Washington

Washington Exports and Foreign Investment

• In 2025, Washington exported $65.4 billion of goods to the world. In 2023, exports from Washington supported an estimated 157 thousand jobs (latest data available).

Exports from Washington and Jobs

• Washington was the 8th largest state exporter of goods in 2025.
• In 2025, Washington goods exports were $65.4 billion, a decrease of 24 percent ($21 billion) from its export level in 2015.
• Goods exports accounted for 7.3 percent of Washington GDP in 2025.
• Washington goods exports in 2023 supported an estimated 157 thousand jobs (latest data available). Nationally, jobs supported by goods exports pay up to an estimated 18 percent above the national average.

Manufacturing Exports from Washington and Jobs

• In 2025, Washington exported $51.0 billion of manufactured products.
• Washington exports of manufactured products supported an estimated 137 thousand jobs in 2023 (latest data available).
• The state's largest manufacturing export category is transportation equipment, which accounted for $29.8 billion of Washington's total goods exports in 2025.
• Other top manufacturing exports are food & kindred products ($5.0 billion), computer & electronic products ($3.7 billion), petroleum & coal products ($2.8 billion), and machinery, except electrical ($2.0 billion).

Exports Sustain Thousands of Washington Businesses Many of Which are SMEs

• A total of 10,729 companies exported from Washington locations in 2024 (latest data available). Of those, 9,452 (88 percent) were small and medium sized enterprises with fewer than 500 employees.
• Small and medium-sized firms generated 25.8 percent of Washington's total exports of goods in 2024.

Washington's Largest Export Markets

• The state’s largest market was China. Washington exported $10.2 billion in goods to China in 2025, representing 16 percent of the state’s total goods exports.
• China was followed by Canada ($7.1 billion), South Korea ($5.6 billion), Japan ($5.1 billion), and Mexico ($4.1 billion).
• Washington goods exports to major world areas included:

• 35 percent of Washington goods exports ($22.9 billion) in 2025 went to current FTA partners.

Washington's Top Agricultural Exports

• Washington is the country’s 15th largest agricultural exporting state, shipping $3.9 billion in domestic agricultural exports abroad in 2024 (latest data available according to the U.S. Dept. of Agriculture).^[1]
• Top agricultural exports were:

Product	2024 Value	2024 State Rank
other plant products	$658 million	9
fruits, fresh	$634 million	2
fruits, processed	$512 million	2
vegetables, processed	$480 million	2
wheat	$396 million	4

Washington Seafood is a Key Export for the State

• Washington was the country’s second largest seafood exporting state, shipping more than $1.0 billion in domestic seafood exports abroad in 2025.

International Investment Creates Jobs in Washington

• In 2024 (latest data available), foreign-controlled companies employed 154,000 Washington workers. Major sources of foreign investment in Washington included Canada, the United Kingdom, and Japan.
• Foreign investment in Washington was responsible for 4.7 percent of the state's total private-industry employment in 2024.

Washington’s Major Metropolitan Areas Benefit from Exporting

• In 2024 (latest data available), the following metropolitan areas in Washington recorded goods exports: Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro ($33.8 billion), Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue ($33.7 billion), Longview-Kelso ($6.8 billion), Bellingham ($3.4 billion), Yakima ($1.3 billion), Spokane-Spokane Valley ($852.3 million), Kennewick-Richland ($711.3 million), Mount Vernon-Anacortes ($544.1 million), Wenatchee-East Wenatchee ($518.3 million), Walla Walla ($356.9 million), Lewiston ($217.9 million), Olympia-Lacey-Tumwater ($190.7 million), and Bremerton-Silverdale-Port Orchard ($78.2 million).