U.S. beekeeping combines a large agricultural footprint with substantial seasonal turnover. Operations with five or more colonies reported 2.81 million colonies on January 1, 2026, while the 2022 Census of Agriculture counted 73,496 farms with honey-bee colonies in inventory. The figures below cover colony health, honey markets, leading states, and the broader farm population.
Contents
- U.S. colony inventory and turnover
- Quarterly colony losses and recovery
- Colony health stressors and CCD losses
- Honey production, prices, and income
- State production benchmarks
- The Census footprint of beekeeping
U.S. colony inventory and turnover
The USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service’s Honey Bee Colonies report measures operations with five or more colonies. That scope is narrower than every backyard or hobby hive, so these inventory figures should be read as a benchmark for larger operations.
The inventory stood at 2.81 million colonies on January 1, 2026, up 6% from 2.64 million on January 1, 2025. It reached 2.84 million on April 1, 2026. For context, the 2025 quarterly inventory moved from 2.88 million on April 1 to 3.12 million on July 1, then 2.95 million on October 1.
| Measurement date or period | Colonies or activity | Coverage |
|---|---|---|
| January 1, 2025 | 2.64 million colonies | Operations with 5+ colonies |
| April 1, 2025 | 2.88 million colonies | Operations with 5+ colonies |
| July 1, 2025 | 3.12 million colonies | Operations with 5+ colonies |
| October 1, 2025 | 2.95 million colonies | Operations with 5+ colonies |
| January 1, 2026 | 2.81 million colonies | Operations with 5+ colonies |
| April 1, 2026 | 2.84 million colonies | Operations with 5+ colonies |
Turnover is also visible in the quarterly activity counts. Operations added 464,320 colonies during January–March 2026 and 619,850 during April–June 2026. They renovated 215,440 colonies, or 8%, during January–March 2026. In this report, a colony can be counted in each state where it was located during a quarter, which matters when interpreting state-level totals.
Quarterly colony losses and recovery
Losses varied between 11% and 16% in the reported quarters. Operations with five or more colonies lost 328,500 colonies, or 12%, in January–March 2025. Losses were 302,100, or 11%, in April–June; 327,840, or 11%, in July–September; and 347,100, or 12%, in October–December.
The first two quarters of 2026 show a higher first-quarter loss followed by a lower second-quarter percentage. Operations lost 454,890 colonies, or 16%, in January–March 2026, then 321,910, or 11%, in April–June 2026. These are quarterly loss measurements, not a claim that the same individual colonies were lost only once or that annual loss can be obtained by simply adding the percentages.
State results show why national averages can conceal local variation. California operations lost 220,000 colonies, or 18%, in January–March 2026. Pennsylvania operations lost 8,000, or 23%, in that same period. Florida operations lost 50,000, or 19%, in April–June 2026. The report’s state figures use the published quarterly definitions and may reflect colonies located in more than one state across different quarters.
Colony health stressors and CCD losses
Varroa mites were the most prominent quantified stressor in the supplied quarterly figures. They affected 28.3% of U.S. colonies in January–March 2025, the highest quarterly percentage reported for 2025. The share was 26.3% in April–June 2025 and 22.2% in July–September 2025.
The USDA report also recorded several categories of affected colonies for April–June 2025:
- Other pests and parasites affected 9.2% of colonies.
- Pesticides affected 6.5%.
- Other stressors affected 5.0%.
- Diseases affected 4.3%.
- Unknown stressors affected 2.0%.
These categories describe colonies affected during the stated quarter; they should not be treated as mutually exclusive causes or added to produce a single total affected share unless the source explicitly defines them that way.
Colony Collapse Disorder symptoms were associated with 114,680 U.S. colonies lost in January–March 2025 and 53,710 colonies lost in April–June 2025. Those counts identify losses reported with CCD symptoms and do not represent every colony loss or every health problem.
Honey production, prices, and income
The USDA NASS Honey 03/13/2026 report measures the 2025 honey market. U.S. production was 115.716 million pounds from 2.412 million honey-producing colonies. Average yield was 48.0 pounds per colony, and the average honey price was $3.05 per pound. The value of U.S. honey production was $352.934 million.
Producer stocks totaled 34.840 million pounds on December 15, 2025. This is a stock measurement on a specific date, rather than an estimate of all honey produced during the year. The report also recorded $225 million in pollination income from honey bees and $48.0 million in other income from honey bees.
Beekeeping input prices provide another view of operating costs. In 2025, the average price paid for a honey-bee queen was $22. A package of honey bees averaged $110, while a nucleus colony averaged $130. These are reported average prices for the stated year, not universal retail prices for every region or supplier.
The production measures also use a particular definition: honey-producing colonies, producer stocks, and state totals follow the report’s published rounding and multi-state counting definitions. Honey production value, pollination income, and other income are separate reported measures and should not be combined without a source-defined accounting method.
State production benchmarks
The 2025 state figures show differences in scale, yield, stocks, prices, and value. California had 315,000 honey-producing colonies and produced 11.025 million pounds of honey. Its honey production was valued at $28.334 million. Texas produced 2.160 million pounds.
South Dakota had 205,000 honey-producing colonies and held 5.658 million pounds of producer honey stocks on December 15, 2025. Stock volume is not the same measure as annual production, so it should not be used as a direct ranking of output.
| State | 2025 benchmark | Measurement |
|---|---|---|
| California | 315,000 | Honey-producing colonies |
| South Dakota | 205,000 | Honey-producing colonies |
| California | 11.025 million pounds | Honey production |
| Texas | 2.160 million pounds | Honey production |
| South Dakota | 5.658 million pounds | Producer stocks on Dec. 15 |
| Iowa | 62 pounds per colony | Listed state yield |
| Pennsylvania | 57 pounds per colony | State yield |
| Washington | $4.36 per pound | Average honey price |
| Florida | $3.94 per pound | Average honey price |
Iowa recorded the highest listed state yield at 62 pounds per colony in 2025, while Pennsylvania recorded 57 pounds per colony. Average honey prices were $4.36 per pound in Washington and $3.94 in Florida. These state benchmarks are not interchangeable: colony counts, pounds produced, pounds per colony, stocks, prices, and production value answer different questions.
The Census footprint of beekeeping
The 2022 Census of Agriculture, Table 21 provides a broader farm-level view than the annual colony reports. In 2022, 73,496 U.S. farms had honey-bee colonies in inventory, representing 3,800,015 colonies. The Census counted 46,447 farms with honey production, which reported 182,538,996 pounds of honey collected.
Honey sales were reported by 32,134 farms, with gross honey sales totaling $513.891 million in 2022. The measures are not the same population: farms with colonies, farms with production, and farms with sales can differ. The Census note also matters for interpretation: honey collected by farms with production is not necessarily honey that was sold.
The 2017 Census counted 60,650 farms with honey-bee colonies in inventory and 2,876,496 colonies. It counted 35,829 farms with honey production, which reported 149,575,785 pounds of honey collected. These 2017 figures are legacy Census measurements and are presented as published historical benchmarks, not as independently verified estimates.
Taken together, the Census figures show a larger farm footprint in 2022 than in 2017 for the listed inventory and production measures: 73,496 versus 60,650 farms with colonies, 3,800,015 versus 2,876,496 colonies, 46,447 versus 35,829 farms with production, and 182,538,996 versus 149,575,785 pounds collected. Because the Census and annual USDA reports use different populations, timing, and definitions, those series should be compared within their own measurement frameworks.