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How many places of business do lawyers have in your county? The Census Bureau counts them, county by county, every year. The American Bar Association counts lawyers by state. This page puts the two public counts side by side, and the free files below carry every county.
How many lawyers and law offices does each state have?
The first count is people, the second is offices. Read across a row to see how crowded a state is on each measure.
| State | ABA resident active lawyers | ABA lawyers per 10,000 residents | Census offices of lawyers | Offices per 10,000 residents |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | 12,414 | 24.1 | 2,205 | 4.28 |
| Alaska | 2,294 | 31.0 | 291 | 3.93 |
| Arizona | 15,885 | 20.9 | 3,085 | 4.07 |
| Arkansas | 6,808 | 22.0 | 1,262 | 4.09 |
| California | 175,883 | 44.6 | 22,817 | 5.79 |
| Colorado | 23,249 | 39.0 | 3,413 | 5.73 |
| Connecticut | 18,028 | 49.1 | 1,951 | 5.31 |
| Delaware | 3,058 | 29.1 | 429 | 4.08 |
| District of Columbia | 33,129 | 471.8 | 1,197 | 17.05 |
| Florida | 80,080 | 34.3 | 17,247 | 7.38 |
| Georgia | 34,307 | 30.7 | 5,902 | 5.28 |
| Hawaii | 4,139 | 28.6 | 563 | 3.89 |
| Idaho | 4,076 | 20.4 | 861 | 4.30 |
| Illinois | 62,093 | 48.9 | 6,890 | 5.42 |
| Indiana | 15,485 | 22.4 | 2,219 | 3.20 |
| Iowa | 7,190 | 22.2 | 1,181 | 3.64 |
| Kansas | 7,845 | 26.4 | 1,067 | 3.59 |
| Kentucky | 13,632 | 29.7 | 1,774 | 3.87 |
| Louisiana | 19,524 | 42.5 | 3,205 | 6.97 |
| Maine | 3,693 | 26.3 | 585 | 4.16 |
| Maryland | 26,020 | 41.5 | 2,613 | 4.17 |
| Massachusetts | 40,075 | 56.2 | 3,918 | 5.49 |
| Michigan | 34,366 | 33.9 | 3,734 | 3.68 |
| Minnesota | 26,065 | 45.0 | 2,020 | 3.49 |
| Mississippi | 6,699 | 22.8 | 1,256 | 4.27 |
| Missouri | 24,679 | 39.5 | 2,721 | 4.36 |
| Montana | 3,603 | 31.7 | 650 | 5.72 |
| Nebraska | 5,839 | 29.1 | 773 | 3.85 |
| Nevada | 7,563 | 23.1 | 1,706 | 5.22 |
| New Hampshire | 3,461 | 24.6 | 530 | 3.76 |
| New Jersey | 39,311 | 41.4 | 4,787 | 5.04 |
| New Mexico | 5,404 | 25.4 | 971 | 4.56 |
| New York | 187,656 | 94.5 | 11,742 | 5.91 |
| North Carolina | 26,515 | 24.0 | 4,015 | 3.63 |
| North Dakota | 1,663 | 20.9 | 275 | 3.45 |
| Ohio | 36,488 | 30.7 | 4,065 | 3.42 |
| Oklahoma | 12,245 | 29.9 | 2,208 | 5.39 |
| Oregon | 12,233 | 28.6 | 2,206 | 5.16 |
| Pennsylvania | 47,519 | 36.3 | 5,127 | 3.92 |
| Rhode Island | 3,815 | 34.3 | 681 | 6.12 |
| South Carolina | 11,090 | 20.2 | 2,585 | 4.72 |
| South Dakota | 2,042 | 22.1 | 322 | 3.48 |
| Tennessee | 19,458 | 26.9 | 2,231 | 3.09 |
| Texas | 98,345 | 31.4 | 13,755 | 4.40 |
| Utah | 8,537 | 24.4 | 1,439 | 4.11 |
| Vermont | 2,198 | 33.9 | 341 | 5.26 |
| Virginia | 24,120 | 27.4 | 3,393 | 3.85 |
| Washington | 26,318 | 33.1 | 3,478 | 4.37 |
| West Virginia | 4,600 | 26.0 | 757 | 4.28 |
| Wisconsin | 15,172 | 25.5 | 1,700 | 2.85 |
| Wyoming | 1,726 | 29.4 | 469 | 7.98 |
Which counties have the most law offices?
The largest counties hold a large share of all offices. These are the counties with the most offices in the Census file.
| County | State | Offices of lawyers | Employees | Residents | Offices per 10,000 residents |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Los Angeles County | California | 8,461 | 57,315 | 9,808,667 | 8.63 |
| Miami-Dade County | Florida | 4,083 | 20,615 | 2,738,356 | 14.91 |
| Cook County | Illinois | 3,945 | 38,209 | 5,182,090 | 7.61 |
| New York County | New York | 3,499 | 67,654 | 1,629,477 | 21.47 |
| Harris County | Texas | 3,182 | 24,858 | 4,838,303 | 6.58 |
| Orange County | California | 2,869 | 17,480 | 3,165,820 | 9.06 |
| Broward County | Florida | 2,556 | 12,768 | 1,977,129 | 12.93 |
| San Diego County | California | 2,536 | 15,617 | 3,288,774 | 7.71 |
| Maricopa County | Arizona | 2,307 | 14,159 | 4,559,748 | 5.06 |
| Dallas County | Texas | 2,200 | 18,700 | 2,621,179 | 8.39 |
| Palm Beach County | Florida | 1,915 | 9,909 | 1,533,806 | 12.49 |
| Nassau County | New York | 1,639 | 9,816 | 1,389,591 | 11.79 |
| Fulton County | Georgia | 1,626 | 16,641 | 1,076,561 | 15.10 |
| King County | Washington | 1,589 | 12,460 | 2,287,171 | 6.95 |
| Hillsborough County | Florida | 1,337 | 11,048 | 1,522,748 | 8.78 |
Which large counties have the most law offices for their size?
Offices per resident shows how many firms compete for each resident’s attention. The table keeps counties with at least 100,000 residents. A tiny county with a few offices does not top the list.
| County | State | Offices of lawyers | Employees | Residents | Offices per 10,000 residents |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| New York County | New York | 3,499 | 67,654 | 1,629,477 | 21.47 |
| District of Columbia | District of Columbia | 1,197 | 31,104 | 681,294 | 17.57 |
| Orleans Parish | Louisiana | 652 | 5,572 | 371,853 | 17.53 |
| Denver County | Colorado | 1,192 | 10,187 | 718,877 | 16.58 |
| Fulton County | Georgia | 1,626 | 16,641 | 1,076,561 | 15.10 |
| Lafayette Parish | Louisiana | 374 | 1,626 | 247,997 | 15.08 |
| Miami-Dade County | Florida | 4,083 | 20,615 | 2,738,356 | 14.91 |
| San Francisco County | California | 1,171 | 14,495 | 830,235 | 14.10 |
| Laramie County | Wyoming | 132 | 405 | 101,060 | 13.06 |
| Broward County | Florida | 2,556 | 12,768 | 1,977,129 | 12.93 |
Where do these numbers come from, and what are their limits?
- The Census figures come from County Business Patterns for 2023. The program counts establishments with paid employees, so a lawyer working alone with no employees is not an office here.
- The ABA figures come from its 2024 National Lawyer Population Survey. The ABA’s own method note says states define a resident and an inactive lawyer differently, so the counts are close, not exact. The ABA site blocks automated reads, so we cite the copy of the survey hosted by the New York State Bar Association.
- Population is the Census Bureau’s American Community Survey 2020 to 2024 five-year estimate for counties and its 2024 one-year estimate for states.
- The Census flags employment and payroll values with noise: G means a value was changed by less than 2 percent, H by at least 2 percent and under 5 percent, and J by 5 percent or more. Office counts are not noised. Treat the employee column as close, not exact.
- A few offices in each state are reported without a county. They are in the state table and not in the county rows.
What does this mean for your firm?
- Use the counts as context for your market, not as a forecast. More offices per resident means more firms present, and it does not tell you what a click or a signed case costs.
- Look at your county and the next county over, because clients cross county lines, and firms bid on searches across them.
- Pair the office count with your own numbers: your cost per signed case by county tells you more than any public count.
Get a plain read on where your firm stands with the free review.
How do I cite or reuse this?
The files are licensed CC BY 4.0. Cite them as: Probative Growth, Lawyer offices per county, built from U.S. Census Bureau County Business Patterns and the American Bar Association’s National Lawyer Population Survey. Probative Growth is a marketing firm, not a law firm, and this page is not legal advice.