Nonprofit workforce statistics at a glance
The nonprofit workforce is large, diverse, and structurally different from the broader private sector. In 2022, nonprofits accounted for 12.8 million jobs and 9.9% of all private-sector employment, while 7.2% of all U.S. wage and salary employees worked in nonprofits (BLS Nonprofit Sector Research Data; BLS Monthly Labor Review, September 2024).
Those headline numbers only tell part of the story. The deeper pattern is that nonprofit work is concentrated in a few major service areas, spans a wide range of occupations, and carries a distinct pay and education profile that matters for employers, job seekers, and policymakers alike.
Table of contents
- How large the nonprofit workforce is
- Where nonprofit jobs are concentrated
- How the workforce is distributed
- Pay, education, and worker profile
- Regional and county patterns
- Financial strain and workforce stability
- What the numbers suggest
How large the nonprofit workforce is
A useful starting point is size. In 2022, BLS counted 12.8 million nonprofit jobs, which made up 9.9% of all private-sector employment (BLS Nonprofit Sector Research Data). That scale is substantial enough to place nonprofit employment among the major labor-market segments in the United States.
A second way to frame the same market is through total wage-and-salary employment. BLS reported that 7.2% of all U.S. wage and salary employees worked in nonprofits in 2022 (BLS Monthly Labor Review, September 2024). That share reinforces the point that nonprofit employment is not a niche labor category. It is a large labor system with its own occupational mix, compensation patterns, and regional footprint.
Fast facts
- 12.8 million nonprofit jobs in 2022 (BLS Nonprofit Sector Research Data)
- 9.9% of private-sector employment was in nonprofits in 2022 (BLS Nonprofit Sector Research Data)
- 7.2% of all U.S. wage and salary employees worked in nonprofits in 2022 (BLS Monthly Labor Review, September 2024)
- More than 300,000 nonprofit establishments were counted in 2022 (BLS Nonprofit Sector Research Data)
- Nonprofit employment in 2022 was 1.4% below its pre-pandemic level (BLS Economics Daily)
A quick read on the trend
The 2022 level matters not only for its size, but also because it followed the pandemic period. BLS says nonprofit employment in 2022 remained 1.4% below its pre-pandemic level (BLS Economics Daily). That implies a labor market that had largely recovered in scale but had not fully returned to its earlier peak.
The 2017 data point helps show the longer arc. In 2017, nonprofit employment was 12.5 million and accounted for 10.2% of all private-sector employment (BLS National Nonprofit Day blog). Comparing 2017 with 2022 shows that the sector stayed large, but its share moved slightly lower by 2022, from 10.2% to 9.9% in private employment terms (BLS National Nonprofit Day blog; BLS Nonprofit Sector Research Data).
Where nonprofit jobs are concentrated
The nonprofit workforce is heavily concentrated in a few fields. In 2022, nearly two of every three nonprofit jobs were in health care and social assistance, or 66.3% of nonprofit employment (BLS Nonprofit Sector Research Data). Educational services accounted for another 16.4% (BLS Nonprofit Sector Research Data). Other services accounted for 6.3%, and arts, entertainment, and recreation accounted for 2.6% (BLS Nonprofit Sector Research Data).
That mix is important because it shows nonprofits as a major delivery system for essential human services, not just as a charitable or fundraising category. The workforce is embedded in care, education, and community-facing service lines.
| Sector concentration in 2022 | Share of nonprofit jobs | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Health care and social assistance | 66.3% | BLS Nonprofit Sector Research Data |
| Educational services | 16.4% | BLS Nonprofit Sector Research Data |
| Other services | 6.3% | BLS Nonprofit Sector Research Data |
| Arts, entertainment, and recreation | 2.6% | BLS Nonprofit Sector Research Data |
Why concentration matters
A concentrated workforce tends to face concentrated labor-market pressures. If two-thirds of jobs sit in one sector, then staffing shortages, wage changes, credential requirements, and demand shocks in that sector can shape the overall nonprofit workforce quickly. The same is true for education. With 16.4% of jobs in educational services in 2022, staffing needs in schools, colleges, and other education providers have a visible effect on nonprofit employment totals (BLS Nonprofit Sector Research Data).
The 2017 data show a similar structure. In 2017, 66.7% of nonprofit employment was in health care and social assistance, 16.2% in educational services, 6.7% in other services, and 2.9% in arts, entertainment, and recreation (BLS National Nonprofit Day blog). The close match between 2017 and 2022 suggests a stable industrial core rather than a rapidly shifting employment mix.
How the workforce is distributed
The nonprofit workforce is also occupation-heavy on professional and service work. In 2022, 70.7% of nonprofit workers were in management, professional, and related occupations (BLS Spotlight on Statistics). Service occupations accounted for 12.6%, and sales and office occupations also accounted for 12.6% (BLS Spotlight on Statistics). Smaller shares were in natural resources, construction, and maintenance occupations at 1.6%, and production, transportation, and material moving occupations at 2.5% (BLS Spotlight on Statistics).
That occupational profile lines up with the sector’s service orientation. The workforce is not centered on production work. It is centered on expertise, administration, caregiving, instruction, coordination, and support.
Occupational breakdown
| Occupation group in 2022 | Share of nonprofit workers | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Management, professional, and related occupations | 70.7% | BLS Spotlight on Statistics |
| Service occupations | 12.6% | BLS Spotlight on Statistics |
| Sales and office occupations | 12.6% | BLS Spotlight on Statistics |
| Natural resources, construction, and maintenance occupations | 1.6% | BLS Spotlight on Statistics |
| Production, transportation, and material moving occupations | 2.5% | BLS Spotlight on Statistics |
A second layer of workforce detail is where employees actually work. In 2022, 65.0% of nonprofit workers were employed in education and health services, and 3.5% were in professional and business services (BLS Spotlight on Statistics). That confirms that the sector’s labor force is clustered where direct service delivery and specialized support functions are strongest.
Credentials and licenses
Another striking feature is credential intensity. In 2022, 34.6% of nonprofit workers held a certification or license (BLS Spotlight on Statistics). Among workers with certifications or licenses, 45.6% worked in healthcare practitioner or technical occupations (BLS Spotlight on Statistics).
That matters because it suggests a workforce where formal qualifications are not optional decoration. In many parts of the nonprofit sector, credentials are part of the job structure itself.
Pay, education, and worker profile
The nonprofit workforce has a distinct demographic and compensation profile. In 2022, women made up 66.1% of private nonprofit workers, while men made up 33.9% (BLS Spotlight on Statistics). That means the workforce is substantially more female than the private sector overall in many other industries.
Education levels are also high. Among nonprofit workers age 25 and older in 2022, 32.7% held an advanced degree, 31.9% held a bachelor’s degree only, and only 1.7% had less than a high school diploma (BLS National Nonprofit Day blog). Taken together, those figures mean 64.6% of nonprofit workers age 25 and older had a bachelor’s degree or higher in 2022, based on the two higher-education categories combined (BLS National Nonprofit Day blog).
Education profile at a glance
- 32.7% of nonprofit workers age 25 and older held an advanced degree in 2022 (BLS National Nonprofit Day blog)
- 31.9% held a bachelor’s degree only in 2022 (BLS National Nonprofit Day blog)
- 1.7% had less than a high school diploma in 2022 (BLS National Nonprofit Day blog)
- 64.6% had a bachelor’s degree or higher in 2022, calculated from the two categories above (BLS National Nonprofit Day blog)
The earnings profile is equally telling. Median usual weekly earnings for full-time nonprofit workers were $1,163 in 2022, compared with $1,026 for all private-sector workers (BLS National Nonprofit Day blog). That gap shows that the nonprofit sector is not automatically low wage across the board. The sector contains many professional roles with earnings above the private-sector median.
The same comparison appears in subgroup data. Women in nonprofit organizations earned a median of $1,101 per week in 2022, compared with $920 per week for women in the private sector overall (BLS National Nonprofit Day blog). Hispanic or Latino nonprofit workers earned a median of $1,006 per week, compared with $802 for Hispanic or Latino workers in the private sector overall (BLS National Nonprofit Day blog).
| Weekly earnings in 2022 | Nonprofit workers | Comparison group | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Full-time workers | $1,163 | $1,026 private-sector median | BLS National Nonprofit Day blog |
| Women | $1,101 | $920 private-sector women | BLS National Nonprofit Day blog |
| Hispanic or Latino workers | $1,006 | $802 private-sector Hispanic or Latino workers | BLS National Nonprofit Day blog |
Age, hours, and union status
The workforce also has a mature-age profile. Private nonprofit workers had a median age-55-plus share of 26.6% in 2022 (BLS Spotlight on Statistics). That suggests a meaningful portion of the workforce is in later-career or pre-retirement stages.
Part-time work remains part of the employment mix. In 2022, 19.1% of private nonprofit workers usually worked part time (BLS Spotlight on Statistics). Union membership was 7.8% among private nonprofit workers in 2022 (BLS Spotlight on Statistics). Those figures indicate that nonprofit employment includes a mix of work schedules and labor relations structures, rather than one uniform pattern.
Race, nativity, and education intersections
BLS also reports that 10.4% of nonprofit workers were Hispanic or Latino in 2022 and 11.9% were foreign born (BLS National Nonprofit Day blog). Those figures do not describe the full diversity of the sector by themselves, but they do show that the nonprofit workforce is broader than a single demographic profile.
The combination of high educational attainment, substantial credentialing, and a large female workforce helps explain why nonprofit work is often both mission-driven and professionally demanding. The sector brings together frontline service, technical expertise, and administrative coordination in one labor market.
Regional and county patterns
Nonprofit employment is not evenly distributed across geography. In 2017, the District of Columbia had the highest nonprofit-employment share at 25.6% (BLS National Nonprofit Day blog). At the county level, Montour County, Pennsylvania had the highest nonprofit-employment share at 64.1% (BLS National Nonprofit Day blog).
That county result is striking because it shows how local labor markets can be reshaped by a small number of large nonprofit institutions. BLS published nonprofit data for 1,685 counties in 2017, and 752 of those counties had nonprofit-employment shares above the national average of 10.2% (BLS National Nonprofit Day blog).
Geographic pattern summary
| Geographic measure | Value | Source |
|---|---|---|
| District of Columbia nonprofit-employment share | 25.6% | BLS National Nonprofit Day blog |
| Highest county share, Montour County, Pennsylvania | 64.1% | BLS National Nonprofit Day blog |
| Counties with published nonprofit data in 2017 | 1,685 | BLS National Nonprofit Day blog |
| Counties above the 10.2% national average | 752 | BLS National Nonprofit Day blog |
These numbers matter because they show the nonprofit workforce is both national and local at the same time. Nationally, it is a huge employment sector. Locally, it can dominate employment in places shaped by hospitals, colleges, schools, or large service providers.
Financial strain and workforce stability
The workforce numbers do not stop at jobs, wages, and geography. They also connect to household strain. In 2023, 22% of nonprofit workers lived in households experiencing financial hardship (Independent Sector and United for ALICE). More than 3 million nonprofit workers were below the ALICE threshold in 2023 (Independent Sector and United for ALICE).
That creates an important tension. The sector employs millions of people in mission-centered roles, yet a significant share of those workers still face basic economic pressure. That can affect retention, hiring, hours worked, and long-term workforce stability.
What this implies for employers
- Recruiting may need to account for compensation pressure as well as mission alignment.
- Retention may depend on benefits, predictable scheduling, and advancement opportunities.
- Organizations operating in education, health care, and social assistance may face the strongest staffing competition because those fields dominate nonprofit employment (BLS Nonprofit Sector Research Data).
- Credential-heavy jobs may require wage structures that match market demand for licensed and educated workers (BLS Spotlight on Statistics).
What the numbers suggest
The nonprofit workforce is large enough to matter as a labor market on its own. It is concentrated enough to be shaped by a handful of major service industries. It is skilled enough that education, licensing, and professional roles are central. And it is broad enough to span national employment totals, county-level concentration, and household-level hardship all at once.
The key pattern is not just that nonprofits employ millions of people. It is that they employ millions of people in a way that mirrors the core social infrastructure of the country: health care, education, and community services (BLS Nonprofit Sector Research Data; BLS Spotlight on Statistics).