How many civilian federal government jobs are located in Washington, DC?
Refreshed monthly
There are about 165,300 civilian federal government jobs located in Washington, DC, as of September 2026. Federal jobs include all jobs ranging from janitors to air traffic controllers to nurses to postal workers and more. (Enlisted service people are considered government employees but aren’t included in this figure because they’re not civilians.) Federal jobs represent 23% of all nonfarm jobs in the state.
165.3K
jobs in the federal government (September 2026)
23%
federal government share of all nonfarm jobs (September 2026)
As of September 2026, there were 165.3 thousand federal government jobs in Washington, DC.
Civilian federal government employees, January 2006 to September 2026
What share of all civilian jobs in Washington, DC are in the federal government?
In September 2026, 23 percent of nonfarm jobs in Washington, DC were in the federal government. The state’s share of federal employment peaked in August 2010 at 29.9 percent. It hit a low in June 2026 at 22.8 percent of all employment.
As of September 2026, 23% of jobs in Washington, DC were in the federal government.
Civilian federal government share of nonfarm employment, January 2006 to September 2026
Which federal agencies employ the most civilians?
In August 2026, there were 95,900 people in Washington, DC working in the executive branch of the federal government, according to data from the Office of Personnel Management. This is primarily limited to full-time, part-time, and seasonal workers in the executive branch. It excludes some employees, including postal workers and all Department of Defense employees, regardless of enlisted or civilian status.
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The Department of Justice accounted for 13.6% of the total, more than any other cabinet department or independent agency. In second position, Department of Homeland Security accounted for 13.5% of the state’s federal employees. The Department of State was third, accounting for 7.5%.
In August 2026, the Department of Justice accounted for more federal workers in District of Columbia than any other agency.
Civilian federal personnel, primarily in executive branch, as of August 2026
The August 2026 OPM data shows that Washington, DC outranks all states in federal employment, though the district's share varies by federal agency. There were 15 cabinet departments or independent agencies employing more than 10,000 people nationwide. Of those, the Department of State had the highest share of employees working in Washington, DC at 63.7%. The Department of Veterans Affairs had the lowest at 1.4%
About 63.7% of Department of State employees were based in Washington, DC in August 2026.
Percentage of civilian employees based in Washington, DC
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Methodology
USAFacts standardizes data, in areas such as time and demographics, to make it easier to understand and compare.
Page sources
USAFacts endeavors to share the most up-to-date information available. We sourced the data on this page directly from government agencies; however, the intervals at which agencies publish updated data vary.
