Industry Description
Establishments primarily engaged in commercial physical and biological research and development on a contract or fee basis. Noncommercial research establishments funded by endowments, grants, or contributions are classified in Industry 8733. Separate establishments of aircraft, guided missile, or spacecraft manufacturers primarily engaged in research and development on these products are classified in Manufacturing, Major Group 37.
Business Examples
Common types of business activities within US SIC 8731 - Commercial Physical and Biological Research are:
- Agricultural research,
- Biological research commercial
- Chemical laboratories, commercial research except testing
- Engineering laboratories, commercial research: except testing
- Food research commercial
- Industrial laboratories commercial research: except testing
- Physical research commercial
- Research and development physical and biological: commercial
IBISWorld Industry Research Report
Scientific Research & Development in the US (54171)
Revenue 2025
$333bn
Growth 2025
2.97%
Key Trends
The federal government is the source of just over half the industry's revenue, so changes in federal funding levels affect revenue
The percentage of the industry funded by the federal government has declined over the past decade
Federal funding for defense is set to annually decline
Products and Services
US-SIC Hierarchy 8731 - Commercial Physical and Biological Research
US-SIC Code 8731 - Commercial Physical and Biological Research sits in the 2-digit Commercial Physical and Biological Research sector. US SIC codes can be 2 to 8 digits and the further along the hierarchy, the more detailed and specific the category will be.
Division: I
Division Title: Services
2 Digits 3 Digits 4 Digits
-
-
701 Hotels and Motels
-
702 Rooming and Boarding Houses
-
703 Camps and Recreational Vehicle Parks
-
704 Organization Hotels and Lodging Houses, On
-
-
-
721 Laundry, Cleaning, and Garment Services
- 7211 Power Laundries, Family and Commercial
- 7212 Garment Pressing, and Agents for Laundries and Drycleaners
- 7213 Linen Supply
- 7215 Coin-Operated Laundries and Drycleaning
- 7216 Drycleaning Plants, Except Rug Cleaning
- 7217 Carpet and Upholstery Cleaning
- 7218 Industrial Launderers
- 7219 Laundry and Garment Services, Not Elsewhere Classified
-
722 Photographic Studios, Portrait
-
723 Beauty Shops
-
724 Barber Shops
-
725 Shoe Repair Shops and Shoeshine Parlors
-
726 Funeral Service and Crematories
-
729 Miscellaneous Personal Services
-
-
-
731 Advertising
-
732 Consumer Credit Reporting Agencies, Mercantile
-
733 Mailing, Reproduction, Commercial Art and Photography, and Stenographic Services
-
734 Services To Dwellings and Other Buildings
-
735 Miscellaneous Equipment Rental and Leasing
-
736 Personnel Supply Services
-
737 Computer Programming, Data Processing, and Other Computer Related Services
- 7371 Computer Programming Services
- 7372 Prepackaged Software
- 7373 Computer Integrated Systems Design
- 7374 Computer Processing and Data Preparation and Processing Services
- 7375 Information Retrieval Services
- 7376 Computer Facilities Management Services
- 7377 Computer Rental and Leasing
- 7378 Computer Maintenance and Repair
- 7379 Computer Related Services, Not Elsewhere Classified
-
738 Miscellaneous Business Services
-
-
-
751 Automotive Rental and Leasing, Without Drivers
-
752 Automobile Parking
-
753 Automotive Repair Shops
- 7532 Top, Body, and Upholstery Repair Shops and Paint Shops
- 7533 Automotive Exhaust System Repair Shops
- 7534 Tire Retreading and Repair Shops
- 7536 Automotive Glass Replacement Shops
- 7537 Automotive Transmission Repair Shops
- 7538 General Automotive Repair Shops
- 7539 Automotive Repair Shops, Not Elsewhere Classified
-
754 Automotive Services, Except Repair
-
-
-
762 Electrical Repair Shops
-
763 Watch, Clock, and Jewelry Repair
-
764 Reupholstery and Furniture Repair
-
769 Miscellaneous Repair Shops and Related Services
-
-
-
781 Motion Picture Production and Allied Services
-
782 Motion Picture Distribution and Allied Services
-
783 Motion Picture Theaters
-
784 Video Tape Rental
-
-
-
791 Dance Studios, Schools, and Halls
-
792 Theatrical Producers (except Motion Picture),
-
793 Bowling Centers
-
794 Commercial Sports
-
799 Miscellaneous Amusement and Recreation
-
-
-
801 Offices and Clinics of Doctors of Medicine
-
802 Offices and Clinics of Dentists
-
803 Offices and Clinics of Doctors of Osteopathy
-
804 Offices and Clinics of Other Health Practitioners
-
805 Nursing and Personal Care Facilities
-
806 Hospitals
-
807 Medical and Dental Laboratories
-
808 Home Health Care Services
-
809 Miscellaneous Health and Allied Services, Not
-
-
-
811 Legal Services
-
-
-
821 Elementary and Secondary Schools
-
822 Colleges, Universities, Professional Schools, and
-
823 Libraries
-
824 Vocational Schools
-
829 Schools and Educational Services, Not Elsewhere
-
-
-
832 Individual and Family Social Services
-
833 Job Training and Vocational Rehabilitation
-
835 Child Day Care Services
-
836 Residential Care
-
839 Social Services, Not Elsewhere Classified
-
-
-
841 Museums and Art Galleries
-
842 Arboreta and Botanical Or Zoological Gardens
-
-
-
861 Business Associations
-
862 Professional Membership Organizations
-
863 Labor Unions and Similar Labor Organizations
-
864 Civic, Social, and Fraternal Associations
-
865 Political Organizations
-
866 Religious Organizations
-
869 Membership Organizations, Not Elsewhere
-
-
-
871 Engineering, Architectural, and Surveying
-
872 Accounting, Auditing, and Bookkeeping Services
-
873 Research, Development, and Testing Services
-
874 Management and Public Relations Services
-
-
-
881 Private Households
-
-
-
899 Miscellaneous Services
-
Extended US-SIC Hierarchy for 8731 - Commercial Physical and Biological Research
For business marketing and targeting, US SIC Codes have been extended to provide more specific classifications within US-SIC 8731 - Commercial Physical and Biological Research. Extended US SIC Codes are being continuously updated to reflect the current business environment.
6 Digit SIC Codes
-
873101 Laboratories-research & development
-
873102 Experimental work
-
873103 Solar energy research & development
-
873104 Laboratories
-
873105 Human factors-research & development
-
873106 Electronic research & development
-
873107 Oceanographers
-
873108 Pharmaceutical research laboratories
-
873109 Testing
-
873110 Technology assistance programs
-
873111 Environmental & ecological services
-
873112 Engineers-biomedical
-
873113 Lake management services
-
873114 Pollution control
-
873115 Govt-coml physical/biological research
-
873116 Food analysis
-
873117 Recycling education info & training svc
-
873118 Recycling consultants
-
873119 Agricultural research
-
873120 Rubber research & consulting
-
873121 Cryogenic research & development
-
873122 Laboratories-agricultural
-
873123 Laboratories-marine biological
-
873124 Laboratories-biochemical
-
873125 Lasers-communication research & dev
-
873126 Biotechnology products & services
-
873127 Biology consultants
-
873128 Chemical research
-
873130 Wetlands consultants
-
873131 Ergonomics
-
873132 Toxicologists
-
873133 Geological laboratories
-
873134 Laboratories-psychological
-
873135 Operations research
-
873140 Surveyors-hydrographic
-
873141 Technologists-applied sciences
-
873143 Breath deodorants
-
873198 Commercial physical research
8 Digit SIC Codes
-
87310000 Commercial physical research
-
87310100 Biological research
-
87310101 Agricultural research
-
87310102 Biotechnical research, commercial
-
87310103 Food research
-
87310200 Commercial physical research
-
87310201 Chemical laboratory, except testing
-
87310202 Commercial research laboratory
-
87310203 Computer (hardware) development
-
87310204 Engineering laboratory, except testing
-
87310205 Industrial laboratory, except testing
-
87310300 Natural resource research
-
87310301 Energy research
-
87310302 Environmental research
-
87319900 Commercial physical research, nec
-
87319901 Electronic research
-
87319902 Medical research, commercial
Can't find the US SIC Code you are looking for? Full US SIC Code Directory
US SIC Code Directory
Each US SIC Code is part of a Division, which corresponds with a numerical range. Select a Division category from the table below, then drill down to discover the industries within that Division.
