Pittsburgh by the Numbers

Pittsburgh isn’t just a tourist destination with remarkable attractions like the Duquesne Incline. The city also is a hub for knowledge and innovation — for example, local universities have attracted more than $10 billion in research funding in the past decade, and the University of Pittsburgh consistently ranks among the top recipients of National Institutes of Health (NIH) funding.

Reasons to Meet in Pittsburgh

We're looking at Pittsburgh by the numbers to give you all the reasons to meet in Pittsburgh you'll ever need, broken down by key markets, hotel availability and other important data to help you plan. Need more info? Just reach out and a friendly face will get you the info.

Population

While Steelers Nation extends throughout the world, Pittsburgh itself is similarly sized in population to Lexington-Fayette, Kentucky and St. Louis, Missouri, including:

302,971 reside in the City of Pittsburgh
1,250,578 live in Allegheny County
Pittsburgh is comprised of 90 unique neighborhoods

Location

Pittsburgh is conveniently located for your event and meeting attendees, and is:

within 500 miles of nearly half the U.S. population
within a 90-minute flight to nearly half of North America's population
within a 6-hour car or train ride from 10 states, Washington, D.C., & Canada

Hotels

Big event? Pittsburgh has you covered with:

6,100 total rooms
4,000 committable rooms

Pittsburgh International Airport

Pittsburgh makes a great first impression when you land at Pittsburgh International Airport (PIT)! This stunning facility is the first airport in the world completely powered by solar energy & natural gas generated on site and offers 125 daily nonstop flights to 59 airports (as of Aug. 2022). Additional accolades include:

Top 10 Domestic Airport Travel + Leisure (2018, 2019)
Airport of the Year Air Transport Magazine (2017)
One of the World's Most Innovative Companies Fast Company (2020)

PIT continues to evolve and better serve passengers and our region, and a new Terminal Modernization Program includes the following enhancements:

Increasing the main security checkpoint area
Reducing the time it takes to get from curbside to airside
Increasing area of concessions & retail
New terminal being built

Key Market Segments

The modern Pittsburgh continues to thrive as a place of business. While originally known as a steel town, Pittsburgh's workforce has evolved into excellence in the following fields:

Tech/Robotics/AI

2nd highest annual computer & information sciences R&D in U.S. at Carnegie Mellon University ($141 million)
291 IT patents awarded for innovation, including robotics (2015-2018)
$3.3B invested by VC & PE in Pittsburgh robotics companies since 2012

Manufacturing

Deals in the last 10 years (2009-2019)
- 642 expansions
- $8.3 billion in capital investment
- 43,761 jobs
Innovation in the last five years (2014-19)
- 166 VC deals
- $239 million invested in VC deals

Life Sciences

Allegheny Health Network (Highmark Health Insurer) recognized:

$546.4M NIH grants in 2019 from 1,116 awards
165 patents awarded to regional research institutions in 2018
3,600 certificates & degrees in healthcare and life sciences

Education

Pittsburgh is home to Carnegie Mellon University, the birthplace of AI and one of the global leaders in robotics research and education
88 universities & postsecondary CTE institutions including University of Pittsburgh and Duquesne University

Moonshot Museum

Top Companies Headquartered in Pittsburgh

These lists of public and private employers speak for themselves:

Top Public Employers (per Pittsburgh Business Times list)

Kraft Heinz Co.
PNC Financial Services Group Inc.
PPG Industries Inc.
WESCO International Inc.
United States Steel Corp.
DICK’S Sporting Goods Inc.
Alcoa
Wabtec Corp
Arconic Corp.

Top Private employers (per Pittsburgh Business Times list)

Giant Eagle Inc.
84 Lumber Co.
ARMADA
Chartwell Pennsylvania LP
Gutterman Energy Inc.
Gateway Health
Reed Smith
PJ Dick-Trumbull Lindy Paving
K&L Gates LLP
Hanna Holdings Inc.