Small Business Statistics
Last updated: 2026-10-28 · 9 sourced statistics
The US has 36,207,130 small businesses, and most of them are one person working alone. According to the SBA Office of Advocacy's February 2026 FAQ, small businesses make up 99.9% of all US firms, but 82.3% of them (29.8 million) have no employees; the 6.4 million that do employ 45.9% of private sector workers. The Census Bureau's 2023 County Business Patterns show the same tilt at the level of business locations: 55.5% of the 8.36 million employer establishments had fewer than five employees. This page keeps to a handful of the strongest official counts. For survival rates, startups, employment and lending, follow the related statistics pages below.
Key takeaways
- There are 36,207,130 small businesses in the US, 99.9% of all firms, against 21,041 large businesses (SBA Office of Advocacy, February 2026).
- 82.3% of small businesses (29.8 million) have no employees; 6.4 million are employer firms.
- Small businesses employ 45.9% of private sector workers (62.3 million) and account for an estimated 43.5% of US GDP.
- 55.5% of US employer establishments had fewer than five employees in 2023, and 85.5% had fewer than 20 (Census County Business Patterns).
At a glance.
Every figure on this page in one table, each linked to its named source. Scroll down for the full context behind each number.
| Figure | What it measures | Source | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| 36.2M | There are 36,207,130 small businesses in the United States, making up 99.9% of all firms and 99.7% of firms with paid employees. | SBA Office of Advocacy, Frequently Asked Questions About Small Business (February 2026) | 2026 |
| 82.3% | 82.3% of US small businesses, or 29,811,495 firms, have no employees (nonemployer firms); the other 17.7%, or 6,395,635 firms, have paid employees. | SBA Office of Advocacy, Frequently Asked Questions About Small Business (February 2026) | 2026 |
| 21,041 | There are 21,041 large businesses (500 or more employees) in the US, compared with 36.2 million small ones. | SBA Office of Advocacy, Frequently Asked Questions About Small Business (February 2026) | 2026 |
| 45.9% | Small businesses employ 45.9% of US private sector employees, or 62.3 million workers. | SBA Office of Advocacy, Frequently Asked Questions About Small Business (February 2026) | 2026 |
| 43.5% | Small businesses account for an estimated 43.5% of US gross domestic product and 35.0% of private sector receipts ($17.8 trillion). | SBA Office of Advocacy, Frequently Asked Questions About Small Business (February 2026) | 2026 |
| 97.2% | Small businesses make up 97.2% of US exporters (270,014 businesses) but account for 33.0% of known export value ($588.4 billion). | SBA Office of Advocacy, Frequently Asked Questions About Small Business (February 2026) | 2026 |
| 15.4M to 29.8M | The number of nonemployer firms nearly doubled from 15.4 million in 1997 to 29.8 million in 2022, and the number of small employer firms has increased every year since 2011. | SBA Office of Advocacy, Frequently Asked Questions About Small Business (February 2026) | 2026 |
| 2.7% a year | From 2012 to 2023 the number of US nonemployer businesses grew an average 2.7% a year, against 1.1% for employer businesses. Nonemployers had $1.8 trillion in receipts in 2023, about 6.4% of current-dollar GDP. | US Census Bureau, America Counts: Number of U.S. Nonemployers Grew Faster Than Employer Businesses Nearly Every Year From 2012 to 2023 (July 2025) | 2025 |
| 55.5% | The US had 8,361,342 employer establishments in 2023; 55.5% (4,639,650) had fewer than five employees and 85.5% had fewer than 20. | US Census Bureau, County Business Patterns 2023 (national file) | 2023 |
The statistics
There are 36,207,130 small businesses in the United States, making up 99.9% of all firms and 99.7% of firms with paid employees.
Source:SBA Office of Advocacy, Frequently Asked Questions About Small Business (February 2026)2026
82.3% of US small businesses, or 29,811,495 firms, have no employees (nonemployer firms); the other 17.7%, or 6,395,635 firms, have paid employees.
Source:SBA Office of Advocacy, Frequently Asked Questions About Small Business (February 2026)2026
There are 21,041 large businesses (500 or more employees) in the US, compared with 36.2 million small ones.
Source:SBA Office of Advocacy, Frequently Asked Questions About Small Business (February 2026)2026
Small businesses employ 45.9% of US private sector employees, or 62.3 million workers.
Source:SBA Office of Advocacy, Frequently Asked Questions About Small Business (February 2026)2026
Small businesses account for an estimated 43.5% of US gross domestic product and 35.0% of private sector receipts ($17.8 trillion).
Source:SBA Office of Advocacy, Frequently Asked Questions About Small Business (February 2026)2026
Small businesses make up 97.2% of US exporters (270,014 businesses) but account for 33.0% of known export value ($588.4 billion).
Source:SBA Office of Advocacy, Frequently Asked Questions About Small Business (February 2026)2026
The number of nonemployer firms nearly doubled from 15.4 million in 1997 to 29.8 million in 2022, and the number of small employer firms has increased every year since 2011.
Source:SBA Office of Advocacy, Frequently Asked Questions About Small Business (February 2026)2026
From 2012 to 2023 the number of US nonemployer businesses grew an average 2.7% a year, against 1.1% for employer businesses. Nonemployers had $1.8 trillion in receipts in 2023, about 6.4% of current-dollar GDP.
The US had 8,361,342 employer establishments in 2023; 55.5% (4,639,650) had fewer than five employees and 85.5% had fewer than 20.
Source:US Census Bureau, County Business Patterns 2023 (national file)2023
When these numbers don't apply
Aggregate statistics hide a lot. Read these caveats before quoting a figure as if it describes your specific situation.
- "Small business" here follows the SBA Office of Advocacy's research definition: an independent business with fewer than 500 employees. SBA loan and contracting programs use different, industry-specific size standards.
- The SBA counts combine two Census sources for different years: employer firms from Statistics of US Businesses and nonemployer firms from Nonemployer Statistics (2022). A nonemployer is any business with receipts that files business income taxes and has no payroll, which includes many side businesses.
- County Business Patterns counts establishments (single locations with paid employees) and sizes them by the employees at that location, so a branch of a large chain can appear in a small size class. Firm counts and establishment counts are not interchangeable.
- Shares of GDP, receipts and payroll come from Advocacy's own estimates using Census and BEA data, and they cover different years from the firm counts.
- All figures are for the United States. Other countries define small businesses differently (the EU, for example, uses fewer than 50 employees for a small enterprise).
How we compiled this data
Reviewed 2026-10-28. Firm counts, employment, GDP, receipts and export shares come from the SBA Office of Advocacy's Frequently Asked Questions About Small Business, February 2026 edition (read from the official PDF via an Internet Archive capture, because advocacy.sba.gov blocks automated access). Nonemployer growth comes from the Census Bureau's July 2025 America Counts story on Nonemployer Statistics. Establishment size shares are our calculation from the Census Bureau's 2023 County Business Patterns national file (cbp23us), all industries and legal forms: establishments in each employment size class divided by the 8,361,342 total. Earlier versions of this page cited a 33 million count and a 61.6 million employment figure from an older FAQ, a 2023 business applications figure, a net-new-jobs share and a vendor unpaid-invoice survey, all linked to homepages; they were replaced with the current edition or moved to the startup, employment and unpaid invoice statistics pages.
We hand-collected each figure from its original publisher rather than recycling secondary round-ups, cross-checked the headline numbers against the source documents in 2026-10-28, and link every statistic to the report it came from so you can verify it yourself. Where a publisher issues annual updates, we cite the report edition and flag the year inline.
Frequently asked questions
How many small businesses are there in the US?
36,207,130, according to the SBA Office of Advocacy's February 2026 FAQ. That is 99.9% of all US firms. Only 21,041 businesses have 500 or more employees.
How many small businesses have no employees?
29,811,495, or 82.3% of all small businesses, are nonemployer firms: businesses with receipts but no payroll, from sole proprietors to side businesses. The remaining 6,395,635 small businesses have paid employees.
What share of Americans work for small businesses?
Small businesses employ 45.9% of private sector employees, or 62.3 million workers (SBA Office of Advocacy, February 2026). Our small business employment statistics page goes into jobs in more detail.
How much of the US economy do small businesses produce?
The SBA Office of Advocacy estimates small businesses produce 43.5% of US GDP and 35.0% of private sector receipts ($17.8 trillion).
What counts as a small business?
For research, the SBA Office of Advocacy counts any independent business with fewer than 500 employees. For loans and federal contracts, the SBA uses industry-specific size standards based on employees or annual receipts, so a business can be small for one purpose and not another.
How small is a typical US business location?
Very small. In the Census Bureau's 2023 County Business Patterns, 55.5% of the 8.36 million employer establishments had fewer than five employees and 85.5% had fewer than 20.
Put these figures to use
- Invoicing hub: Guides on creating, numbering, sending and tracking invoices.
- Invoice number generator: Create a consistent invoice numbering format for a new business.
- Hiring your first employee: a freelancer's guide: US federal steps for a first hire and how payroll differs from invoicing.
- Quarterly tax payments for freelancers: IRS estimated tax due dates, safe harbors and a worked example.
Related statistics
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