NEW YORK–What’s the best place in the U.S. for a small business? According to one new analysis, it’s a big market: New York.
Biz2Credit reports it has identified New York as the “Best Small Business City in America,” based on a weighted average that includes annual revenue, credit score, age of the business (in months). In addition, Biz2Credit said its BizAnalyzer score facts in cash flow, debt-to-income ratio, taxes and other data. In all, it said it examined the financials of nearly 30,000 companies that apply for small business financing in 2017.
“New York is where small businesses are making the most money, and New York companies far outpaced businesses based in other areas in annual revenues,” said Biz2Credit CEO Rohit Arora, one of the nation's leading experts in small business finance, who oversaw the research. “The city has a diverse economy, and the sectors it is strong in – finance, IT, travel and tourism, real estate and construction – are thriving.”
Arora believes the growth of New York’s tech industry is buoying all the other industries, including fashion, food and beverage, and hospitality. Further, as one of the world’s great metropolises, The Big Apple has long been a magnet for the best and brightest from graduates from American and international universities, the company said.
“Immigrants from all over the globe continue to add vibrancy to New York’s economy,” said Arora, who is a native of India.
Two Key Categories
New York businesses led the two key categories of financial metrics in the study to be named America’s Top Small Business City in 2018: annual revenue, and Biz2Credit's BizAnalyzer score, which takes into account local economic factors, including the cost of doing business and tax rate.
Meanwhile, six metro areas in California were among the Top 10 Best Cities for Small Business Growth: San Jose (No. 2), San Francisco (No. 4), Los Angeles (No. 5), Riverside-San Bernardino, (No. 6), San Diego, CA (No. 9) and Sacramento (No. 10).
The Miami-Fort Lauderdale metro area ranked No. 3, Washington ranked No. 7, and Austin, TX, ranked No. 8 in Biz2Credit’s annual study in 2018.
“Miami is a gateway to Latin America,” suggests Arora. “Latinos have comprised more than half of the total U.S. population growth over the last 15 years, and immigrants continue start businesses in southern Florida, where the real estate and construction industries are booming. Additionally, the cost of living in Miami is a bit less expensive than in New York or Northern California.”
For this analysis, Biz2Credit defined "small businesses" as companies having fewer than 250 employees or less than $10 million in annual revenues.
The Top 25
The Top 25 Cities for Small Business in 2018 (with 2017 ranking in parenthesis) are:
- New York, NY (No. 1)
- San Jose, CA (No. 4)
- Miami-Fort Lauderdale, FL (No. 2)
- San Francisco, CA (No. 8)
- Los Angeles, CA (No. 5)
- Riverside-San Bernardino, CA (No. 10)
- Washington, DC (No. 16)
- Austin, TX (No. 3)
- San Diego, CA (No. 14)
- Sacramento, CA (No. 18)
- Phoenix, AZ (No. 7)
- Chicago, IL (No. 19)
- Dallas-Fort Worth, TX (No. 13)
- Seattle, WA (No. 6)
- Atlanta, GA (No. 20)
- Baltimore, MD (No. 12)
- Denver, CO (No. 17)
- Las Vegas, NV (No. 23)
- San Antonio, TX (No. 21)
- Detroit, MI (No. 15)
- Houston, TX (No. 11)
- Philadelphia, PA (No. 24)
- Portland, OR (No. 11)
- Charlotte, NC (No. 22)
- Kansas City, MO