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How Large is Florida's Economy?

To best measure how large Florida's economy is, we compared the Gross State Product (GSP) of Florida, which is similar to national GDP except on a state level, to see how the value of all goods and services produced in Florida compares to all other states. For calendar year 2024, Florida's gross state product was estimated to be $1.70 trillion, making it the 4th largest economy in the nation behind California ($4.08 trillion), Texas ($2.69 trillion) and New York ($2.28 trillion). As the total value of all GDP for the U.S. was $29 trillion last year, Florida respectively contributes 5.80% of the nation's total output.

When comparing the size of Florida's economy on a global scale, the total output of all goods and services produced in the sunshine state each year makes it the 15th largest economy on the planet, larger than many nations. View the GDP ranking of all countries.

Florida's Major Industries

Having overviewed the strength and scale of the Florida economy, let's now take a deeper look at the major industries which drive the Florida economy. Many of these industries are naturally strong due to Florida's warmer year-round climate as well as its geographic location in the southeast U.S.

1. Tourism & Hospitality

   Florida's tourism and hospitality industry, which spans theme parks, amusement parks, resorts, hotels, food and dining, has seen a healthy rebound since the pandemic. In 2023, Florida achieved 135 million tourists, just below its all-time high of 137.4 million tourists in 2022. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), the tourism and hospitality industry currently employs approximately 1.14 million people which is roughly 10.9% of the state's total workforce. Top Florida tourism and hospitality companies include Walt Disney World, Marriott International, Royal Caribbean, and Darden Restaurants.

2. Real Estate & Development

   Florida's real estate industry, which includes the development, sales, marketing, leasing, appraisal and management of residential and commercial properties, is stronger than ever. New residential communities, hi-rise condos and commercial shopping plazas are being built at record pace as the great migration to Florida continues. According to the National Association of Realtors, the real estate industry in Florida accounts for roughly $255.6 billion, or 23.3% of the state's gross product. Top Florida real estate and development companies include Lennar, Realogy and Benderson Development.

3. Aviation & Aerospace

   Florida's aviation & aerospace industry, which includes the manufacturing of aircraft and components, space exploration, training, engineering and design, is comprised of more than 16,000 companies and 151,000+ employees according to spaceflorida.gov. Florida, which is home to 20 commercial and 130 public-use airports, is also the undisputed leader in the global aerospace industry as many innovative companies are redefining the limits of space exploration. Top Florida aviation and aerospace companies include Raytheon Technologies, SpaceX, and Blue Origin.

4. Clean Energy

   Florida's clean energy industry, which includes self-renewing energy sources such as solar, wind, water, gas, nuclear and bioenergy, comprises more than 11,000 clean energy companies. According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, 5% of Florida's total energy production currently comes from renewable resources with the majority coming from solar. Top Florida clean energy companies include NextEra Energy, GE Wind Energy, and Algenol Biofuels.

5. Defense & Homeland Security

   Florida's defense and homeland security industry, which encompasses the design, production and maintenance of military systems and security components used in protecting the U.S. is one of the nation's largest. According to Enterprise Florida, the state's economic development organization, Florida is home to 20 major military installations, 17,900 military and defense related companies with over 194,000 employees that contributes roughly $95 billion, or 9%, of Florida's gross state product each year. Top Florida defense and homeland security companies include L3Harris, Northrop Grumman, and Lockheed Martin.

6. Financial & Professional Services

   Florida's financial and professional services industry, which spans banks, credit unions, insurance companies, accounting, asset management and consulting firms, is home to many top financial companies. In fact, Florida is now home to the 3rd largest cluster of financial and insurance companies in the nation and employs over 425,000 Floridians (Enterprise Florida). Top Florida financial and professional companies include Fidelity National Information Services, Navy Federal Credit Union, and Raymond James.

7. Logistics & Distribution

   Florida's logistics and distribution industry, which includes the travel, warehousing and tracking of goods by air, water, rail and truck, is very large as it comprises roughly 20% of the nation's total exporting of goods. Florida's 20 commercial-use airports, 15 deep-water seaports, 3,400+ miles of Interstate roadway and 2,800 miles of railway make it an ideal location to ship goods internationally to and from the United States. Top Florida logistics and distribution companies include CSX Corporation, Ryder, and Landstar.

8. Manufacturing

   Florida's manufacturing industry, which includes the production of goods with the help of equipment, labor and machines, spans a myriad of sectors including electronics, building materials and consumer products. Florida is currently home to over 20,000 manufacturing companies and nearly 400,000 jobs (Bureau of Labor Statistics). Top Florida manufacturing companies include Tropicana, PGT and Boston Whaler.

9. Medical & Life Sciences

   Florida's medical and life sciences industry, which includes medical research and development, biotechnology, genomics, scientific engineering and pharmaceuticals, is very healthy (pun intended) as Florida is home to many top-ranked hospitals, research parks and university research centers. According to Bio Florida, the voice of Florida's life sciences industry, there are 6,700 life sciences related companies in Florida employing roughly 100,000 workers. Top Florida medical and life sciences' companies include Bristol-Myers Squibb, AbbVie, and Cardinal Health.

10. Technology

    Florida's technology industry, which encompasses hardware, software, storage, semiconductors, security, simulation and components related to Internet infrastructure, is home to over 33,000 technology related companies and roughly 315,000 employees (Enterprise Florida). Florida's metropolitan areas of Jacksonville, Tampa Bay, Orlando and Miami-Fort Lauderdale are often recognized as growing tech hubs in the U.S. by Forbes and other popular city-ranking publications. Top Florida technology companies include Tech Data, Jabil, and Citrix.

10 Largest Florida Companies
by Revenues

Rank	Company	Revenue
1.	Publix	$38.5 B
2.	Tech Data	$37.0 B
3.	World Fuel Services	$36.8 B
4.	Jabil	$25.2 B
5.	Lennar	$22.3 B
6.	Auto Nation	$21.3 B
7.	NextEra Energy	$19.2 B
8.	L3Harris Technologies	$12.9 B
9.	CSX	$11.9 B
10.	ODP	$10.6 B

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10 Largest Florida Companies
by Employees

Rank	Company	Employees
1.	Publix	207,000
2.	Jabil	200,000
3.	Darden Restaurants	184,514
4.	Bloomin' Brands	94,000
5.	Fidelity National	55,000
6.	L3Harris Technologies	50,000
7.	ODP	40,000
8.	Ryder	39,900
9.	Hertz Global Holdings	38,000
10.	Auto Nation	25,000