North Dakota ranks #47 among US states for total patents filed in 2021, with 346 patents from 236 inventors across 40 cities. On a per-capita basis that is 0.4 patents per 1,000 residents, a standard benchmark for comparing state-level R&D intensity.
Top Cities in North Dakota 2021
| Rank | City | Patents | Inventors |
|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | Fargo, ND | 128 | 83 |
| #2 | West Fargo, ND | 36 | 26 |
| #3 | Mayville, ND | 31 | 19 |
| #4 | Bismarck, ND | 30 | 20 |
| #5 | Jamestown, ND | 19 | 10 |
| #6 | Dickinson, ND | 17 | 13 |
| #7 | Williston, ND | 14 | 11 |
| #8 | Hankinson, ND | 8 | 6 |
| #9 | Mandan, ND | 8 | 5 |
| #10 | Linton, ND | 7 | 4 |
| #11 | Minot, ND | 7 | 2 |
| #12 | Horace, ND | 5 | 4 |
| #13 | Kindred, ND | 5 | 3 |
| #14 | Watford City, ND | 3 | 3 |
| #15 | Moffit, ND | 2 | 2 |
| #16 | Ypsilanti, ND | 2 | 1 |
| #17 | Hickson, ND | 1 | 1 |
| #18 | Barton, ND | 1 | 1 |
| #19 | Berthold, ND | 1 | 1 |
| #20 | Bottineau, ND | 1 | 1 |
| #21 | Carrington, ND | 1 | 1 |
| #22 | Cavalier, ND | 1 | 1 |
| #23 | Fort Yates, ND | 1 | 1 |
| #24 | Gwinner, ND | 1 | 1 |
| #25 | Harwood, ND | 1 | 1 |