24/7 Wall St. Insights

• With more than 2.5 million people on payroll, the Department of Defense is the largest employer in the United States.
• The bulk of DOD employees are active-duty service members, who can be deployed to combat at any time.
• While these men and women are stationed across the country, the presence of several major bases in Virginia has made the state a critical hub for American military operations.
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With half a million more people on payroll than Walmart, the world’s largest private sector employer, the Department of Defense is the single largest employer in the United States. While there are about 734,000 civilians in the Pentagon’s workforce, most DOD employees are active-duty troops, reservists, and National Guardsmen.

Across all service branches in the U.S. military, there are over 1.1 million active-duty service members and an additional 743,000 reserve troops and Guardsmen. Although it falls under purview of the Department of Homeland Security rather than the DOD, the U.S. Coast Guard employs another 57,000 Americans. The backbone of American military power, these men and women are stationed across the country — but in certain states, the presence of military personnel is far more pronounced than in others. (Here is a look at the number of active-duty service members in each state.)

While multiple branches of the military have installations in Virginia, the U.S. Navy has an especially large footprint. Established in 1775, less than one year before the Declaration of Independence was signed, the Navy is the maritime service branch of the U.S. military. Today, the U.S. Navy is deployed around the world to protect American interests at sea and deter aggression from adversarial nations. There are about 303,300 active-duty troops serving the Navy, more than in any other branch with the exception of the Army.

Currently, Virginia is home to more active-duty U.S. Navy personnel than any other state. According to data from the DOD’s 2022 Demographics Profile, there are over 82,300 active-duty Navy service men and women stationed in Virginia, more than 25% of all active-duty Naval personnel in the United States. Adjusting for population, there are about 95 Sailors for every 10,000 Virginia residents, compared to only 0.9 per 10,000 people nationwide.

Virginia’s status as a hub for the U.S. Navy is due in large part to the presence of several major installations. These include Joint Expeditionary Base Little Creek-Fort Story in Virginia Beach, the Naval Station in Norfolk, and Norfolk Naval Shipyard in Portsmouth. (Here is a look at the newest U.S. military bases.)

This is the number of active-duty and reserve troops, from each branch of the U.S. military, stationed in Virginia.

Why It Matters

There are over 1.1 million active-duty troops and another 743,000 reservists and Guardsmen serving in the U.S. military. To maintain preparedness for a host of rising threats, these men and women are stationed at bases across the country. While the U.S. military has a footprint in every state in the country, the Navy has an especially strong presence in Virginia.

U.S. Army

• Active duty-troop count: 19,668 — 7th most of 50 states (4.8% of all active-duty troops in service branch)
• Concentration of active-duty troops: 22.6 per 10,000 people — 11th highest of 50 states
• Reserve troop count: 7,143 — 5th most of 50 states (4.2% of all reserve troops in service branch)
• Concentration of reserve troops: 8.2 per 10,000 people — 5th highest of 50 states

U.S. Navy

• Active duty-troop count: 82,316 — the most of 50 states (27.1% of all active-duty troops in service branch)
• Concentration of active-duty troops: 94.8 per 10,000 people — the highest of 50 states
• Reserve troop count: 5,064 — 4th most of 50 states (9.3% of all reserve troops in service branch)
• Concentration of reserve troops: 5.8 per 10,000 people — 2nd highest of 50 states

U.S. Marine Corps

• Active duty-troop count: 10,204 — 4th most of 50 states (7.0% of all active-duty troops in service branch)
• Concentration of active-duty troops: 11.8 per 10,000 people — 5th highest of 50 states
• Reserve troop count: 1,650 — 4th most of 50 states (5.9% of all reserve troops in service branch)
• Concentration of reserve troops: 1.9 per 10,000 people — 2nd highest of 50 states

U.S. Air Force

• Active duty-troop count: 12,108 — 5th most of 50 states (4.6% of all active-duty troops in service branch)
• Concentration of active-duty troops: 13.9 per 10,000 people — 17th highest of 50 states
• Reserve troop count: 2,021 — 11th most of 50 states (3.0% of all reserve troops in service branch)
• Concentration of reserve troops: 2.3 per 10,000 people — 20th highest of 50 states

U.S. Space Force

• Active duty-troop count: 866 — 3rd most of 50 states (11.3% of all active-duty troops in service branch)
• Concentration of active-duty troops: 1.0 per 10,000 people — 2nd highest of 50 states
• Reserve troop count: N/A
• Concentration of reserve troops: N/A

Army National Guard

• Active duty-troop count: N/A
• Concentration of active-duty troops: N/A
• Reserve troop count: 7,320 — 19th most of 50 states (2.3% of all reserve troops in service branch)
• Concentration of reserve troops: 8.4 per 10,000 people — 13th lowest of 50 states

Air National Guard

• Active duty-troop count: N/A
• Concentration of active-duty troops: N/A
• Reserve troop count: 1,458 — 19th fewest of 50 states (1.4% of all reserve troops in service branch)
• Concentration of reserve troops: 1.7 per 10,000 people — 5th lowest of 50 states

U.S. Coast Guard

• Reserve Guardsman count: 463 — 3rd most of 50 states (7.6% of all reserve troops in service branch)
• Concentration of reserve Guardsman: 0.5 per 10,000 people — 3rd highest of 50 states

U.S. Department of Defense Total

• Active duty-troop count: 125,162 — 2nd most of 50 states (11.0% of all active-duty troops in service branch)
• Concentration of active-duty troops: 144.1 per 10,000 people — 3rd highest of 50 states
• Reserve troop count: 25,119 — 8th most of 50 states (3.4% of all reserve troops in service branch)
• Concentration of reserve troops: 28.9 per 10,000 people — 24th highest of 50 states

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