Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services ·NAICS 541

2026 data Public-data reference. IRS SOI · Census CBP · 2023 Unknown margin

Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services — Industry Benchmarks

Profit margins, payroll, employment, and SBA lending for Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services (NAICS 541). Cross-checked against IRS SOI 2023 and Census County Business Patterns. Refreshed as new data lands.

Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services (NAICS 541) does not have profit margin data available in the current IRS SOI release. Census Bureau data identifies 989,182 business establishments employing 10,401,442 workers nationwide.

Benchmarking Insights for Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services

When you read the financial profile for Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services, the number only becomes actionable when paired with scale. This industry sits inside the broader Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services sector and reports N/A of aggregate annual receipts. Owners comparing their own books should read the margin as a midpoint — smaller operators typically run several points below the aggregate because fixed overhead (rent, software, insurance) consumes a larger share of lower revenue bases. Treat the industry figure as a ceiling calibrated by businesses that have already achieved operating leverage.

Labor economics tell the second half of the story. Census CBP shows 989,182 active establishments employing 10,401,442 workers, averaging 10.5 employees per location and paying $107,141/yr per employee annually. California leads the geographic distribution of employment, with Texas and New York rounding out the top three concentrations. Headcount density matters because thin-margin industries only clear the cash-flow bar when establishments reach the staffing level where fixed costs amortize — a useful cross-check against the margin line above.

Capital access is the third lens. SBA 7(a) and 504 approvals for this industry totaled 37,881 loans worth $17.2 billion between FY2020 and FY2025, supporting 313,294 jobs at origination. The average ticket size — $453K — signals the typical capital gap operators bridge when expanding. The Huntington National Bank ranks as the most active SBA lender serving this NAICS code. Use this alongside the IRS and Census figures to decide whether your own plan should target operational efficiency, workforce expansion, or financed growth.

Profit Margin

N/A

Net income ÷ total receipts (IRS SOI)

Total Receipts

N/A

Annual revenue (IRS SOI)

Net Income

N/A

Pre-tax net income

Employment

10,401,442

Total employees (Census CBP)

Avg Payroll / Employee

$107,141/yr

Annual compensation

Establishments

989,182

Business locations

Workforce scale

Establishment-size distribution and per-establishment headcount based on Census Statistics of US Businesses (SUSB) typical strata.

Financial Detail

Total Tax Returns Filed
N/A
Total Deductions
N/A
Avg Receipts per Business
N/A
Annual Payroll (Total)
$1.1T
Avg Employees per Establishment
10.5

Sub-Industries

Industry Profit Margin
Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services

NAICS 5411

20.3%
Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services

NAICS 5412

11.8%
Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services

NAICS 5413

6.6%
Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services

NAICS 5414

13.7%
Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services

NAICS 5415

1.9%
Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services

NAICS 5416

15.0%
Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services

NAICS 5417

-17.7%
Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services

NAICS 5418

6.5%
Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services

NAICS 5419

26.4%

Top States by Employment

State Employment
California 1,430,821
Texas 871,344
New York 696,537
Florida 614,527
Virginia 536,441
Illinois 467,150
Pennsylvania 378,845
Massachusetts 369,685
New Jersey 342,794
Georgia 326,724

Showing top 10 of 51 states

SBA Lending Activity

FY2020–2025

Small Business Administration 7(a) and 504 loan data for this industry. Source: SBA FOIA dataset.

SBA Loans Approved

37,881

FY2020–2025

Total Loan Volume

$17.2B

7(a) + 504 programs

Avg Loan Size

$453K

Per approved loan

Jobs Supported

313,294

Reported at origination

Program Breakdown

7(a) Loans 34,028 loans (90%)
504 Loans 3,853 loans (10%)

Top SBA Lender

The Huntington National Bank

2,152 loans in this industry

New Business Share

19.8% of borrowers were new/startup businesses

Annual Lending Trend

FY2020
4,358 loans
FY2021
5,264 loans
FY2022
4,928 loans
FY2023
5,672 loans
FY2024
7,603 loans
FY2025
8,824 loans
FY2026
1,232 loans

SBA fiscal year runs Oct–Sep. FY2025 = partial year through Sep 2025.

Source: SBA 7(a) and 504 FOIA dataset · FY2020–FY2025 · View SBA lending rankings →

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the average revenue for Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services?
Revenue data for Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services (NAICS 541) is not available in the current IRS SOI dataset.
How profitable is Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services?
Profitability data for Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services is not available in the current dataset.
How many businesses are in Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services?
There are 989,182 business establishments in Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services (NAICS 541) according to Census Bureau County Business Patterns 2023 data. These establishments collectively employ 10,401,442 workers.
What is the average payroll per employee in Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services?
The average annual payroll per employee in Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services is $107,141/yr, based on Census Bureau County Business Patterns data. Businesses in this industry average 10.5 employees per establishment. This figure includes wages, salaries, and benefits reported by employers.
Which states have the most Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services employment?
California leads in Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services employment with 1,430,821 workers. Texas (871,344) and New York (696,537) round out the top three. These figures come from the Census Bureau County Business Patterns 2023 survey.
How much SBA lending does Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services receive?
Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services businesses received 37,881 SBA loans totaling $17.2 billion between FY2020 and FY2025. The average loan size was $453K. These loans supported 313,294 jobs at origination. Most lending (90%) came through the SBA 7(a) program.
Disclaimer: PlainBizBench provides publicly available IRS and Census data for informational purposes only. This is not financial, tax, or business advice. Consult a qualified accountant or financial advisor for business-specific guidance.

Sources: IRS Statistics of Income (SOI) Business Tax Statistics · Census Bureau County Business Patterns 2023

NAICS 541 · Data year: 2023

Related

Data sourced from official public datasets. See our methodology for details. Retrieved and formatted by PlainBizBench Editorial

Source: U.S. Census Bureau — County Business Patterns / SUSB Industry employment scale, payroll, and firm-size benchmarks · 2025