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U.S. Department of Transportation U.S. Department of Transportation Icon United States Department of Transportation United States Department of Transportation

Transportation Services Contributed 6.3% to U.S. GDP in 2024; down from 2023 and from a high of 6.6% in 2022

Tuesday, February 24, 2026

Transportation contributed $1.9 trillion (6.3%) to the economy in 2024

Transportation services (for-hire, in-house, and household) contributed $1.9 trillion (6.3%) to an enhanced U.S. gross domestic product (GDP)1 of $29.8 trillion in 2024—as measured by the Bureau of Transportation Statistics' (BTS) Transportation Satellite Accounts (TSAs). The TSAs measure the full contribution of transportation to the economy from three types of transportation activities:

  • $976 billion or 3.3% of 2024 GDP from for-hire transportation, 
  • $405 billion or 1.4% of 2024 GDP from transportation activities carried out by non-transportation industries for their own purposes (known as in-house transportation), 
  • $506 billion or 1.7% of 2024 GDP from transportation activities carried out by households using personal motor vehicles. 

Accounting for the contribution of in-house and household transportation nearly doubles the overall contribution of transportation to the economy as measured by GDP (figure 1). Including in-house transportation brought transportation up from the tenth largest contributor (out of 13 sectors) to the seventh largest contributor to the economy in 2024.   

 

Horizontal bar chart showing the contribution of transportation to enhanced gross domestic product (GDP) relative to other sectors in 2024 in billions of dollars. The x-axis is billions of dollars ranging from 0 to $6,276. The y-axis is a list of 13 economic sectors. The financial services sector is at the top as it contributes the most to enhanced GDP ($6,276 billion). The utilities sector is at the bottom as it contributes the least to enhanced GDP ($442 billion). The transportation sector contributes the seventh largest amount ($1,887 billion) to enhanced GDP after accounting for the contribution of household and in-house transportation. Transportation would rank as the tenth largest contributor if not including the contribution of household and in-house transportation.

Source: U.S. Department of Transportation, Bureau of Transportation Statistics, Transportation Satellite Accounts

 

Transportation’s Contribution to the Economy Continues to Fall from 2022 High 

The contribution of transportation to enhanced-GDP fell to 6.3% in 2024; down for the 2nd year after reaching a high of 6.6% in 2022.2 The decline follows from a decline in the contribution of for-hire air, rail, and truck transportation and from a decline in the contribution of household transportation. For-hire air, rail, and truck transportation collectively declined 0.1 percentage points in 2024 from 2023, falling back to its 2021 contribution level of 1.6%. Household transportation’s contribution likewise declined 0.1 percentage points in 2024 from 2023 and likewise fell back to its 2021 contribution level of 1.7%. 

In-house air, rail, truck, and water transportation’s contribution to GDP remained unchanged from 2021 to 2024 at 1.4%. In 2024, all other for-hire3 transportation’s contribution remained unchanged from 2023 (1.6%) but declined 0.1 percentage points from its 2021 and 2022 level. 

 

Line graph with 4 lines showing transportation’s contribution to the economy as a percent of enhanced gross domestic product (GDP) by year and type of transportation. The y-axis shows the year from 2021 through 2024. The y-axis shows value as a percentage. Each line is for a different type of transportation: in-house air, rail, truck, and water; for-hire air, rail, truck, and water; other for-hire; and household. Household transportation contributed the most in all year; gradually accounting for 1.70% of enhanced GDP in 2021, then increasing to 1.78% in 2022 before declining back to 1.70% in 2024. For-hire air, rail, truck, and water contributed the second largest amount in all years except 2021 when it contributed less than other for-hire transportation. For-hire air, rail, truck, and water’s contribution ranged from a low of 1.57% in 2021 to a high of 1.74% in 2022 before declining to 1.65% in 2024. Other for-hire transportation accounted for 1.62% of enhanced GDP in 2021, rose to 1.67% in 2022, fell to 1.60% in 2023, and unlike other transportation modes, rose from 2023 to 2024 (rising to 1.63%). In-house air, rail, truck, and water contributed the least, accounting for 1.41% of enhanced GDP in 2021 to a high of 1.43% in 2022 before declining to 1.36% in 2024.

Source: U.S. Department of Transportation, Bureau of Transportation Statistics, Transportation Satellite Accounts

 

BTS released the TSAs with data for 2024 and revised years 2018 to 2023. BTS publishes several interactive visualizations highlighting the TSAs, including the Contribution of Transportation Services to the Economy and the Transportation Satellite Accounts, The Use of Transportation by Industry or Sector, and the Industry Snapshots. 
 

1Enhanced GDP is the sum of GDP published in the U.S. National Accounts by the Bureau of Economic Analysis and the contribution of household transportation.

2Based on data from 2017 through 2024.

3All other for-hire transportation includes transit and passenger ground transportation (excluding state and local government passenger transit); sightseeing transportation and transportation support; parcel delivery, courier, and messenger services (excluding U.S. Postal Service); warehousing and storage; and other transportation and support activities.