Georgia vs Virginia on USAspending

A larger Southern state, a smaller federal ledger

Georgia outpopulates Virginia and still records less than one-tenth of Virginia’s $110.8B. $9.7B is a real federal book; it is not a Virginia-class book. USAspending.gov place-of-performance, not a ranking of Southern economies, is what this row measures. High-dollar services work coded to Virginia dominates the comparison.

Georgia versus Virginia is also a neighbor-region matchup in a loose sense — South Atlantic states — without being a Beltway pair like Maryland–Virginia. The dollar gap is still the Beltway pattern: contractor-hub stock on one side, a large state with a smaller recorded federal footprint on the other.

Georgia’s 11,180,878 residents exceed Virginia’s 8,811,195, so any story that starts “Virginia is bigger” is false on population and true only on the federal award ledger. $9.7B versus $110.8B is the ledger story. USAspending.gov place-of-performance, not a ranking of Southern metros, is the measurement.

Aircraft manufacturing, again, versus computer-related services

Georgia’s top industry is aircraft manufacturing, the same leading description Missouri carries in this batch, on a slightly smaller $9.7B stock versus Missouri’s $10.4B. Virginia’s top industry is other computer related services. Airframes versus IT services is the industry contrast.

Georgia’s award count is 278,028 against Virginia’s 1,116,647. A manufacturing lead often sits on fewer actions than a services-modification market. This page does not claim a percentage of Georgia’s $9.7B is aircraft work; top industry is the largest slice only.

Aircraft manufacturing as Georgia’s top industry matches Missouri’s leading description. Georgia’s $9.7B sits just below Missouri’s $10.4B, with 278,028 awards versus Missouri’s 300,867 — a nearby goods-state profile, still far below Virginia’s $110.8B and 1,116,647 awards. This page does not merge the two aircraft states; it reports Georgia versus Virginia.

Per-capita $95.66 — low for 11 million people

Georgia’s spending per capita is $95.66. Virginia’s is $1,344.24. Dividing $9.7B by 11,180,878 residents produces a low per-person figure, in the same neighborhood as other large-population, modest-stock states in this set. Per-capita is not a slight and not a household payment.

Quote $9.7B and $95.66 together. The raw total still looks like a large round number; the per-capita column shows how thin it is for Georgia’s size. FY 2026 is the latest year, not a single-year cash budget.

$95.66 per capita is the result of spreading $9.7B across 11,180,878 people. It sits in the low band with North Carolina’s $66.77 and Ohio’s $61.66: large population, modest USAspending stock. Virginia’s $1,344.24 is $110.8B over 8,811,195. FY 2026 is the latest year, not a single-year aircraft budget.

Reading the pair

Three cells: $9.7B vs $110.8B, 278,028 vs 1,116,647 awards, $95.66 vs $1,344.24 per capita. Georgia leads on population (11,180,878 vs 8,811,195) and trails on every volume metric that is about federal awards.

Cite USAspending.gov. Keep obligations and outlays separate. Use the Georgia and Virginia state hubs for drill-downs. The comparison index is the place to pick a different opponent, including other aircraft-manufacturing leads if that is the question.

Cite USAspending.gov. Keep obligations distinct from outlays. The Georgia and Virginia state pages hold agency and recipient lists. This guide is the head-to-head on dollars, awards, population, per-capita, FY 2026, and the two top-industry labels.

Out of scope

No plant names, no agency table, no outlay series. The packet’s facts for Georgia versus Virginia are the two obligation totals, award counts, populations, per-capita figures, FY 2026, and the two top-industry labels.

More people, fewer recorded federal dollars

Georgia’s 11,180,878 residents and Virginia’s 8,811,195 residents reverse the casual size ranking. $9.7B and 278,028 awards versus $110.8B and 1,116,647 awards restore the federal-award ranking. Aircraft manufacturing versus other computer related services is the industry cell. $95.66 versus $1,344.24 is the per-capita cell. A summary that mentions only population will imply Georgia is the larger federal market. A summary that mentions only $9.7B will hide that Georgia is the larger state. USAspending.gov obligations, not outlays, are the series, with FY 2026 as the latest year. The Georgia and Virginia hubs hold the rest of the tables. Georgia’s 278,028 awards and $95.66 per capita should travel with the $9.7B headline whenever this pair is quoted.

Questions

Does Georgia have more federal spending than Virginia?

No. Georgia shows $9.7B in USAspending obligations; Virginia shows $110.8B. Georgia has more residents, 11,180,878 versus 8,811,195. Totals are obligations, not Treasury outlays. FY 2026 is the latest year in the comparison. Figures come from SpendingVault aggregates of USAspending.gov award records. They are obligations — recorded commitments — not Treasury outlays, and FY 2026 is the latest year in the comparison.

What is Georgia’s top federal industry vs Virginia?

Georgia’s top industry is aircraft manufacturing. Virginia’s is other computer related services. Those NAICS descriptions are the leading slices in SpendingVault’s aggregates, not a complete list of either state’s federal awards. Figures come from SpendingVault aggregates of USAspending.gov award records. They are obligations — recorded commitments — not Treasury outlays, and FY 2026 is the latest year in the comparison.

What is Georgia’s federal spending per capita compared with Virginia?

Georgia’s spending per capita is $95.66. Virginia’s is $1,344.24. Both divide USAspending obligations by Census population (11,180,878 and 8,811,195). Per-capita is a scaling statistic, not a payment to residents. Figures come from SpendingVault aggregates of USAspending.gov award records. They are obligations — recorded commitments — not Treasury outlays, and FY 2026 is the latest year in the comparison.

How many federal awards are in Georgia vs Virginia?

Georgia has 278,028 awards in this aggregate; Virginia has 1,116,647. Award counts include contracts, grants, and modifications. Virginia also leads on dollars, $110.8B versus Georgia’s $9.7B. Figures come from SpendingVault aggregates of USAspending.gov award records. They are obligations — recorded commitments — not Treasury outlays, and FY 2026 is the latest year in the comparison.