Florida among the best states to start a business

TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) — Florida was ranked second among the best states to start a business in a report by WalletHub.

According to the personal finance website, about 1 out of 5 new businesses fail after their first year, and half of them fail to stay open by the five-year mark.

With this in mind, WalletHub took a look at which states were friendlier to startup businesses amid the fallout of the COVID-19 pandemic and rising costs due to inflation.

The study figured out which states were the best using 27 metrics focused on three main areas: business environment, access to resources, and business costs. The metrics were used to calculate a score of zero to 100, with 100 showing the most favorable conditions to start a business.

Utah was the top state with a composite score of 59.91, with Florida following close behind with a score of 59.21. However, Florida did have the best business environment in the nation, followed by California.

Overall Rank State Total Score
1 Utah 59.91
2 Florida 59.21
3 Texas 56.85
4 Colorado 56.14
5 Idaho 55.88
6 Georgia 55.37
7 Arizona 53.79
8 Nevada 53.54
9 Oklahoma 53.12
10 California 52.97
The list of the top 10 states for starting a business, according to WalletHub.

WalletHub also found in terms of average growth in the number of small businesses, Florida ranked fourth in the nation.

You can read more about the study’s methodology here.