Useful Stats: How has the relationship between GDP and R&D changed since the 1950s?
Total research and experimental development (R&D) performed in the U.S. reached nearly $1 trillion of expenditures in 2024, reveals new data from the National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics (NCSES). This represents a 6% increase over the prior year, a 101% increase in the past 10 years, and a nearly 16,000% increase in the past 70 years.
Total research and experimental development (R&D) performed in the U.S. reached nearly $1 trillion of expenditures in 2024, reveals new data from the National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics (NCSES). This represents a 6% increase over the prior year, a 101% increase in the past 10 years, and a nearly 16,000% increase in the past 70 years.
Adjusted for inflation, total R&D expenditures, relative to their 2024 values, have increased more modestly but still reflect impressive growth: 3% since 2023; 56% in the 10 years since 2015; and approximately 1,670% in the 70 years since 1955.
Figure 1 below includes two line charts, each with a line for billions of current and constant (2017) USD: GDP on the left and R&D expenditures on the right. Periods of recession are highlighted in grey for applicable years. Note that each chart has a different y-axis.
Useful Stats: Sectoral contributions to county GDP
Policymakers should be interested in which sectors are present in their region to ensure TBED investments and workforce priorities can have the greatest impact. Exploring gross domestic product (GDP) at the county level offers a detailed look at the economic output of sectors and how they shape local economies. At the county level, data for smaller or more rural counties may reveal nuances invisible when looking broadly at entire MSAs or states, particularly for those areas with lower populations.
Useful Stats: Drivers of personal income are revealed at the county level
Personal income has nearly quadrupled in constant dollars over the past 56 years, from approximately $791 billion in 1969 to $2.9 trillion by 2024 in inflation-adjusted 1969 USD ($24.9 trillion in current dollars, increasing an average of seven percent each year), reveals SSTI analysis of the full breadth of newly released U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) data. Standardized by population, growth is more conservative, with an average annual current dollar increase of 5%; in 1969, per capita personal income (PCPI) was just $3,931, but by 2024 had risen to $8,100 when adjusted for inflation to 1969 USD ($69,273 in current dollars).
Useful Stats: How do the largest higher education institutions fund their R&D expenditures?
Useful Stats: Higher education R&D expenditures and intensity by state
Higher Education Research and Development (HERD) expenditures grew in every state between Fiscal years (FYs) 2010 and 2024, rising 92% nationally over the 15-year period. However, when you adjust for inflation, five states and Puerto Rico instead experienced a real decline in HERD expenditures. Despite this broad growth, HERD expenditures remain highly concentrated, with five states having accounted for nearly 40% of all higher education R&D expenditures nationwide in FY 2024.
Useful Stats: Higher education R&D expenditures reach $117 billion in FY 2024
Higher Education R&D expenditures jumped 8%, or nearly $9 billion, from fiscal year (FY) 2023 to 2024, reaching an all-time high of over $117 billion, reveals new Higher Education R&D (HERD) survey data. The funding sources of HERD expenditures remain proportionally unchanged from the prior year, with all sources increasing, and the federal government ($5 billion) and institution funds ($2.5 billion) accounting for the largest dollar increases.
Higher Education R&D expenditures jumped 8%, or nearly $9 billion, from fiscal year (FY) 2023 to 2024, reaching an all-time high of over $117 billion, reveals new Higher Education R&D (HERD) survey data. The funding sources of HERD expenditures remain proportionally unchanged from the prior year, with all sources increasing, and the federal government ($5 billion) and institution funds ($2.5 billion) accounting for the largest dollar increases.
Adjusted for inflation, overall HERD expenditures increased by 5%—the second largest year-over-year increase in the past decade—while all sources of funds except business increased.
Useful Stats: A standardized look at state-level academic S&E article output
States invest heavily in academic research with the expectation that these efforts will advance scientific knowledge, support innovative industries, and strengthen local talent pipelines. Comparing research performance across state lines is difficult due to differences in academic landscapes: some may have large medical schools with high-cost labs, while others have research-active public universities in lower-cost fields or are more pedagogically focused.
Which states stand to benefit the most from the new Opportunity Zone criteria?
Just 19% of the approximately 25,000 census tracts potentially eligible for Opportunity Zone (OZ) designation are “More likely to attract OZ investment, with larger impact,” per the Urban Institute’s new OZ Designation Tool.1 The majority (68%) of potentially eligible tracts were found to be “Less likely to attract OZ investment,” while the remaining 13% were determined likely to attract capital regardless of OZ designation.
Treasury updates to SSBCI FAQs and a look at state fund deployments
The U.S. Department of the Treasury (Treasury) recently issued three new FAQs for the State Small Business Credit Initiative 2.0 (SSBCI) program. These FAQs clarify and reiterate the timeline for the end of the Capital Program, and the deadlines by which participating jurisdictions must request disbursement of any remaining allocated Capital Program funds.
In summary:
Useful Stats: Where is US manufacturing? A county-level look at subsector-specific data
Useful Stats: Business R&D continues to consolidate in top states
With federal R&D investments unlikely to keep pace with inflation or international competition based on the administration’s budget request, cuts to existing research grants, and Congress’s inability to pass a budget, business R&D investments become more critical for sustaining the competitiveness of regional innovation economies.
With federal R&D investments unlikely to keep pace with inflation or international competition based on the administration’s budget request, cuts to existing research grants, and Congress’s inability to pass a budget, business R&D investments become more critical for sustaining the competitiveness of regional innovation economies. Trends evident in new data released by the National Science Foundation point to areas of potential concern or need for state TBED policy attention and potential adjustment: business R&D is growing even more concentrated geographically, and for many areas of the country business investments likely are not growing at a sufficient pace to maintain the regions’ innovation capacity.
In 2023, just four states comprised 54% of the nation’s domestic business R&D expenditures, a sharp increase from being less than 45% in 2014, SSTI analysis of new Business Enterprise Research and Development (BERD) survey data reveals. The consolidation of BERD expenditures in the top states may lead one to think that less R&D is occurring outside of the largest states, but this is not the case; 24 jurisdictions doubled BERD expenditures in the past decade, with all but one state increasing total expenditures. Adjusted for inflation, however, reveals a more modest nine jurisdictions doubled their business R&D activities, while all but five increased. These trends and more are explored in this edition of Useful Stats.
Useful Stats: Growth in real business R&D expenditures comes to a halt in 2023
From 2022 to 2023, domestic R&D expenditures increased 4%, or $29 billion, but remained nearly unchanged when adjusted for inflation. This apparent slowdown follows a streak averaging nearly 12% ($59 billion) year-over-year growth from 2018 to 2022, and 8% over the past decade from 2014 to 2023. Adjusting for inflation paints a different picture of the growth trends, with a more modest annual average of 8% from 2018 to 2022 and 6% over the past decade.
Useful Stats: R&D's contributions to state economies
Like the broader metric of R&D intensity, the prominence of R&D value added in a state’s economic output has shifted within several states over the past decade. Does it matter? For sustaining a state’s innovation competitiveness, it may, and subsequently it is important to know for many state and regional TBED initiatives. Proximity to the conduct of R&D has been well documented in empirical research to support strong regional innovation economies.
Like the broader metric of R&D intensity, the prominence of R&D value added in a state’s economic output has shifted within several states over the past decade. Does it matter? For sustaining a state’s innovation competitiveness, it may, and subsequently it is important to know for many state and regional TBED initiatives. Proximity to the conduct of R&D has been well documented in empirical research to support strong regional innovation economies. Subsequently many TBED policies are designed to increase and maintain R&D activity within those boundaries as well as ensure the localized spillover effects are maximized. Determining where R&D activity is thriving and the size of its value added to the state’s GDP, particularly manufacturing-related R&D, may help inform those policy decisions. SSTI explores the latest data on state R&D value added in this Useful Stats article.
Useful Stats: Examining county-level employment and establishments by sector
Understanding the composition of local economies requires looking beyond broad statewide or national trends. County-level data reveals the unique mix, or lack thereof, of industries and businesses in each area. Policy makers, by identifying which sectors drive employment and business activity within a locality, can influence the impact and design of regional innovation strategies to reflect local realities and potential.
Understanding the composition of local economies requires looking beyond broad statewide or national trends. County-level data reveals the unique mix, or lack thereof, of industries and businesses in each area. Policy makers, by identifying which sectors drive employment and business activity within a locality, can influence the impact and design of regional innovation strategies to reflect local realities and potential.
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW) allows examination of county-level employment and establishment counts across all private sectors at the 2-digit NAICS level. In this article, SSTI uses annualized private sector data for all provided 2-digit NAICS sectors at the county level for 2015 and 2024.
Federal obligations for higher-ed S&E near an inflation-adjusted all-time high in 2023
In fiscal year (FY) 2023, federal obligations for science and engineering (S&E) to universities and colleges totaled $49 billion—$29 billion more than FY 2000, and a 10% increase from the prior year. The growth is less rapid when adjusted for inflation (2017 USD), with just over $40 billion in real obligations in FY 2023, a 5% increase over the year prior and $12.6 billion (or 46%) increase over the FY 2000 value.
Useful Stats: An international comparison of R&D expenditures
Most countries have dramatically increased their investments in R&D over the past two decades, with OECD nation spending reaching a record high nearly $1,600 of gross domestic expenditure on R&D (GERD) per person in 2023 (PPP[1] converted), approximately triple the value recorded in 2000. Although the U.S.
New SSBCI report reveals jurisdiction fund deployments
The U.S. Department of the Treasury (Treasury) recently released a report on the State Small Business Credit Initiative (SSBCI) program with data through December 31, 2024. As of the end of 2024, Treasury has disbursed nearly $4 billion of the $10 billion set aside for the program in the 2021 American Rescue Plan of Act.
Useful Stats: Industry contributions to county-level GDP
Exploring gross domestic product (GDP) at the county level offers a more detailed look at where industries are located and how they shape local economies, especially in smaller or more rural counties often overlooked at higher geographic levels.
Useful Stats: Industry breakdown of metropolitan and micropolitan area GDPs
In a country marked by regional diversity, gaining insights into economic performance often means looking beyond conventional state and county boundaries to economic hubs. This edition of Useful Stats uses Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) data to first compare U.S. metropolitan and micropolitan GDPs broken down by industry for the last 20+ years, then consider each Metropolitan Statistical Area’s GDP by private industry, highlighting patterns and changes over the past decades.
Characterizing state economies: sectoral shares of GDP
Overall U.S. gross domestic product (GDP) has steadily increased over the past decade. However, the growth in the sectors which drive it has been uneven. Data from 2014 through 2023 reveals that sectoral contributions to private industry GDP have shifted from manufacturing (down 1.57 percentage points since 2014) and mining, quarrying, and oil and gas extraction (down 1.05), to professional and business services (up 0.85) and construction (up 0.72).
Useful Stats: Higher education R&D steadily increased in the last decade, but not all fields shared the wealth
Higher education R&D (HERD) expenditures have steadily increased over time. They’ve soared past $100 billion in the most recent data year, fiscal year (FY) 2023, growing in every state. However, the gains are not shared equally in all fields of research.
Higher education R&D (HERD) expenditures have steadily increased over time. They’ve soared past $100 billion in the most recent data year, fiscal year (FY) 2023, growing in every state. However, the gains are not shared equally in all fields of research.
SSTI analyzed HERD Survey data, finding that in the 10 FYs since 2013, science R&D fields, led by the life sciences, were responsible for the largest dollar growths. In contrast, non-S&E fields, led by education, experienced the largest relative growth. SSTI has examined these shifts over the past decade at the national level and broken down expenditures by R&D field at the state and institutional level for FY 2023. This edition of Useful Stats provides the resulting comprehensive picture of HERD expenditures by R&D field.
Useful Stats: Two looks at state-level higher-ed R&D intensity
Readers may have noticed the most populous states end up topping many of the statistical tables related to economic development. Normalizing the data by some relevant, related measure can provide a higher quality look that is a little closer to the “apples to apples” appeal that might help influence some policy issues. For this week’s edition of Useful Stats, SSTI is exploring research intensity as a component of state gross domestic product (GDP) and the research load “carried” by each member of the R&D personnel within the state’s higher education community.
Useful Stats: A quarter-century look reveals relatively flat NIH R&D awards
SSTI’s new analysis of NIH data reveals the agency’s external R&D spending per award has been essentially treading water for the past 25 years in terms of real dollars—rising just 4% since FY 2000 when adjusted for inflation. This slow growth comes despite the crucial role NIH funding plays in technology-based economic development (TBED) policies across many states, particularly in the biomedical and life sciences.
Useful Stats: The state of US venture capital in 2024
Fewer of the youngest and later stage innovation-driven companies are receiving private venture capital at a time when the country needs more of both to retain our global economic leadership, according to data released in the latest report from PitchBook and NVCA. Across 2024, United States VC has seen an increase in overall deal value (+$47 billion) despite a decrease in deal count (-936) since the prior year, reveals the Q4 2024 Venture Monitor report.