The U.S. Census Bureau has released the main set of data from the 2023 Annual Integrated Economic Survey (AIES), providing a comprehensive annual overview of employer businesses in the United States for the first time.
The AIES offers detailed economic information such as business revenue, expenses, payroll, and employment at various geographic levels. Previously, much of this data was only available nationally for many sectors. The new release includes national, regional, and divisional statistics, with state-level estimates available for selected industries.
“This release of data represents a significant step forward in the Census Bureau’s efforts to adapt to our ever-changing economy and transform our business statistics,” said Lisa Donaldson, assistant director for Economic Programs. “By combining breadth of coverage with new geographic detail, the AIES provides insights that will shape decisions across the public and private sectors.”
The latest figures replace preliminary estimates published in July 2025. Highlights from the release include:
– Automobile dealers generated approximately $278.2 billion in revenue and employed around 281,789 workers.
– Drugs and druggists’ sundries merchant wholesalers earned an estimated $298.6 billion in sales.
– Pharmaceutical and medicine manufacturing companies employed about 78,565 workers with an annual payroll near $8.8 billion.
– Hospitals reported revenues close to $300.6 billion and employed roughly 1,337,057 people.
– Grocery stores had estimated revenues of $337.5 billion with an annual payroll totaling about $32.1 billion.
– Electric power generation, transmission, and distribution companies employed around 202,720 workers with a total annual payroll of approximately $24.4 billion.
– Telecommunications firms earned nearly $155.9 billion in revenue with an annual payroll close to $19.6 billion.
– Data processing, hosting, and related services companies employed about 258,344 people with a combined annual payroll reaching $30.4 billion.
The survey covers domestic private sector nonfarm employer businesses that operated during some part of 2023 within one of the fifty states or Washington D.C., had paid employees, and were classified within nineteen defined sectors according to the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS). Approximately 385,000 businesses were sampled based on location and industry classification.
Estimates provided by AIES are not adjusted for price changes and may be affected by sampling variability or other errors. Additional details regarding survey methodology—including coverage scope and confidentiality measures—are available on the Census Bureau’s website.
The Census Bureau reviewed all AIES data products to ensure appropriate access controls are maintained while protecting confidential source information.
