IT companies in Arizona: a chip state with a small-firm IT market, county by county

This page is for anyone who needs Arizona IT and tech companies as a list: a business choosing an IT provider or developer, a job seeker, an investor, or a B2B seller whose customers are tech firms. It gives the federal count with a county split, the public companies headquartered in Arizona and where to find the rest by name.

Arizona IT companies by the numbers

County Business Patterns (CBP), the Census Bureau's annual count of businesses with employees, puts 3,474 tech establishments in Arizona for 2023, 18th among the states. The count adds up four NAICS industry groups: software publishers (5112), computer systems design and related services (5415), data processing, hosting and related services (518) and other information services (5191).

Where: Maricopa County, then a long way back

These county figures come from the Census Bureau's county file for the same four industry groups:

Maricopa County, which takes in Phoenix, Scottsdale, Tempe, Chandler and Mesa, has 78% of the state's tech establishments and 76% of its tech jobs. Pima County, around Tucson, is a distant second. CBP also lists 159 establishments under "statewide" rather than any one county. Employee counts for the smaller counties aren't reported here because at least one industry figure in each is flagged by the Census Bureau as high noise (changed by 5% or more to protect confidentiality).

What kind of tech companies

The data processing and hosting row stands out: 337 establishments employing 14,607 people, about 43 each, more than any other group in the state. That's the category that includes web hosting, data centers and transaction processing. Systems design firms, the integrators and managed service providers, average about 10 employees.

Size

For Arizona the Census Bureau doesn't publish the classes from 250 employees up (it withholds them to protect confidentiality), so the 250-or-more row is what remains of the total. Grouped, that's 3,080 establishments under 20 employees, 286 with 20 to 99 and 108 with 100 or more. Average pay of $112,366 is lower than in the large coastal markets, which matters for anyone pricing services to these firms.

Public tech companies headquartered in Arizona

Each headquarters and revenue figure was checked in the company's latest 10-K. Only Gen Digital, GoDaddy, SmartRent and AudioEye are software or IT companies in Census terms; the others are chip, solar and electronics manufacturers. RideNow Group in Chandler is filed under a software code on EDGAR, but its 10-K says it now operates solely as a powersports dealership group, so it's left out. For a regional view, the Greater Phoenix Economic Council publishes a public company guide for the Phoenix metro, refreshed daily.

Finding Arizona IT companies by name

The Tech Council directory and the Corporation Commission together cover most of what a buyer needs: who the firms are and whether each is in good standing.

Choosing an Arizona IT provider

Prospecting Arizona IT companies

The 3,080 establishments with fewer than 20 employees are owner-led and price-aware. The 286 with 20 to 99 have a service delivery or operations manager. The 108 with 100 or more include the large hosting and software employers, with procurement. Start in Maricopa County, then Pima. Good triggers: a new data center or expansion announced through GPEC, a new managed services offering, a Tech Council award, and hiring for help desk or cloud roles.

Worked example: a white-label security operations center

Illustrative example. The company, people and rates are fictional, to show the method.

Saguaro SOC (saguarosoc.example) runs 24/7 security monitoring that managed service providers resell under their own name. Small MSPs can't staff a night shift, so it targets Arizona systems design and facilities management firms with 5 to 49 employees.

• Arizona tech establishments with 5 to 49 employees: 359 + 249 + 189 = 797.
• Systems design and facilities management firms are 1,107 of 3,474 (32%), so about 255 of those 797.
• Maricopa County has 78% of establishments: about 200.
• Saguaro assumes 40% sell managed services to small businesses: about 80 partner prospects.

Separating MSPs from consultancies means reading every services page. Bebop takes "Phoenix-area managed IT service providers with 5 to 49 employees that sell to small businesses" and returns matches with a playbook for each.

Subject: Overnight security monitoring for [Company]'s clients

Hi [first name],

Most MSPs your size get asked about 24/7 security monitoring long before they can staff a night shift.

We run the monitoring and first response under your brand, from Arizona, and your team handles the client relationship. Would a look at the margin two other Valley MSPs make on it be useful?

[Your name], Saguaro SOC

What the count covers

CBP counts establishments, single locations with at least one paid employee, for the week of March 12, 2023. A firm with offices in Phoenix and Tucson counts twice, owner-only consultancies aren't counted, and in-house IT teams at hospitals, utilities and the state's chip plants count under their employers' industries.

Next step: compare another fast-growing Western state in tech companies in Utah, or see the trades side in HVAC companies in Phoenix.