Michigan vs North Carolina on USAspending: $8.4B vs $6.3B

Matched award files, unmatched dollars

These figures are USAspending.gov obligations, not Treasury outlays. Michigan’s $8.4B stock sits $2.1 billion above North Carolina’s $6.3B. Place of performance in the award file is the scoring rule. The unusual fact is the row count. Michigan logs 416,538 awards; North Carolina logs 429,746. On stocks this large, those files are effectively the same size.

Matched rows with unmatched dollars imply a heavier typical booking in Michigan. North Carolina’s $6.3B is spread across slightly more actions. Michigan’s $8.4B sits on a similar number of records. Dollars favor Michigan; paperwork volume does not. The $8.4B versus $6.3B ranking is a dollar ranking, not a row ranking.

Michigan’s 416,538 awards and North Carolina’s 429,746 awards are close enough that typical booking size, not paperwork volume, carries the $8,395,413,599 versus $6,340,179,185 gap. People of 10,140,459 versus 11,046,024 are also close, which is why $175.18 versus $66.77 is a clean intensity split. FY2026 of $1,776,433,740 versus $737,511,771 favors Michigan. Automobiles versus pharmaceuticals is mix, not a census of either stock.

Similar Census counts, 2.6 times the intensity

North Carolina’s 11,046,024 residents slightly exceed Michigan’s 10,140,459. After dividing the obligation stocks by those Census counts, Michigan shows $175.18 per capita and North Carolina shows $66.77. Intensity in Michigan is more than 2.6 times North Carolina’s even though the populations are close.

A $175.18 per-person reading on 10,140,459 residents is an intensity fact attached to $8.4B. North Carolina’s $66.77 on 11,046,024 residents is attached to $6.3B. This table scores USAspending place of performance, not GDP. Similar people and similar rows can still hide a wide dollar gap and a wider intensity gap.

Automobiles in Michigan, pharmaceuticals in North Carolina

Michigan’s top industry is automobile manufacturing. North Carolina’s is pharmaceutical preparation manufacturing. Those NAICS labels mark the largest grouping in each state’s file. Vehicle-assembly awards and drug-manufacturing awards are different lead products sitting on $8.4B and $6.3B stocks.

An automobile-manufacturing lead inside Michigan’s 416,538-award file can concentrate vehicle production without explaining every dollar. A pharmaceutical-preparation lead inside North Carolina’s 429,746-award file can sit among many other actions. Mix differs even while row counts stay close. Neither label is the entire stock.

FY2026: $1.78B in Michigan vs $737.5M in North Carolina

FY2026 obligations are $1,776,433,740 in Michigan and $737,511,771 in North Carolina. Michigan’s latest year is more than double North Carolina’s. Recency questions belong in FY2026. The $8.4B and $6.3B totals remain the full USAspending.gov aggregate this comparison uses. Both years are obligations, not outlays.

Do not divide those FY figures by Michigan’s 416,538 or North Carolina’s 429,746 all-years awards. Per capita of $175.18 on 10,140,459 residents versus $66.77 on 11,046,024 residents is the intensity comparison. FY2026 is the cut that most clearly separates this pair. Stacked totals still favor Michigan.

Michigan’s $1,776,433,740 FY2026 versus North Carolina’s $737,511,771 is the recency cut on stocks of $8,395,413,599 versus $6,340,179,185. 416,538 awards versus 429,746 awards stay close. 10,140,459 residents versus 11,046,024 residents produce $175.18 versus $66.77. Same-size files can still hide a wide latest-year gap. Both cuts are obligations.

Same-size files, different books

Michigan leads stacked dollars ($8.4B vs $6.3B), per capita ($175.18 vs $66.77), and FY2026 ($1.78B vs $737.5M). North Carolina leads award count by a thin margin (429,746 vs 416,538) and population (11,046,024 vs 10,140,459). Those splits are why this pair is useful as a dollar-and-intensity comparison rather than a paperwork comparison.

Automobile manufacturing versus pharmaceutical preparation manufacturing is mix inside files that contain many other industries. Use the Michigan and North Carolina hubs for agencies and recipients. Keep both stocks labeled as USAspending.gov obligations.

Same-size files with a $2.1 billion dollar gap

Michigan’s 416,538 awards and North Carolina’s 429,746 awards are close enough that this pair is a poor paperwork contest. It is a useful dollar-and-intensity contest. $8,395,413,599 on 10,140,459 residents produces $175.18 per capita. $6,340,179,185 on 11,046,024 residents produces $66.77. Similar people, similar rows, different stocks.

FY2026 of $1,776,433,740 versus $737,511,771 is the recency cut that most clearly favors Michigan. Automobile manufacturing versus pharmaceutical preparation manufacturing is mix. Keep both stocks labeled as USAspending.gov obligations. Do not convert either figure into an outlay.

Questions

Which state has more federal spending, Michigan or North Carolina?

Michigan leads in stacked USAspending.gov obligations: $8,395,413,599 versus North Carolina’s $6,340,179,185. Award counts are close (416,538 vs 429,746). North Carolina has slightly more people (11,046,024 vs 10,140,459). Spending per capita is $175.18 in Michigan and $66.77 in North Carolina. FY2026 obligations are $1.78B and $737.5M. These are obligations, not Treasury outlays.

Are Michigan and North Carolina award counts similar?

Yes. Michigan logs 416,538 awards on $8.4B. North Carolina logs 429,746 awards on $6.3B. The files are nearly the same size in rows. Intensity is not: $175.18 versus $66.77. Populations are 10,140,459 and 11,046,024. FY2026 favors Michigan ($1.78B vs $737.5M).

What industries lead Michigan and North Carolina federal awards?

Michigan’s top industry is automobile manufacturing. North Carolina’s is pharmaceutical preparation manufacturing. Those slices sit on $8.4B and $6.3B obligation stocks. They mark the largest grouping in each file, not every award in either state. Award counts are 416,538 in Michigan and 429,746 in North Carolina.

Are Michigan vs North Carolina figures Treasury outlays?

No. SpendingVault uses USAspending.gov obligations. Outlays are cash payments and can lag. The $8.4B and $6.3B stacked totals and FY2026 amounts of $1.78B and $737.5M measure award commitments by place of performance, not Monthly Treasury Statement payments.