Virginia Business by the Numbers: 2026 Company Breakdown
Virginia has 1,598,461 business records in Factur’s directory — the 12th-most of any U.S. state, or 2.5% of the national total. Richmond leads its cities with 7.2% of the state’s records, Industrial & mechanical is the largest sector at 30.5%, and Virginia ranks 12th for large employers (500+ employees).
Data as of July 2026. The figures come from Factur’s U.S. business directory, spanning 35 Virginia cities and 9 industry sectors. They count records, not unique companies: one company can have more than one record (see the methodology). Every number links to the browsable list behind it. Journalists and researchers are welcome to cite these figures with a link back to this page.
Key findings
- Virginia ranks 12th nationally with 1,598,461 business records — 2.5% of all 64,799,929 U.S. records in the directory.
- A national-average share of large employers. Virginia is 12th for records of companies with 500+ employees (2,473), with 15.5 per 10,000 records against 14.0 nationally (22nd of 52 states).
- Virginia has more real estate than the U.S. mix:Real Estate is 5.2% of the state’s records against 4.4% nationally (1.2×).
- Richmond is the state’s largest business hub, with 7.2% of all Virginia records.
- Business is concentrated in a few metros: Richmond, Virginia Beach and Alexandria together hold 17.8% of the state’s records.
How Virginia ranks nationally
Virginia and its closest neighbours by total business records. Select a state to open its own study.
Top Virginia cities by number of business records
These 10 cities account for 35.7% of all records in Virginia. Select any city to browse its full company list.
Virginia businesses by industry
Every record is classified by its primary industry using NAICS/SIC codes; the shares are of all Virginia records. Select a sector to see those Virginia companies.
What sets Virginia apart
Sectors that make up a bigger share of Virginia’s records than of the U.S. as a whole. A ratio of 2.0× means the sector is twice as common here as nationally. Select a sector to browse it.
Virginia businesses by size
Most records in every state are small businesses. In Virginia, 1.72% of records with a known size have 51 or more employees, against 1.77% nationally. 779 records belong to companies with $1 billion or more in revenue.
| Employees | Records | Virginia | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1-50 | 1,556,831 | 98.28% | 98.23% |
| 51-200 | 20,336 | 1.28% | 1.37% |
| 201-1000 | 5,639 | 0.36% | 0.33% |
| 1001-5000 | 765 | 0.05% | 0.05% |
| 5001+ | 436 | 0.03% | 0.02% |
What the numbers show
Virginia’s 1,598,461 records place it 12th nationally, 2.5% of the U.S. total, and 12th for large employers. Activity clusters in its largest metros — Richmond, Virginia Beach and Alexandria alone account for 17.8% of the state’s records — and the state leans toward real estate compared with the rest of the country. For buyers and sellers, that means the deepest pools of suppliers sit in a handful of cities and sectors; the charts above link straight into each so you can shortlist by capability and region.
Frequently asked questions
How many businesses are in Virginia?
Factur’s directory has 1,598,461 business records for Virginia, the 12th-most of any U.S. state. That counts records rather than unique companies: a company can have more than one record, so the number of distinct businesses is lower.
How many large companies are in Virginia?
2,473 Virginia records belong to companies with 500 or more employees, 12th among U.S. states, or 15.5 per 10,000 records against 14.0 nationally. Large companies often have several records (one per department or location), so this overstates the number of distinct large employers.
Which Virginia city has the most businesses?
Richmond has the most, with 7.2% of the state’s records.
What is the largest industry in Virginia?
Industrial & mechanical is the largest sector, at 30.5% of Virginia records. Compared with the U.S. mix, Virginia has proportionally more real estate.
Where does this data come from?
From Factur’s U.S. business directory as of July 2026, classified by city and by primary industry using NAICS/SIC codes. Every figure on this page links to the list behind it.
Cite this data
Free to use with attribution — please credit Factur and link back to this page.
Factur. (2026). Virginia Business by the Numbers: 2026 Company Breakdown. data.facturmfg.com. https://data.facturmfg.com/insights/virginia<a href="https://data.facturmfg.com/insights/virginia">Virginia Business by the Numbers: 2026 Company Breakdown</a> — data by FacturMethodology
Figures count records in Factur’s U.S. business directory as of July 2026, classified by city and primary industry using NAICS/SIC codes. Records cover manufacturers, suppliers and businesses of all sizes. They are not a count of unique companies: one company can have several records (for example one per department or location), and some records are duplicates. That affects large companies most, so treat raw totals as an upper bound and rely on the ranks, shares and comparisons, which it affects much less. These are directory totals, not official census figures. Percentages are computed against the Virginia directory total; size shares use records with a known employee count. Data compiled by Factur, a sales and marketing firm for B2B manufacturers.
Looking for a specific industry in Virginia? Browse the Virginia directory → or contact us for a custom data pull.