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Size of the US Software Publishers industry

NAICS 51321, Software Publishers. Every figure on this page was published by a federal statistical agency and carries its source and period. Palanor does not estimate: a period the agency didn’t publish shows as missing, and a figure it withheld shows as withheld.

Key figures

Receipts (sales, shipments or revenue)
$493 billion
2022 · Economic Census
All establishments, current dollars
Employment
672,452
2026-Q1 · Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages
Private-sector jobs in the third month of each quarter
Establishments
105,955
2026-Q1 · Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages
Private ownership
Firms
16,824
2022 · Economic Census

Over time

Employment · Quarterly Census of Employment and WagesLatest 672,452 · 2026-Q1
2022-Q1: 618,7002022-Q2: 637,4072022-Q3: 642,7212022-Q4: 638,8562023-Q1: 656,3052023-Q2: 649,9912023-Q3: 644,0452023-Q4: 638,7032024-Q1: 638,9522024-Q2: 637,3092024-Q3: 634,4552024-Q4: 633,8092025-Q1: 650,0312025-Q2: 643,8072025-Q3: 643,4132025-Q4: 645,0622026-Q1: 672,452
Show the numbers
PeriodValue
2026-Q1672,452
2025-Q4645,062
2025-Q3643,413
2025-Q2643,807
2025-Q1650,031
2024-Q4633,809
2024-Q3634,455
2024-Q2637,309
2024-Q1638,952
2023-Q4638,703
2023-Q3644,045
2023-Q2649,991
2023-Q1656,305
2022-Q4638,856
2022-Q3642,721
2022-Q2637,407
2022-Q1618,700

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages · Private-sector jobs in the third month of each quarter

Establishments · Quarterly Census of Employment and WagesLatest 105,955 · 2026-Q1
2022-Q1: 68,7442022-Q2: 73,7442022-Q3: 77,8382022-Q4: 80,5032023-Q1: 85,9352023-Q2: 87,6712023-Q3: 89,4472023-Q4: 91,5162024-Q1: 94,1172024-Q2: 96,5462024-Q3: 97,5982024-Q4: 99,4152025-Q1: 98,4812025-Q2: 99,8712025-Q3: 102,4852025-Q4: 103,7202026-Q1: 105,955
Show the numbers
PeriodValue
2026-Q1105,955
2025-Q4103,720
2025-Q3102,485
2025-Q299,871
2025-Q198,481
2024-Q499,415
2024-Q397,598
2024-Q296,546
2024-Q194,117
2023-Q491,516
2023-Q389,447
2023-Q287,671
2023-Q185,935
2022-Q480,503
2022-Q377,838
2022-Q273,744
2022-Q168,744

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages · Private ownership

Total wages in the quarter · Quarterly Census of Employment and WagesLatest $39.3 billion · 2026-Q1
2022-Q1: $29.6 billion2022-Q2: $28.7 billion2022-Q3: $31.8 billion2022-Q4: $29.3 billion2023-Q1: $32.3 billion2023-Q2: $31.5 billion2023-Q3: $34.1 billion2023-Q4: $31.9 billion2024-Q1: $34.8 billion2024-Q2: $33.0 billion2024-Q3: $36.3 billion2024-Q4: $35.4 billion2025-Q1: $38.1 billion2025-Q2: $36.4 billion2025-Q3: $41.6 billion2025-Q4: $38.1 billion2026-Q1: $39.3 billion
Show the numbers
PeriodValue
2026-Q1$39.3 billion
2025-Q4$38.1 billion
2025-Q3$41.6 billion
2025-Q2$36.4 billion
2025-Q1$38.1 billion
2024-Q4$35.4 billion
2024-Q3$36.3 billion
2024-Q2$33.0 billion
2024-Q1$34.8 billion
2023-Q4$31.9 billion
2023-Q3$34.1 billion
2023-Q2$31.5 billion
2023-Q1$32.3 billion
2022-Q4$29.3 billion
2022-Q3$31.8 billion
2022-Q2$28.7 billion
2022-Q1$29.6 billion

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages · Private ownership

The ledger

Every published measure

MeasureSourceLatestPeriodHistory
EmploymentPrivate-sector jobs in the third month of each quarterQuarterly Census of Employment and Wages672,4522026-Q12022-Q1–2026-Q1 · 17 published
EstablishmentsPrivate ownershipQuarterly Census of Employment and Wages105,9552026-Q12022-Q1–2026-Q1 · 17 published
Total wages in the quarterPrivate ownershipQuarterly Census of Employment and Wages$39.3 billion2026-Q12022-Q1–2026-Q1 · 17 published
Annual payrollEconomic Census$175 billion20222022–2022 · 1 published
EmploymentPaid employees in the pay period including March 12Economic Census1,033,30520222022–2022 · 1 published
EstablishmentsEconomic Census20,97620222022–2022 · 1 published
FirmsEconomic Census16,82420222022–2022 · 1 published
Receipts (sales, shipments or revenue)All establishments, current dollarsEconomic Census$493 billion20222022–2022 · 1 published

Breakdown

Industries within Software Publishers

NAICSIndustrySizeEmployment
513210Software Publishers$493 billionReceipts · 2022 · Economic Census672,4522026-Q1 · QCEW

Sources

Where every number comes from

Figures are in current dollars and are the agencies’ own, revised when they revise. Each program defines its universe differently (employer firms, private ownership, all establishments), so figures from different sources are not meant to add up. This page is not endorsed by the Census Bureau, BEA or BLS. The same data is in the Palanor API (/v1/industries) and the MCP (palanor_get_industry). All industries.