Business Visualizations

The Biggest Employers by Industry

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There are more than 30 million businesses in the U.S. — but some of those companies employ far more workers than others. Giants like Walmart and Amazon have more than a million employees working on developing, marketing, transporting and selling their products everyday. Meanwhile, lesser-known companies in industries you may not be as familiar with also employ a significant amount of our workforce.

Using Fortune 500 data, our team at The Chartistry identified the largest employers in every industry, including retail, food, health care, real estate and many more (we included a whopping 75 industries total).

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The Biggest Employers by Industry

Who is the largest employer in America?

Technically, the largest employer in the U.S. is the federal government. But if we’re talking about the company that employs the most people, Walmart takes the cake.

Since Walmart’s first store opened in 1962, the company has grown to establish more than 11,500 stores globally to serve more than 260 million weekly shoppers in 28 countries, according to the company’s site. It’s no surprise that the retailer requires a lot of manpower. Walmart has 2,100,000 employees, and is the only one on our list that employs more than 2 million people.

Who else are America’s biggest employers?

Walmart may offer up the most jobs in the U.S.,but there are plenty of other companies with thousands of employees headed to work everyday. Some of the giants on the list of companies with the most employees in every industry are also among the largest U.S. employers in general.

Amazon, which started in Jeff Bezos’ garage in 1994 as an online bookseller, has grown up to make its mark around the world. There’s a good chance you’ve shopped online via the company, watched its streamer or walked past an Amazon retail store or fulfillment center. Amazon may have started with a solo founder, but it now employs 1,525,000 people.

Home Depot is another retail heavyweight. Founded in 1978 as a hardware store, the company now boasts more than 2,300 stores across North America. But offering up all that home improvement requires a lot of hands on deck: The company has 463,100 employees. That makes it the highest employer in one category of specialty retailers, but TJX, with 349,000 employees, is the largest employer in the apparel-specific specialty retailer category.

In the mail, package and freight delivery industry, you can probably guess who employs the most people. It’s FedEx, which was just an idea in 1965 when its eventual founder Frederick W. Smith wrote a paper at Yale University on the potential of a new way to get time-sensitive shipments to recipients (he received an average grade, according to the company’s website). Since then, the company makes around 14.5 million deliveries each day thanks to its 446,400 employees.

UnitedHealth Group also made our list, which makes sense, seeing as its the largest health insurance company in the U.S. Parent company of United Healthcare, the company was founded in 1977. Nowadays, it employs 440,000 people.

Curious which food and drug store is the largest employer? That would be Kroger, which had its start in 1883 when Barney Kroger invested his life savings of $372 to open a single grocery store. More than 140 years later, Kroger is the nation’s largest grocer with nearly 2,800 stores in 35 states and 414,000 employees. But if we’re talking specifically about food services, latte lovers’ favorite place, Starbucks, is the largest employer, with 381,000 employees. Looking specifically at the food consumer products industry, PepsiCo — which owns brands like Lay’s, Doritos, Gatorade, Quaker and, of course, Pepsi — is the largest employer with 318,000 employees.

The travel industry also requires tons of workers. American Airlines Group, which offers thousands of flights daily in more than 60 countries, is the largest employer in the airline industry with 132,100 people. Hilton Worldwide Holdings, meanwhile, has 178,000 employees to help run its hotels, casinos and resorts.

In the entertainment industry, a very familiar name earns the title for largest employer with its 199,125 workers: Walt Disney.

The largest U.S. employers in each industry

Here are the largest companies by employees in every industry — from hotels and airlines to pharmaceuticals and medical equipment.

Industry

Company

Number of Employees

General Merchandisers

Walmart

2,100,000

Internet Services and Retailing

Amazon

1,525,000

Specialty Retailers: Other

Home Depot

463,100

Mail, Package, and Freight Delivery

FedEx

446,400

Health Care: Insurance and Managed Care

UnitedHealth Group

440,000

Information Technology Services

Concentrix

440,000

Food and Drug Stores

Kroger

414,000

Insurance: Property and Casualty (Stock)

Berkshire Hathaway

396,500

Food Services

Starbucks

381,000

Specialty Retailers: Apparel

TJX

349,000

Food Consumer Products

PepsiCo

318,000

Commercial Banks

JPMorganChase

309,926

Health Care: Medical Facilities

HCA Healthcare

265,000

Diversified Outsourcing Services

Aramark

262,550

Health Care: Pharmacy and Other Services

CVS Health

259,500

Semiconductors and Other Electronic Components Equipment

Jabil

236,000

Computer Software

Microsoft

221,000

Entertainment

Walt Disney

199,125

Motor Vehicles & Parts

Lear

186,600

Telecommunications

Comcast

186,000

Aerospace & Defense

RTX

185,000

Hotels, Casinos, Resorts

Hilton Worldwide Holdings

178,000

Computers, Office Equipment

Apple

161,000

Food Production

Tyson Foods

139,000

Airlines

American Airlines Group

132,100

Pharmaceuticals

Johnson & Johnson

131,900

Real Estate

CBRE Group

130,000

Industrial Machinery

General Electric

125,000

Scientific, Photographic, and Control Equipment

Thermo Fisher Scientific

122,000

Medical Products and Equipment

Abbott Laboratories

114,000

Construction and Farm Machinery

Caterpillar

113,200

Transportation and Logistics

GXO Logistics

109,000

Household and Personal Products

Procter & Gamble

107,000

Network and Other Communications Equipment

Amphenol

95,000

Chemicals

3M

85,000

Diversified Financials

Marsh & McLennan

85,000

Apparel

Nike

83,700

Tobacco

Philip Morris International

82,700

Beverages

Coca-Cola

79,100

Advertising, Marketing

Omnicom Group

75,900

Wholesalers: Food and Grocery

Sysco

71,750

Insurance: Property and Casualty (Mutual)

State Farm Insurance

65,054

Petroleum Refining

Exxon Mobil

61,500

Financial Data Services

Fidelity National Information Services

60,000

Wholesalers: Diversified

Genuine Parts

60,000

Electronics, Electrical Equipment

Whirlpool

59,000

Oil And Gas Equipment, Services

Baker Hughes

58,000

Packaging And Containers

WestRock

56,100

Securities

Edward Jones

54,000

Engineering and Construction

Quanta Services

52,500

Home Equipment, Furnishings

Stanley Black & Decker

50,500

Waste Management

Waste Management

48,000

Wholesalers: Health Care

McKesson

48,000

Insurance: Life, Health (Stock)

MetLife

45,000

Trucking, Truck Leasing

J.B. Hunt Transport Services

34,718

Toys, Sporting Goods

Mattel

33,000

Railroads

Union Pacific

32,973

Metals

Nucor

32,000

Automotive Retailing, Services

CarMax

30,621

Building Materials, Glass

Builders FirstSource

29,000

Utilities: Gas and Electric

PG&E

28,010

Wholesalers: Electronics and Office Equipment

TD Synnex

28,000

Temporary Help

Manpower Group

27,900

Mining, Crude-Oil Production

Freeport-McMoRan

27,200

Equipment Leasing

United Rentals

26,300

Publishing, Printing

News Corp.

25,000

Miscellaneous

Service Corporation International

21,267

Transportation Equipment

Polaris

18,500

Energy

NRG Energy

18,131

Education

Graham Holdings

17,006

Insurance: Life, Health (Mutual)

TIAA

16,023

Pipelines

Energy Transfer

13,786

Homebuilders

D.R. Horton

13,450

Forest and Paper Products

Domtar

13,000

Shipping

Kirby Corporation

5,450

Don’t miss our other visuals (Chartistry Originals) that give insight into some of the biggest employers in the U.S, including our map of the biggest Fortune 500 companies in every state, breakdown of America’s most valuable companies ranked by profit per employee and original chart of everything owned by Apple.

Source:

Fortune 500

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Business Visualizations

Study Identifies the Best Cities for First-Time Real Estate Investors

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People who want to jump into the real estate investment market have an important question to contend with: Which city should they invest their money in? The team at LLC Attorney has arrived with answers in their new study, which condenses tons of information on the real estate market to identify the 50 best cities for first-time investors. Each town has its own unique characteristics, benefits, and setbacks, but as the team proves, they each offer a powerful incentive for real estate investors.

The team started their study by pulling the 100 most populated cities from the Real Estate Investment Index and pinpointing their 50 ideal cities. The towns on their list are affordable, have high rental income potential, and have landlord-friendly laws. To create their list, the team considered state-level laws on rentals, rent-controlled cities, and the job market in each location. Their potential rental income calculations are based on average monthly rent, median home sale price, gross rental yield, and the market temperature. As for landlord-friendliness, the team considered average eviction time, security deposit limit, and rent control laws.

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The Best Cities for First-Time Real Estate Investors

Out of all 50 cities, the team determined that Port St. Lucie, Florida, is the best city for first-time real estate investors to buy property. This growing city shows no signs of slowing, with median property sale prices lower than other major Florida cities, like Miami and Tampa. The job market in Port St. Lucie is strong in healthcare and education, and business-friendly for entrepreneurs. These factors all combine to represent a city that’s attracting more residents every day. It will be a reliable source of rental income for investors.

Cape Coral, Florida, took the second-place spot for similar reasons. Low property taxes, a growing population, and residents flocking to beaches and parks for seasonal living push up the Cape Coral housing demand and rental potential. The lone midwestern city in the top four is Cleveland, Ohio, drawing in investors with affordable housing and lots of demand because of the strong employers based in this lakeside city. Garland, Texas, comes in fourth with more affordable housing than neighboring Dallas, while still located close to all the dining and entertainment that Dallas offers. Popular Garland employers include FedEx, Interceramic USA, Presbyterian Hospital, and Arena Brands, Inc.

In addition to focusing on the 50 cities the team lists, they suggest that first-time investors look to more seasoned investors for advice. Many expert investors speak at conferences, publish guidebooks, and produce educational videos to share their knowledge. Networking with fellow investors is another great way for new investors to gain support and learn quickly. There are countless networking opportunities on social media and in local groups like your local chamber of commerce. Last, investors need to decide whether they’re looking to buy property close to home that they can maintain themselves, or property far away, in which case they’ll need to hire a property manager. No matter your path, the LLC Attorney team offers a great start with this data.

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Business Visualizations

New Collection of Cybersecurity of Tips and Statistics Highlights Importance for Business

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Cybercrimes are an all-too-common occurrence that every modern business needs to protect itself from. The team at Ooma makes a compelling case for this with a new graphic packed full of information on cyberattacks and tips on cybersecurity. Data leaks and ransomware attacks can affect large and small businesses, leading to very real consequences that can impact customers. These attacks can destroy finances, disrupt operations for weeks, and damage the essential trust between customer and business.

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How businesses should be protecting themselves from cybersecurity threats in 2025

Cybersecurity is the protection of digital systems and networks from attacks that can involve phishing scams, malware installation, and data theft. Bad actors can be motivated by anything from financial gain to espionage and even the entertainment of a prank. Cybersecurity strategies allow businesses to protect themselves with a combination of data encryption, staff training, network security, and threat monitoring.

Businesses have to invest in strong cybersecurity, as we can see from global spending exceeding $1.25 trillion in 2025. This number doesn’t sound so high when cyberattacks are expected to cost the economy ten times that amount in the next year. The average cost of a data breach for companies is over $5 million, not including fines, reputation damage, and revenue loss.

Some areas of business are targeted more often than others. These sectors include:

  • State institutions/political systems: 51.78%
  • Critical infrastructure: 41.73%
  • Corporate targets: 15.14%
  • Social groups: 6.17%
  • Media and education: Around 6% each

Attackers go after these sectors the most because daily life and economic stability depend on them, so they have high value to criminals and bad actors from other nations. Threats come in many forms, and to some extent, every message opened online is a risk, but these are the most common threats:

  • Phishing: Fraudulent emails that trick employees into revealing passwords and sensitive data.
  • Ransomware: Malicious software that blocks access to data and files until a ransom is paid.
  • Malware: Software that’s damaging and gains unauthorized access to a system.
  • Data breaches: Unauthorized individuals gain access to confidential information.
  • Denial-of-service attacks: A server or network is purposely overloaded to become unavailable to users.
  • Insider threats: Employees who maliciously or accidentally compromise security systems.

After making the threats clear, the Ooma team shared the best cybersecurity tips for businesses. Their list includes:

  • Train employees to prevent cyber-attacks.
  • Install antivirus software.
  • Keep security software up to date.
  • Use a firewall and data encryption to stay secure.
  • Secure all Wi-Fi networks.
  • Use strong passwords.
  • Create user accounts for every employee.
  • Enable multi-factor authentication.
  • Back up important business data.
  • Limit employee access to data and software installation.
  • Restrict administrative privileges.
  • Secure your payment systems.
  • Protect business mobile phones.
  • Monitor cloud service providers.
  • Conduct regular cybersecurity audits.

The team’s chart, which is fully illustrated and easy to read, provides a wealth of information on their advice.

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Business Visualizations

Study Analyzes How Company Age Shapes Remote Work Adoption

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Before the Internet, the traditional workday happened on-site or in an office space. Businesses relied on face-to-face interaction in customer service and functions. Physical presences were needed to answer phones, greet clients, keep a filing system, and produce work. But high-speed internet access and video conferencing changed the face of the workday. Office-based work was no longer necessary. The COVID-10 pandemic pushed workers home by necessity, and once the danger passed, employees began to demand the continuing flexibility of a work-at-home schedule. However, not every company or business is ready to adapt.

The team at Ooma performed a comprehensive analysis of data from the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2022 Annual Business Survey. The findings revealed interesting patterns in how the age of a company influences its decision to offer remote work. The youngest companies, those under 2 years old, most commonly offered work-from-home options at 43.9%. The older the company, the fewer remote work options there were. Here are the statistics: 41.8% for businesses aged 2–3 years, 40.8% for 4–5 years, 40.4% for 6–10 years, 38.2% for 11–15 years, and 35.6% for companies with 16 or more years in operation.

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Are new companies more likely to support working from home?

When studying why companies don’t adopt remote work, the primary obstacle was clear and consistent across companies of all ages. 56.8% to 69.1% of companies said that job incompatibility was the biggest barrier to remote work. Obviously, not all tasks can be performed remotely. After job incompatibility, companies cited security concerns as the biggest barrier to remote work. However, the younger the company, the less likely they were to have computer security concerns. Younger companies are more likely to rely on cloud-based work software with built-in security features.

After these two reasons, management complexity was the most common barrier. The larger the company, the more difficult managing remote workers might become. The most interesting category might have been the data on companies reporting “no limiting factors” to remote work. 39.7% of the youngest companies said there were no barriers and 27.6% of the oldest companies believed there were no barriers to offering remote work.

The team also examined the number of remote workers and changes over time. It was clear that the COVID-19 pandemic skyrocketed the number of remote workers. Only 23% of remote work-capable employees actually worked from home in 2019. By 2023, 35% of these employees worked from home, down from the pandemic peak of 38% in 2021. Although there was a peak in remote work at the height of the pandemic, it’s clear that remote work is much more common now than it was before the pandemic.

The findings point to newer companies having more willingness and capability to offer remote work, though large legacy businesses have the biggest staff and most resources to hire remote workers. However, they have the biggest challenges in adapting old systems to new ways of working, a task young companies don’t need to worry about.

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