Industries with the Highest Profit Margin in the US in 2025

1. Stock & Commodity Exchanges in the US

Profit Margin 2025: 46.3%

Stock and commodity exchanges have remained a vital part of the Finance and Insurance sector (IBISWorld report 52). Exchanges act as intermediaries and provide physical trading floors or electronic marketplaces where buyers and sellers arrange trades in securities, commodities and related contracts. Exchanges facilitate the transfer of assets between market participants in different locations and with various timeframes.

The industry has performed well over the past five years. Wage growth was high and unemployment was low in the years preceding the COVID-19 pandemic, increasing corporate profit and the savings rate. Higher corporate profit encouraged companies to invest in the stock market,... Learn More

2. Venture Capital & Principal Trading in the US

Profit Margin 2025: 40.5%

Venture capital (VC) and principal trading have been integral to the start-up ecosystem for many years, providing crucial funding for entrepreneurs and start-ups. The industry has undergone significant changes in recent years, benefiting from rising security prices, increased trading volumes, unprecedented investment opportunities and greater merger and acquisition activity.

VC and principal trading revenue will grow at a CAGR of 4.4% to $59.6 billion through the end of 2023, including a 2.0% increase in 2023 alone, when profit will drop to 34.5%. The stock market has been mostly strong in recent years. Venture capitalists benefit from the high valuation on the... Learn More

3. Apartment Rental in the US

Profit Margin 2025: 32.9%

Apartment lessors provide housing to renters either in a property that they own or in a property that they rent themselves. Lessors have enjoyed a period of success recently, although the pandemic and general economic shifts have disrupted the industry and slowed growth. The economic recession brought on by the pandemic resulted in falling rent prices in line with rising unemployment. Also, those that could afford to largely chose to leave cities as the pandemic incentivized people to focus on their living situations. According to the Apartment List National Rent Report, rent prices shot up following the end of pandemic-related... Learn More

4. Rail Transportation in the US

Profit Margin 2025: 28.8%

Demand for rail transportation has been turbulent in recent years. The outbreak of COVID-19 greatly hindered demand; industrial production and manufacturing were temporarily halted in 2020. Also, oil prices plummeted in 2020, making truck transportation more attractive since its route planning is more flexible and freight rates per ton are often low, further hindering demand.

A reopened economy in 2021 led trade and industrial production to also recover, while energy exports to Europe and Asia increased, benefiting rail transportation. Surging oil prices also enabled railroad companies to bolster revenue by increasing surcharges to compensate for high fuel costs. These rising... Learn More

5. Beef Cattle Production in the US

Profit Margin 2025: 23.8%

The beef cattle production industry in the United States includes farms and ranches that primarily raise cattle, including cattle for dairy herd replacements or feeding cattle to prepare them for consumption. In the current period, fluctuating feed prices and inefficiencies, exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic, have caused volatility in the price of red meat. In 2021 alone, the price of red meat jumped 21.1% as drought conditions lowered herd numbers and increased the price of feed. While prices have begun to rise again, the larger losses of revenue in the early period have resulted in the industry's revenue falling at... Learn More

6. Speech & Voice Recognition Software Developers in the US

Profit Margin 2025: 23.0%

Speech and voice recognition software controls a computer with a user's voice. Speech recognition software recognizes the articulated words of a speaker and converts them into a digital format. Voice recognition can be used like a fingerprint and is aimed toward identifying the speaker, often for security purposes, using voice biometrics solutions. Voice recognition also helps consumers with high accuracy speech recognition, natural language understanding, dialog and information management, text to speech and optical recognition. Industry revenue has been increasing at a CAGR of 13.4% over the past five years, and is expected to reach $38.9 in 2023. Recognition services... Learn More

7. Card Reward Program Services in the US

Profit Margin 2025: 19.6%

Macroeconomic improvements and greater acceptance of reward programs have driven growth for card reward program services. Over the past five years, consumers' willingness to accrue higher levels of debt led to increased demand for operators' complementary services. In addition, consumers have maintained a taste for rewards program services, while both national and local retailers have increased their card-linked marketing efforts. Nonetheless, robust economic volatility during COVID-19, coupled with rising interest rates, have harmed consumers' ability to manage large amounts of credit card debt, causing revenue to shrink at a CAGR of 0.3% to an estimated $836.9 million through the end... Learn More

8. Renters' Insurance in the US

Profit Margin 2025: 19.3%

As more people live in rent-occupied households, industry operators gain opportunities to provide consumers with renters' insurance. In recent years, effective marketing has made consumers more aware of the small amount they need to pay each year for renters' insurance, which assures they will receive reimbursements in the event that their personal belongings are stolen or damaged inside their apartment or condo.

In 2020, the number of housing renters declined amid the COVID-19 pandemic, which spurred an exodus of some renters from cities; this was offset by demand from renters who decided to take advantage of depressed real estate prices... Learn More

9. Chiropractors in the US

Profit Margin 2025: 18.8%

Once regarded as quackery by the American Medical Association, chiropractic care has transformed into a mainstream medical treatment option. Lacking conclusive medical research, private and public insurers' coverage of care is a tacit acceptance of chiropractic treatments and spurs consumers to consider chiropractors' lower-cost, drug-free alternatives. Considered an essential service and able to benefit from small business assistance, chiropractor revenue bounced back from the COVID-19 (coronavirus) pandemic. Nonetheless, revenue grew slightly at a CAGR of 0.4% to $19.5 billion through 2023. Hefty profit margins at 19.6% matched strong revenue growth of 4.3% in 2023 alone.

The face of the chiropractor's office... Learn More

10. Cosmetic & Beauty Products Manufacturing in the US

Profit Margin 2025: 18.6%

Rising per capita disposable income has supported cosmetic and beauty products manufacturing revenue. Still, following the Federal Reserve's decision to aggressively raise interest rates multiple times in 2022, a tighter policy has affected budgets and decreased disposable income. The ongoing economic situation and the Federal Reserve's stricter policy have led industry-wide revenue to decrease at a CAGR of 2.7% to $48.8 billion through the end of 2023, including a 1.9% decrease in 2023, despite an increase in profit.

Still, a growing middle-aged consumer group has provided an opportunity for developing anti-aging and luxury products. Rising consumer spending during most of the... Learn More