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Manufacturing Compass

Washington 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

Washington manufacturing in 2024

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

Establishments

8,040

Worksites, annual average of quarterly counts

U.S.
397,198
Share of U.S.Calc
2%

Employment

271,058

Jobs, annual average of monthly counts

U.S.
12,733,350
Share of U.S.Calc
2.1%

Total wages

$26.2 billion

Nominal dollars, sum of four quarters

U.S.
$1.1 trillion
Share of U.S.Calc
2.4%

Average weekly wage

$1,860

Nominal dollars per job

U.S.
$1,643
vs. U.S.Calc
+13.2%

Average annual pay

$96,726

Nominal dollars per job

U.S.
$85,461
vs. U.S.Calc
+13.2%

Location quotient

0.92

Employment concentration vs. U.S.

U.S.
1.00

Manufacturing's share of all jobs in Washington is 0.92 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
    89,520
    Establishments
    557
    Avg. annual pay
    $128,901
    Pay vs. U.S.Calc
    +38.2%
    Location quotient
    2.18
  • 311Food manufacturing
    Employment
    40,196
    Establishments
    1,158
    Avg. annual pay
    $61,262
    Pay vs. U.S.Calc
    −0.3%
    Location quotient
    0.98
  • 334Computer and electronic product manufacturing
    Employment
    18,225
    Establishments
    464
    Avg. annual pay
    $131,273
    Pay vs. U.S.Calc
    −14.4%
    Location quotient
    0.77
  • 332Fabricated metal product manufacturing
    Employment
    17,891
    Establishments
    996
    Avg. annual pay
    $71,762
    Pay vs. U.S.Calc
    −2.0%
    Location quotient
    0.54
  • 333Machinery manufacturing
    Employment
    14,152
    Establishments
    494
    Avg. annual pay
    $86,430
    Pay vs. U.S.Calc
    −1.6%
    Location quotient
    0.55
  • 321Wood product manufacturing
    Employment
    13,094
    Establishments
    345
    Avg. annual pay
    $70,146
    Pay vs. U.S.Calc
    +12.4%
    Location quotient
    1.37
  • 312Beverage and tobacco product manufacturing
    Employment
    10,830
    Establishments
    856
    Avg. annual pay
    $49,816
    Pay vs. U.S.Calc
    −18.5%
    Location quotient
    1.40
  • 339Miscellaneous manufacturing
    Employment
    10,143
    Establishments
    815
    Avg. annual pay
    $94,158
    Pay vs. U.S.Calc
    +14.5%
    Location quotient
    0.71
  • 327Nonmetallic mineral product manufacturing
    Employment
    8,455
    Establishments
    309
    Avg. annual pay
    $83,447
    Pay vs. U.S.Calc
    +10.5%
    Location quotient
    0.88
  • 325Chemical manufacturing
    Employment
    7,794
    Establishments
    423
    Avg. annual pay
    $99,960
    Pay vs. U.S.Calc
    −15.4%
    Location quotient
    0.38
  • 322Paper manufacturing
    Employment
    7,211
    Establishments
    96
    Avg. annual pay
    $94,169
    Pay vs. U.S.Calc
    +15.3%
    Location quotient
    0.88
  • 326Plastics and rubber products manufacturing
    Employment
    7,068
    Establishments
    199
    Avg. annual pay
    $70,133
    Pay vs. U.S.Calc
    +1.2%
    Location quotient
    0.42
  • 337Furniture and related product manufacturing
    Employment
    5,193
    Establishments
    306
    Avg. annual pay
    $59,103
    Pay vs. U.S.Calc
    −0.4%
    Location quotient
    0.65
  • 335Electrical equipment, appliance, and component manufacturing
    Employment
    5,174
    Establishments
    167
    Avg. annual pay
    $99,663
    Pay vs. U.S.Calc
    +16.2%
    Location quotient
    0.53
  • 331Primary metal manufacturing
    Employment
    4,860
    Establishments
    92
    Avg. annual pay
    $86,615
    Pay vs. U.S.Calc
    −3.0%
    Location quotient
    0.57
  • 323Printing and related support activities
    Employment
    4,714
    Establishments
    464
    Avg. annual pay
    $62,728
    Pay vs. U.S.Calc
    +2.6%
    Location quotient
    0.57
  • 324Petroleum and coal products manufacturing
    Employment
    3,063
    Establishments
    34
    Avg. annual pay
    $163,661
    Pay vs. U.S.Calc
    +15.8%
    Location quotient
    1.20
  • 314Textile product mills
    Employment
    1,581
    Establishments
    122
    Avg. annual pay
    $57,100
    Pay vs. U.S.Calc
    +5.0%
    Location quotient
    0.70
  • 315Apparel manufacturing
    Employment
    1,124
    Establishments
    93
    Avg. annual pay
    $61,514
    Pay vs. U.S.Calc
    +6.2%
    Location quotient
    0.59
  • 313Textile mills
    Employment
    434
    Establishments
    26
    Avg. annual pay
    $62,391
    Pay vs. U.S.Calc
    +4.5%
    Location quotient
    0.22
  • 316Leather and allied product manufacturing
    Employment
    338
    Establishments
    24
    Avg. annual pay
    $52,713
    Pay vs. U.S.Calc
    −10.9%
    Location quotient
    0.58

03By year

Washington 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 Washington by year, annual averages, nominal dollars
YearEmploymentAvg. annual payvs. U.S.Calc
2022265,819$88,424+11.2%
2023270,975$93,314+13.0%
2024271,058$96,726+13.2%
2025268,529$102,940+15.1%

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