Reference page
U.S. Furniture & Woodworking Statistics: 2026
Current, citable figures on the people and businesses behind American furniture making, plus the latest federal data on furniture at the end of its useful life.
Last updated October 2, 2026At a glance
Useful figures, with the dates left in.
Furniture is made across a wide range of shops and factories, from one-of-one pieces to large-scale production. These numbers provide a factual starting point for writers, researchers and homeowners interested in the work behind lasting furniture. Every figure links to its original public source.
Furniture and related product manufacturing employed 330,600 people in the United States in August 2026, seasonally adjusted.
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Furniture and Related Product Manufacturing, August 2026 ↗The industry counted 18,021 private establishments in the first quarter of 2026. The figure is preliminary.
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages, first quarter 2026 ↗Furniture and related product manufacturing employed 56,210 cabinetmakers and bench carpenters in 2025.
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, 2025 ↗The 2025 median annual wage for cabinetmakers and bench carpenters in furniture and related product manufacturing was $46,470.
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, 2025 ↗U.S. furniture and furnishings entering the municipal waste stream totaled 12.1 million tons in 2018. This is the latest furniture-specific estimate published by the EPA on this measure.
Source: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 2018 materials-management data ↗Of the furniture and furnishings counted at end of life in 2018, the EPA reports that 80.1% was landfilled.
Source: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 2018 materials-management data ↗What the numbers do, and do not, say
Craft matters in a large, varied trade.
Federal employment figures describe an industry, not the quality or character of an individual piece. They do show the scale of the work that sits behind a well-made table, island, vanity or restored heirloom.
The EPA’s end-of-life figures are older because they are the latest furniture-specific totals it publishes. They are included to give a clear sense of why repair, restoration and durable construction remain worthwhile conversations.
Methodology & sources
How this page is kept useful.
This page uses public U.S. federal sources. Each statistic is shown with the date reported by its source. Labor and establishment figures are refreshed when the Bureau of Labor Statistics publishes newer figures. Furniture end-of-life figures remain dated to 2018 until the EPA releases a newer furniture-specific update.
Last reviewed: October 2, 2026.