San Diego County\u2019s GDP in 2024 rose 2.1% to $267 billion \u2014 bigger than 20 states and some nations, including Greece.<\/p>\n
The U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis<\/a> said this week that San Diego County had the 10th-largest gross domestic product among counties in America. New York County (which is Manhattan) was first with $814 billion, followed by Los Angeles County at $811 billion.<\/p>\n San Diego County\u2019s 2024 rise of 2.1% was bigger than the previous year and marks a return to a more measured rate of growth after pandemic swings. The region\u2019s GDP fell 1.5% in 2020, jumped 7.4% the next year, grew 2.6% in 2022 and 1.8% in 2023.<\/p>\n GDP is the value of goods and services produced by the county\u2019s economy less the value of goods and services used up in production. The bureau uses real values, which take inflation into account, and is part of the reason it takes longer to calculate data. This data set was even more delayed by last year\u2019s federal government shutdown.<\/p>\n San Diego County had a higher GDP than 20 states, including Iowa, Nebraska, Mississippi, Kansas, and Washington, D.C. In 2023, the county\u2019s GDP was greater than 25 states.<\/a><\/p>\n San Diego\u2019s GDP also was bigger than many nations, according to the International Monetary Fund\u2019s 2024 data, topping<\/a>\u00a0New Zealand ($258 billion), Greece ($257 billion), Hungary ($223 billion) and Qatar ($220 billion).<\/p>\n Ray Major, a San Diego-based economist, said there\u2019s an incorrect perception that the region is a small economic player, which translates to local policies.<\/p>\n \u201cWe act like we are a small city, even though we are an economic power,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Major said the region benefits from a diverse economy \u2014 military, tourism, biotech, health care \u2014 that helps grow the region even if one area is having a down year.<\/p>\n Another large factor in San Diego County\u2019s GDP in 2024 was major federal investment. The U.S. Navy was, and still is, the top employer in San Diego County and the most recent data shows the region has the fifth-highest share of federal investment by metro areas.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n Daniel Enemark, chief economist of the San Diego Regional Policy and Innovation Center, said at an economic event<\/a> this week at the University of San Diego that the county\u2019s outsized share of federal dollars makes it especially vulnerable to Trump administration research funding cuts, which would not show up until GDP data for 2025 is released.<\/p>\n He noted San Diego County\u2019s large GDP but said there is still a significant disparity in who benefits. Enemark said San Diego County has a GDP similar to Portugal ($309 billion in 2024) with around 7 million more people but not as many benefits.<\/p>\n