Gross margin by industry

94 U.S. industries, highest first · January 2026

Median industry36.9%half are above, half below

Highest100.0%Bank (Money Center)

Lowest9.3%Chemical (Basic)

#	Industry	Gross margin	Net margin	Companies
1	Bank (Money Center)	100.0%	28.9%	15
2	Banks (Regional)	99.6%	27.5%	568
3	Retail (REITs)	78.6%	23.0%	26
4	Drugs (Pharmaceutical)	71.7%	18.5%	228
5	Software (System & Application)	71.7%	25.5%	309
6	Investments & Asset Management	69.8%	18.4%	283
7	Financial Services (Non-bank & Insurance)	69.2%	22.2%	176
8	Software (Entertainment)	66.5%	29.9%	77
9	Tobacco	64.3%	26.7%	10
10	Telecom (Wireless)	63.0%	12.2%	12
11	Cable TV	62.9%	7.1%	9
12	Software (Internet)	62.6%	-0.9%	29
13	Hotel/Gaming	60.9%	10.4%	63
14	Drugs (Biotechnology)	60.8%	-5.0%	496
15	Semiconductor	59.0%	30.4%	66
16	Utility (Water)	59.0%	21.2%	14
17	Telecom Services	58.8%	14.2%	39
18	Telecom Equipment	58.1%	16.1%	57
19	REITs	58.1%	13.2%	190
20	Oil/Gas (Production and Exploration)	57.2%	14.6%	142
21	Apparel	56.9%	3.9%	35
22	Green & Renewable Energy	55.2%	-10.8%	15
23	Precious Metals	55.0%	28.6%	56
24	Beverage (Soft)	54.7%	13.4%	27
25	Healthcare Products	54.0%	9.6%	204
26	Brokerage & Investment Banking	53.3%	14.4%	32
27	Real Estate (General/Diversified)	51.2%	23.8%	12
28	Household Products	51.0%	11.7%	110
29	Transportation (Railroads)	51.0%	24.7%	4
30	Publishing & Newspapers	50.4%	8.2%	19
31	Healthcare Information and Technology	48.3%	7.4%	115
32	Beverage (Alcoholic)	47.0%	0.6%	14
33	Semiconductor Equipment	46.3%	21.3%	31
34	Education	45.8%	8.8%	32
35	Insurance (General)	44.7%	12.4%	21
36	Utility (General)	44.2%	14.2%	14
37	Shoe	43.9%	6.3%	11
38	Power	43.6%	12.7%	46
39	Oil/Gas Distribution	43.4%	13.4%	23
40	Office Equipment & Services	41.4%	4.4%	14
41	Entertainment	41.4%	4.4%	92
42	Recreation	39.8%	-4.7%	49
43	Hospitals/Healthcare Facilities	39.1%	6.3%	31
44	Electronics (Consumer & Office)	38.8%	-9.4%	8
45	Computers/Peripherals	38.4%	17.8%	36
46	Broadcasting	38.1%	2.1%	24
47	Machinery	37.5%	10.6%	105
48	Environmental & Waste Services	36.3%	8.2%	53
49	Advertising	36.2%	-0.3%	52
50	Oil/Gas (Integrated)	36.1%	8.3%	4
51	Retail (Special Lines)	35.3%	5.2%	94
52	Real Estate (Development)	35.3%	7.0%	14
53	Chemical (Specialty)	35.1%	2.9%	59
54	Metals & Mining	34.7%	10.5%	73
55	Retail (Building Supply)	34.2%	7.8%	14
56	Information Services	34.1%	6.5%	15
57	Business & Consumer Services	33.4%	7.0%	155
58	Retail (General)	33.2%	5.6%	23
59	Restaurant/Dining	32.2%	9.4%	64
60	Real Estate (Operations & Services)	32.2%	1.2%	54
61	Electrical Equipment	31.8%	0.9%	112
62	Building Materials	30.9%	7.4%	41
63	Retail (Distributors)	30.6%	6.0%	62
64	Furn/Home Furnishings	30.3%	1.1%	27
65	Insurance (Prop/Cas.)	30.2%	11.1%	57
66	Insurance (Life)	30.0%	7.8%	20
67	Shipbuilding & Marine	27.1%	9.5%	8
68	Electronics (General)	26.8%	6.5%	114
69	Retail (Grocery and Food)	26.3%	1.3%	15
70	Diversified	25.8%	16.4%	20
71	Construction Supplies	25.5%	10.8%	40
72	Air Transport	24.8%	2.5%	23
73	Packaging & Container	24.3%	4.5%	19
74	Computer Services	24.3%	4.5%	64
75	Transportation	24.1%	8.2%	19
76	Food Processing	23.2%	2.8%	78
77	Homebuilding	22.7%	9.5%	30
78	Retail (Automotive)	22.0%	3.4%	34
79	Trucking	21.2%	3.8%	26
80	Rubber & Tires	18.0%	-9.5%	3
81	Aerospace/Defense	17.5%	5.0%	79
82	Paper/Forest Products	17.1%	3.4%	6
83	Auto Parts	15.8%	0.7%	35
84	Engineering/Construction	15.5%	5.9%	48
85	Food Wholesalers	15.4%	1.2%	13
86	Chemical (Diversified)	15.3%	-5.3%	4
87	Coal & Related Energy	14.9%	-2.1%	16
88	Reinsurance	13.2%	3.9%	1
89	Farming/Agriculture	13.1%	3.9%	35
90	Steel	12.3%	1.9%	19
91	Healthcare Support Services	12.1%	1.3%	104
92	Oilfield Services/Equipment	11.1%	2.3%	97
93	Auto & Truck	10.4%	1.3%	33
94	Chemical (Basic)	9.3%	-3.7%	29

Source: Aswath Damodaran, NYU Stern, January 2026. Aggregates over U.S. public companies.

Frequently asked questions

What is a good gross margin?

It depends on the industry: the median across these 94 industries is 36.9%, from Chemical (Basic) (9.3%) to Bank (Money Center) (100.0%). Compare a business with its own industry, not with the overall average.

How is the gross margin worked out?

Revenue minus the direct cost of what was sold, divided by revenue: how much each sale leaves to pay for everything else. Each figure is an aggregate: the total across every company in the industry, so larger companies weigh more than in a simple average.

Where does the data come from?

Aswath Damodaran’s datasets at NYU Stern, January 2026, covering thousands of U.S. public companies in 94 industries. It is refreshed each January.