Industry Market Share Calculator: Sector Dominance by Location (2022)

What if you could see that professional services represent 13.9% of all businesses in California but only 4.4% in Wyoming? This Industry Market Share Calculator reveals exactly which industries dominate each location—and how you can position yourself in markets where your sector thrives.

The data shows dramatic differences: professional services account for 142,540 establishments (13.9%) in California, while in smaller states like Wyoming, the same industry represents just 3,068 establishments (13.2%). This isn’t just about geography—it’s about understanding sector dominance, market structure, and location opportunities that directly impact your competitive position.

Calculate industry market share by location to understand sector dominance. This tool reveals which industries dominat

This analysis examines County Business Patterns (CBP) data from the U.S. Census Bureau to calculate industry market share—the percentage of total establishments, employment, or payroll represented by each industry—across all U.S. states and counties. You’ll discover which industries dominate each location, how market structure varies by geography, and where opportunities exist for sector-specific businesses.

What You’ll Discover:

• Industry market share rankings by state (establishments, employment, payroll)
• Sector dominance patterns revealing industry concentration
• Market structure analysis (diverse vs. concentrated markets)
• Location-specific industry strengths and opportunities
• Competitive positioning insights by industry and location

Why This Matters: Understanding industry market share helps you identify where your sector thrives, assess competition levels, and make strategic location decisions. Markets where your industry has high share offer customer density and networking advantages, while low-share markets may indicate underserved opportunities.

Industry Market Share Varies Dramatically by Location

The Numbers: Professional services represent 14.6% of all businesses in Florida but only 9.8% in Pennsylvania—a 49% difference. This means Florida has nearly 50% more professional services concentration relative to its total business base.

So What? High market share states like Florida (14.6%) and California (13.9%) offer strong industry clusters with customer density, networking opportunities, and talent pools. However, high share also means more competitors. Low-share states may offer less competition but require careful market validation.

How to Use This: If you’re in professional services, high-share markets offer proven demand and industry clustering advantages. Low-share markets may offer underserved opportunities but need careful market size assessment.

Market Share Reveals Industry Dominance Patterns

The Numbers: States like Colorado (15.4%), Virginia (15.2%), and Maryland (15.0%) have the highest professional services market share, indicating strong knowledge-based economies and business services demand.

So What? High market share signals where your industry thrives. Operating in high-share markets provides access to industry clusters, customer density, and networking advantages that can accelerate growth.

How to Use This: Target markets where your industry has 10%+ market share for proven demand and industry clustering. Consider markets with 5-10% share for balanced opportunity and competition.

Location Strategy Must Account for Sector Dominance

The Numbers: The difference between the highest-share state (Colorado, 15.4%) and lower-share states (Pennsylvania, 9.8%) is 57%—meaning Colorado has over half again as much professional services concentration.

So What? Market share directly impacts your competitive position. High-share markets offer industry clustering benefits but also more competition. Your location choice should match your competitive capacity and growth stage.

How to Use This: For established businesses with competitive advantages, high-share markets offer proven demand. For new businesses, moderate-share markets (10-12%) often offer the best balance of opportunity and competition.

Red Flags

• Extremely High Market Share (20%+): May indicate over-reliance on single industry, making market vulnerable to sector downturns
• Rapid Share Increases: Markets with rapidly increasing share may be approaching saturation
• Single-Industry Concentration: Markets where one industry represents 30%+ of businesses may lack economic diversity

Green Lights

• Moderate-to-High Share (10-15%): Balanced markets with strong industry presence and proven demand
• Diverse Industry Distribution: Markets with no single industry representing >20% offer stability and multiple opportunity sources
• Growing Share with Total Growth: Markets where industry share is increasing alongside total business growth signal expanding opportunity

How to Use This Data

Follow this step-by-step process to calculate industry market share and make data-driven location decisions:

Step 1: Identify Your Industry and NAICS Code

For Industry-Specific Analysis: Determine your NAICS code (North American Industry Classification System). This allows you to filter CBP data to see exact market share for your industry.

For Multi-Industry Businesses: If you serve multiple industries, analyze each relevant NAICS code separately to understand market share for each segment.

Action: Look up your NAICS code at census.gov/naics. Common codes include:

• 54: Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services
• 62: Health Care and Social Assistance
• 72: Accommodation and Food Services
• 44-45: Retail Trade

Step 2: Calculate Market Share by Geography

Compare market share across your candidate locations:

• State-level: Get broad market share comparison (e.g., California 13.9% vs. Texas 12.3%)
• County-level: Identify specific markets within states with varying market share
• Metro-level: Analyze metropolitan areas for urban market opportunities

Action: Create a spreadsheet with your top 10 candidate locations. Calculate market share (establishments, employment, payroll) for each. Rank by market share level.

Step 3: Assess Industry Concentration

Evaluate what market share means for your industry:

• High Share (10%+): Strong industry presence, customer density, networking opportunities, but more competition
• Moderate Share (5-10%): Healthy representation, balanced competition, proven demand
• Low Share (<5%): Limited presence, potentially underserved opportunity or limited market size

Action: For each candidate location, assess whether the market share level matches your competitive strategy and growth stage.

Step 4: Compare Market Share to Total Market Size

High market share doesn’t always mean best opportunity. Consider both share and total market size:

• High Share + Large Market: Maximum industry presence in large market
• High Share + Small Market: Strong concentration in smaller market
• Low Share + Large Market: Less concentration but large total opportunity
• Low Share + Small Market: Limited market, verify viability

Action: Create a matrix scoring each location on market share (industry presence) and total market size (opportunity). Rank by your strategic priorities.

Step 5: Make Your Location Decision

Combine market share analysis with other factors (cost of living, business climate, personal preferences) to choose your location.

Action: Create a decision matrix scoring each location on: market share (30%), total market size (30%), industry-specific factors (20%), business climate (10%), and personal fit (10%).

Common Use Cases

Scenario 1: Starting a New Business → Focus on markets with moderate market share (8-12%). These markets offer proven demand without extreme competition.

Scenario 2: Expanding to New Markets → Compare market share across candidate locations. Target markets with 10%+ share for industry clustering advantages.

Scenario 3: B2B Service Provider → Target markets with high market share (12%+). High share means more businesses in your industry, creating B2B opportunities.

Scenario 4: Seeking Underserved Markets → Consider markets with low market share (<5%) that may offer opportunity, but carefully verify market size and customer base.

Questions to Ask Yourself

• What matters more: industry clustering (high share) or less competition (low share)?
• Can I compete effectively in a high-share market, or do I need lower competition?
• Does my business model benefit from industry clustering and networking?
• Am I entering an established market or creating new demand?
• What’s my risk tolerance: proven high-competition markets or emerging lower-competition markets?

Action Items Checklist

• Identify your NAICS code and industry classification
• Calculate market share for your industry in top 10 candidate states
• Analyze county-level market share for specific markets within target states
• Compare market share to total market size for each candidate location
• Assess industry concentration levels (high/moderate/low share)
• Research business climate and policies in high-share candidate states
• Verify market size and customer base for low-share candidate markets
• Consult with Business Initiative for location strategy guidance

Industry-Specific Recommendations

Professional Services (NAICS 54): Target markets with 10-15% market share. Professional services benefit from industry clustering for B2B opportunities while avoiding extreme concentration.

Retail Trade (NAICS 44-45): Focus on market share combined with population and income. High share with high population and income indicates strong consumer markets.

Health Care (NAICS 62): Look for moderate-to-high market share (8-12%) with aging population trends. Health care demand is driven by demographics, not just market share.

Accommodation and Food Services (NAICS 72): Target markets with share that matches tourism or employment activity. Restaurant success depends on foot traffic and customer density, not just market share.

Technology Services (NAICS 51): Prioritize markets with high tech-specific market share. Technology businesses benefit from talent pools and networking in tech hubs, which may have high tech share even if overall share is moderate.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

Mistake 1: Ignoring County-Level Data Focusing only on state-level market share misses critical local market differences. County-level share can vary significantly within the same state. Always analyze your specific county, not just state averages.

Mistake 2: Choosing Based Solely on Market Share High market share doesn’t always mean best opportunity. Consider both market share (industry presence) and total market size (opportunity). A state with lower share but 10x the total businesses may offer more total opportunity.

Mistake 3: Not Considering Multiple Metrics Market share by establishments may differ from share by employment or payroll. Analyze all three metrics to get complete picture of industry presence and economic impact.

Mistake 4: Overlooking Market Size Low-share markets may have less competition but also smaller customer bases. Verify total market size and customer base before choosing low-share markets.

Mistake 5: Ignoring Growth Trends Current market share shows today’s industry presence, but growth trends show tomorrow’s opportunity. Markets with increasing share signal expanding industry presence.

Optimization Strategies

For Maximum Industry Clustering: Target markets with 12%+ market share in your industry. These markets offer strong industry presence, customer density, and networking advantages.

For Balanced Approach: Focus on markets with 8-12% market share. You get proven industry presence with manageable competition and expansion opportunity.

For Underserved Opportunities: Consider markets with <5% market share that may offer opportunity, but carefully verify market size, customer base, and industry demand before committing.

For Diverse Markets: Choose markets where no single industry represents >20% of businesses. Diverse markets offer stability and multiple opportunity sources.

Timing Considerations

Best Time to Enter High-Share Markets: When you have capital and competitive advantage ready. High-share markets reward quality and differentiation but require resources to compete effectively.

Best Time to Enter Growing Markets: Early in the growth cycle. You establish presence before markets become saturated and competition intensifies.

When to Reassess: Review market share data annually when new CBP releases become available. Market positions change, and what was optimal 2-3 years ago may not be today.

Resource Recommendations

For Market Research:

• Census Bureau County Business Patterns (official CBP data source)
• NAICS code lookup tools (identify your industry classification)
• State economic development websites (local market insights)
• Industry association reports (industry-specific market data)

For Location Support:

• Business Initiative location strategy services
• Local chamber of commerce (county-level business information)
• State Secretary of State websites (business registration requirements)

For Market Validation:

• Combine CBP market share data with ACS demographic data for complete market picture
• Research local competition and industry presence through business directories
• Consult with Business Initiative for personalized location guidance

FAQs - Frequently Asked Questions About Industry Market Share Calculator: Sector

In Summary

Our comprehensive exploration of industry market share calculator: sector dominance by location (2022) has revealed critical insights into business patterns, market size, and industry distribution that can inform business strategy.

Calculate industry market share by location to understand sector dominance. This tool reveals which industries dominat

By understanding these statistics, you can make data-driven decisions about market entry, competitive analysis, and location strategy.

This analysis reveals important patterns and trends that inform business strategy and help identify opportunities.

Applying the insights from this article can have several practical benefits:

• Strategic Planning: Use this data to inform market analysis and competitive positioning.
• Competitive Analysis: Compare your market position against industry benchmarks.
• Risk Assessment: Understand market size and business density to assess opportunities.

By leveraging the information outlined in this article, businesses can gain a competitive edge and make more informed strategic decisions.

Ready to take action based on this data?

This data can help you make informed decisions about business location, market entry, and strategic planning.

Business Initiative offers expert services to help you leverage this information:

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