2021 State-Level GDP Data: Rebounding

Real gross domestic product (GDP) increased in all 50 states and the District of Columbia in 2021 as the economy continued to recover from the COVID-19 crisis. According to the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA), the percent change increase in real GDP ranged from 8.6 percent in Tennessee to 0.3 percent in Alaska.

Nationwide, growth in real GDP, measured on a seasonally adjusted annual rate basis, increased 5.7 percent in 2021, after a decline of 3.4 percent in 2020. Finance and insurance; information services; and professional, scientific, and technical services were the leading contributors to the increase in real GDP across the country.

Regionally, real GDP growth increased in all the regions between 2020 and 2021. The percent change in real GDP ranged from 7.3 percent increase in the Far West region (Alaska, California, Hawaii, Nevada, Oregon, and Washington) to 4.6 percent increase in the Mideast region (Delaware, District of Columbia, Maryland, New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania).

Overall, 18 out of 21 industry groups contributing to the increase in real GDP. Accommodation and food services; arts, entertainment, and recreation; and administrative and support and waste management and remediation services were the leading contributors the increase in real GDP in 2021.

At the state level, reopening of establishments, and continued economic recovery along with government response related to the COVID-19 pandemic helped all the states post GDP growth in 2021. Finance and insurance industry group was the leading contributor to the real GDP increase in Tennessee, the state with the largest increase. Tennessee, New Hampshire, California, Nevada, and Florida had the top five increases in GDP in 2021.  Alaska, Wyoming, North Dakota, Oklahoma, and Louisiana had the lowest increases in GDP last year.