That dollar amount results from a 5% year-over-year gain from $17.4 billion for 2023.
Over a 4-year time horizon, the overall value of Utahn exports flatlined via a 0.7% increase compared to $18.1 billion during 2021.
Utah ranks as America’s 27th biggest exporters by state behind front-runners including Texas, California, New York state, Louisiana and Illinois.
The value of Utah’s exports equals 0.9% of the United States’ overall exported products in 2024, same percentage as reported for 2023.
Utah’s exported products represent 6.1% of the state’s total economic output or nominal Gross Domestic Product in 2024 ($300.9 billion).
Given Utah’s population of 3.5 million people, its total $18.2 billion in 2024 exports translates to roughly $5,200 for every resident in the Beehive State. That dollar metric surpasses the average $5,100 per capita one year earlier during 2023.
Utah’s unemployment rate was 3.3% at the end of July 2025, same as one year earlier per YCharts.
Utah’s Top 10 Exports
The following export products represent the highest dollar value in Utah global shipments during 2024. Also shown is the percentage share each export category represents in terms of overall exports from Utah.
Figures are shown at the more granular six-digit Harmonized Tariff System code level, for more precise product identification.
- Gold (unwrought): US$7.9 billion (43.2% of total Utahn exports)
- Civilian aircraft or engines, other parts: $850.9 million (4.7%)
- Medical needles, catheters: $492.9 million (2.7%)
- Miscellaneous food preparations: $469.8 million (2.6%)
- Surgical, dental or veterinarian instruments: $333.4 million (1.8%)
- Artificial joints, and parts or accessories: $296.7 million (1.6%)
- Electronic integrated circuits (processors, controllers): $281.3 million (1.5%)
- Safety airbags with inflator system: $274.4 million (1.5%)
- Composite diagnostic/laboratory reagents: $216.9 million (1.2%)
- Computer parts, accessories: $200.5 million (1.1%)
Utah’s top 10 exports generated over three-fifths (62%) of the overall value of the state’s global shipments.
Civilian aircraft or engines and other parts represent the fastest grower among the top 10 export categories, up by 846.9% from 2023 to 2024.
In second place for improving export sales was unwrought gold thanks to that category’s 13.6% advance.
Utah’s shipments of miscellaneous food preparations posted the third-fastest gain in value, up by 1.6%.
Year over year, there were 3 double-digit percentage decliners among Utah’s top 10 export products. The value of Utahn exports of computer parts or accessories dropped -47.9% year over year.
International sales of composite diagnostic or laboratory reagents slipped -24.1% while exports of processors or controllers for electronic integrated circuits dropped by -10.8% from 2023.
More Key Facts about Utah’s International Trade
Utah recorded an overall -US$3.66 billion deficit exporting and importing products during 2024, swelling by 200.6% from -$1.22 billion for 2023.
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 Utah’s top 10 import products highlighting the state’s highest spending on foreign-made goods in 2024.
- Gold (unwrought): $4.4 billion (20% of total Utahn imports)
- Computer parts, accessories: $1.2 billion (5.3%)
- Modems, similar reception/transmission devices: $1 billion (4.4%)
- Silver (unwrought): $864.3 million (3.9%)
- Artificial joints, and parts or accessories: $712.6 million (3.3%)
- Live cattle (excluding for purebred breeding): $488.2 million (2.2%)
- Safety airbags with inflator system: $479.4 million (2.2%)
- Computer storage devices: $395.7 million (1.8%)
- Semi-trailer road tractors (diesel engine): $394.8 million (1.8%)
- Surgical, dental or veterinarian instruments: $335.9 million (1.5%)
Historically, Utah has negative net exports notably in the international trade of modems plus similar reception or transmission devices, raw silver, and semi-trailer road tractors powered by diesel engine. In turn, these cashflows indicate Utah’s competitive disadvantages under those product categories.
Utah’s Major Trading Partners
The following list shows the top 10 customers that purchased almost four-fifths (79.8%) worth of the total value of products exported from Utah during 2024.
- United Kingdom: $7.9 billion (43.6% of total Utahn exports)
- Canada: $1.5 billion (8.1%)
- mainland China: $1.14 billion (6.3%)
- Mexico: $1.09 billion (6%)
- Japan: $669.9 million (3.7%)
- Netherlands: $583.1 million (3.2%)
- Brazil: $489.7 million (2.7%)
- Germany: $395.3 million (2.2%)
- South Korea: $383 million (2.1%)
- France: $373.9 million (2%)
Utah’s top trade partners in Europe (United Kingdom, Netherlands, Germany and France) bought over half (51%) of the overall value of exported goods from the Beehive State.
In contrast, 14.1% of Utahn exports were bought by fellow North American trading partners Canada and Mexico.
Leading Asian importers (mainland China, Japan and South Korea) purchased 12% of overall exported products sold by Utah in 2024.
Utah’s Export Companies
Four Utah-based corporations rank among Fortune 1000 Companies, a list that showcases America’s largest businesses. These examples are listed below.
- Nu Skin Enterprises (personal care items, dietary supplements)
- SkyWest Airlines (regional airliner)
- Vista Outdoor (outdoor sports/recreation products)
- Zions Bancorporation (bank holding company)
Shown within brackets for each company is a summary of the products or services which each business sells, some of which are international trade-related.
Utah’s capital is Salt Lake City, a city nicknamed “The Crossroads of the West”.
See also Florida’s Top 10 Exports, California’s Top 10 Exports, Top 10 Exports from Texas and Maine’s Top 10 Exports
Research Sources:
FlagPictures.org, Flags of US States. Accessed on August 29, 2025
Forbes, 2020 Global 2000 rankings, The World’s Biggest Public Companies. Accessed on August 29, 2025
GeoLounge, Fortune 1000 Companies List for 2020 , Fortune 1000 by State and Place. Accessed on August 29, 2025
International Trade Centre, Trade Map. Accessed on August 29, 2025
Investopedia, Net Exports Definition. Accessed on August 29, 2025
State Symbols USA, State Nicknames. Accessed on August 29, 2025
United States Census Bureau, QuickFacts: Utah. Accessed on August 29, 2025
USA Trade Online, Official Source of Trade Statistics. Accessed on August 29, 2025
Wikipedia, List of U.S. states and territories by GDP. Accessed on August 29, 2025
Wikipedia, List of Utah Companies. Accessed on August 29, 2025
Wikipedia, Utah. Accessed on August 29, 2025
YCharts, Regional and State Employment and Unemployment Report. Accessed on August 29, 2025