Outdoor recreation’s economic impact grows again

Outdoor recreation’s impact on the national economy grew again in 2023, marking three consecutive years of growth.

A report from the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Economic Analysis found that outdoor recreation contributed 2.3% of the country’s gross domestic product and generated close to $1.2 trillion in economic output in 2023. The data also showed that outdoor recreation accounted for just less than 5 million jobs.

BEA officials compile this data annually from the Outdoor Recreation Satellite Account. The account measures economic activity and the receipts generated by activities like biking, hunting, fishing, RVing and more. The report notes that the data also includes money spent on things like gardening and outdoor concerts.

BEA first started releasing the data in 2017, but this year’s report includes numbers going back to 2012. It shows that the outdoor sector has grown massively since then. Gross economic output – measured by industry sales or receipts – alone increased by about 41% from 2012 to 2023, according to the report.

The industry had been on the rise until 2020, when the COVID-19 pandemic hit. The following year, however, the economy bounced back and its output has been on the rise ever since.

Outdoor industry representatives view the continued growth as evidence that the sector is a key part of the nation’s economy.

The Outdoor Recreation Roundtable said in a news release this month that the data shows the outdoor economy is strong, and that it “contributes more to the U.S. economy than farming, mining and utilities.”

Jessica Turner, the organization’s president, said in the release that the data shows outdoor recreation is “a cornerstone of our economy, generating jobs, supporting small businesses, and providing essential opportunities for Americans to engage with the outdoors for health, connection and quality of life.”

California was again the state with the largest outdoor sector, contributing $81 billion to the nation’s GDP.

Washington ranked sixth. Its outdoor recreation economy contributed about $22.5 billion, according to the report. That’s up by about $2.5 billion over last year. Meanwhile, the sector’s jobs count was essentially static, coming in again at just more than 121,000 jobs.

In Idaho, outdoor recreation added $3.9 billion in value, an increase of about $500 million. It’s jobs total rose by about 2,000 to just more than 37,000 jobs.

The report splits the activities that contribute to the economy into three groups. There’s “conventional” recreation, which includes hunting, fishing, biking and camping. Then there’s “other,” which can include things like gardening or outdoor concerts. Supporting activities, such as travel, tourism and construction, are the third group.

Supporting activities make up the largest share of the industry’s impact on GDP by far, amounting to 48.5% of the value added. Conventional recreation was next with 31.4%, followed by other activities at 20.1%.

Boating and fishing, which were grouped together, made the largest contribution to GDP of any conventional activity, coming in at $36.8 billion.

It was the top activity in 34 states, including Washington, where it added $1.4 billion in value – the fourth-highest total in the nation.

Washington’s next top activity by value in the report was RVing, followed by snow sports like snowmobiling and skiing.

Idaho’s activity rankings were led by RVing. Hunting was second, followed by boating and fishing.