Custom manufacturing is not reported as one official statistical category, so its scale is best understood through related U.S. manufacturing, production-occupation, engineering, e-commerce and technology measures. The figures below identify their populations, periods, definitions and limitations so readers can distinguish observed data from forecasts.
Key Custom Manufacturing Statistics
The most useful headline figures are:
- In 2024, more than 12.8 million workers were employed in U.S. manufacturing.
- In May 2024, production occupations represented 5.7% of total U.S. employment.
- In May 2024, 1,457,800 U.S. workers held miscellaneous assembler and fabricator jobs.
- In May 2024, 685,140 U.S. workers were first-line production supervisors.
- In May 2024, 591,180 U.S. workers were inspectors, testers, sorters, samplers or weighers.
- In May 2024, 424,040 U.S. workers were welders, cutters, solderers or brazers.
- In May 2024, 298,790 U.S. workers were machinists.
- In May 2024, the mean annual wage across U.S. production occupations was $50,090.
- In May 2024, aerospace product and parts manufacturing production occupations averaged $66,010 annually.
- From 2024 to 2034, about half of detailed U.S. manufacturing industries are projected to add jobs.
- From 2024 to 2034, other electrical equipment and component manufacturing is projected to grow 29%.
- From 2024 to 2034, production occupations are projected to have nearly 1 million openings per year on average across all U.S. industries.
- In 2024, the median annual wage for U.S. machinists was $56,150.
- From 2024 to 2034, industrial-engineering employment in U.S. manufacturing is projected to increase by 25,600 jobs.
- In 2024, manufacturing industrial engineers had a $100,060 median annual wage.
- In 2022, U.S. manufacturing e-shipments totaled $4,825,877,951 thousand.
- In 2022, e-shipments represented 68.5% of U.S. manufacturing sales, shipments or revenue.
- In its 2023 report, NIST reported discrete-technology products accounted for 37% of U.S. manufacturing.
Contents
- U.S. custom manufacturing scale and workforce
- Custom manufacturing employment and wage data
- Manufacturing growth trends and projections
- Production occupations supporting custom manufacturing
- Engineering and technical roles
- Digital, flexible and additive manufacturing indicators
U.S. Custom Manufacturing Scale and Workforce
The broadest available scale measure is total manufacturing employment rather than a custom-order count. The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported that U.S. manufacturing employed more than 12.8 million workers in 2024; the measure covers the manufacturing industry and is not a count of custom-manufacturing firms. BLS Career Outlook
Production work is broader than manufacturing because the occupational classification spans industries. BLS reported that production occupations made up 5.7% of total U.S. employment in May 2024, while the largest related occupations included the following:
| Occupation | U.S. employment, May 2024 |
|---|---|
| Miscellaneous assemblers and fabricators | 1,457,800 |
| First-line production supervisors | 685,140 |
| Inspectors, testers, sorters, samplers and weighers | 591,180 |
| Welders, cutters, solderers and brazers | 424,040 |
| Packaging and filling machine operators | 383,860 |
Source: BLS May 2024 occupational employment and wages tables. These occupations span industries, so the values indicate the labor pool supporting custom production rather than custom manufacturing alone.
Custom Manufacturing Employment and Wage Data
Custom work often depends on machining, assembly, inspection, joining and packaging. In May 2024, BLS counted 298,790 machinists and 261,140 electrical, electronic and electromechanical assemblers across the U.S. economy. BLS May 2024 occupational employment and wages tables
BLS reported an annual mean wage of $50,090 for all U.S. production occupations in May 2024, compared with $67,920 for all occupations. These are wage benchmarks, not prices, margins or customer quotes for custom orders.
| Manufacturing production group | Annual mean wage, May 2024 |
|---|---|
| Petroleum and coal products manufacturing | $86,760 |
| Aerospace product and parts manufacturing | $66,010 |
| Motor vehicle manufacturing | $63,060 |
| Footwear manufacturing | $35,520 |
| Apparel knitting mills | $34,960 |
The industry comparison shows why a single “custom manufacturing wage” would be misleading: BLS measures production occupations inside different industries, not a standardized custom-production service. BLS May 2024 occupational employment and wages tables
BLS also cautions that its Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics figures are employer-survey estimates and exclude self-employed people. That limitation matters for small custom shops and owner-operated businesses.
Custom Manufacturing Growth Trends and Projections
BLS projections cover 2024 to 2034 and are forecasts rather than observed outcomes. About half of detailed manufacturing industries are projected to experience job growth during that period.
The strongest listed percentage projection is 29% growth for other electrical equipment and component manufacturing, a category that includes battery manufacturing. Semiconductor and other electronic component manufacturing and beverage manufacturing are each projected to grow 11%, while other food manufacturing is projected to grow 8% and pharmaceutical and medicine manufacturing 5%. BLS Career Outlook
Projected job additions provide another view of scale:
- Other electrical equipment and component manufacturing: 48,400 additional jobs by 2034.
- Semiconductor and electronic component manufacturing: 44,500 additional jobs by 2034.
- Aerospace product and parts manufacturing: 30,100 additional jobs by 2034.
- Plastics product manufacturing: 26,300 additional jobs by 2034.
- Pharmaceutical and medicine manufacturing: 19,000 additional jobs by 2034.
These are projected wage-and-salary employment changes, not guaranteed hiring totals or measures of custom-order demand. BLS Career Outlook
Production Occupations Supporting Custom Manufacturing
The BLS outlook projects nearly 1 million annual openings on average for production occupations from 2024 to 2034 across all industries. Openings include replacement needs, so they should not be read as net employment growth. BLS Career Outlook
| Occupation | Average annual openings, 2024–2034 | Median annual wage, 2024 |
|---|---|---|
| Miscellaneous assemblers and fabricators | 156,300 | — |
| Inspectors, testers, sorters, samplers and weighers | 69,900 | $47,460 |
| Welders, cutters, solderers and brazers | 45,600 | $51,000 |
| Machinists | 29,500 | $56,150 |
| First-line production supervisors | — | $71,190 |
The wages in this table are occupation-wide U.S. medians, not custom-manufacturing-specific pay. The openings are likewise occupation-wide forecasts, but they show the depth of the talent categories that custom fabrication and production commonly require. BLS Career Outlook
Engineering and Technical Roles in Custom Manufacturing
Custom production frequently requires translating a design into a repeatable process, controlling tolerances and connecting equipment with software. The available manufacturing-specific BLS projections show growth in industrial engineering, mechanical engineering and software development from 2024 to 2034.
| Manufacturing occupation | Projected additional jobs, 2024–2034 | Median annual wage, 2024 |
|---|---|---|
| Industrial engineers | 25,600 | $100,060 |
| Software developers | 11,800 | $134,910 |
| Mechanical engineers | 11,000 | $99,990 |
These projections and wages are for the manufacturing industry, not for custom manufacturing as a separately defined sector. BLS Career Outlook
For context, BLS counted 350,230 industrial engineers, 286,760 mechanical engineers and 188,790 electrical engineers across all U.S. industries in May 2024. Those occupation-wide employment totals should not be substituted for manufacturing employment. BLS May 2024 occupational employment and wages tables
Digital, Flexible and Additive Manufacturing Indicators
The 2022 Economic Census provides a direct measure of manufacturing sales and online order activity, although it does not isolate custom production. U.S. manufacturing sales, value of shipments or revenue totaled $7,048,663,670 thousand in 2022, and manufacturing e-shipments totaled $4,825,877,951 thousand.
| Census measure | U.S. manufacturing, 2022 |
|---|---|
| Sales, value of shipments or revenue | $7,048,663,670 thousand |
| E-shipments | $4,825,877,951 thousand |
| E-shipments as a share of sales, shipments or revenue | 68.5% |
Census defines e-shipments as online orders accepted for manufactured products; payment may or may not occur online. The definition includes orders through the internet, electronic data interchange, email or other online systems, so the measure is broader than card payments or a conventional web store. U.S. Census Bureau, Manufacturing: E-Commerce Statistics for the U.S.: 2022
Food manufacturing alone recorded $751,298,327 thousand in e-shipments in 2022, equal to 72.3% of its sales, shipments or revenue. This is a related manufacturing-subsector measure, not evidence that custom manufacturing has the same share. U.S. Census Bureau, Manufacturing: E-Commerce Statistics for the U.S.: 2022
NIST’s Annual Report on the U.S. Manufacturing Economy: 2023 reported that discrete-technology products accounted for 37% of U.S. manufacturing. NIST presents this as a broad category, so it is not a quantified custom-manufacturing adoption rate or a direct measure of additive-manufacturing participation. NIST, Annual Report on the U.S. Manufacturing Economy: 2023
The same NIST report places manufacturing in a longer disruption and competitiveness context:
- U.S. manufacturing value added declined 17 percentage points between Q3 2019 and Q2 2020.
- U.S. manufacturing employment in July 2023 was 8.9% below its 2005 level.
- Manufacturing employment declined 19.6% between January 2005 and January 2010.
- Manufacturing employee compensation had a -1.0% five-year compound annual growth rate in the comparison cited by the 2023 report.
- Manufacturing compensation remained 6.3% above total private-industry compensation in the comparison cited by the report.
These NIST figures use the periods and constructions stated in the report; the compensation comparison includes benefits, and the cited five-year series should be read with the report’s underlying figure and definitions. They describe broad U.S. manufacturing conditions, not the output, employment or profitability of custom manufacturers specifically. NIST, Annual Report on the U.S. Manufacturing Economy: 2023