34.8 million
small businesses in the United States
The U.S. Small Business Administration reports that small businesses make up 99.9% of all U.S. businesses.
Source: U.S. Small Business Administration, 2024 Small Business Profile← Resources
Small business reference
Small Business Bookkeeping Statistics
A source-backed snapshot of the U.S. small-business landscape for owners, writers, and advisors who need reliable context for financial organization.
Last updated October 22, 2026
Why these numbers matter to business owners
Most small businesses are owner-led, and many are run without employees. Clear, current books give owners a dependable view of income, expenses, and cash flow while making tax preparation and business decisions less stressful.
Every figure below links to the original public source. The data is national in scope, so it is best used as context, not as a prediction for any individual business.
Key figures
Six citable small-business statistics
81.9%
of U.S. small businesses have no employees
That equals 28,477,518 nonemployer firms, a reminder that many owners carry the financial administration themselves.
Source: U.S. Small Business Administration, Frequently Asked Questions About Small Business, July 202459.0 million
people work for U.S. small businesses
Small-business employees represented 45.9% of all U.S. employees in the 2024 Small Business Profile.
Source: U.S. Small Business Administration, 2024 Small Business Profile1.2 million
small-business openings in one year
Between March 2022 and March 2023, small businesses accounted for 1.2 million of the 1.3 million U.S. establishment openings reported in the profile.
Source: U.S. Small Business Administration, 2024 Small Business Profile, using Bureau of Labor Statistics data946,311
small-business closings in one year
The same March 2022 to March 2023 period recorded 946,311 small-business closings, alongside 1.1 million U.S. establishment closings overall.
Source: U.S. Small Business Administration, 2024 Small Business Profile, using Bureau of Labor Statistics data34.7%
of private-sector establishments in a 2013 cohort were still operating after 10 years
The Bureau of Labor Statistics found this rate in March 2023. It describes establishments, not every type of business, and survival differs by industry.
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, January 2024Methodology and sources
How to read this page
This page uses primary U.S. government sources. “Small business” and “establishment” are not interchangeable terms, so the wording beside each number preserves the source’s definition. Figures are kept as published rather than recalculated.
- U.S. Small Business Administration, 2024 Small Business Profile, published 2024.
- U.S. Small Business Administration, Frequently Asked Questions About Small Business, July 2024.
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 34.7 percent of business establishments born in 2013 were still operating in 2023, January 12, 2024.
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