Entrepreneurship is a fixture of the 21st century iteration of the American Dream. Today, about 10% of the US labor force works for themselves, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Still, it’s no easy task to get a business off the ground. In many cases, the state of a local economy can greatly affect your chance of success.
In it’s latest report , WalletHub determined the best places for launching a business based on three categories:
A total of 18 metrics were gathered for each of the 150 most populated US cities. WalletHub then calculated the total score – the highest of which was a 56.85 – for each city based on its weighted average across all metrics to determine the final ranking (read the full methodology here ).
Cities in the Midwest and the South proved to be the best places to start a business in 2017. Below, check out the top-16 cities, along with their total score and individual rankings for business environment, access to resources, and business costs.
Lincoln, Nebrask
Laredo, Texas
Port St. Lucie, Florida
Lubbock, Texas
Raleigh, North Carolina
Springfield, Missouri
Sioux Falls, South Dakota
Amarillo, Texas
Austin, Texas
St. Louis, Missouri
Durham, North Carolina
Grand Rapids, Michigan
Tulsa, Oklahoma
Charlotte, North Carolina
Salt Lake City, Utah
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
