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Manufacturing Compass

Tennessee 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

Tennessee manufacturing in 2024

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

Establishments

9,654

Worksites, annual average of quarterly counts

U.S.
397,198
Share of U.S.Calc
2.4%

Employment

362,430

Jobs, annual average of monthly counts

U.S.
12,733,350
Share of U.S.Calc
2.8%

Total wages

$27.3 billion

Nominal dollars, sum of four quarters

U.S.
$1.1 trillion
Share of U.S.Calc
2.5%

Average weekly wage

$1,447

Nominal dollars per job

U.S.
$1,643
vs. U.S.Calc
−11.9%

Average annual pay

$75,222

Nominal dollars per job

U.S.
$85,461
vs. U.S.Calc
−12.0%

Location quotient

1.35

Employment concentration vs. U.S.

U.S.
1.00

Manufacturing's share of all jobs in Tennessee is 1.35 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.

  • 336Transportation equipment manufacturing
    Employment
    74,431
    Establishments
    646
    Avg. annual pay
    $76,151
    Pay vs. U.S.Calc
    −18.3%
    Location quotient
    1.99
  • 332Fabricated metal product manufacturing
    Employment
    41,963
    Establishments
    1,387
    Avg. annual pay
    $81,133
    Pay vs. U.S.Calc
    +10.8%
    Location quotient
    1.38
  • 311Food manufacturing
    Employment
    40,975
    Establishments
    699
    Avg. annual pay
    $67,086
    Pay vs. U.S.Calc
    +9.2%
    Location quotient
    1.10
  • 325Chemical manufacturing
    Employment
    27,079
    Establishments
    744
    Avg. annual pay
    $95,831
    Pay vs. U.S.Calc
    −18.9%
    Location quotient
    1.44
  • 326Plastics and rubber products manufacturing
    Employment
    24,556
    Establishments
    417
    Avg. annual pay
    $64,279
    Pay vs. U.S.Calc
    −7.3%
    Location quotient
    1.62
  • 333Machinery manufacturing
    Employment
    24,422
    Establishments
    851
    Avg. annual pay
    $70,674
    Pay vs. U.S.Calc
    −19.5%
    Location quotient
    1.05
  • 335Electrical equipment, appliance, and component manufacturing
    Employment
    21,639
    Establishments
    311
    Avg. annual pay
    $82,357
    Pay vs. U.S.Calc
    −4.0%
    Location quotient
    2.44
  • 327Nonmetallic mineral product manufacturing
    Employment
    15,214
    Establishments
    462
    Avg. annual pay
    $74,907
    Pay vs. U.S.Calc
    −0.8%
    Location quotient
    1.73
  • 339Miscellaneous manufacturing
    Employment
    15,074
    Establishments
    807
    Avg. annual pay
    $80,764
    Pay vs. U.S.Calc
    −1.8%
    Location quotient
    1.16
  • 321Wood product manufacturing
    Employment
    13,246
    Establishments
    537
    Avg. annual pay
    $61,696
    Pay vs. U.S.Calc
    −1.1%
    Location quotient
    1.52
  • 322Paper manufacturing
    Employment
    12,716
    Establishments
    221
    Avg. annual pay
    $85,036
    Pay vs. U.S.Calc
    +4.1%
    Location quotient
    1.70
  • 331Primary metal manufacturing
    Employment
    11,057
    Establishments
    200
    Avg. annual pay
    $82,581
    Pay vs. U.S.Calc
    −7.5%
    Location quotient
    1.42
  • 337Furniture and related product manufacturing
    Employment
    8,846
    Establishments
    424
    Avg. annual pay
    $53,074
    Pay vs. U.S.Calc
    −10.5%
    Location quotient
    1.22
  • 323Printing and related support activities
    Employment
    7,751
    Establishments
    662
    Avg. annual pay
    $60,910
    Pay vs. U.S.Calc
    −0.4%
    Location quotient
    1.03
  • 334Computer and electronic product manufacturing
    Employment
    7,608
    Establishments
    536
    Avg. annual pay
    $89,293
    Pay vs. U.S.Calc
    −41.8%
    Location quotient
    0.35
  • 312Beverage and tobacco product manufacturing
    Employment
    7,008
    Establishments
    339
    Avg. annual pay
    $56,362
    Pay vs. U.S.Calc
    −7.8%
    Location quotient
    0.99
  • 315Apparel manufacturing
    Employment
    2,898
    Establishments
    116
    Avg. annual pay
    $54,891
    Pay vs. U.S.Calc
    −5.3%
    Location quotient
    1.67
  • 313Textile mills
    Employment
    2,511
    Establishments
    86
    Avg. annual pay
    $67,272
    Pay vs. U.S.Calc
    +12.7%
    Location quotient
    1.40
  • 314Textile product mills
    Employment
    2,129
    Establishments
    146
    Avg. annual pay
    $52,665
    Pay vs. U.S.Calc
    −3.2%
    Location quotient
    1.04
  • 324Petroleum and coal products manufacturing
    Employment
    1,029
    Establishments
    29
    Avg. annual pay
    $118,244
    Pay vs. U.S.Calc
    −16.3%
    Location quotient
    0.44
  • 316Leather and allied product manufacturing
    Employment
    282
    Establishments
    32
    Avg. annual pay
    $47,705
    Pay vs. U.S.Calc
    −19.4%
    Location quotient
    0.53

03By year

Tennessee 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 Tennessee by year, annual averages, nominal dollars
YearEmploymentAvg. annual payvs. U.S.Calc
2022364,182$68,881−13.3%
2023363,882$72,005−12.8%
2024362,430$75,222−12.0%
2025354,636$78,802−11.9%

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