NAICS Subsector 513: Publishing Industries
Subsector
Definition
Industries in the Publishing Industries subsector group establishments engaged in publishing newspapers, magazines, other periodicals, books, directories, and software. In general, establishments known as publishers issue copies of works for which they usually possess copyright. Works may be in one or more formats including print form, CD-ROM, proprietary electronic networks, or exclusively on the Internet. Publishers may publish works originally created by others for which they have obtained the rights and/or works that they have created in-house.
Read the full definition
Publishers may publish only and license rights to others to distribute their content, or they may publish and distribute content they create or own. Software publishing is included here because the activity, creation of a copyrighted product and bringing it to market, is equivalent to the creation process for other types of intellectual products.
In NAICS, publishing--the reporting, writing, editing, and other processes that are required to create an edition of a newspaper, for example--is treated as a major economic activity in its own right, rather than as a subsidiary activity to a manufacturing activity, printing. Thus, publishing is classified in the Information sector; whereas, printing is in the Manufacturing sector. The Publishing Industries subsector excludes printed products, such as manifold business forms and appointment books, for which information is not the essential component.
Establishments producing these items are included in Subsector 323, Printing and Related Support Activities. Reproduction of prepackaged software is treated in NAICS as a manufacturing activity, and custom design of software to client specifications is included in the Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services sector. These distinctions arise because of the different ways that software is created, reproduced, and distributed.
Music publishers and establishments primarily engaged in the production, or production and distribution, of motion pictures and sound recordings are included in Subsector 512, Motion Picture and Sound Recording Industries. Establishments not engaged in publishing and exclusively obtaining rights from publishers to broadcast and distribute content are included in Subsector 516, Broadcasting and Content Providers.
Government contracts for this work: PSC 7A21 IT Business Application Software and PSC DA10 Application Software as a Service (SaaS)
Code facts
- Part of
-
- 51
- Codes under it
- 2
- Contract awards
- 3,079 In the last 12 months
- Contract obligations
- $1,785,109,712 In FY2025
NAICS codes and definitions come from the U.S. Census Bureau and contract spending from SAM.gov/FPDS.
Contract obligations by fiscal year
| Fiscal year | Obligated |
|---|---|
| FY2027 To date | $22,224,519 |
| FY2026 | $2,534,403,274 |
| FY2025 | $1,785,109,712 |
| FY2024 | $1,051,026,105 |
| FY2023 | $480,076,833 |
Top contractors by obligations
| Rank | Contractor | Obligated, FY2026–FY2027 | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Palantir Technologies Inc. | $450,662,336 | |
| 2 | Carahsoft Technology Corp | $256,729,210 | |
| 3 | Palantir USG Inc. | $223,210,702 | |
| 4 | Computable Insights LLC | $166,770,176 | |
| 5 | Dell Federal Systems L.P | $132,260,141 | |
| 6 | Copper River Data Solutions, LLC | $76,232,464 | |
| 7 | Poplicus Incorporated | $46,952,906 | |
| 8 | The Mathworks, Inc. | $32,669,957 | |
| 9 | C2 Defense Inc. | $30,077,924 | |
| 10 | Redhawk It Solutions, LLC | $29,342,002 |
See the full FY2025 ranking of NAICS 513 contractors, by parent company.
Top funding agencies by obligations
| Rank | Agency | Obligated, FY2026–FY2027 | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Department of the Army | $635,119,813 | |
| 2 | Air Force | $453,994,574 | |
| 3 | Department of Homeland Security | $288,194,102 | |
| 4 | Department of the Navy | $151,728,491 | |
| 5 | Department of Agriculture | $147,216,692 | |
| 6 | Department of Transportation | $94,497,288 | |
| 7 | Department of the Treasury | $89,990,002 | |
| 8 | Department of State | $88,725,484 | |
| 9 | Department of Health and Human Services | $86,338,367 | |
| 10 | Department of Veterans Affairs | $85,591,902 |
Top PSC codes by obligations
Contract obligations by state
| Rank | Place of performance | Obligated, last 12 months | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Virginia | $809,525,656 | |
| 2 | California | $304,818,169 | |
| 3 | District of Columbia | $207,148,097 | |
| 4 | Colorado | $199,823,158 | |
| 5 | Maryland | $124,961,983 | |
| 6 | Florida | $87,643,624 | |
| 7 | Georgia | $78,065,577 | |
| 8 | Alaska | $73,597,361 | |
| 9 | Texas | $72,715,505 | |
| 10 | Massachusetts | $66,354,976 | |
| 11 | New York | $52,766,378 | |
| 12 | Utah | $46,291,630 | |
| 13 | Pennsylvania | $43,980,641 | |
| 14 | Alabama | $39,861,534 | |
| 15 | North Carolina | $37,553,688 | |
| 16 | Washington | $30,619,057 | |
| 17 | Ohio | $22,947,672 | |
| 18 | Arizona | $20,486,497 | |
| 19 | Missouri | $19,942,048 | |
| 20 | Illinois | $19,476,062 | |
| 21 | Kentucky | $17,966,310 | |
| 22 | Oregon | $13,995,840 | |
| 23 | Michigan | $12,017,017 | |
| 24 | West Virginia | $11,392,601 | |
| 25 | Wisconsin | $9,305,800 | |
| 26 | Nevada | $8,799,243 | |
| 27 | South Carolina | $8,674,522 | |
| 28 | New Jersey | $8,402,152 | |
| 29 | Oklahoma | $6,255,185 | |
| 30 | Minnesota | $5,891,501 | |
| 31 | Tennessee | $5,732,680 | |
| 32 | Hawaii | $4,553,442 | |
| 33 | Rhode Island | $3,895,528 | |
| 34 | Indiana | $3,500,405 | |
| 35 | Mississippi | $3,167,371 | |
| 36 | New Mexico | $2,891,839 | |
| 37 | Connecticut | $2,096,973 | |
| 38 | Wyoming | $2,004,236 | |
| 39 | Kansas | $1,922,525 | |
| 40 | South Dakota | $1,310,242 | |
| 41 | New Hampshire | $1,184,881 | |
| 42 | Idaho | $944,549 | |
| 43 | Iowa | $682,712 | |
| 44 | North Dakota | $621,142 | |
| 45 | Arkansas | $576,742 | |
| 46 | Maine | $565,328 | |
| 47 | Vermont | $545,749 | |
| 48 | Puerto Rico | $468,906 | |
| 49 | Delaware | $453,415 | |
| 50 | Montana | $235,714 | |
| 51 | Louisiana | $182,937 | |
| 52 | Nebraska | $38,344 | |
| 53 | U.S. Virgin Islands | $13,176 |
Show all 53
Shares are of everything obligated under NAICS 513 in the last 12 months before deobligations, including work performed abroad or with no place of performance on record.
Contract opportunities
Show 39 more
Latest 49 of 12,003 listed here. See the rest on GovTribe.
Codes under 513
Quick answers
What is NAICS 513?
NAICS 513 is Publishing Industries, a subsector in NAICS 51, Information.
What codes are under NAICS 513?
NAICS 513 has 2 codes under it with their own GovTribe pages: 5131 Newspaper, Periodical, Book, and Directory Publishers and 5132 Software Publishers.
How much do federal agencies spend under NAICS 513?
Federal contracts under NAICS 513 obligated $1,785,109,712 in fiscal year 2025 and $5,872,840,443 in fiscal years 2023 through 2027.
Who are the largest contractors under NAICS 513?
The contractors with the most obligated under NAICS 513 in fiscal years 2026 and 2027 are Palantir Technologies Inc. ($450,662,336), Carahsoft Technology Corp ($256,729,210) and Palantir USG Inc. ($223,210,702).
Which agencies buy the most under NAICS 513?
The agencies that obligated the most under NAICS 513 in fiscal years 2026 and 2027 are Department of the Army ($635,119,813), Air Force ($453,994,574) and Department of Homeland Security ($288,194,102).
Which PSC codes are used with NAICS 513?
The PSC codes with the most obligated under NAICS 513 in fiscal years 2026 and 2027 are 7A21 IT and Telecom – Business Application Software (Perpetual License Software), DA10 IT and Telecom – Business Application/
Where is the work under NAICS 513 performed?
By place of performance, the states with the most contract obligations under NAICS 513 over the last 12 months are Virginia ($809,525,656), California ($304,818,169) and the District of Columbia ($207,148,097).
What is the latest contract opportunity under NAICS 513?
The latest contract opportunity under NAICS 513 is Atlassian software, pre-solicitation from Naval Sea Systems Command (Navy), posted November 10, 2026.
On GovTribe
See everything under NAICS 513
- Federal contract opportunities, awards and IDVs under this code
- Funding analysis by contractor, agency and set-aside
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