Nicknamed the “North Star State” and “Land of 10,000 Lakes” situated in America’s northern Great Lakes regions, Minnesota shipped US$23.5 billion worth of exported products around the world in 2025.

That dollar amount results from a -13.4% slowdown from $27.1 billion four years earlier in 2022.

Year over year, the overall value of goods exported from Minnesota dropped by -12.6% compared to $26.9 billion for 2024.

Minnesota ranks as America’s 23rd most lucrative exporters by state well behind front-runners including Texas, California, New York state, Louisiana, and Illinois.

The value of Minnesota’s exports equals 1.1% of the United States’ overall exported products for 2025 ($2.178 trillion), down from 1.3% one year prior.

In addition, Minnesota’s exported products represent 4.9% of the state’s total economic output or nominal Gross Domestic Product in 2025 (~$480 billion).

Given Minnesota’s population of 5.83 million people, its total US$23.5 billion in 2025 exported goods translates to roughly $4,050 for every resident in the North Star State. That dollar metric lags the average $4,650 per capita for 2024.

Minnesota’s unemployment rate was 4.1% at the end of December 2025, up from 3% one year earlier per YCharts.

Minnesota’s Top 10 Exports

The following export products represent the highest dollar value in Minnesota global shipments during 2025. Also shown is the percentage share each export category represents in terms of overall exports from Minnesota.

Figures are shown at the more granular six-digit Harmonized Tariff System code level, for more precise product identification.

1. Medical, dental or veterinarian instruments: US$786.3 million (3.3% of total Minnesotan exports)
2. Miscellaneous integrated circuits: $659.6 million (2.8%)
3. Medical needles, catheters: $659 million (2.8%)
4. Light petroleum oils excluding biodiesel: $638.6 million (2.7%)
5. Civilian aircraft fully assembled or aircraft engines or other parts: $541.6 million (2.3%)
6. Electro-diagnostic equipment, parts: $468.1 million (2%)
7. Parts for filtering/purifying machines: $460.5 million (2%)
8. Artificial human body parts, accessories: $432.3 million (1.8%)
9. Artificial joints, parts: $346.4 million (1.5%)
10. Soya beans: $326.2 million (1.4%)

Minnesota’s top 10 exports generated over one-fifth (22.6%) of the overall value of the state’s global shipments.

Miscellaneous electronic integrated circuits represent the fastest grower among Minnesota’s top 10 export categories, propelled by a 26.5% increase from 2024 to 2025.

In second place were exported soya beans (up 19.7%) ahead of Minnesotan shipments of medical, dental or veterinarian instruments (up 17.8%), then artificial body joints and parts (up 12.3%).

The severest decliner among Minnesota’s top 10 export products was for light petroleum oils excluding biodiesel, recording a -72.8% plunge from 2024.

More Key Facts about Minnesota’s International Trade

Minnesota incurred an overall -US$13.9 billion deficit exporting and importing products during 2025. That dollar amount reflects a 1.6% increase from -$13.7 billion in red ink for 2024.

Another way of saying surplus or deficit is positive or negative net exports. In a nutshell, the term “net exports” quantifies the amount by which foreign spending on a state’s goods or services exceeds or lags that same state’s spending on foreign goods or services.

Below are Minnesota’s top 10 import products highlighting the state’s highest spending on foreign-made goods in 2025.

1. Crude petroleum oils: US$6.9 billion (18.5% of total Minnesotan imports)
2. Wheeled toys (tricycles, scooters, pedal cars, carriages): $2.1 billion (5.5%)
3. Natural gas (gaseous state): $779.5 million (2.1%)
4. Medical, dental or veterinarian instruments: $627.2 million (1.7%)
5. Heart pacemakers: $609 million (1.6%)
6. Hearing aids: $586.3 million (1.6%)
7. Artificial human body parts, accessories: $579.1 million (1.5%)
8. Electro-diagnostic equipment, parts: $491 million (1.3%)
9. Artificial joints, parts: $431.4 million (1.2%)
10. Electrical energy: $396.1 million (1.1%)

Minnesota has negative net exports notably in the international trade of crude petroleum oils, heart pacemakers and artificial body parts. In turn, these cashflows indicate Minnesota’s competitive disadvantages under those product categories.

Minnesota’s Major Trade Partners

The following list shows the top 10 customers that purchased exceeding two-thirds (67.8%) worth of the total value of products exported from Minnesota during 2025.

1. Canada: US$5.6 billion (23.7% of total Minnesotan exports)
2. Mexico: $3.6 billion (15.3%)
3. mainland China: $1.5 billion (6.6%)
4. Japan: $1 billion (4.1%)
5. Ireland: $839.1 million (3.6%)
6. South Korea: $765.8 million (3.3%)
7. Belgium: $724.8 million (3.1%)
8. Germany: $685.6 million (2.9%)
9. United Kingdom: $678.6 million (2.9%)
10. Netherlands: $575.2 million (2.4%)

Minnesota’s top trade partners in North America (Canada and Mexico) purchased nearly two-fifths (39%) of the overall value of exported goods from the North Star State. That percentage lags the 45% for the prior year.

In comparison, 13.9% of Minnesota’s export sales went to top customers in Asia (mainland China, Japan and South Korea).

Another 14.9% worth was bought by leading importers in Europe (Ireland, Belgium, Germany, United Kingdom and the Netherlands).

Minnesotan Export Companies

Twenty-four of Minnesota-based corporations rank among Fortune 1000 Companies, a list that showcases America’s largest businesses. Selected examples are listed below.

• C.H. Robinson (transportation services, third-party logistics)
• Donaldson Company (air filters, filtration engines, gas turbines)
• Fastenal Company (industrial/safety/construction supplies)
• H.B. Fuller Company (industrial adhesives)
• Hormel Foods Corp (deli meats, ethnic foods, spam)
• Land O’Lakes (dairy foods, animal nutritition, crop protection)
• Patterson Companies (medical/dental/veterinarian goods)
• Polaris Industries (snow mobiles, all-terrain vehicles, motorcycles)
• The Mosaic Company (concentrated phosphate, potash)
• The Toro Company (lawn mowers, snow blowers, irrigation items)

Shown within brackets for each company is a summary of the international trade-related products or services which each business sells.
 

Minnesota’s capital is Saint Paul, a city with nicknames like “STP” and “the Saintly City”.

See also New Mexico’s Top 10 Exports, New Jersey’s Top 10 Exports, Missouri’s Top 10 Exports, Pennsylvania’s Top 10 Exports and Mississippi’s Top 10 Exports

Research Sources:
FlagPictures.org, Flags of US States. Accessed on April 2, 2026

Forbes, Global 2000 rankings, The World’s Biggest Public Companies. Accessed on April 2, 2026

GeoLounge, Fortune 1000 Companies List for 2022 , Fortune 1000 by State and Place. Accessed on April 2, 2026

IBIS World, Minnesota Economic Profile (gross domestic product, profile). Accessed on April 2, 2026

International Trade Centre, Trade Map. Accessed on April 2, 2026

Investopedia, Net Exports Definition. Accessed on April 2, 2026

United States Census Bureau, QuickFacts: Minnesota. Accessed on April 2, 2026

USA Trade Online, Official Source of Trade Statistics. Accessed on April 2, 2026

Wikipedia, List of Minnesota Companies. Accessed on April 2, 2026

Wikipedia, List of U.S. states and territories by GDP. Accessed on April 2, 2026

Wikipedia, Minnesota. Accessed on April 2, 2026

YCharts, Regional and State Employment and Unemployment Report. Accessed on April 2, 2026