73 Must-Know Construction Statistics (2024)

Construction continues to prove it’s one of the most profitable industries in the world, with the United States construction market being one of the largest.

There is sustainable growth throughout many sectors of construction, especially in the private development of single-family homes and home improvement projects. The rapid expansion of metropolitan cities is increasing the demand for commercial construction projects.

The workplace is changing, too, with an increase in minority and female representation. New technologies like drone mapping and building information modeling (BIM) software are some of the emerging construction trends that offer increased job site safety and new efficient solutions.

This doesn’t mean that the industry is without its challenges. There is still an ongoing labor shortage for skilled workers and plenty of uncertainty around raw material trade and various tariffs. However, new technology and innovative ideas such as modular prefabricated construction offer bright hope for the future and many firms are adding staff every year.

We’ve compiled 73 construction statistics that illustrate the state of the construction industry and give you a picture of the direction it is heading in. Jump to our infographic to see the most compelling stats that you need to know.

Workers and Compensation

1. There are 336,000 job openings in the United States construction industry as of May 2023. [Bureau of Labor Statistics]
2. Nearly 11.8 million people worked in the construction industry in 2022. [Bureau of Labor Statistics]
3. 57% of construction firms reported having a staff of fewer than 200 individuals in 2021. [JBK]
4. Construction managers were paid an average of $110,160 a year in 2022. [Bureau of Labor Statistics]
5. The average hourly wage of all construction employees was $35.21 as of January 2024. [Bureau of Labor Statistics]
6. The median weekly earnings for a full-time, nonunion worker was $1,007 in 2023. [Bureau of Labor Statistics]
7. The median earnings for a full-time union member was $1,424 per week in 2023. [Bureau of Labor Statistics]
8. The approximate dollar value of construction work done in the U.S. in May 2023 is estimated to be $1.9 billion. [CENSUS]
9. The total aggregate revenue of the top 400 construction companies in the U.S. reached $414.88 billion in 2020. [ENR]
10. 95% of U.S. general contractors reported they experienced at least one product shortage in 2021. [USCC]
11. 62% of contractors reported they struggled with finding skilled workers to hire in 2021. [USCC]
12. 66% of contractors reported they expected pandemic-related delays on projects in 2021. [USCC]
13. A total of 11,896 construction workers were employed in the construction industry in 2023. [Bureau of Labor Statistics]

Ethnicity, Gender and Demographics

14. 34% of the construction industry workforce identify as Latino or Hispanic. [Bureau of Labor Statistics]
15. 54.6% of the industry is made up of people between the ages of 42 and 61. [JBK]
16. 30.2% of the construction industry hold an Executive title, with 7.3% filling the role of CFO in 2021. [JBK]
17. Women made up 10.8% of the construction workforce in 2023. [Bureau of Labor Statistics]
18. 6.7% of the construction industry workforce are Black or African American in 2023. [Bureau of Labor Statistics]
19. 1.7% of the construction industry workforce were Asian in 2023. [Bureau of Labor Statistics]

Construction Industry Facts and Figures

20. Construction spending in the United States topped $2.1 billion in 2023. [U.S. Census Bureau]
21. With increasing interest rates and rising inflation, a reduced global growth of 3.6% is expected in 2022 and 2023. [Turner & Townsend]
22. At $1.43 trillion dollars, over 79% of construction spending occurred in the private sector in 2022. [Statista]
23. Total U.S. engineering and construction spending saw a 5% increase in 2023, compared to 12% in 2022. [FMI]
24. Compared to 2022, all residential segments have seen a decline, including single-family and multifamily construction, and are expected to continue through 2026. [FMI]
25. Multifamily residential construction rose by 18% in 2023 and is estimated to decrease by 7% to $131 billion in 2024. [FMI]
26. Single-family construction declined by 13% in Q4 of 2023 and is estimated to decrease by 10% to $354 billion in 2024. [FMI]
27. Commercial construction spending is at $128 billion as of July 2023, up 11% from the previous year. [FMI]
28. Home improvement spending increased by 1% in 2023. [FMI]
29. 36% of respondents said they anticipate that construction for the manufacturing sector will improve in Q1 of 2024. [FMI]
30. Office construction saw an 8% increase in 2023 due to the need for Class A office space in major markets. [FMI]
31.  AI, storage and processing needs will drive spending on office construction in 2024. [FMI]
32. Spending on office construction is forecasted to decrease by 4% from $99 billion to $94 billion in 2024. [FMI]
33. Conservation and development construction is valued at $11 billion. [FMI]
34. Construction related to sewage and waste disposal grew by 7% in 2023. [FMI]
35. Transportation construction increased by 9% in 2023 as governments increased their budgets and spending on transportation projects. [FMI]
36. Annual steel demand for construction in Asia and Oceania is almost 1.3 billion metric tons. [Statista]
37.  In Q4 of 2023, the Nonresidential Construction Index (NRCI) fell from 49.9 to 45.8, marking the sixth quarter in a row that the index is less than 50. [FMI]

Construction Location

38. 20% of U.S. construction occurs in New York, Dallas, Houston, Los Angeles and Washington. [FMI]
39. Restoring the U.S. Gulf Coast to protect cities from storms is a large factor in the 21% increase in conservation and development spending. [FMI]
40. Costing $501.78/sq ft, New York City is the most expensive city to build in the world in 2023. [New Civil Engineer]
41. The top 5 states renting equipment are California, Texas, Florida, Illinois and New York. [BigRentz]

Construction Safety Statistics

42. In 2022, the United States construction industry had the highest number of fatal work-related accidents resulting in 1,092 deaths. [Bureau of Labor Statistics]
43. Falls, slips and trips are the leading causes of death in construction. [Bureau of Labor Statistics]
44.  In 2022, there were 4.5 million medically consulted injuries among construction workers, higher among construction workers than any other workers. [NSC]
45. The most frequently cited OSHA violations in the construction industry include fall protection, hazard communication, ladders, respiratory protection and scaffolding. [OSHA]
46. The “Fatal Four” hazards — electrocution, falls, being crushed, and being struck by an object — cause over 65% of job fatalities in construction. [CPWR]
47. Of the 1,056 construction worker deaths in 2022, 423 were due to falls, slips or trips. [Bureau of Labor Statistics]
48. Fatalities from falls, slips and trips in construction increased by 1.8% in 2022. [Bureau of Labor Statistics]
49. An estimated 651,279 deaths per year are reported globally from diseases related to hazardous materials in construction. [ILO]

New Technologies

50. 53.7% of construction companies in 2021 report they have a process for testing and implementing new technologies. [JBK]
51. 56% of companies did not have a dedicated R&D budget in 2021. [JBK]
52. 37% of construction companies were experimenting with drones on the job site in 2021. [JBK]
53. 90.9% of construction workers use a smartphone and 82.8% use a laptop on a daily basis for work purposes. [JBK]
54. 12.4% of survey respondents reported using smartwatches for work. [JBK]
55. 62.4% of companies use mobile devices for daily reporting in the field. [JBK]
56. 28.8% of construction firms have a BIM department that uses Building Information Modeling (BIM) software. [JBK]
57. 35% of construction companies outsource any BIM-related work.[JBK]
58. Only 3% of construction companies are not using dedicated construction software. [JBK]

Emerging Trends and Challenges

59. In 2021, 45% of contractors turned down projects because of skilled labor shortages. [USCC]
60. 97% of contractors experienced a moderate to high impact on their business from material cost fluctuations. [USCC]
61. 19% of businesses reported impacts from roofing materials costs. [USCC]
62. 31% of businesses reported impacts from the increasing lumber and wood costs. [USCC]
63. 43% of survey respondents reported impacts from the fluctuating costs of steel. [USCC]
64. BIM is becoming increasingly popular in the United States, with over 98% of large architecture firms using it. [Agacad]
65. The vast majority of infrastructure projects are either over-budget or delayed with only 8.5% of projects finished on time and on budget. [Washington Post]
66. The average backlog of projects for general contractors decreased from 9.4 months in 2021 Q3 to 8.4 months in 2021 Q4. [USCC]
67. Apple is the most used mobile operating system, with 78.6% of companies using it. [JBK]
68. 54.4% of construction companies use the Bluebeam (Revu) mobile app for plan management. [JBK]
69. Declining home prices, increased availability of labor and materials and a weakening labor market will continue to challenge home improvement spending into 2025. [FMI]
70.  Demand for new-build home upgrades will continue over the long term as homebuilders lean less into luxury and customization options during the building phase. [FMI]

Construction Rentals

71. U.S. construction equipment rental sales reached $47.8 billion in 2021. The market is anticipated to surpass peak 2019 levels in 2024. [Statista]
72. Construction equipment is rented for an average of 6 days. [BigRentz]
73. 15% of rented equipment is for individual construction projects. [BigRentz]
74. Tool and equipment rentals are a $5 billion industry in the United States [IBIS]

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Construction Statistics Infographic