page_title: Indianapolis
section_title: Economy
hierarchical_section_title: Indianapolis / Economy
caption_attribution_description: English: Aerial looking east northeast across downtown Indianapolis. The Indiana Statehouse is visible in the foreground.
context_page_description: Indianapolis, often shortened to Indy, is the state capital and most-populous city of the U.S. state of Indiana and the seat of Marion County. According to 2019 estimates from the U.S. Census Bureau, the consolidated population of Indianapolis and Marion County was 886,220. The "balance" population, which excludes semi-autonomous municipalities in Marion County, was 876,384. It is the 17th most populous city in the U.S., the third-most populous city in the Midwest, after Chicago, Illinois and Columbus, Ohio, and the fourth-most populous state capitol after Phoenix, Arizona, Austin, Texas, and Columbus. The Indianapolis metropolitan area is the 33rd most populous metropolitan statistical area in the U.S., with 2,048,703 residents. Its combined statistical area ranks 28th, with a population of 2,431,361. Indianapolis covers 368 square miles, making it the 16th largest city by land area in the U.S.
  Indigenous peoples inhabited the area dating to as early as 10000 BC. In 1818, the Delaware relinquished their tribal lands in the Treaty of St. Mary's. In 1821, Indianapolis was founded as a planned city for the new seat of Indiana's state government.
context_section_description: In 2015, the Indianapolis metropolitan area had a gross domestic product (GDP) of $134 billion. The top five industries were: finance, insurance, real estate, rental, and leasing ($30.7B), manufacturing ($30.1B), professional and business services ($14.3B), educational services, health care, and social assistance ($10.8B), and wholesale trade ($8.1B). Government, if it had been a private industry, would have ranked fifth, generating $10.2 billion.
  Compared to Indiana as a whole, the Indianapolis metropolitan area has a lower proportion of manufacturing jobs and a higher concentration of jobs in wholesale trade; administrative, support, and waste management; professional, scientific, and technical services; and transportation and warehousing. The city's major exports include pharmaceuticals, motor vehicle parts, medical equipment and supplies, engine and power equipment, and aircraft products and parts. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the region's unemployment rate was 2.8 percent in May 2019.
  As of 2020, three Fortune 500 companies were based in the city: health insurance company Anthem Inc. (33); pharmaceutical company Eli Lilly (123); and Simon Property Group (496), the largest real estate investment trust in the U.S. Columbus, Indiana-based Cummins (128) opened its Global Distribution Headquarters in downtown Indianapolis in 2017. The city is home to three Fortune 1000 companies: hydrocarbon manufacturer Calumet Specialty Products Partners (604); automotive transmission manufacturer Allison Transmission (890); and retailer Finish Line (972). Other companies based in the Indianapolis metropolitan area include: real estate investment trust Duke Realty; media conglomerate Emmis Communications; retailer Lids; financial services holding company OneAmerica; airline holding company Republic Airways; contract research corporation Envigo; and fast food chains Noble Roman's and Steak 'n Shake.
  Like many Midwestern cities, recent deindustrialization trends have had a significant impact on the local economy. Once home to 60 automakers, Indianapolis rivaled Detroit as a center of automobile manufacturing in the early 20th century. Between 1990 and 2012, approximately 26,900 manufacturing jobs were lost in the city, including the automotive plant closures of Chrysler, Ford, and General Motors. In 2016, Carrier Corporation announced the closure of its Indianapolis plant, moving 1,400 manufacturing jobs to Mexico. Since 1915, Rolls-Royce Holdings has had operations in Indianapolis. It is the third largest manufacturing employer and thirteenth largest employer overall in the city, with a workforce of 4,300 in aircraft engine development and manufacturing.
  Biotechnology, life sciences, and healthcare are major sectors of Indianapolis's economy. As of 2016, Eli Lilly and Company was the largest private employer in the city, with more than 11,000 workers. Other notable life sciences employers include Corteva, Covance, and Roche Diagnostics. A 2014 report by the Battelle Memorial Institute and Biotechnology Industry Organization indicated that the Indianapolis–Carmel–Anderson MSA was the only U.S. metropolitan area to have specialized employment concentrations in all five bioscience sectors evaluated in the study: agricultural feedstock and chemicals; bioscience-related distribution; drugs and pharmaceuticals; medical devices and equipment; and research, testing, and medical laboratories. The regional healthcare providers of Community Health Network, Eskenazi Health, Franciscan Health, Indiana University Health, and St. Vincent Health have a combined workforce of 43,700.
  The city's central location and extensive highway and rail infrastructure have positioned Indianapolis as an important logistics center, home to 1,500 distribution firms employing some 100,000 workers. As home to the second largest FedEx Express hub in the world, Indianapolis International Airport ranks as the sixth busiest U.S. airport in terms of air cargo transport, handling over 1 million tons and employing 6,600 in 2015. Indianapolis is a hub for CSX Tra
caption: Downtown Indianapolis is the largest employment cluster in Indiana, with nearly 43,000 jobs per square mile (17,000/km2).[137]
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