Small businesses have been the foundation of the United States’ booming economy for a number of years. Most of them start with a dream, a lifelong ambition of an aspiring entrepreneur who is doing something they are passionate about, which then becomes a small business.
Mississippi, despite not being the largest state in size and population is certainly no stranger to small businesses. In fact, the state’s small business climate is now being considered to be one of the best in the U.S., with Mississippi recently ranking 1st for small to medium-size business growth.
The Magnolia State is a solid contributor to America’s healthy economy. Over the past several years, Mississippi has been building up a reputation for becoming a more pro-business state, which has led to a good business climate. There are many factors that come into play, such as supportive local communities, manageable business and personal taxes, and a good labor market.
Number of Small Businesses in Mississippi
So, how many small businesses are there in Mississippi? There are 262,272 small businesses in Mississippi, according to the latest figures (2020) from the SBA.
It is not just Americans and Mississippians starting small businesses in Mississippi; the state, although not being a huge attraction for international entrepreneurs and foreign-born people, there are still some immigrant entrepreneurs that have decided to call the state their home for business.
There are 6,125 immigrant entrepreneurs in Mississippi that account for 5% of all self-employed Mississippi residents.
The following bar graph shows the number of small businesses in Mississippi in 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, and 2020.
Of the 262,272 small businesses in Mississippi in 2020, there is a wide array of different enterprises from small, one-person sole proprietorships or LLCs to much larger businesses with several hundred employees. If you want to join the 262,000-plus small businesses in Mississippi, it is fairly easy to register a business in Mississippi.
To be a small business in Mississippi, you have to qualify as one. So, to operate as a small business in Mississippi, you must have a company with less than 500 employees.
Let’s take a deeper dive into the number of small businesses in Mississippi by looking at the top industries, small business owners, employees, and more!
Latest Small Businesses Statistics in Mississippi
- Small businesses equate to over 99.3% of all businesses in Mississippi.
- There are 437,242 small business employees in Mississippi, which is 46.5% of the states’ employees.
- In 2019, Small Businesses in Mississippi added 9,212 new jobs!
- Small businesses employing 20 or fewer employees created the most job gains!
- There are 34,152 self-employed minorities in Mississippi demonstrating the diversity in the state.
- International trade in Mississippi is quite strong and there are 1,545 small business exporters.
- There are more construction firms small businesses in Mississippi than any other type – 32,194.
- Administrative, support, and waste management make up the 2nd largest number of small businesses in Mississippi – 27,439.
How Many Small Businesses in Mississippi?
Over 262,000 is a lot of small businesses to be registered in a state with such a small population size (35th most populous). Compared to the rest of the U.S., the total number of small businesses in Mississippi is 0.82% of all U.S. businesses. There are 31.7 million small businesses in the U.S.
- The number of small businesses in Mississippi has been growing over the last several years.
- In 2017 there were 252,019 small businesses, which increased to 254,598 in 2018 (1.02% increase).
- In 2019 there were 257,404 small businesses which were 2,806 more than the state had in 2018 (1.1% increase).
- From 2019 to 2020, the number of small businesses in Mississippi rose once again, to 262,272. This is the second-largest increase in percentage terms over the past five years (2.06%) and demonstrates Mississippi’s strong and continually growing economy.
Mississippi has an awful lot to offer small businesses and aspiring small business owners from all over the world, this is made possible because of the state’s access to large consumer markets, awesome small business support, and development centers, readily available capital, and a pro-business collaborative environment for businesses operating in any industry.
If you would like to download the latest 2020 Small Business Profile on Mississippi from the U.S. Small Business Administration, Office of Advocacy, the Profile can be downloaded here.
