How many U.S. patents did Thomas Edison hold?

Thomas Edison held 1,093 U.S. patents during his career.

The total includes patents granted to Edison individually and patents assigned to him with collaborators. His inventions covered telegraphy, telephony, sound recording, electric lighting, electric power, motion pictures, mining, and cement production.

Patent totals can vary in summaries because some sources count foreign patents, joint patents, or applications differently. The commonly cited figure for Edison’s U.S. patents is 1,093, including 1,084 utility patents and nine design patents.

Edison was not the sole inventor behind every project associated with his laboratories. He directed large research teams, and assistants such as William Kennedy Laurie Dickson made important technical contributions.