Domestic manufacturing is under the spotlight. If trade policies raise the cost of imports, domestic factories may step in to meet demand at adjusted market prices. Labor market data can reveal regional job concentrations, showing where manufacturing matters the most. 

Which states have the most manufacturing jobs per capita?

As of the latest data from September 2025, the Midwest dominates US manufacturing, with Wisconsin, Indiana, and Iowa in the top three for the most amount of manufacturing jobs per capita. The District of Columbia, Hawaii, and New Mexico make up the bottom three.

Of the 10 states with the most manufacturing jobs per capita, only one of the states has fewer manufacturing jobs than it did during 2015. This is encouraging for states where manufacturing is important to their economies, as they have continued to grow over the last decade. 

Explore the full rankings:

Employment Concentration by State:

Employment Concentration by County:

Location-specific data for sectors and industries are available through Analyst, the Lightcast platform that delivers all the economic and workforce data you need, all in one place. 

We also ranked US states and metros for attraction of talent for all jobs (not just manufacturing) -- explore our 2025 Talent Attraction Scorecard.

To learn more about trends affecting the global labor market like AI, labor shortages, and geopolitics, read our latest research, Fault Lines.