4% in 2019 (BEA SAGDP).
• California ($152.9 billion), Texas ($142.8 billion) and Florida ($99.1 billion) produced 29.5% of the nation's construction value added in 2025.
• Construction's share of GDP is highest in Utah (7.8%), Nevada (7.7%), Idaho (6.6%), Montana (6.3%), Arizona (6.3%); it is lowest in the District of Columbia (1.0%), New York (2.77%), Connecticut (2.78%), New Hampshire (3.22%).
• Measured in chained 2017 dollars, construction GDP grew from 2019 to 2025 in 27 of 51 geographies, led by Idaho (+36.4%), Arizona (+31.2%), Utah (+24.9%), Tennessee (+18.4%), Montana (+17.9%).
• Nationally, real construction value added fell 2.1% from 2019 to 2025 while current-dollar value rose 40.6%: rising prices, not more real output, explain the dollar growth.
• Value added per construction payroll job was $162,407 in the US in 2025, from Alaska ($213,141), Georgia ($202,369), Maryland ($201,251) at the top to Maine ($106,538), Vermont ($109,681), Mississippi ($112,987) at the bottom.
• In the second quarter of 2026, US real construction GDP was 0.4% above a year earlier and grew at a 3.2% annual rate from the first quarter (BEA SQGDP).

Frequently asked questions

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Methodology

Source selection: state construction value added comes from the Bureau of Economic Analysis GDP by state tables, the official source for state GDP by industry. We used SAGDP2 (current dollars) and SAGDP9 (chained 2017 dollars), line 11 (construction, NAICS 23) and line 1 (all-industry total), from the bulk file last updated September 30, 2026, and the quarterly SQGDP2 and SQGDP9 tables from the same release, which added the second quarter of 2026. National comparisons use BEA's GDP by industry workbook published the same day.

Employment: value added per job uses BLS Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages private NAICS 23 annual averages for 2025 (state rows, ownership code 5). Where BLS suppressed 2025 state employment (disclosure code N), we used the BLS Current Employment Statistics state construction series (not seasonally adjusted, annual average, period M13) from the flat file dated September 18, 2026. Delaware and DC publish construction only combined with mining and logging in CES, so no value is computed for them. Population is the Census Bureau Vintage 2025 estimate for July 1, 2025.

Inclusion and exclusion: all 50 states and the District of Columbia are included in annual rankings. Quarterly comparisons cover the 34 states for which BEA published construction values; (D) cells were not estimated or imputed. Shares are computed in current dollars because chained-dollar values are not additive. Market-research estimates were not used.

Conflicting numbers: the BEA state file and the national industry accounts agree on US construction value added for 2025 and for the second quarter of 2026; the national tables round the 2025 share to 4.3%, which matches our unrounded 4.34%. An earlier Associated Builders and Contractors analysis of 2015 data used an older BEA vintage; we report its figures as published and show the current-vintage values beside them.

Derived metrics: shares, growth rates, compound annual growth, per-resident values, value added per job, quarter-over-year changes, peak comparisons and ranks are computed in scripts/build_data.py and scripts/build_ledgers.py and listed with formulas and input rows in derived_metrics.csv. Ranks are among 51 geographies (50 states and DC), or among states with data where noted.

Limitations: 2025 is BEA's first annual estimate and will be revised; quarterly state estimates are early. Construction GDP covers residential and nonresidential work together. Value added per job excludes the self-employed from the denominator. The implied price change for construction is identical in every state, so real growth does not reflect local cost differences. Last updated 2026-10-18.

This report presents published data with its limitations. It is not legal, financial or investment advice.

Sources, ranked by quality

Tier 1: primary and official sources (17)

• [1] U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis. GDP by state and industry, annual (SAGDP tables: SAGDP2 current dollars, SAGDP9 chained 2017 dollars), bulk download. 1997 to 2025; last updated September 30, 2026. Accessed 2026-10-18.
• [2] U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis. Quarterly GDP by state and industry (SQGDP tables: SQGDP2 current dollars, SQGDP9 chained 2017 dollars), bulk download. 2005 Q1 to 2026 Q2; last updated September 30, 2026. Accessed 2026-10-18.
• [3] U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis. GDP (Third Estimate), Industries, Corporate Profits, State GDP, and State Personal Income, 2nd Quarter 2026 and Annual Update (news release BEA 26-42). 2026 Q2; released September 30, 2026. Accessed 2026-10-18.
• [4] U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis. GDP by State (program page: current and next release dates). Current release September 30, 2026; next release December 23, 2026. Accessed 2026-10-18.
• [5] U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis. GDP by Industry: Value Added tables (TVA101, TVA105, TVA110), workbook. 1997 to 2025 annual; 2005 Q1 to 2026 Q2 quarterly; published September 30, 2026. Accessed 2026-10-18.
• [6] U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis. GDP by Industry (program page). Current release September 30, 2026. Accessed 2026-10-18.
• [7] U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis. Glossary: Value added. Definition. Accessed 2026-10-18.
• [8] U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. QCEW open data, NAICS 23 Construction, 2025 annual averages (CSV slice). 2025 annual average. Accessed 2026-10-18.
• [9] U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. QCEW open data, NAICS 23 Construction, 2019 annual averages (CSV slice). 2019 annual average. Accessed 2026-10-18.
• [10] U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. QCEW open data, NAICS 237 Heavy and civil engineering construction, 2025 annual averages (CSV slice). 2025 annual average. Accessed 2026-10-18.
• [11] U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. QCEW Overview (coverage and employment exclusions). Program documentation. Accessed 2026-10-18.
• [12] U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. QCEW release calendar. 2025 and 2026 release dates. Accessed 2026-10-18.
• [13] U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Current Employment Statistics, State and Area: construction series flat file (sm.data.62.Construction.Current). 2019 and 2025 annual averages (not seasonally adjusted); file dated September 18, 2026. Accessed 2026-10-18.
• [14] U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. State and Metro Area Employment, Hours, and Earnings (program page). Next state release October 20, 2026. Accessed 2026-10-18.
• [15] U.S. Census Bureau. Annual Estimates of the Resident Population, Vintage 2025 (NST-EST2025-ALLDATA). July 1, 2025. Accessed 2026-10-18.
• [16] U.S. Census Bureau. State Population Totals: 2020-2025 (Vintage 2025 program page). Vintage 2025. Accessed 2026-10-18.
• [17] U.S. Census Bureau. Monthly Construction Spending, August 2026 (release CB26-158). August 2026; released October 1, 2026. Accessed 2026-10-18.

Tier 2: trade bodies, market research, company data (2)

• [18] Associated Builders and Contractors. Construction's Contribution to Economy Increases in 30 States in 2015 (news release). 2015. Accessed 2026-10-18.
• [19] Associated Builders and Contractors. State Construction Share of Real GDP State Ranking (PDF). 1997 to 2013. Accessed 2026-10-18.

Tier 3: journalism and expert commentary (1)

• [20] ForConstructionPros.com. Construction Continues to Increase Its Percentage Contribution to National GDP. 2015 data; published August 18, 2016. Accessed 2026-10-18.