Tech companies spend the least on lobbying for their size, defense the most

Median federal lobbying in 2025 per $1M of market cap (October 2026), across 543 US companies traded by members of Congress: tech $12, pharma $55, telecom and media $63, defense $85.

Lobbying spend in 2025 against market cap, by company

TechPharmaTelecom and mediaDefenseOther

About the data

  • The companies are US-listed, traded by members of Congress, with at least $2B market cap and $100K of lobbying.
  • Lobbying is what each company reported spending on federal lobbying in 2025. Market cap is from SEC share counts and recent prices, as of October 2026.
  • Lobbying per $1M of market cap is the lobbying spend divided by market cap in millions. The sector figures above are medians across each sector's companies.