Best, worst cities to start a business in the US, according to WalletHub

ByBria Kalpen WPVI logo
Thursday, May 9, 2019
Top 5 best large cities to start a business
See the top 5 best large cities to start a business in the U.S., according to WalletHub.

Entrepreneurship has been a primary part of American culture since the country was founded, but not all parts of the U.S. are fit for new businesses.

According to WalletHub, more than 15.3 million people in the U.S. work for themselves, and new products, services and ideas are welcome in the right markets. To determine which markets are right for those looking to start a business, the personal finance site compared 100 of the nation's largest cities over 19 key metrics, ranging from startups per capita to industry variety and job growth.

Florida dominated the top five, with Orlando taking the top spot. The city is known for bringing in millions of tourists each year, so it's no surprise that this market is a hot spot for new businesses. Orlando is also the city highest average growth in number of small businesses.

Oklahoma City, Okla., came in second place and ranked 10th in the "Business Costs" category. Miami, another Florida city, took the third place spot and ranked second in the "Business Environment" category. The fourth place spot went to Austin, Texas, followed by Tampa, Fla.

Chicago landed near the bottom of the list, ranking 85th overall and making it the 16th worst large city to start a business. The Windy City's highest ranking was in the "Access to Resources" category, where it landed at 41st.

Out of the 100 largest cities in the U.S., Chesapeake, Va. ranked as the worst place to start a business. The east coast city also ranked last in "Access to Resources" and 98th in "Business Environment."

For more information and to view the full report, visit WalletHub.com.