Put the source to work.
Explore the historical size and structure of metropolitan economies. Use the dated GDP and industry measures to frame questions about how a place developed and what has changed since.
Why it matters
Industry and economic history can help a researcher understand a metro’s strengths. The year matters when comparing that history with present opportunities.
What can the economic past tell you about a place?
Imagine two metro areas are considering an industry partnership. Their historical output can show how each economy developed. History helps you ask a better current question. A strong industry in 2017 still needs recent evidence before you describe today’s capacity.
This source covers 2001–2017 and includes total and industry measures for metro economies. Use it to study historical size, real growth, and economic structure. Pair that background with the investment and research guide, then ask present-day firms and institutions about their capabilities.
Three steps you can take
- Label every comparison historical and keep the metro boundary and industry definition with it.
- Choose current-dollar size or inflation-adjusted growth according to the question.
- Leave suppressed or unavailable industry values missing, and seek recent local sources for today’s decision.
Read the source: BEA: GDP by county and metropolitan area. This reference explains the source or research context; the inventory figures below come from the reviewed NDS package.
Know what you are looking at.
- Metros
- 383 plus a national metropolitan aggregate
- Industry and total lines
- 87
- History
- 2001–2017
Use these figures to understand the package reviewed on October 20, 2026. The results section below tells you which comparisons you can explore here and which still need source work. A source guide is different from a complete table of published observations.
How to use the evidence
Label any comparisons as historical and preserve the national aggregate separately from individual metros.
Keep unavailable and suppressed detailed industry values distinct from zero.
How many people
live in the market?
The supplied Census Vintage 2025 file adds population context for 387 metropolitan and 538 micropolitan areas. Keep these newer population estimates separate from the 2001–2017 GDP history above.
387 matching areas · 10 shown. Population rank retains its full area-type denominator.
| Population rank | Area | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 / 387 | New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJCBSA 35620 | 20,080,087 | 20,112,448 |
| 2 / 387 | Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CACBSA 31080 | 12,906,895 | 12,844,441 |
| 3 / 387 | Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-INCBSA 16980 | 9,411,198 | 9,434,123 |
| 4 / 387 | Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TXCBSA 19100 | 8,353,600 | 8,477,157 |
| 5 / 387 | Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TXCBSA 26420 | 7,777,907 | 7,904,627 |
| 6 / 387 | Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GACBSA 12060 | 6,420,229 | 6,482,182 |
| 7 / 387 | Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WVCBSA 47900 | 6,415,518 | 6,465,724 |
| 8 / 387 | Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FLCBSA 33100 | 6,399,981 | 6,391,072 |
| 9 / 387 | Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MDCBSA 37980 | 6,313,158 | 6,329,118 |
| 10 / 387 | Phoenix-Mesa-Chandler, AZCBSA 38060 | 5,169,873 | 5,228,938 |
Use the right denominator. Resident population gives market scale. It does not identify people’s birthplace or heritage. A community share needs the same Census period and geographic definition for its numerator and denominator. This population view does not recalculate the Sister City scores.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau Population Estimates, supplied cbsa-est2025-alldata.csv. Ranking uses CBSA totals only; counties and metropolitan divisions are not added again.
Available results and rankings
- Historical GDP size, growth, per-person output, and industry structure comparisons can be developed.
Coverage and limits
- The reviewed coverage ends in 2017. It is not a current metro-economy ranking.
- Many detailed industry values are unavailable or suppressed. No stored NDS-certified ranking was found.
Other source guides
Commercial Diplomacy Index™ · National Data System · Source and method guide · October 20, 2026