Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is the dollar value of all goods and services produced in a state. Similar to national GDP, GDP growth by state is an indicator of the health of a state’s economy. GDP data are released roughly two years after the last reporting period.

In the chart on the left, year-over-year growth rates of New England’s GDP is compared to the nation's in order to gauge the region’s relative economic performance. New England outperformed the U.S. throughout most of the 1980s, but suffered more during the onset of the 1990-1991 recession. In the middle and late 1990s, New England’s GDP recovered and kept pace with the nation. After the 2001 recession, New England's GDP tended to increase less than the national GDP, a trend that continued until the onset of the 2008-2009 recession. Prior to and through the 2008-2009 recession, New England's GDP growth fell sharply. By the end of the 2008-2009 recession, New England's GDP contracted for the first time since 1991.

The pie chart on the right shows the contribution of each state’s economic output to the region’s total GDP. Connecticut and Massachusetts together contribute more than three-quarters of New England’s aggregate GDP, with nearly one half coming from Massachusetts alone. These figures are roughly consistent with state shares of the total population of New England.

Note: Data for GDP has been interpolated from annual data to allow for more accurate representation of recessions.