New Jersey vs North Carolina on USAspending: $8.1B vs $6.3B

Same top industry, different dollar stocks

These figures are USAspending.gov obligations, not Treasury outlays. New Jersey’s $8.1B stock sits $1.7 billion above North Carolina’s $6.3B. Place of performance in the award file is the scoring rule. The pair is unusual because the top industry label is identical—pharmaceutical preparation manufacturing—while scale, rows, people, and intensity still diverge.

New Jersey’s $8,084,032,234 is spread across 1,162,765 records. North Carolina’s $6,340,179,185 sits on 429,746. New Jersey’s file is busier even after adjusting for the larger stock. Shared industry family does not mean shared paperwork volume. The $8.1B versus $6.3B ranking is a dollar ranking, not a row ranking.

Two pharmaceutical-preparation leads sit on $8,084,032,234 and $6,340,179,185. New Jersey’s 1,162,765 awards versus North Carolina’s 429,746 awards still differ. People of 9,500,851 versus 11,046,024 produce $92.49 versus $66.77. FY2026 of $878,702,039 versus $737,511,771 stays with New Jersey. Matching top slices does not match paperwork volume, Census counts, or stacked stocks. Both files remain USAspending.gov obligation books.

Fewer people in New Jersey, higher intensity

North Carolina’s 11,046,024 residents exceed New Jersey’s 9,500,851. After dividing the obligation stocks by those Census counts, New Jersey shows $92.49 per capita and North Carolina shows $66.77. Intensity favors New Jersey even though North Carolina has more people.

A $92.49 per-person reading on 9,500,851 residents is an intensity fact attached to $8.1B. North Carolina’s $66.77 on 11,046,024 residents is attached to $6.3B. This table scores USAspending place of performance, not GDP. Two pharmaceutical-led files can still hide a wide row-count gap and a quieter intensity gap.

Two pharmaceutical-preparation files

New Jersey’s top industry is pharmaceutical preparation manufacturing. North Carolina’s top industry is also pharmaceutical preparation manufacturing. Those identical NAICS labels mark the largest grouping in each state’s file. They are not a full industrial census. Drug-manufacturing awards are the lead product on both stocks; they are not the entire $8.1B or $6.3B.

A pharmaceutical-preparation lead inside New Jersey’s 1,162,765-award file can sit among many smaller actions. The same label inside North Carolina’s 429,746-award file can sit on a different mix of other industries. Matching top slices does not make the files interchangeable. Neither label explains every dollar.

FY2026: $878.7M in New Jersey vs $737.5M in North Carolina

FY2026 obligations are $878,702,039 in New Jersey and $737,511,771 in North Carolina. New Jersey remains ahead in the latest year, in the same direction as the stacked ranking. Recency questions belong in FY2026. The $8.1B 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 New Jersey’s 1,162,765 or North Carolina’s 429,746 all-years awards. Per capita of $92.49 on 9,500,851 residents versus $66.77 on 11,046,024 residents is the intensity comparison. FY2026 answers how the latest year booked. Stacked totals still favor New Jersey.

New Jersey’s $878,702,039 FY2026 versus North Carolina’s $737,511,771 stays with $8,084,032,234 versus $6,340,179,185. 1,162,765 awards versus 429,746 awards remain the paperwork split. 9,500,851 residents versus 11,046,024 residents produce $92.49 versus $66.77. Two pharmaceutical-preparation leads still leave two files. Keep FY2026 separate from the stacked stocks.

A shared label that does not equal a shared file

New Jersey leads stacked dollars ($8.1B vs $6.3B), award count (1,162,765 vs 429,746), per capita ($92.49 vs $66.77), and FY2026 ($878.7M vs $737.5M). North Carolina leads population (11,046,024 vs 9,500,851). The distinctive fact is the matched pharmaceutical-preparation lead on files that otherwise do not match.

Pharmaceutical preparation manufacturing in both states is mix inside files that contain many other industries. Use the New Jersey and North Carolina hubs for agencies and recipients. Keep both stocks labeled as USAspending.gov obligations.

Identical NAICS labels still leave two files

Pharmaceutical preparation manufacturing leads both New Jersey and North Carolina. That shared label sits on $8,084,032,234 and $6,340,179,185, on 1,162,765 awards versus 429,746, and on 9,500,851 residents versus 11,046,024. Per capita of $92.49 versus $66.77 follows from those stocks and those people. Matching top slices does not match the rest of the book.

FY2026 of $878,702,039 versus $737,511,771 stays with New Jersey. Readers should not treat two pharmaceutical-preparation leads as evidence the files are interchangeable. Open the state hubs for agencies and recipients. Keep both stocks labeled as USAspending.gov obligations, not outlays.

Questions

Which state has more federal spending, New Jersey or North Carolina?

New Jersey leads in stacked USAspending.gov obligations: $8,084,032,234 versus North Carolina’s $6,340,179,185. New Jersey has more awards (1,162,765 vs 429,746). North Carolina has more people (11,046,024 vs 9,500,851). Spending per capita is $92.49 in New Jersey and $66.77 in North Carolina. FY2026 obligations are $878.7M and $737.5M. These are obligations, not Treasury outlays.

Do New Jersey and North Carolina have the same top federal industry?

Yes. Both files lead with pharmaceutical preparation manufacturing. That shared NAICS label sits on $8.1B in New Jersey and $6.3B in North Carolina. Award counts still differ: 1,162,765 versus 429,746. Matching top slices does not make the files the same size. Per capita is $92.49 versus $66.77.

Why does New Jersey have more awards than North Carolina?

New Jersey logs 1,162,765 awards on $8.1B. North Carolina logs 429,746 awards on $6.3B. New Jersey’s file is busier in rows on a larger stock. Populations are 9,500,851 and 11,046,024. FY2026 favors New Jersey ($878.7M vs $737.5M). Both top industries are pharmaceutical preparation manufacturing.

Are New Jersey vs North Carolina figures Treasury outlays?

No. SpendingVault uses USAspending.gov obligations. Outlays are cash payments and can lag. The $8.1B and $6.3B stacked totals and FY2026 amounts of $878.7M and $737.5M measure award commitments by place of performance, not Monthly Treasury Statement payments.