The American Horse Council

For years, horsemen and women have known that the American horse industry is a serious, economically diverse and productive business that deserves the attention and appreciation of government, media and the public. But they had no written documentation to support their claims. Following are some industry statistics from The Economic Impact of the Horse Industry in the United States, conducted by the Barents Group of Washington, DC.

What is the Economic Impact of the Horse Industry?

The horse industry has a total impact of $112.1 billion on U.S. Gross Domestic Product (GDP).

The horse industry provides 1.4 million full time jobs.
• The horse industry pay $1.9 billion in taxes.
• Racing, showing and recreation each contribute more than 25% to the total value of goods and services produced by the industry.
• The horse industry's contribution to the U.S. GDP is greater than the motion picture services, railroad transportation, furniture and fixtures manufacturing and tobacco product manufacturing industries. It is only slightly smaller than the apparel and other textile products manufacturing industry.
• In terms of employment, the industry directly employs more people than railroads, radio and television broadcasting, petroleum and coal products manufacturing and tobacco product manufacturing.

There are 7.1 million Americans are involved in the industry as horse owners, service providers, employees and volunteers.

• 4.3 million individuals participate in recreation activities
• 3.6 million individuals participate in showing
• With some overlap in cases of people who participate in both showing and recreation.
• 1.9 million people own horses
• 941,000 people participated in racing in either a professional or volunteer capacity
• In addition to the people actually involved in the industry, tens of millions more Americans participate as spectators.
• The median income for horse owning households is $60,000
• 14% of horse-owning households have incomes under $25,000
• 38% of horse-owning households have incomes under $50,000
• 64% of horse-owning households have incomes under $75,000

There are 6.9 million horses in the U.S., including both commercial and recreational horses.

• 2,970,000 and recreation
• 1,974,000 are used in showing
• 1,262,800 are used in other activities, such as farm and ranch work, rodeo, polo, police work, etc.
• 725,000 of those horses are involved in racing and race horse breeding

Pari-mutuel horse racing, which includes off-track, inter-track and account wagering, is legal in 43 states and involves the racing of Thoroughbreds, Standardbreds, Quarter Horses, and Arabians. There are over 175 racetracks in the U.S. Find out more information on racing statistics.

Recreation Statistics

Many individuals enjoy riding horses with no concern for money or ribbons. These individuals find respite from their busy lives with a few hours a day or week on horseback.

Find out more information on recreation statistics.

Showing Statistics

Interest in horse showing spans all breeds and disciplines. On any given weekend you can find shows for professional, amateur or young riders with an interest in western, English, jumping, hunt seat, halter, pleasure, side-saddle, with a carriage or cart, three-gaited or five-gaited. Find out more information on showing statistics.

How to Order the Study

This study is available in four volumes separately or as one complete study.

• Volume I is the national summary - $35.00
• Volume II gives state figures for CA, CO, FL, ID, IL, KY, MD, NY, OH, OK and TX; - $15.00
• Volume III is the technical information - $50.00
• Volume IV contains breakouts for Thoroughbreds and American Quarter Horses - $50.00
• Entire study - $150.00