B2B cold email software in California
Verified federal data on the California business market, plus outreach guides for its largest cities and service industries. Acqro researches every company on your list and writes each email from what it finds.
Onboarding in batches. No credit card to join.
How many businesses are in California?
California had 1,029,689 business establishments in 2023, ranking 1st among the 50 states and DC, with 252,753 of them employing 10 to 249 people. Source: U.S. Census Bureau County Business Patterns. Acqro is AI cold email software that researches each of those companies before writing to them.
The California B2B market in numbers
- Business establishments
- 1,029,689+0.6% vs 2022Census CBP 2023
- Firms with 10–249 employees
- 252,753Census CBP 2023
- Paid employees
- 16,405,436Census CBP 2023
- Average annual pay
- $87,119Census CBP 2023
- Professional services firms
- 143,863Census CBP 2023, NAICS 54
- Share of US establishments
- 12.3%Census CBP 2023
74.8% of establishments in California have fewer than 10 employees, above the 73.0% share for the United States. The 252,753 establishments with 10 to 249 employees are where most B2B lists should start: large enough to have a budget and a defined buyer, small enough that an owner or department head still makes the call and reads their own email.
By employment, the largest sectors are health care and social assistance (14.3% of jobs) and accommodation and food services (10.9% of jobs). Relative to the national mix, information (5.4% locally against 2.7% nationally) and arts, entertainment and recreation (2.2% locally against 1.8% nationally) stand out, which makes them natural first segments for outbound.
The number of establishments changed by +0.6% between 2022 and 2023, in line with the +0.8% change for the United States. New and growing businesses are the accounts most likely to be choosing vendors for the first time, so pair that list with research on hiring, new locations and leadership changes before writing a single email.
Largest industries in California
Sectors ranked by paid employment, compared with the national mix.
| Sector | Establishments | Employees | Avg. annual pay | Share of jobs | US share |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Health care and social assistance | 132,345 | 2,347,305 | $75,446 | 14.3% | 15.8% |
| Accommodation and food services | 95,952 | 1,788,988 | $31,854 | 10.9% | 10.4% |
| Administrative, support and waste management services | 48,724 | 1,738,165 | $68,522 | 10.6% | 9.6% |
| Retail trade | 106,675 | 1,702,044 | $43,691 | 10.4% | 11.5% |
| Professional, scientific and technical services | 143,863 | 1,430,821 | $130,687 | 8.7% | 7.4% |
| Manufacturing | 35,300 | 1,157,201 | $91,763 | 7.1% | 8.8% |
| Information | 27,338 | 891,636 | $232,014 | 5.4% | 2.7% |
| Construction | 86,763 | 870,789 | $84,200 | 5.3% | 5.5% |
| Wholesale trade | 54,671 | 809,519 | $106,868 | 4.9% | 4.5% |
| Transportation and warehousing | 39,439 | 788,706 | $68,198 | 4.8% | 4.7% |
Where California businesses are concentrated
Counties ranked by number of business establishments.
| County | Establishments | Share of state | Employees |
|---|---|---|---|
| Los Angeles County | 304,988 | 29.6% | 3,987,736 |
| Orange County | 106,961 | 10.4% | 1,580,778 |
| San Diego County | 93,407 | 9.1% | 1,391,721 |
| Santa Clara County | 49,154 | 4.8% | 1,171,397 |
| Riverside County | 46,244 | 4.5% | 687,526 |
| San Bernardino County | 42,571 | 4.1% | 718,612 |
| Alameda County | 42,318 | 4.1% | 749,124 |
| Sacramento County | 34,280 | 3.3% | 533,709 |
| San Francisco County | 33,378 | 3.2% | 740,362 |
| Contra Costa County | 25,932 | 2.5% | 343,690 |
Cold email guides for California cities
Each guide covers the county that contains the city.
| City | County | Establishments in county |
|---|---|---|
| Los Angeles | Los Angeles County | 304,988 |
| San Diego | San Diego County | 93,407 |
| San Francisco | San Francisco County | 33,378 |
| San Jose | Santa Clara County | 49,154 |
B2B service industries in California
Establishment counts in California for the service industries Acqro customers work in. Each links to an outreach guide.
| Industry | Census industry (NAICS) | Establishments |
|---|---|---|
| Law Firms | Offices of Lawyers | 22,821 |
| Commercial Real Estate Brokers | Offices of Real Estate Agents and Brokers | 22,558 |
| Management Consultants | Administrative Management and General Management Consulting Services | 17,851 |
| Commercial Insurance Brokers | Insurance Agencies and Brokerages | 13,919 |
| Software Development Agencies | Custom Computer Programming Services | 10,962 |
| SEO Agencies | Marketing Consulting Services | 9,390 |
| Healthtech Vendors | Computer Systems Design Services | 7,616 |
| CPA and Accounting Firms | Offices of Certified Public Accountants | 7,542 |
| Commercial Cleaning Companies | Janitorial Services | 6,956 |
| Video Production Companies | Motion Picture and Video Production | 6,730 |
| Staffing Agencies | Temporary Help Services | 3,939 |
| SaaS Companies | Software Publishers | 3,890 |
| Architecture Firms | Architectural Services | 3,723 |
| Logistics Providers | Freight Transportation Arrangement | 3,580 |
| Financial Advisory Firms | Investment Advice | 3,029 |
| Office Design Firms | Interior Design Services | 2,853 |
| Marketing Agencies | Advertising Agencies | 2,462 |
| Corporate Caterers | Caterers | 1,961 |
| PR Agencies | Public Relations Agencies | 1,638 |
| Cybersecurity Firms | Other Computer Related Services | 1,524 |
| HR Consultancies | Human Resources Consulting Services | 1,187 |
| Corporate Training Providers | Professional and Management Development Training | 1,130 |
| Event Management Companies | Convention and Trade Show Organizers | 1,072 |
| Commercial Waste Services | Solid Waste Collection | 907 |
| Executive Search Firms | Executive Search Services | 789 |
| Payroll Providers | Payroll Services | 711 |
| Merchant Services Providers | Financial Transactions Processing, Reserve, and Clearinghouse Activities | 657 |
| Managed Service Providers | Computer Facilities Management Services | 594 |
| Translation Services | Translation and Interpretation Services | 593 |
| Business Telecom and VoIP Providers | Telecommunications Resellers | 405 |
Cold email in California, answered
How many businesses are in California?
California had 1,029,689 business establishments in 2023, employing 16,405,436 people. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, County Business Patterns 2023.
What are the largest industries in California?
By paid employment in 2023: health care and social assistance (14.3% of jobs), accommodation and food services (10.9% of jobs) and administrative, support and waste management services (10.6% of jobs). Source: U.S. Census Bureau, County Business Patterns 2023.
Is cold email legal in the United States?
Yes. The federal CAN-SPAM Act permits commercial email to business contacts without prior consent, provided the message identifies the sender accurately, uses a truthful subject line, includes a valid physical postal address and a working opt-out, and honours opt-out requests promptly. CAN-SPAM applies in every state and preempts most state commercial email laws, except provisions aimed at falsity or deception. This is general information, not legal advice.
Explore related pages
Guides for California
Other states
Sources and methodology
Every figure on this page comes from a federal statistical release and is shown with its source and reference year. Figures the agencies withhold or publish with high noise are left out rather than estimated. Page updated September 17, 2026.
- U.S. Census Bureau, County Business Patterns 2023 and 2022: establishments, paid employment for the pay period including March 12, annual payroll, and establishments by employment size. Industries use NAICS 2017 codes.
Reach the right California accounts
Tell us where to reach you and we'll open the next seat.
Prefer a conversation? Get in touch.