Short answer
Lockheed Martin had approximately 123,000 employees on December 31, 2025, according to its 2025 Form 10-K, filed January 29, 2026. About 72,000 of them are engineers, scientists and information technology professionals. About 93% work in the US and about 19% are covered by collective bargaining agreements. Headcount has grown from 105,000 at the end of 2018, and Lockheed's 2026 quarterly filings don't report a newer figure.
- Latest figure: about 123,000 employees at December 31, 2025, from the 2025 10-K, up 2,000 on the year.
- About 72,000 (59%) are engineers, scientists and IT professionals, up from 60,000 at the end of 2020.
- About 93% of the workforce has been in the US in every 10-K since 2018.
- Lockheed hired nearly 10,800 people in 2025 while net headcount rose by about 2,000.
- Revenue per employee was about $610,100 in 2025 (our calculation from the 10-K).
On this page
This page is for sellers and suppliers sizing Lockheed Martin as an account, analysts comparing defense employers and anyone who needs a figure they can cite. Every headcount below comes from Lockheed Martin's annual report on Form 10-K, which gives the number of employees at December 31 in its Human Capital section. Lockheed doesn't report headcount in its quarterly 10-Qs or earnings releases; the latest, for the quarter ended September 27, 2026, has no employee count. So the year-end 2025 figure stays current until the 2026 10-K, due in late January 2027.
Lockheed Martin employees by year
| Year end | Employees | Engineers, scientists and IT professionals | Change on prior year | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| December 31, 2025 | 123,000 | 72,000 | +2,000 (+1.7%) | 2025 10-K, filed January 29, 2026 |
| December 31, 2024 | 121,000 | 70,000 | -1,000 (-0.8%) | 2024 10-K, filed January 28, 2025 |
| December 31, 2023 | 122,000 | 65,000 | +6,000 (+5.2%) | 2023 10-K, filed January 23, 2024 |
| December 31, 2022 | 116,000 | 60,000 | +2,000 (+1.8%) | 2022 10-K, filed January 26, 2023 |
| December 31, 2021 | 114,000 | 59,000 | no change | 2021 10-K, filed January 25, 2022 |
| December 31, 2020 | 114,000 | 60,000 | +4,000 (+3.6%) | 2020 10-K, filed January 28, 2021 |
| December 31, 2019 | 110,000 | not reported | +5,000 (+4.8%) | 2019 10-K, filed February 7, 2020 |
| December 31, 2018 | 105,000 | not reported | 2018 10-K, filed February 8, 2019 |
Each filing gives the figures as "approximately", rounded to the nearest thousand, so a change of 1,000 or 2,000 is close to the rounding. The changes are our arithmetic. The engineer count first appeared in the 2020 10-K.
Hiring versus net growth
The 10-K also says how many people Lockheed hired, which shows how much movement sits behind the small net changes.
| Year | Hired, as stated in the 10-K | Net change in headcount |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | nearly 10,800, including nearly 1,500 college hires | +2,000 |
| 2024 | nearly 9,200 | -1,000 |
| 2023 | nearly 15,000 | +6,000 |
| 2022 | more than 14,000 | +2,000 |
| 2021 | more than 10,000 | no change |
| 2020 | more than 11,000 | +4,000 |
The gap is mostly people leaving. In 2025, about 10,800 hires produced net growth of about 2,000, so several thousand people left during the year (our arithmetic on rounded figures; the 10-K doesn't give an attrition rate). The 2025 filing adds that Lockheed "created internship opportunities for an additional 2,000 students" on top of those hires.
What the number includes
- All employees, worldwide. The 2025 10-K says: "we had a highly skilled workforce made up of approximately 123,000 employees, including approximately 72,000 engineers, scientists and information technology professionals." It doesn't split full-time from part-time or give a contractor count.
- Mostly US. "Approximately 93% of our workforce was located in the U.S." That share has been about 93% in every 10-K since 2018.
- About a fifth unionized. "Approximately 19% of our employees were covered by collective bargaining agreements with various unions," down from about 21% in the 2018 10-K.
- Acquisitions without stated headcounts. Lockheed closed its purchase of Terran Orbital on October 30, 2024 and paid $360 million for Amentum's Rapid Solutions business in the second quarter of 2025, both for the Space segment. The 10-Ks don't say how many people joined with either.
- A point-in-time count at December 31, not an average for the year.
What changed and why
Headcount rose by 18,000 between 2018 and 2025, and the share in engineering, science and IT grew faster: from 60,000 to 72,000 between 2020 and 2025. The 10-Ks record a series of smaller cuts along the way, each tied to a review of one part of the business. None gives a number of positions.
| Year | Charge | What the 10-K says it covered |
|---|---|---|
| 2020 | $27 million | "the planned elimination of certain positions primarily at our corporate functions" |
| 2021 | $36 million | plans to "close and consolidate certain facilities and reduce total workforce" in Rotary and Mission Systems (RMS) |
| 2022 | $100 million | actions at RMS, including "severance costs for reduction of positions" and asset impairments |
| 2023 | $92 million | "the planned reduction of certain positions across the corporation," after a review of segments and corporate functions |
| 2024 | $87 million | trademark and asset impairments and severance from a strategic review of Sikorsky, after the US Army said it would cancel the Future Attack Reconnaissance Aircraft program |
The 2025 10-K reports no new severance charge for 2025. It also notes that Lockheed "can recover a portion of severance costs through the pricing of our products and services to the U.S. Government and other customers in future periods."
Revenue per employee
Net sales in 2025 were $75,048 million. Divided by about 123,000 employees, that's about $610,100 per employee (our calculation).
| Year | Net sales | Employees | Revenue per employee (our calculation) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | $75.05 billion | 123,000 | about $610,100 |
| 2024 | $71.04 billion | 121,000 | about $587,100 |
| 2023 | $67.57 billion | 122,000 | about $553,900 |
Sales split by segment as Aeronautics $30.26 billion (40%), Rotary and Mission Systems $17.31 billion (23%), Missiles and Fire Control $14.45 billion (19%) and Space $13.03 billion (17%). Lockheed doesn't report headcount by segment, so per-segment ratios can't be worked out. The US Government accounted for 72% of 2025 sales (63% from the Department of War, also known as the Department of Defense), and 28% of sales were associated with international customers. To compare with a peer, see Raytheon's headcount.
Selling to a company of Lockheed Martin's size
General guidance on how large defense contractors tend to buy, not a description of Lockheed's internal processes.
- Start from the segment and the program. Aeronautics, Missiles and Fire Control, Rotary and Mission Systems and Space each run their own programs, and spending usually follows a program's contract and schedule rather than a central IT budget.
- Expect government rules to follow the money. With 72% of sales from the US Government, the 10-K refers to which costs are "allowable or allocable" under the government's Cost Accounting Standards and the Federal Acquisition Regulation. Suppliers should expect contract terms passed down from those government contracts, security reviews and export-control checks.
- Size people-related offers to the hiring volume. Roughly 10,000 hires a year, 72,000 technical staff and the security clearances many roles need make recruiting, training and clearance processing continuous work, not a one-off project.
- Read the reviews. Each severance round in the table followed a review of one segment or function. A team that has just been reviewed is under pressure to show efficiency, which shapes what it will buy.
Finding the right program office or function inside a 123,000-person company is the slow part. Bebop researches each account and suggests who to talk to and the angle to open with; check what it finds against the filings. For how public-sector money moves, see selling to government.
How to check the number yourself
- Open Lockheed Martin's 10-K filings on SEC EDGAR and pick the latest one.
- In Item 1, Business, find Human Capital. The headcount, the engineer count, the US share and union coverage are in the second paragraph; hiring is in the third.
- Note the date: the 10-K arrives in late January and covers December 31.
Next step: see how Lockheed ranks against the other primes in our list of the largest defense contractors.
Sources
- Lockheed Martin Corporation Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2025, Lockheed Martin Corporation, via SEC EDGAR, 29 January 2026
- Lockheed Martin Corporation Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2024, Lockheed Martin Corporation, via SEC EDGAR, 28 January 2025
- Lockheed Martin Corporation Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2023, Lockheed Martin Corporation, via SEC EDGAR, 23 January 2024
- Lockheed Martin Corporation Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2022, Lockheed Martin Corporation, via SEC EDGAR, 26 January 2023
- Lockheed Martin Corporation Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2021, Lockheed Martin Corporation, via SEC EDGAR, 25 January 2022
- Lockheed Martin Corporation Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2020, Lockheed Martin Corporation, via SEC EDGAR, 28 January 2021
- Lockheed Martin Corporation Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2019, Lockheed Martin Corporation, via SEC EDGAR, 7 February 2020
- Lockheed Martin Corporation Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2018, Lockheed Martin Corporation, via SEC EDGAR, 8 February 2019
- Lockheed Martin Corporation Form 10-Q for the quarter ended September 27, 2026, Lockheed Martin Corporation, via SEC EDGAR, 22 October 2026
Written by the Bebop team at Blackpearl Group. Published .
Questions people ask
How many employees does Lockheed Martin have in the US?
About 114,000, by our calculation: the 2025 10-K says approximately 93% of Lockheed Martin's approximately 123,000 employees were located in the US at December 31, 2025. The US share has been about 93% in every 10-K since 2018. The filing doesn't list headcount by state or site, so any state-level figure you see comes from another source.
How many engineers does Lockheed Martin employ?
About 72,000 engineers, scientists and information technology professionals at December 31, 2025, according to the 2025 10-K. That is about 59% of the workforce. The count has risen every year since 2021, from 59,000 then to 65,000 in 2023, 70,000 in 2024 and 72,000 in 2025, faster than total headcount grew over the same period.
Has Lockheed Martin had layoffs?
It has made several targeted cuts rather than one large layoff. Its 10-Ks record severance charges of $27 million in 2020, $36 million in 2021, $100 million in 2022, $92 million in 2023 and $87 million in 2024, the last tied to a review of Sikorsky. None states a number of positions. Headcount fell by about 1,000 in 2024, and the 2025 10-K reports no new severance charge.
How many people does Lockheed Martin hire each year?
Around 9,000 to 15,000 in recent years. The 10-Ks report more than 11,000 hires in 2020, more than 10,000 in 2021, more than 14,000 in 2022, nearly 15,000 in 2023, nearly 9,200 in 2024 and nearly 10,800 in 2025, including nearly 1,500 college hires. Net headcount grew by much less, so a large share of hiring replaces people who leave.
Are Lockheed Martin employees unionized?
About 19% of Lockheed Martin's employees were covered by collective bargaining agreements with various unions at December 31, 2025, according to the 2025 10-K. The share was about 21% in the 2018 10-K and 20% from 2019 to 2021. The filing says a number of agreements expire each year and that renewals have historically been negotiated without material disruption.