US Construction By the Numbers: Construction Statistics You Need to Know

Statistical graph superimposed over photo of buildings under construction

As one of the largest industries in the US (and the world), the construction market remains lucrative. Beyond the coronavirus-induced hiccups that hit the industry in early 2020, the US construction industry is constantly changing and adjusting to new economic climates around the globe. Construction statistics from 2020 show that there is not only a lot of growth in the market — but also increased risks.

Today, construction data is an invaluable asset for contractors that can assist them in their decision-making — from preconstruction to collecting payment. Construction statistics are changing how suppliers, subcontractors, and general contractors budget, schedule projects, bid, measure success with key performance indicators (KPIs), and more.

Contractors may also utilize construction statistics to make educated decisions regarding their business’ future, such as with productivity or with mapping out preconstruction. Risk assessment is also made clearer for contractors with access to construction statistics.

One such risk is the payment processes of the construction industry, which have become a focal point of research in recent years.

As published in the 2020 National Construction Payment Report conducted in Quarter 1 of 2020, a survey of over 540 construction professionals found that 80% of construction businesses spend a significant portion of their work week seeking payments for their work. Additionally, just 50% of those businesses said they receive payment within 30 days of invoicing.

Below are some key construction categories with recent statistics from that shed light on the state of the industry in the US, the workforce that powers it, and payment standards. These statistics not only provide a current outlook for construction, but also future trends for the industry.

Table of Contents

The US construction industry at a glance

In 2019, the US construction industry was worth $1.3 trillion.¹

As of 2020, the construction industry has 680,000+ employers and 7 million employees² — this is a decrease from 2018, where there were 11.2 million construction employees.³

As of January 2020, over 50% of US contractors expected profit increases within a six-month timeframe. Over the tumultuous course of 2020, confidence reached “historic lows” in April of 2020, but as of the October 2020 report, it has continued to rebound.⁴

Construction spending data

US construction spending totaled $1.3 trillion in 2019.¹⁰

Average US total construction spending totalled $1.04 trillion between 2009 and 2019.¹⁰
US private sector construction spending totalled $977 billion U.S. in 2019.¹⁰
US public sector construction spending totalled $329 billion U.S. in 2019.¹⁰
US commercial construction spending totalled $92 billion in 2019.¹¹
US single-family residential construction spending totalled $276 billion in 2019.¹¹
FMI forecasts spending to reach $314 billion by 2023, an increase of 5%.
US multifamily residential construction spending totalled $64 billion in 2019.¹¹
FMI forecasted spending to reach $68 billion by 2020, an increase of 5%.
In 2019, the construction industry accounted for 4.1% of the US GDP.¹³

Top five states with the most construction spending* in 2019

Texas – $45.4 billion
New York – $32.1 billion
California – $24.8 billion
Florida – $23 billion
Pennsylvania – $12.6 billion

Five states with the least construction spending* in 2019

Wyoming – $298 million
Vermont – $363 million
Alaska – $449 million
Montana – $532 million
West Virginia – $654 million

*Private, non-residential spending¹²

Credit and payments in construction

63.2% of contractors say they “sometimes” get paid on time according to terms in their contract.²⁹

Speech bubble illustration saying "49% of construction payments were not paid on time in 2019"

26.9% of contractors say it takes between 31-45 days to receive payment after invoicing.²⁹

The median DSO in the construction/engineering industry was 90 days in 2019.¹⁵

49% of construction payments were not paid on time in 2019.²⁹

Mechanics liens: In a 2019 survey of 503 contractors, 74% of contractors claimed they filed a mechanics lien within the last year.³⁰

Construction dispute statistics

North America’s average length of construction disputes was 17.6 months and average value of construction disputes was $18.8 million in 2019.¹⁴

The same study cites mediation as the most common method of construction alternative dispute resolution that year.

The most common construction dispute cause was listed as contractor/subcontractor “failing to understand and/or comply” with a contractual obligation in 2019.¹⁴

Construction industry business statistics

Top 10 Biggest Construction Companies in the US in 2020:

Bechtel (Reston, Virginia)
The Turner Corporation (New York, New York)
AECOM (Los Angeles, California)
The Whiting-Turner Contracting Company (Baltimore, Maryland)
Kiewit Corporation (Omaha, Nebraska)
McDermott International (Houston, Texas)
STO Building Group Incorporated (New York, New York)
Skanska USA (New York, New York)
PCL Construction (Denver, Colorado)
Gilbane Building Company (Providence, Rhode Island)

The average revenue from these companies in 2020 was $11.28 billion.¹⁵

The average gross profit margin in the construction industry was 22.41% in Quarter 3 of 2020 (data calculated only using publicly-traded construction companies).¹⁶
The construction industry net margin was 8.56 % in Quarter 3 of 2020 (data calculated only using publicly-traded construction companies).¹⁶
The average construction net profit margin was 7.6% in 2017 (for single-family home building companies).¹⁷
The average construction backlog is 7.5 months as of September 2020.¹⁸

Workforce statistics in construction

11.3 million Americans worked in the construction industry in 2018,¹⁹ and there were 12,000 new construction jobs added each month in 2019.²¹

Construction industry jobs and salaries

The average construction laborer salary was $42,320 in 2019.²⁰
The average construction manager salary was $103,960 in 2019.²⁰
The average construction industry hourly wage was $29.07 as of September 2020.²⁰

Who works in the construction industry?

12.6% of construction industry workers were union members in 2019.²⁰
Women make up 10.3% of the construction industry workforce.²²
88.1% of employees in the US construction industry identify their race as white.¹⁹
6.4% of employees in the US construction industry identify their race as African American.¹⁹
1.9% of employees in the US construction industry identify their race as Asian.¹⁹
30.4% of employees in the US construction industry identify their ethnicity as Hispanic or Latino.¹⁹

Safety statistics in construction

21.1% of worker fatalities in the private industry came from the construction industry in 2018.²³
One in five U.S. worker deaths were in construction in 2018.²³
Falls were the leading causes of private sector worker deaths in the construction industry in 2018.²³
1008 construction worker deaths in private industry (2018).²³

Illustration: 1 in 5 US worker deaths were in construction in 2018

Top causes of death in construction (2018)

Falls: 33.5% of construction deaths were caused by falls.²³
Falling objects: 11.1% of construction deaths caused by falling objects.²³
Electrocution: 8.5% of construction deaths caused by electrocution.²³
Caught-in/Compressed by equipment: 5.5% of construction deaths caused by workers caught-in or compressed by equipment or objects.²³

COVID-19 construction statistics

2% of construction workers have reported their hours increased since the week of March 1, 2020.²⁴

Construction industry percentage change in employment

Change of employment in major metropolitan areas following the COVID-19 outbreak between February and June of 2020²⁵:

New York, NY/Newark, NJ/Jersey City, NJ (-10%)
Seattle/Tacoma/Bellevue (-5.7%)
Dallas/Fort Worth (-4.8%)
Los Angeles, CA (-2.6%)
Miami, FL (-2.3%)
Boston, MA (-2%)
Philadelphia, PA/Camden, NJ/Wilmington, DE (-1.9%)

39% of contractors say they have not made any changes in response to COVID-19,²⁹ while 21% of contractors say they are more selective about the customers/jobs they accept since COVID-19.²⁹

31% of contractors have applied for SBA loans or other financing since COVID-19.²⁹