← US IEPA INDEX

    North Carolina

    South
    #9 of 51 states · IEPA 2025
    67.5▲ +1.6 YoY
    ●●●0.97IEPA COMPOSITE

    North Carolina scores 67.5 out of 100 on the IEPA US state layer (2025 edition), ranking #9 of 51 US states. That is up 1.6 points on the year before. Its strongest zone is FDI Accelerator at 78.0. Its binding constraint, the lowest-scoring of its six zones, is Resilience at 33.0. How the IEPA works →

    SIX FACTORS · CLICK ANY SCORE FOR ITS EVIDENCE
    IEPA TRAJECTORY · 2019–2025
    20192020202120222023202420253645546372
    TRADE · TOTAL GOODS EXPORTS (US$)
    20192020202120222023$0$15.0B$30.0B$45.0B$60.0B
    Goods exports · annual, US$
    STANDING
    National rank: #9 of 51
    US region: South
    Indices scored: 12
    Scored within the 50 states + DC across the same six zones. Expand any factor for the indices behind the number.
    PEERS · SOUTH
    GAGeorgia65.7→VAVirginia69.4→MDMaryland65.2→TXTexas70.3→FLFlorida73.4→

    North Carolina: common questions

    What is North Carolina's IEPA score?
    North Carolina scores 67.5 out of 100 on the IEPA US state layer, 2025 edition, which ranks it #9 of 51 US states.
    What is North Carolina's strongest zone?
    FDI Accelerator, at 78.0. The six zones are scored separately, so a market's strengths stay visible instead of being averaged away.
    What is holding North Carolina back?
    Its binding constraint is Resilience, at 33.0, the lowest of its six zones. The IEPA reports every zone separately so the constraint stays visible instead of being averaged into the composite.
    How does North Carolina compare with its peers?
    The closest scored peers are Georgia (65.7), Virginia (69.4), Maryland (65.2), Texas (70.3), Florida (73.4).
    What is the IEPA?
    The Innovation Ecosystem Prosperity Assessment (IEPA) scores economies across six zones: innovation capacity, entrepreneurship capacity, resilience, alignment, the FDI accelerator, and prosperity outcomes. Every score carries a confidence band and traces to the evidence behind it.
    Explore the World index →Talk to IE about North Carolina →