North Carolina State of Technology Industry Report
Key
Findings
WOMEN IN TECH
NC remains the #1 state in the percentage of women who make up the Tech Industry workforce with 37.7%
NC STRENGTHS
• #1 state for Women in the Tech Industry with 37.7% of workforce
• #1 state with the lowest effective business tax rate in the nation at 3.5%
• #2 in business friendliness which is crucial in tech sector prominent states
• #3 in averge in-state tuition costs with a year of school costing $7,474
• #4 in Tech Occupations Job Change and Expected Energy Tech Job Change
• #5 in Higher Education R&D in Science & Engineering with 0.52%
• #7 state in Start-Ups From Universities in 2023 with 39 new companies started
• #8 in Tech Industry Employment Growth at 18.8% which is 6% higher than the National Average
• #9 state in percentage of Workers Working from Home at 16.1%
TECH INDUSTRY OVERVIEW
In 2023, the Tech Industry employed 323,200 people and workers earned about $42 billion in income in the state of North Carolina. The Tech Industry accounted directly for 7% of the total jobs in the state but 12% of the state’s total earnings and almost 11% in sales. In 2023, there were over 34,340 technology establishments operating in North Carolina, an increase of 3,954 from estimates in the previous report.
ECONOMIC IMPACT
The Tech Industry in North Carolina has an employment multiplier of 3.32 meaning that for every one job in the Tech Industry approximately two other jobs are supported throughout the state economy across all industries. $42 billion in earnings in the Tech Industry supports $89 billion in wages across the NC economy, accounting for almost 26% of state’s total earnings. The Tech Industry contributes 22% to the overall state employment.
TECH SERVICES OUTPUT
Tech services represent the high-tech core services like social media, data storage, telecommunications, and software companies. From 2018-2023 NC ranked #8 in Tech Services Job Change.
ENERGY TECH INDUSTRY
As we shift to cleaner tech like solar, wind, nuclear & carbon capture, NC is predicted to add jobs in this industry group at the #4 highest rate in the next five years.
IT INDUSTRY EMPLOYMENT GROWTH
Employment growth rate in IT from 2018 to 2023 was 19.2%. This ranks North Carolina #12 across all states.
TOP TIER
NC ranks among Top 15 states in:
• % of Women in the Total Tech Industry
• Tech Occupations Job Change
• Expected Energy Tech Job Change
• Expected Tech Services Job Change
• Tech Services Job Change
• Tech Occupations Earnings
• Expected Total Tech Industry Job Change
• Total Tech Industry Job Change
• Tech Manufacturing Earnings
• Energy Tech Job Change
• Life Sciences Job Change
• Expected Tech Occupations Job Change
• IT Job Change
• Tech Manufacturing Emp. Concentration
• Life Sciences Emp. Concentration
• Expected IT Job Change
• IT Employment Concentration
• Life Sciences Earnings
• Total Tech Industry Earnings
• Effective Business Tax Rate
• Business Friendliness
• University Tuition Cost
• Higher Ed R&D in Science & Engineering
• Start-Ups From Universities
• FDI Employment
• Domestic Migration Rate
• Work From Home
• Business Performed R&D
• Projected Working Age Pop. Change
• Cost of Living
• State Spending for Higher Education
• STEM Education Programs
• Tech Licenses and Options from Univ.
• Venture Capital Invested
• Percent Change in STEM Programs
• SBIR and STTR Funding
• Business Dynamism
• Domestic Migration Wealth Change
• Total R&D
• H-1B Visa Beneficiaries
TECH INDUSTRY JOB GROWTH
One of the strongest performance indicators for the state’s tech industry is its recent growth and future growth potential. In the past five years, jobs in this industry have grown by almost 19%. That is the #8 highest growth rate in the country, and nearly six percentage points higher than the national average.
$140,700
Average earning per worker in the Tech Industry
TECH OCCUPATIONS
There are 437,690 workers in tech occupations in North Carolina. This is higher than the 323,200 workers employed by the Tech Industry. This means there is a significant portion of tech occupations outside the traditional tech companies in the state. 35% of tech occupations are located at tech companies, the rest are employed in other industries.
#1
#4
North Carolina holds its rank at third in Average In-State 4-Year University Tuition Cost.
BUSINESS FRIENDLINESS
North Carolina ranked #1 state with the lowest effective business tax rate in the nation at 3.5%. Helping recruit new businesses and retain existing companies.
LIFE SCIENCES INDUSTRY
Starting with last year’s report, the performance of the other subcategories of the tech industry were ranked. Life Sciences was the fastest growing tech subcategory in the state from 2018 to 2023. In 2023, Life Sciences accounted for 2.3% of North Carolina’s employment with a location quotient of 1.12. This was the 13th most concentrated Life Science economy in the nation. The subcategory has expanded jobs at a rate of 27% over the last five years. That growth ranked 10th in the nation, adding about 10,390 net new jobs in the last 5 years.
EXPECTED ENERGY TECH JOBS
Renewable energy jobs grew by 78% in the last five years. This, combined with national expansion in clean energy, is why the state is predicted to add jobs in this industry group at the 4th highest rate in the next 5 years.
#10
North Carolina ranks tenth for Business Performed R&D % of Private Industry Output
#11
North Carolina had the eleventh lowest cost of living in the Nation
ABOUT THE REPORT
In January 2015, the North Carolina Technology Association (NC TECH) released its first State of Technology Industry Report, and annually thereafter. The full report is housed online at NCSTIR.com and this Key Findings summary features some of the highlights from the research.
The valuable information in the report has a variety of uses:
Repository of facts, statistics, trends, narratives + insights into NC’s tech sector
Guide for companies considering headquarters relocation or operations establishment
Source of data + trends for policy makers
Collection of stories that highlight the vibrancy of the state’s tech sector
Resource for innovation sector organizations, economic development community, + media
For more information about NC TECH and the State of Technology Industry Report, visit nctech.org
ABOUT THE RESEARCHER
Ted Abernathy is the managing partner at Economic Leadership LLC, an information curation consultancy firm that provides leadership to various organizations including local and state governments, chambers of commerce and private organizations. Prior to starting Economic Leadership, Ted had 30 years of experience as an economic development director for city, county and regional economic development programs. More information at econleadership.com
