Texas alone can round out the list for top tech hubs in the country, boasting numerous cities that stake their claim as the state’s leading center for creative activity. While major metropolitan areas like Austin and Dallas grapple for the spotlight, Houston gives growing professionals plenty of reasons to set down roots in the region. The Bayou City features a tradition of investing in the aerospace and energy sectors, and it offers a more affordable option for those looking to avoid West Coast prices.
These attractive factors have combined to produce the perfect storm, helping Houston surpass Philadelphia and Minneapolis on its way to being a top producer of tech jobs in the nation. Inventive minds have flocked to the city, resulting in an explosion of fresh opportunities. Now Houston workers can dabble in telecommunications, financial services, IT, the digital economy, and other topics.
With a diversified professional landscape, the latest wave of Houston businesses is drawing even more talent and technology to the area. These companies reflect the city’s revamped workforce and its ability to impact daily life in Texas and beyond.
Top Companies in Houston to Know
- BMC Software
- Insperity
- HighRadius
- PROS
- Jiffy Lube
- Cardtronics
- Crown Castle
- Infosys
- Siemens
- Hewlett Packard Enterprise
- Thrasio
- Live Nation Entertainment
- AvidXchange
- Perficient
Focus: Financial Services
Number of employees: 18,000
What they do: Discover is a financial services company working to reward connections between people and commerce. The company offers lending products and payment services alongside the Discover Network. This payments network allows consumers to use their Discover cards at millions of businesses and cash access points across more than 185 countries and territories.
Focus: IT Solutions
Number of employees: 3,200+
What they do: Perficient brings an imaginative element to every business strategy with a range of digital solutions. Not only does the organization come up with a plan for each client, but it also offers the tools to deliver the results. From cloud technology to customer relationship management systems, Perficient showcases the resources that businesses need to improve their online presence and provide more meaningful experiences for their customers across the world.
Focus: Aerospace
Number of employees: 201-500
What they do: ForeFlight offers software that supports flight crews and pilots. It provides its clients with flight planning products, which it makes available in both desktop computers and mobile devices. This allows users to access aircraft traffic information, maps, charts and weather forecasts. It has an office in Houston’s Hyde Park.
Focus: Aerospace R&D
Number of employees: 4,600
What they do: The Aerospace Corporation operates a federally-funded center to provide independent technical and scientific research, development and advisory services to national-security space programs. The company serves the U.S. Air Force, the National Reconnaissance Office and national security space programs. It works to ensure missions succeed by providing effective and economic space-related hardware and software solutions.
Focus: Plastics + Appliances
Number of employees: 11,300+
What they do: Balancing fast-paced production with a thoughtful attitude, LyondellBasell has set out to make plastics, polyolefin materials, and other chemical technologies work for the environment. The organization places sustainability at the center of its work, improving the fuel efficiency of motor vehicles, crafting more robust pipes, developing effective waste management systems, and more.
Focus: Fintech
Number of employees: 1,001 - 5,000 employees
What they do: DRW is a diversified trading firm established in 1992 that today has technologists, researchers and trade experts working across a variety of countries. The company’s team based out of Houston includes trade analysts and software engineers with a variety of specializations.
Focus: Digital Commerce
Number of employees: 2,500+
What they do: PROS aims to enable smarter selling in the digital economy through the use of AI and machine learning. The company’s platform helps organizations manage pricing, deliver optimized prices, offer real-time pricing, accelerate sales responsiveness, increase account penetration and more. PROS works with a diverse range of clients including HP, Siemens, Bausch + Lomb and Lufthansa.
Focus: IT Solutions
Number of employees: 250,500+
What they do: Businesses that succeed today are the ones that know how to best adapt to a digital environment, and no company understands this reality better than Infosys. That’s why the organization is combining artificial intelligence and cloud technology to give businesses a revamped approach for the modern age. With the guidance of Infosys, companies can reorganize their resources more efficiently and develop cutting-edge strategies for reaching customers across the globe.
Focus: Software
Number of employees: 1,300
What they do: The old-fashioned way of managing finances involves stacks of paperwork, but AvidXchange is developing a more modern way to handle previously time-consuming tasks. A suite of thoughtful technologies enables companies to automate invoices, billing payments, and purchase order processes. Without the clutter, businesses can save energy and worry less about mundane financial chores.
Focus: Oil + Gas
Number of employees: 18,700+
What they do: Launched in 2012, ConocoPhillips is an oil and gas company with operations in more than 17 countries. The company explores for, produces, transports and markets crude oil, natural gas and bitumen for organizations worldwide. ConocoPhillips’ operations span Asia Pacific, the Middle East, Europe, North Africa and Latin America.
Focus: Telecommunications
Number of employees: 4,800+
What they do: Founded in 1994, Crown Castle operates a network of communications infrastructure that connects people, businesses and communities nationwide. Partnering with wireless carriers, broadband providers, tech companies and municipalities, the company operates a network of over 40,000 towers as well as about 70,000 on-air or under-contract small cell nodes. Crown Castle’s aim is to improve public spaces, create safer communities and advance access to education and technology.
Focus: Artificial Intelligence + Internet of Things
Number of employees: 293,000
What they do: With a fierce determination and an endless desire for innovation, Siemens continues to leave its mark on a range of industries. This organization is helping build more robust economies for the future by investing in essential projects, including efficient power grids, creative rail networks, and green-friendly automobiles. Thriving in a changing world requires a reliable yet flexible foundation, so Siemens is taking proactive measures to prepare societies for upcoming challenges.
Focus: Food + E-commerce
Number of employees: 201 - 500 employees
What they do: Sysco LABS is the digital innovation arm of international food distribution company Sysco. Its team is made up of technical experts like software engineers, data analysts and user experience researchers who collaborate on building and optimizing e-commerce solutions that support the foodservice industry.
Focus: Chemicals + Gases
Number of employees: 29,000+
What they do: Air Liquide USA delivers gas solutions and technologies with the intention of helping organizations drive their performance and reduce their environmental impact. Operating across 80 countries, the company specializes in various processes such as carbonation, industrial cyrogenics, petrochemical synthesis, water treatment, modified atmosphere packaging, and welding and cutting. Air Liquide USA works with clients from a diverse range of industries including aeronautics, automotive, construction, oil and gas, biotech and electronics manufacturing.
Focus: Oil + Energy
Number of employees: 60,000+
What they do: Established in 1919, Halliburton is a global provider of products and services for the energy industry. Operating across 80 countries, the organization is dedicated to helping its clients maximize value throughout the lifecycle of the reservoir, which includes locating hydrocarbons, managing geological data, evaluating drilling and formation, and constructing wells. Halliburton has worked with industry leaders across the globe including Kuwait Oil Company.
Focus: Automotive
Number of employees: 1,900+
What they do: Founded in 1979, Jiffy Lube is an automotive maintenance company that operates more than 2,000 franchised service centers across North America. The company offers a wide range of automotive preventive maintenance services, ranging from oil changes to tire rotations. With a customer base exceeding 20 million, Jiffy Lube also offers online training through Jiffy Lube University, which is designed to provide people with the skills and knowledge needed to excel within the automotive services industry.
Focus: Construction
Number of employees: 201 - 500 employees
What they do: HCSS offers software solutions construction companies use to streamline estimating, project management, fleet maintenance, safety management and other important elements of their operations. For example, HCSS makes billing tools that automate the process of gathering data from time cards and producing accurate invoices.
Focus: Gaming + Sports
Number of employees: 1,001 - 5,000 employees
What they do: DraftKings operates digital platforms for fantasy sports and sports betting. Through DraftKings’ website or mobile apps, users can create accounts and access gaming experiences and content that cover a diverse range of sports leagues, including the NBA, MLB, PGA and NHL. The company also offers a mobile app for playing casino games, including blackjack, video poker and roulette.
Focus: Aerospace + Defense
Number of employees: 37,000+
What they do: KBR, Inc. provides differentiated professional services and technologies to government and energy clients. The company offers a wide range of solutions such as large-scale energy and chemicals sites and facilities, mission-critical services for aerospace and defense, naval architecture consulting, advanced structural engineering and missile defense system training. With a global presence spanning several continents, KBR currently serves customers in over 80 countries.
Focus: Semiconductor
Number of employees: 18,600+
What they do: Processors and semiconductors have come to fuel various industries, placing AMD in a key position to leave a lasting impact. Working with partners from gaming companies to disease research facilities, AMD has developed the technologies needed to keep these diverse sectors moving forward. The demand for processing power continues to grow, so AMD remains focused on enhancing the capabilities of supercomputers and other machines that rely on its cutting-edge products.
Focus: IT Solutions
Number of employees: 61,600+
What they do: Speed is everything when it comes to surpassing competitors and delivering a satisfying customer experience, which is why Hewlett Packard Enterprise is delivering efficient solutions for businesses. With an approach centered around AI and cloud platforms, companies can accelerate operations and ramp up their production. Hewlett Packard Enterprise’s high-powered network of supercomputers and resources places organizations at the forefront of their respective industries.
Focus: Receivables Management + Cash Application Automation
Number of employees: 1,600+
What they do: HighRadius is dedicated to helping companies automate accounts receivable and treasury processes by leveraging AI-based autonomous systems. The company’s platform is designed to reduce cycle times in clients’ order-to-cash processes, while their treasury management applications help teams achieve touch-less cash management and accurate cash forecasting. HighRadius works with a diverse range of clients including Uber, Sony, Honeywell and 3M.
Focus: E-commerce + Fintech
Number of employees: 1,000+
What they do: For business owners who are looking to take their products to the next level, Thrasio steps in to deliver the necessary tools and resources for growth. The company specializes in acquiring Amazon businesses and finding ways to improve brands. By refreshing all aspects of an organization with data-informed decisions, Thrasio is able to streamline logistics, tailor digital marketing strategies, and create brands with more lasting reputations.
Focus: Events + Entertainment
Number of employees: 13,700+
What they do: While audiences are familiar with names like Ticketmaster, few may know the company that runs the logistics behind the scenes. Live Nation Entertainment has united fans, artists, athletes, and performers with convenient platforms for selling tickets and staying connected to events. Managing activities across the globe becomes easier with the all-around technology of Live Nation Entertainment.
Focus: Transportation + IT Solutions
Number of employees: 11,000
What they do: As a common presence in the most extreme frontiers, Oceaneering International has become a hub for creative solutions that enable companies to adapt to a range of environments. The organization thrives on crafting safe and efficient solutions for businesses working in science, aerospace, renewable energy, and other sectors. Oceaneering International makes intense conditions more manageable with timely decisions and reliable technology.
Focus: IT Solutions
Number of employees: 6,700+
What they do: Established in 1980, BMC Software provides open, scalable and modular solutions to help businesses solve complex IT challenges. The company’s specialties include multi-cloud cost and security, cloud migration, application workflow automation, application performance improvement, mainframe cost optimization and cognitive service management. BMC Software’s client base boasts industry leaders like Boston Scientific, Transport for London, SAP and Ingram Micro.
Focus: Oil + Energy
Number of employees: 25,600+
What they do: McDermott International provides technology, engineering and construction solutions to the energy industry. The company’s capabilities include module fabrication and assembly, field construction, process planning and development, and supply chain management. McDermott International operates worldwide in areas such as Central and South America, Europe, Africa and Asia Pacific.
