See more visualizations like this on the Voronoi app.
Use This Visualization
Half of U.S. Exports Come From Just 6 States
See visuals like this from many other data creators on our Voronoi app. Download it for free on iOS or Android and discover incredible data-driven charts from a variety of trusted sources.
Key Takeaways
- Six states make up more than half of U.S. exports in 2025.
- Texas is the clear leader, accounting for 21.8% of the total.
- Meanwhile, 27 states each contribute less than 1%.
America’s export economy is far more concentrated than one would expect.
In 2025, just six states—Texas, California, New York, Louisiana, Illinois, and Florida—accounted for over half of all U.S. exports. Together, they generated roughly $1 trillion in trade, out of a $2.1 trillion total.
Texas stands far above the rest. The state alone makes up 21.8% of U.S. exports, meaning more than one in every five export dollars originates there.
Using the latest data from the U.S. Census Bureau, this chart shows how export activity is heavily concentrated across a small group of states, with most contributing only a fraction of the total.
Texas Exports More Than Entire Countries
With $450 billion in goods exports in 2025, Texas surpasses major global economies, including India ($445 billion) and Russia ($419 billion).
Despite a slight 1% annual decline, Texas exports have surged 81% over the past decade, driven largely by energy and industrial output. This highlights how a single U.S. state plays an outsized role not just nationally, but globally.
The table below shows how Texas’s scale of exports compare to the rest of America:
| Rank | State | Share of Total | Value | Change2024-2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Texas | 21.8% | $450.3B | -1% |
| 2 | California | 9.1% | $188.4B | 2% |
| 3 | New York | 7.4% | $153.1B | 63% |
| 4 | Louisiana | 4.5% | $93.4B | 8% |
| 5 | Illinois | 3.9% | $80.0B | -2% |
| 6 | Florida | 3.8% | $78.9B | 9% |
| 7 | Indiana | 3.3% | $68.8B | 14% |
| 8 | Washington | 3.2% | $65.3B | 13% |
| 9 | Georgia | 2.9% | $60.3B | 13% |
| 10 | Michigan | 2.8% | $58.3B | -7% |
| 11 | Ohio | 2.7% | $55.9B | -3% |
| 12 | Pennsylvania | 2.5% | $52.2B | -2% |
| 13 | Kentucky | 2.5% | $50.6B | 6% |
| 14 | Arizona | 2.2% | $44.4B | 37% |
| 15 | New Jersey | 2.1% | $44.2B | 2% |
| 16 | North Carolina | 2.1% | $43.8B | 2% |
| 17 | Massachusetts | 1.9% | $38.8B | 11% |
| 18 | South Carolina | 1.9% | $38.5B | 1% |
| 19 | Tennessee | 1.8% | $37.7B | -4% |
| 20 | Oregon | 1.4% | $28.0B | -17% |
| 21 | Wisconsin | 1.3% | $27.1B | -2% |
| 22 | Alabama | 1.1% | $23.7B | -12% |
| 23 | Minnesota | 1.1% | $23.5B | -13% |
| 24 | Utah | 1.1% | $22.4B | 23% |
| 25 | Virginia | 0.9% | $19.0B | -12% |
| 26 | Missouri | 0.9% | $18.7B | -3% |
| 27 | Connecticut | 0.9% | $17.7B | 2% |
| 28 | Maryland | 0.8% | $16.5B | -8% |
| 29 | Iowa | 0.8% | $16.2B | -5% |
| 30 | New Mexico | 0.7% | $15.3B | 27% |
| 31 | Kansas | 0.7% | $14.6B | 1% |
| 32 | Mississippi | 0.7% | $14.2B | 3% |
| 33 | Nevada | 0.6% | $12.7B | 22% |
| 34 | Colorado | 0.5% | $11.0B | 4% |
| 35 | North Dakota | 0.4% | $8.6B | 26% |
| 36 | Nebraska | 0.4% | $7.8B | -5% |
| 37 | Oklahoma | 0.4% | $7.5B | -4% |
| 38 | New Hampshire | 0.3% | $7.2B | 1% |
| 39 | Alaska | 0.3% | $6.7B | 13% |
| 40 | Arkansas | 0.3% | $6.6B | -4% |
| 41 | Delaware | 0.3% | $5.5B | 15% |
| 42 | West Virginia | 0.2% | $4.6B | -5% |
| 43 | Idaho | 0.2% | $4.6B | 7% |
| 44 | Rhode Island | 0.2% | $4.2B | 36% |
| 45 | Dist of Columbia | 0.2% | $3.7B | N/A |
| 46 | Maine | 0.2% | $3.2B | 2% |
| 47 | Montana | 0.1% | $2.1B | -12% |
| 48 | Vermont | 0.1% | $2.1B | 9% |
| 49 | Wyoming | 0.1% | $2.0B | -4% |
| 50 | South Dakota | 0.1% | $1.9B | -13% |
| 51 | Hawaii | 0.0% | $0.4B | -14% |
Louisiana is another standout, known for its massive LNG industry.
While it accounts for just 1.1% of U.S. GDP, it generates 4.5% of total exports, exceeding Florida, despite having a population nearly five times smaller. This imbalance underscores the importance of energy hubs in driving U.S. trade.
California, meanwhile, contributes 9.1% of exports ($188.4 billion), with Washington (3.2%) and Arizona (2.2%) also playing key roles across the West.
Most States Contribute Very Little
Beyond the top exporters, there’s a steep drop-off.
A total of 27 states each account for less than 1% of U.S. exports, with many contributing just a fraction of that. Smaller states like South Dakota, Wyoming, and Vermont each generate roughly 0.1% of exports, reflecting both their size and limited industrial base.
This level of concentration reveals how dependent U.S. trade is on a small number of states, particularly energy and manufacturing hubs.
While this concentration can drive efficiency, it also creates vulnerabilities. Economic shocks, policy changes, or disruptions in just a few regions could have an outsized impact on the entire U.S. export economy.
Learn More on the Voronoi App
To learn more about this topic, check out this graphic on the countries that rely most on imported energy.