The latest entrepreneurship study has some good news for the U.S. economy: startup growth is healthier than it’s been in years.
Each year, the Kauffman Index study measures entrepreneurship growth in 40 cities nationwide. The study is focused on output rather than input, which means it’s looking at factors like business density, new companies, and growth rates. The study also measures entrepreneurship at the national, state, and metropolitan level.
This year, entrepreneurship grew in 34 of the 40 metros measured, which is the largest increase in the last decade on a national scale. This means that more new companies are cropping up nationwide, and they’re starting up everywhere, not just in the bigger cities. If the trend continues, entrepreneurship growth could soon be back to pre-recession levels.
The usual big players like San Francisco and Boston stayed relatively stable compared to 2015’s ranking, but other mid-sized cities went through some changes in the past year. Cincinnati had the biggest jump in the ranking since last year — it moved up 19 spots from 35 to 16 — while entrepreneurship slowed in Pittsburgh, moving the city from 12 down to 27.
Ranked from lowest to highest, here are the 13 cities with the biggest startup growth.
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13. Denver
- Rank in 2015: 14
- Rate of startup growth: 70.5%
- No. of IPOs: 2
12. Phoenix
- Rank in 2015: 16
- Rate of startup growth: 63.9%
11. Charlotte
- Rank in 2015: 13
- Rate of startup growth: 45.5%
- No. of IPOs: 1
