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Manufacturing Compass

North Dakota manufacturing

Private-sector manufacturing (NAICS 31–33), annual average for 2024. Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages.

01Core measures

North Dakota manufacturing in 2024

Totals and averages for all private manufacturing employers in North Dakota combined. They describe the industry statewide, not any individual plant or company.

Establishments

898

Worksites, annual average of quarterly counts

U.S.
397,198
Share of U.S.Calc
0.2%

Employment

28,225

Jobs, annual average of monthly counts

U.S.
12,733,350
Share of U.S.Calc
0.2%

Total wages

$2 billion

Nominal dollars, sum of four quarters

U.S.
$1.1 trillion
Share of U.S.Calc
0.2%

Average weekly wage

$1,362

Nominal dollars per job

U.S.
$1,643
vs. U.S.Calc
−17.1%

Average annual pay

$70,827

Nominal dollars per job

U.S.
$85,461
vs. U.S.Calc
−17.1%

Location quotient

0.80

Employment concentration vs. U.S.

U.S.
1.00

Manufacturing's share of all jobs in North Dakota is 0.80 times its share of all U.S. jobs.

Calcmarks our calculations from BLS figures (formulas below). All other values are published by BLS.

02Subsectors

Where manufacturing jobs are

The 21 three-digit NAICS manufacturing subsectors, largest employment first. 4 are withheld by BLS (“Not disclosed”). For 1, BLS publishes no figures at all (“No BLS data”). Subsectors therefore may not add up to the manufacturing total.

  • 333Machinery manufacturing
    Employment
    6,310
    Establishments
    88
    Avg. annual pay
    $74,205
    Pay vs. U.S.Calc
    −15.5%
    Location quotient
    2.06
  • 311Food manufacturing
    Employment
    5,582
    Establishments
    166
    Avg. annual pay
    $65,342
    Pay vs. U.S.Calc
    +6.4%
    Location quotient
    1.14
  • 321Wood product manufacturing
    Employment
    2,644
    Establishments
    29
    Avg. annual pay
    $58,728
    Pay vs. U.S.Calc
    −5.9%
    Location quotient
    2.32
  • 332Fabricated metal product manufacturing
    Employment
    2,407
    Establishments
    142
    Avg. annual pay
    $65,337
    Pay vs. U.S.Calc
    −10.8%
    Location quotient
    0.61
  • 336Transportation equipment manufacturing
    Employment
    2,249
    Establishments
    40
    Avg. annual pay
    $68,002
    Pay vs. U.S.Calc
    −27.1%
    Location quotient
    0.46
  • 326Plastics and rubber products manufacturing
    Employment
    1,568
    Establishments
    28
    Avg. annual pay
    $68,361
    Pay vs. U.S.Calc
    −1.4%
    Location quotient
    0.79
  • 327Nonmetallic mineral product manufacturing
    Employment
    1,411
    Establishments
    70
    Avg. annual pay
    $77,929
    Pay vs. U.S.Calc
    +3.2%
    Location quotient
    1.23
  • 334Computer and electronic product manufacturing
    Employment
    1,242
    Establishments
    47
    Avg. annual pay
    $96,427
    Pay vs. U.S.Calc
    −37.1%
    Location quotient
    0.44
  • 325Chemical manufacturing
    Employment
    987
    Establishments
    36
    Avg. annual pay
    $96,304
    Pay vs. U.S.Calc
    −18.5%
    Location quotient
    0.40
  • 323Printing and related support activities
    Employment
    722
    Establishments
    60
    Avg. annual pay
    $47,203
    Pay vs. U.S.Calc
    −22.8%
    Location quotient
    0.73
  • 337Furniture and related product manufacturing
    Employment
    669
    Establishments
    51
    Avg. annual pay
    $56,405
    Pay vs. U.S.Calc
    −4.9%
    Location quotient
    0.70
  • 339Miscellaneous manufacturing
    Employment
    523
    Establishments
    67
    Avg. annual pay
    $62,353
    Pay vs. U.S.Calc
    −24.2%
    Location quotient
    0.31
  • 312Beverage and tobacco product manufacturing
    Employment
    405
    Establishments
    24
    Avg. annual pay
    $41,496
    Pay vs. U.S.Calc
    −32.1%
    Location quotient
    0.44
  • 314Textile product mills
    Employment
    275
    Establishments
    17
    Avg. annual pay
    $60,373
    Pay vs. U.S.Calc
    +11.0%
    Location quotient
    1.03
  • 335Electrical equipment, appliance, and component manufacturing
    Employment
    147
    Establishments
    10
    Avg. annual pay
    $62,929
    Pay vs. U.S.Calc
    −26.6%
    Location quotient
    0.13
  • 315Apparel manufacturing
    Employment
    16
    Establishments
    3
    Avg. annual pay
    $37,394
    Pay vs. U.S.Calc
    −35.5%
    Location quotient
    0.07
  • 324Petroleum and coal products manufacturing
    Employment
    Not disclosed
    Establishments
    6
    Avg. annual pay
    Not disclosed
    Pay vs. U.S.Calc
    —
    Location quotient
    Not disclosed
  • 331Primary metal manufacturing
    Employment
    Not disclosed
    Establishments
    6
    Avg. annual pay
    Not disclosed
    Pay vs. U.S.Calc
    —
    Location quotient
    Not disclosed
  • 322Paper manufacturing
    Employment
    Not disclosed
    Establishments
    3
    Avg. annual pay
    Not disclosed
    Pay vs. U.S.Calc
    —
    Location quotient
    Not disclosed
  • 313Textile mills
    Employment
    Not disclosed
    Establishments
    2
    Avg. annual pay
    Not disclosed
    Pay vs. U.S.Calc
    —
    Location quotient
    Not disclosed
  • 316Leather and allied product manufacturing
    Employment
    No BLS data
    Establishments
    No BLS data
    Avg. annual pay
    No BLS data
    Pay vs. U.S.Calc
    —
    Location quotient
    No BLS data

03By year

North Dakota manufacturing, 2022–2025

Wages are in nominal dollars (not adjusted for inflation). BLS cautions that QCEW is not designed as a time series, so treat year-to-year differences as indicative.

Private manufacturing in North Dakota by year, annual averages, nominal dollars
YearEmploymentAvg. annual payvs. U.S.Calc
202227,309$65,577−17.5%
202328,259$69,701−15.6%
202428,225$70,827−17.1%
202527,820$73,087−18.3%

04About this data

Source, definitions, and limits

Source
BLS Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages
File
data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2024/a/industry/31_33.csv
Retrieved
October 12, 2026 (UTC)
Period
Annual average, 2024 (final BLS data)
Industry
NAICS 2022, sector 31–33 and its three-digit subsectors
Ownership
Private employers only
Geography
Statewide; compared with the U.S. total
Citation
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW).

What these numbers cover

  • Jobs reported to state unemployment insurance programs, about 95% of U.S. wage and salary jobs. Self-employed workers and proprietors are excluded; people with two jobs may be counted twice.
  • Averages describe all employers combined and do not represent any single manufacturer. Where a subsector has few establishments or jobs, its averages can swing widely and are less representative.
  • Not disclosed: BLS withheld the value to protect employer confidentiality. It is never shown as zero. No BLS data: BLS publishes no figures for that combination.

Calculations

  • Share of U.S. = state value ÷ U.S. value.
  • vs. U.S. = state value ÷ U.S. value − 1.
  • Both inputs come from the same BLS file: same year, industry, and ownership. Not calculated when either value is withheld (shown as —).
  • Location quotient is published by BLS: the industry's share of all local jobs (all industries and ownerships) divided by its share nationally.

Read our methodology