Short answer
The Washington-Arlington-Alexandria metro area had 1,356 advertising, PR and related agency offices with paid staff in 2023, employing 15,886 people, according to the Census Bureau's County Business Patterns. 801 of them are PR agencies with 9,179 employees. The District itself has 634 offices. Before hiring one, check its client list for conflicts, look it up in the public FARA and lobbying registries, and compare its rates with those published in federal schedule contracts.
- The DC metro has 1,356 agency offices paying $132,583 per employee on average, 3.49% of the US total.
- PR agencies are 801 of those offices and 9,179 of the jobs; nationally PR is 22% of agency offices.
- Vendors in the metro hold 154 of the 333 GSA schedule contracts for advertising, PR and marketing consulting.
- Federal contracts coded as advertising went to DC-based StrataComm ($80.4 million) and Porter Novelli Public Services ($51.2 million) in fiscal 2025.
- PR firms working for foreign governments or parties must register under FARA, and those registrations are public.
On this page
This report is for organizations hiring a marketing, PR or public affairs agency in the Washington area, including federal buyers, and for vendors that sell to agencies. It covers the Census count by type and county, the federal market, the registrations to check, published rates and how agencies here buy.
A PR and public affairs market
County Business Patterns 2023 reports NAICS 5418 (advertising, public relations and related services) for the Washington-Arlington-Alexandria metro area. By type:
| Kind of agency | NAICS code | Offices | Employees |
|---|---|---|---|
| PR agencies, including lobbying and political consulting | 541820 | 801 | 9,179 |
| Advertising agencies, including digital | 541810 | 246 | 2,877 |
| Other advertising services, such as promotional products | 541890 | 150 | 1,348 |
| Direct mail | 541860 | 76 | 1,749 |
| Media representatives | 541840 | 31 | not reported (high-noise figure) |
| Out-of-home display | 541850 | 22 | 115 |
| Media buying agencies | 541830 | 21 | 134 |
| Flyer and sample distribution | 541870 | 9 | 38 |
| All agency offices | 5418 | 1,356 | 15,886 |
The metro's PR agencies are 9.3% of the 8,646 in the US and paid $1.53 billion in 2023, or $167,006 per employee (our calculation). The Census Bureau's definition of 541820 explicitly includes "lobbying, political consulting, or public relations consulting." Direct mail is also large here, with 76 offices and 1,749 employees.
Outside 5418, the metro has 1,065 marketing consultancies (541613, 8,288 employees) and 320 graphic design studios (541430). SEO firms doing custom work are classed under custom computer programming (541511).
The count by county
| County or city | Offices | Employees |
|---|---|---|
| District of Columbia | 634 | 8,435 |
| Fairfax County, VA | 187 | 2,017 |
| Montgomery County, MD | 159 | 864 |
| Arlington County, VA | 80 | 965 |
| Alexandria city, VA | 72 | 1,030 |
| Loudoun County, VA | 68 | not reported (high-noise figure) |
| Prince George's County, MD | 36 | 554 |
| Frederick County, MD | 28 | 374 |
These eight hold 1,264 of the 1,356 offices. "Not reported" means the Census Bureau published the figure but flagged it as high-noise: the noise it adds for confidentiality moved it by 5% or more. Across the metro, agency offices paid $2.11 billion in 2023 and average 11.7 employees each.
By size, 860 offices have one to four employees, 173 have five to nine, 127 have 10 to 19, 130 have 20 to 49, 39 have 50 to 99, 21 have 100 to 249 and 6 have 250 to 499. The Census Bureau doesn't publish the cells above 499, but the published cells already add up to 1,356, so there are none. CBP counts establishments with paid employees, not companies, and leaves out sole practitioners.
The federal market
The General Services Administration's Multiple Award Schedule is how many federal agencies buy marketing and PR. Of the 333 schedule contracts with an advertising (541810), PR (541820) or marketing consulting (541613) category, 154 belong to vendors with addresses in the DC metro, matched through USAspending.gov: 79 in Virginia, 38 in Maryland and 37 in the District. 100 of the 154 are small businesses.
In federal contract obligations for fiscal 2025 (October 2024 to September 2025) on awards coded 541810, among recipients with District addresses, StrataComm received $80.4 million, Porter Novelli Public Services $51.2 million and Ketchum $5.3 million. Under 541820, the District's largest recipient, Jones Public Affairs, received $356,920. If you're a federal buyer, USAspending shows any agency's federal award history; if you're a private client, it shows which local agencies carry large government accounts that may compete for their attention.
Checks specific to Washington
- Foreign clients. Under the Foreign Agents Registration Act, an agent of a foreign principal includes a person who acts in the US as a "public relations counsel" or "publicity agent" for that principal. Registrants must disclose the relationship, their activities, and money received and spent, and the filings are searchable on FARA's eFile site. Search the agency's name before you hire it, especially if your issue touches a foreign government.
- Lobbying. If the firm also lobbies, its registrations and reports, which name its clients, are public through the House Clerk's lobbying disclosure site. Read them for conflicts with your position.
- Conflicts. Ask for the agency's current client list in your sector and a written no-conflict commitment for the term.
- Account ownership. Google's advertiser guide says an agency "must set up a separate Ads account for you." Keep admin rights to ad and analytics accounts in your organization's name.
- Copyright. Commissioned work is a "work made for hire" only in nine narrow categories and with a signed agreement, so get a signed assignment for campaign materials.
What Washington agencies charge
GSA schedule contracts publish each vendor's maximum hourly rates for federal orders, and the account ladders at three District firms show how rates rise with seniority and firm size:
| Role | StrataComm (small business) | Porter Novelli Public Services | Ketchum |
|---|---|---|---|
| Account executive | $135 | $171 | $168 |
| Senior account executive | $160 | $195 | $186 |
| Account supervisor | $180 | $244 | $219 |
| Vice president | $240 | $293 | $259 |
| Senior vice president | $295 | $352 | $309 |
Porter Novelli Public Services and Ketchum are listed as other than small businesses. Across all vendors, those in the DC metro have a higher median ceiling than vendors elsewhere for a creative director ($198 against $184) and a media planner or buyer ($147 against $119), but a lower one for a PR or communications specialist ($116 against $140), our calculation from GSA's data as of 30 October 2026. Ceilings are maximums for government work; commercial clients negotiate separately.
Selling to Washington agencies
PR and public affairs firms buy media monitoring, media databases, polling and research, video production and freelance writers, much of it billed to clients. At firms with fewer than 20 staff, 1,160 of the metro's offices, a partner usually decides. At the 27 offices with 100 or more, expect procurement, a security review and, for firms with federal work, contract compliance questions.
Illustrative example. The company, prices and results are fictional.
Hilltracker (hilltracker.example) sells legislative and media monitoring to PR firms at $6,000 a year. It targets PR offices with ten or more employees. The metro-wide size split isn't published by type, so it starts with the 801 PR offices and the 1,065 consultancies, filters for public affairs work, and expects about 150 to fit. Ten new customers a year would be $60,000. The opening email cites a bill or hearing on the firm's clients' issue. Working out which firms do public affairs, and who runs each practice, is the research Bebop does for each account.
Where to check Washington agencies
- FARA eFile search and the House lobbying disclosure site for registrations.
- USAspending.gov for any agency's federal contracts.
- The DC Department of Licensing and Consumer Protection and Maryland Business Express for business registrations; Virginia's State Corporation Commission system didn't respond to our automated check, so search it directly.
- AMA DC, the American Marketing Association's Washington chapter, and the Washington DC Economic Partnership for the local business base.
Next step: for the groups that own many national agency brands, see the largest advertising agencies and holding companies.
Sources
- County Business Patterns 2023, US Census Bureau, accessed 30 October 2026
- North American Industry Classification System 2022: definition of 541820 Public Relations Agencies, US Census Bureau, accessed 30 October 2026
- CALC+ Labor Ceiling Rates (Marketing and Public Relations export), US General Services Administration, accessed 30 October 2026
- USAspending.gov: contract recipients by NAICS code and location, fiscal 2025, US Department of the Treasury, accessed 30 October 2026
- Foreign Agents Registration Act, US Department of Justice, accessed 30 October 2026
- FARA Index and Act (22 U.S.C. 611), US Department of Justice, accessed 30 October 2026
- FARA eFile: Search Filings, US Department of Justice, accessed 30 October 2026
- Lobbying Disclosure, Office of the Clerk, US House of Representatives, accessed 30 October 2026
- Advertiser guide: Working with third parties, Google Advertising Policies Help, accessed 30 October 2026
- Circular 30: Works Made for Hire, US Copyright Office, revised August 2024
Written by the Bebop team at Blackpearl Group. Published .
Questions people ask
How many marketing agencies are in Washington, DC?
County Business Patterns counted 1,356 advertising, PR and related agency offices with paid employees in the Washington-Arlington-Alexandria metro area in 2023, employing 15,886 people. The District itself had 634, Fairfax County 187 and Montgomery County 159. PR agencies, which include lobbying and political consulting, were 801 of the 1,356. The metro also had 1,065 marketing consultancies.
Why are there so many PR firms in Washington?
Because the Census Bureau's PR category (NAICS 541820) includes lobbying, political consulting and public affairs, and Washington is where that work happens. The metro has 801 PR offices with 9,179 employees, 59% of its agency offices, against 22% nationally. They paid an average of $167,006 per employee in 2023. Many also work for federal agencies through GSA schedule contracts.
Does a PR firm have to register under FARA?
If it acts in the US as public relations counsel or a publicity agent for a foreign principal, such as a foreign government or party, generally yes, unless an exemption applies. The Foreign Agents Registration Act requires periodic public disclosure of the relationship, activities, receipts and disbursements. Filings are searchable on the Justice Department's FARA eFile site, so you can check any agency before you hire it.
How much do PR agencies in Washington charge?
Federal schedule contracts publish ceiling rates. In the District, StrataComm lists $135 an hour for an account executive and $295 for a senior vice president; Porter Novelli Public Services lists $171 and $352, and Ketchum $168 and $309. Those are maximums for government orders. Commercial clients usually pay monthly retainers or project fees negotiated with the firm.
What are the top five advertising agencies?
By reported revenue, the largest advertising groups are Omnicom, Publicis Groupe and WPP; lists of five add the next-largest groups, depending on the measure. Omnicom completed its merger with Interpublic on 26 November 2025. Each group owns many agency brands, and their annual filings don't list local offices.