NC sees booming business, census data shows

Several high-profile companies like VinFast and Apple are due to call North Carolina home.

The Business Register shows there are more than 240,000 establishments in the state. It’s the ninth highest in the nation, which is a higher ranking than where we were five years ago.

U.S. Census Bureau data shows transportation businesses, construction companies and real estate firms have a lot more competition now than they did five years – those three industries saw the biggest percentage increase for new business establishments from 2016 to 2021.

When it comes to looking solely at the number of businesses in a sector - construction, real estate, tech and science are in the top four - many startups call the Triangle home.

Census Bureau data can be used to look at economic activity.

For example, a map using Census Bureau data shows the number of establishments in each ZIP code in North Carolina. The darker the color, the more businesses.

The data shows the places with the most businesses include the 27609 ZIP code in Raleigh, 28117 ZIP code in Morrisville, the 28277 ZIP code in Charlotte, the 28217 ZIP code in Charlotte and the 28403 ZIP code in Wilmington.

The data also shows micro businesses – those employing nine or fewer employees - are increasing. There are about 180,000 in the state now – 10% more than there were in 2016.

They’re not alone. Large enterprises - companies with 1,000 or more workers people saw growth too - up about 19% compared to 2016.

Over five years, more than 108,000 new people entered North Carolina’s workforce, data shows. Those additional employees mean North Carolinians are making $48.9 billion more in payroll than in 2016, which is money that goes back into our economy.

While 10 of the 22 industries are outpacing the percentage of growth in the state, some industries took a hit. There are fewer businesses related to mining, manufacturing, management and wholesale trade.

Businesses related to waste management and remediation services had the greatest number of employees lost – down 91,000 workers in five years.