The chart above shows the per capita annualized nominal gross domestic product (GDP) in each US region as of the first quarter of 2020 in dollars, the change from the previous quarter, and the per capita GDP one year prior. Every single region's economy shrank over the past quarter and grew over the past year.
Findings
- The difference between the region with the largest per capita GDP, the Northeast, and the region with the smallest, the South, is $16,253.62 (down from $16,382.06 last quarter and up from $16,189.05 last year). The Northeast and the South had the largest and smallest per capita GDP respectively both last quarter and last year.
- The Northeast has 1.26 times the per capita GDP that the South does. The ratio of largest per capita GDP to smallest per capita GDP was unchanged from 1.26 from last quarter and down from 1.27 last year.
- All four regions saw their per capita GDP drop in current dollars from the previous quarter.
- All four regions saw their per capita GDP rise in current dollars from last year.
Caveats
- GDP data is from the first quarter of 2019, the fourth quarter of 2019, and the first quarter of 2020.
- Census data is from 2010.
- The data is seasonally adjusted in current dollars.
- Growth rates may differ from those provided by the Bureau of Economic Analysis as the BEA's growth rates are based on chained dollars in conjunction with the chain index or the quality index for real GDP.
- All figures are rounded to the nearest hundredth.
- The Midwestern US consists of Illinois, Ohio, Michigan, Indiana, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Missouri, Iowa, Kansas, Nebraska, North Dakota, and South Dakota.
- The Northeastern US consists of New York, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Massachusetts, Maryland, Connecticut, New Hampshire, Delaware, Maine, Rhode Island, and Vermont.
- The Southern US consists of Texas, Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, Virginia, Tennessee, Louisiana, South Carolina, Alabama, Kentucky, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Mississippi, and West Virginia.
- The Western US consists of California, Washington, Colorado, Arizona, Oregon, Utah, Nevada, New Mexico, Hawaii, Idaho, Alaska, Montana, and Wyoming.
Details
In absolute terms, the Northeast had the worst performance over the previous quarter with a drop of $755.62. The Midwest had the best performance with a drop of $520.03. Year over year, the Midwest had the worst performance with a gain of $1,166.42 while the West had the best performance with a gain of $1,873.88.
In relative terms, the South had the worst performance over the previous quarter with a 1.00% drop in per capita GDP while the West had the best performance with a 0.73% drop in per capita GDP. Year over year, the Northeast had the worst performance with a 1.74% rise in per capita GDP while the West had the best performance with a 2.47% rise in per capita GDP.
The Midwest has the smallest range in per capita GDP with a low of $54,799.83 in Michigan to a high of $83,618.72 in North Dakota. The Northeast has the greatest range with a low of $51,035.22 in Maine to a high of $91,720.85 in Massachusetts.
The Northeast has a per capita GDP that is higher than all Southern states and all but one Midwestern state and is bested by seven states in total. The South has a per capita GDP that is lower than more than half the states in the country besting 23 out of 50 states (10 of which are in the South).
Sources
US Bureau of Economic Analysis. 2020. "GDP by State." Accessed July 14, 2020. https://www.bea.gov/data/gdp/gdp-state.
United States Census Bureau. September 2012. "United States Summary: 2010: Population and Housing Unit Counts." Accessed January 23, 2018. https://www.census.gov/prod/cen2010/cph-2-1.pdf.