24/7 Wall St. Insights

• With nearly 2.6 million people on payroll, the Department of Defense is one of the largest employers in the world. 
• While DOD employees, including civilians and active-duty service members, are spread across the 50 states, a disproportionate share of defense workers are concentrated in a handful of Florida communities.
• Also: Discover the next Nvidia

The U.S. Department of Defense is the largest — and one of the best funded — agencies in the federal government. Headquartered at the Pentagon, the DOD employs nearly 2.6 million people and has an annual budget of more than $870 billion.

Thousands of Defense Department employees, including both civilians and active-duty service members, are stationed in each of the 50 states, as well as Washington, D.C. — and while the DOD’s nerve center may be in northern Virginia, one state farther south has emerged as a hub for the U.S. military.

According to Defense Spending by State, a recent report from the DOD, approximately 131,500 national defense personnel were stationed in Florida in fiscal 2023 — more than in all but four other states. The largest share of department employees in the state — 45.7% — are active-duty troops. An additional 26.2% are civilian employees, 18.6% are reservists, and 9.5% are guards men and women. (Here is a look at the states with the most armed forces personnel.)

The largest DOD service branches in the state by total employment, including civilians and reservists, are the Navy and Marine Corps with about 52,500 employees, followed by the Air and Space Forces with a total of 44,300 personnel. The Army also has about 31,000 people in the state on payroll, and another 3,900 Floridians work in other areas of national defense.

Just as Florida stands out as a critical state for the U.S. military, there are certain parts of the state where the DOD’s presence is especially concentrated. Due in part to major military installations in the state — including Naval Station Mayport and Naval Air Station Jacksonville — there are multiple counties in Florida that are each home to several thousand Defense Department employees. In one Florida county, the DOD has more personnel than in all of Montana, New Hampshire, Vermont, and Wyoming combined — and spent over $2.0 billion on payroll there in fiscal 2023 alone. (Here is a look at the newest American military bases.)

These are the 10 counties in Florida with the most military and civilian Defense Department personnel. All data in this story was compiled by the DOD and is current as of fiscal 2023. Counties for which personnel data was not disclosed were excluded from analysis.

Why it Matters

A significant share of the Pentagon’s budget goes to payroll for the 2.6 million American men and women who work for the national defense. In fiscal 2023 alone, the Department of Defense spent over $167.4 billion on employee salaries and wages. While this money is spread across the 50 states, it has an outsized impact in places that have emerged as hubs for U.S. military operations.

10. Palm Beach County

• Total Defense Department personnel: 2,153 (1.6% of DOD personnel statewide)
• Active-duty personnel: 114 (0.2% of active-duty personnel statewide)
• National Guard personnel: 469 (3.8% of National Guard personnel statewide)
• Reservist personnel: 1,327 (5.4% of reservist personnel statewide)
• Civilian DOD personnel: 243 (0.7% of civilian personnel statewide)
• Total Defense Department payroll: N/A

9. Pinellas County

• Total Defense Department personnel: 2,248 (1.7% of DOD personnel statewide)
• Active-duty personnel: 43 (0.1% of active-duty personnel statewide)
• National Guard personnel: 878 (7.0% of National Guard personnel statewide)
• Reservist personnel: 1,030 (4.2% of reservist personnel statewide)
• Civilian DOD personnel: 297 (0.9% of civilian personnel statewide)
• Total Defense Department payroll: N/A

8. Brevard County

• Total Defense Department personnel: 5,943 (4.5% of DOD personnel statewide)
• Active-duty personnel: 1,510 (2.5% of active-duty personnel statewide)
• National Guard personnel: 412 (3.3% of National Guard personnel statewide)
• Reservist personnel: 1,407 (5.8% of reservist personnel statewide)
• Civilian DOD personnel: 2,614 (7.6% of civilian personnel statewide)
• Total Defense Department payroll: $426,125,292 (4.8% of DOD payroll statewide)

7. Miami-Dade County

• Total Defense Department personnel: 6,255 (4.8% of DOD personnel statewide)
• Active-duty personnel: 1,114 (1.9% of active-duty personnel statewide)
• National Guard personnel: 334 (2.7% of National Guard personnel statewide)
• Reservist personnel: 3,530 (14.4% of reservist personnel statewide)
• Civilian DOD personnel: 1,277 (3.7% of civilian personnel statewide)
• Total Defense Department payroll: $352,931,668 (3.9% of DOD payroll statewide)

6. Orange County

• Total Defense Department personnel: 6,279 (4.8% of DOD personnel statewide)
• Active-duty personnel: 289 (0.5% of active-duty personnel statewide)
• National Guard personnel: 341 (2.7% of National Guard personnel statewide)
• Reservist personnel: 3,138 (12.8% of reservist personnel statewide)
• Civilian DOD personnel: 2,511 (7.3% of civilian personnel statewide)
• Total Defense Department payroll: $401,434,800 (4.5% of DOD payroll statewide)

5. Bay County

• Total Defense Department personnel: 6,967 (5.3% of DOD personnel statewide)
• Active-duty personnel: 2,951 (4.9% of active-duty personnel statewide)
• National Guard personnel: 522 (4.2% of National Guard personnel statewide)
• Reservist personnel: 422 (1.7% of reservist personnel statewide)
• Civilian DOD personnel: 3,072 (8.9% of civilian personnel statewide)
• Total Defense Department payroll: $576,066,284 (6.4% of DOD payroll statewide)

4. Hillsborough County

• Total Defense Department personnel: 13,113 (10.0% of DOD personnel statewide)
• Active-duty personnel: 5,713 (9.5% of active-duty personnel statewide)
• National Guard personnel: 471 (3.8% of National Guard personnel statewide)
• Reservist personnel: 4,039 (16.5% of reservist personnel statewide)
• Civilian DOD personnel: 2,890 (8.4% of civilian personnel statewide)
• Total Defense Department payroll: $953,146,668 (10.7% of DOD payroll statewide)

3. Escambia County

• Total Defense Department personnel: 15,328 (11.7% of DOD personnel statewide)
• Active-duty personnel: 11,422 (19.0% of active-duty personnel statewide)
• National Guard personnel: 195 (1.6% of National Guard personnel statewide)
• Reservist personnel: 1,062 (4.3% of reservist personnel statewide)
• Civilian DOD personnel: 2,649 (7.7% of civilian personnel statewide)
• Total Defense Department payroll: $878,071,444 (9.8% of DOD payroll statewide)

2. Okaloosa County

• Total Defense Department personnel: 26,865 (20.4% of DOD personnel statewide)
• Active-duty personnel: 16,925 (28.1% of active-duty personnel statewide)
• National Guard personnel: 103 (0.8% of National Guard personnel statewide)
• Reservist personnel: 2,248 (9.2% of reservist personnel statewide)
• Civilian DOD personnel: 7,589 (22.0% of civilian personnel statewide)
• Total Defense Department payroll: $2,221,152,381 (24.8% of DOD payroll statewide)

1. Duval County

• Total Defense Department personnel: 28,005 (21.3% of DOD personnel statewide)
• Active-duty personnel: 13,299 (22.1% of active-duty personnel statewide)
• National Guard personnel: 1,895 (15.2% of National Guard personnel statewide)
• Reservist personnel: 4,003 (16.4% of reservist personnel statewide)
• Civilian DOD personnel: 8,808 (25.6% of civilian personnel statewide)
• Total Defense Department payroll: $2,009,931,401 (22.5% of DOD payroll statewide)

Thank you for reading! Have some feedback for us?
Contact the 24/7 Wall St. editorial team.