The U.S. cryptocurrency industry directly employs approximately 34,000 people and supports an estimated 232,000 jobs across the economy, according to a new report commissioned by the National Cryptocurrency Association.
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NCA estimates that cryptocurrencies in the United States will directly employ 34,000 people in 2026, supporting 232,000 jobs across the economy. The report predicts that cryptocurrencies will contribute $55 billion to U.S. GDP and $31 billion in revenue. While California and New York lead in supported employment, engineering remains the largest direct occupation group in crypto.
The study also estimates that crypto-related activities will contribute more than $55 billion to the U.S. gross domestic product in 2026.
Pragmatic Policy Group conducted the analysis for the NCA, which funded the research. The report distinguishes between direct jobs at crypto companies and jobs supported through supplier or employee spending. It estimates that about $31 billion of the industry’s total economic contribution goes to workers in the form of income.
The report estimates that there will be 34,000 direct full-time jobs in crypto companies in 2026. Software, blockchain and data engineering form the largest direct employment group, with approximately 10,100 roles. There are an additional 5,450 compliance, finance and business operations positions, and approximately 5,100 executive and manager positions.
This study compares the direct workforce of cryptocurrencies to several traditional industries. There are 28,400 jobs listed in coffee and tea production, 15,300 in cement production and 10,600 in tobacco production. While most benchmark numbers are based on 2024 Bureau of Labor Statistics data, the crypto estimates cover 2026. The report also states that the average annual wage for all supported jobs is $133,000, compared to the national median of $64,000.
The study also counted 2,470 sales and business development jobs, 1,480 hardware and systems engineering jobs, and 1,160 legal and regulatory jobs across the industry among direct hires.
Most of the supported jobs are outside of crypto companies
The 232,000 total includes 75,000 jobs in the supplier industry and a further 123,000 jobs related to worker spending. The report says that every direct cryptocurrency-related job supports about six other jobs across the broader U.S. economy. These roles may include employees in cloud services, legal services, insurance, housing, transportation, and restaurants.
Therefore, this total does not represent the 232,000 people employed in the cryptocurrency business. The report’s appendix states that this figure reflects standard economic multiplier effects. It also estimates that cryptocurrencies will contribute more than $55 billion to U.S. GDP in 2026, including about $31 billion in worker income. Securities, commodity contracts and investments form the largest sector of this model.
Additionally, there are an estimated 57,649 supported jobs in California and 53,766 in New York. Together, the two states account for nearly half of the nation’s total. Texas follows with 26,536 cases, followed by Washington state with 15,097 cases and North Carolina with 9,524 cases.
The report also estimates that the 12 states it defines as the Heartland collectively support more than 17,000 jobs. Colorado accounted for approximately 5,797 job supports and $1.3 billion in economic contribution. These state numbers include not only the number of employees at blockchain companies, but also positions supported by direct cryptocurrency employment, supplier jobs, and household spending.
Report lands amidst mixed crypto adoption trends
The NCA released this study as employment trends among individual crypto companies remain mixed. As crypto.news reported in March, Gemini, Crypto.com, and Algorand are among several companies that have announced layoffs in early 2026. Most recently, Exodus cut about 25% of its workforce as it reorganized around stablecoin payments, and Polygon Labs also cut its workforce while integrating Coinme.
These firm-level job cuts do not directly contradict the NCA’s estimates, as the study measures broader economic impacts and relies on modeling rather than actual industry headcounts. The model uses U.S. crypto industry revenue estimates of $23.22 billion obtained from the Bureau of Economic Analysis Input-Output Tables, Bureau of Labor Statistics data, and Statista for 2024.
Since the Bureau of Economic Analysis does not classify cryptocurrencies as a separate industry, Pragmatic Policy Group mapped crypto businesses to existing sectors. According to the report, most financial crypto revenues are allocated to securities and commodity contracts, with a smaller portion allocated to data processing and internet publishing. This model also assumes that the production relationship in 2024 is maintained.
The NCA funded the research, but the Pragmatic Policy Group described it as an independent analysis. NCA Chairman and Ripple Chief Legal Officer Stuart Alderroti said the sector makes a “substantive and positive” contribution to U.S. jobs, wages and economic growth. As previously reported by crypto.news, another NCA study estimates that more than 67 million U.S. adults currently own cryptocurrencies.
The report provides two different measures of industry workforce reach. Direct employment is 34,000 people. The broader estimate of 232,000 adds jobs supported by supplier jobs and economy-wide worker spending.
