Business analysis experts announced North Carolina best state for doing business in 2022.

North Carolina tops CNBC’s state business competitiveness rankings for the second year in a row as workers flock to take advantage of a booming economy and the growing operations of companies including Apple within the state .At a time when companies are clamoring for workers while trying to navigate a treacherous economy, no state is meeting their needs more effectively than North Carolina. The Tar Heel State is America’s Top State for Business in CNBC’s annual competitiveness study.

It is the second consecutive year at the top for North Carolina — a rare feat in the CNBC study, which launched in 2007. Business and the economy in the state have been on a tear since the pandemic, and the state has scarcely looked back.

In 2023 alone, the state has amassed a trophy case full of economic development wins, ranging from a $130 million investment by Bosch to expand its power tool manufacturing facility in Lincolnton, to a $458 million biomanufacturing facility to be built in Greensboro by cellular therapeutics company ProKidney, and even a $58 million turkey production facility in Goldsboro by poultry breeder Select Genetics.

The projects come on top of major wins last year, including Vietnamese electric vehicle manufacturer VinFast announcing it will build its first North American plant in the state, and Durham-based semiconductor materials manufacturer Wolfspeed expanding its operations there.

Last month, Apple filed applications to begin work on its $1 billion facility in the famed Research Triangle Park announced in 2021, with 700,000 square feet of office space in its initial phase. It is Apple’s first hub on the East Coast.

A common thread through all the projects is people.

“Our talented, educated workers are the foundation of our economic success,” said Gov. Roy Cooper, a Democrat, in his state of the state address in March.

The numbers bear that out. North Carolina ranks first in the all-important Workforce category of CNBC’s study. In particular, the state is a leader in attracting and retaining talent across a range of industries, said Josh Wright, an executive vice president with labor market analytics firm Lightcast, which provided some of the data for the CNBC study.

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Today, CNBC named North Carolina as second best state to do business and in the top three for the fifth year in a row thanks to our well-trained and diverse workforce, booming economy, and strong business environment. In 2019, North Carolina ranked third; in 2021, the state ranked second; and in both 2022 and 2023 North Carolina ranked first.

“Investing in our people makes our continued success possible,” said Governor Roy Cooper. “Thanks to our highly-skilled workforce built by our strong public schools and thriving economy with major investments from companies across all sectors, North Carolina continues to be a top destination for business.”

“CNBC again ranking North Carolina as one of the top states for business in the nation is a testament to our state’s competitive advantages,” said N.C. Commerce Secretary Machelle Baker Sanders. “Successful states stay laser focused on improving their education systems, upgrading their infrastructure, and paying attention to critical quality of life issues like childcare. I’m confident we’ll continue to do the work that’s required to bring economic prosperity to all North Carolinians.”

“North Carolina continues to be a powerhouse for business,” said Gene McLaurin, chair of the Economic Development Partnership of North Carolina’s (EDPNC) Board of Directors. “Thanks to strong collaboration between Governor Cooper, the North Carolina Department of Commerce, EDPNC and other public and private partnerships, we are bolstering North Carolina’s economy to make sure companies continue to grow and thrive in our state.”

The CNBC study looks at 128 metrics in ten categories of competitiveness. North Carolina ranked #3 in workforce and highly in the economy, business friendliness, education and access to capital categories. This is the fifth year in a row that CNBC has named North Carolina in the top three states for business.

Since Governor Cooper took office in 2017, North Carolina has announced over 115,300 jobs and promised capital investments of $53.45 billion, including major projects from companies like Apple, Toyota, Wolfspeed, FUJIFILM Diosynth, and Boom Supersonic. North Carolina continues to recruit good-paying jobs to add to the advanced manufacturing, clean energy and technology industries already thriving in the rural and urban parts of the state.

Governor Cooper has prioritized economic development to secure major investments and good-paying jobs in North Carolina. In May, the Governor led a delegation of state officials to Europe on an economic development trip and met with companies and government officials in France, Germany and Switzerland. In October, North Carolina will host the 2024 Southeast U.S./Japan Association 46th annual joint meeting to encourage foreign direct investment from Japanese companies, as well as strengthen export ties for North Carolina and other Southeastern companies selling goods in Japan.

Governor Cooper is focused on making investments in North Carolina’s strong workforce and public schools to build on the state’s continued economic growth. In May 2021, the Governor launched the Longleaf Commitment Community College Grants Program that ensures that recent high school graduates from low- and middle-income families will receive at least $2,800 in federal and state grants to cover tuition and most fees at any of the state’s 58 community colleges. In July 2018, the Governor announced the Finish Line Grants Program to help community college students who face unforeseen financial emergencies complete their training.

The Governor has declared 2024 as The Year of Public Schools and has been traveling across North Carolina to celebrate the great things happening in public schools and call on the legislature to make meaningful investments in them instead of funneling more taxpayer money into unaccountable private school vouchers. Earlier this year, the Governor announced his FY24-25 budget that would raise teacher pay by 8.5% and invest over $1 billion in public schools while placing a moratorium on taxpayer-funded private school vouchers.

In December 2023, Medicaid expansion was implemented in North Carolina to extend health care coverage to over 600,000 people while bringing billions in federal dollars to the state. The agreement to expand Medicaid followed years of coalition-building by the Governor to bring people from all corners of the state together to highlight the critical need for health care in every community. Veterans, early childhood educators, restaurant workers, nursing home workers are all among the groups that often fall into the coverage gap and sometimes have to work two or more jobs to afford health care. As of July 2024, nearly 500,000 North Carolinians now have enrolled to gain access to critical health care.

North Carolina’s biggest room for improvement in CNBC’s rankings is in the “Quality of Life” category, which includes affordability and availability of childcare, access to reproductive healthcare and rights, and voting rights. North Carolina received a D+ grade in these metrics. While the North Carolina General Assembly provided critical but limited grants to help keep childcare centers open for the next few months, Governor Cooper continues to push Republican legislators to make the investments needed for parents, businesses and children by extending these grants, investing in NC Pre K and investing more in quality early childhood education. As CNBC’s methodology confirms, North Carolina’s economic future depends on it.

CNBC has named North Carolina as America’s Top State for Business in 2025, marking the third time the state has garnered the honor in the last four years. This morning, Governor Josh Stein joined CNBC’s Scott Cohn at Battleship North Carolina in Wilmington for a live broadcast where the winner was revealed.

North Carolina has been named 2022 State of the Year by Business Facilities for the state’s successful year in project announcements, capital investment and job creation. This is the second time North Carolina has been awarded this accolade since 2007 when the magazine’s highest state honor began. The state previously won in 2020.

“A succinct regional economic development strategy in recent years has propelled North Carolina, and 2022 was another banner year for the state in capital investment and jobs creation,” said Business Facilities Editorial Director, Anne Cosgrove. “Paired with a world-class education and R&D resources, the support of incentives and programs from organizations at all levels for a variety of industries, including high-growth sectors such as electric vehicles, made the state our choice for top recognition this year.”

Last year, North Carolina welcomed some of the biggest economic development projects in the state’s history. Vietnamese electric vehicle and battery company VinFast announced it is bringing its first North American automotive assembly and battery manufacturing plant to Chatham County, North Carolina. The project has a $4 billion capital investment and will create 7,500 jobs. Wolfspeed, a global leader in semiconductor manufacturing, announced in September it will build its newest semiconductor manufacturing plant in Siler City, North Carolina, investing $5 billion and creating 1,800 new jobs.

Other substantial projects include aviation giant Boom Supersonic announcing it is bringing its new Overture airliner manufacturing and final assembly facility to Greensboro, North Carolina, investing $500 million and creating 1,750 jobs by 2030. Global healthcare leader Eli Lilly and Company announced plans to build a new manufacturing site in Concord, North Carolina, investing $1 billion and creating 600 jobs.

“North Carolina is the best state in the nation to do business, and large companies like VinFast, Wolfspeed, Eli Lilly and Boom Supersonic have noticed and taken advantage of that. We have a world-class education system, a highly skilled workforce, a strong commitment to clean energy and sustainability, the most competitive tax environment in the country, and a demonstrated bipartisan approach to economic development policy,” said Christopher Chung, CEO of the Economic Development Partnership of North Carolina (EDPNC).

“We currently have 235 active projects, with a total of $111.8 billion in capital investment, and 100,112 total possible jobs in our pipeline, and our team is looking forward to assisting each one of these companies in choosing North Carolina. 2022 was another year of record performance, and we are confident North Carolina will continue that momentum into 2023,” Chung said.

Full coverage of the 2022 State of the Year and regional runners-up will be featured in the January/February issue of Business Facilities.

Business Facilities is a national publication that has been the leading location source for corporate site selectors and economic development professionals for more than 50 years.