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Overview
As experts in small business, we routinely get asked information about statistics and research information about small businesses in Pennsylvania and across the U.S. Below is more information to answer your questions.
Definition
There are exceptions based on industry sector and other variables but generally speaking, small businesses are defined as having 500 or fewer employees. For a complete definition, please visit the Summary of Size Standards by Industry from the SBA.
Small Business in Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania’s small businesses are key to the state’s well-being. They account for a significant share of the state’s economic production and hiring. Below is the latest available data to illustrate the status and contributions of Pennsylvania small businesses:
- 972,102 small businesses in Pennsylvania
- 228,800 small businesses employed workers and accounted for 48.5% of private-sector jobs
- Small firms make up 98.3% of the state’s employers
Source: State Economic Profiles (U.S. Small Business Administration, Office of Advocacy)
Pennsylvania Small Businesses by County
- Click here for an Excel spreadsheet (.xlsx) that details small business activity in all 67 Pennsylvania counties
More Pennsylvania Resources
- SBA: Small Business Profiles – overview of the number and type of small businesses in Pennsylvania. Previous years are also available.
- SBA: Pennsylvania QuickFacts – brief population, demographics, housing and income data.
- Penn State Data Center – Pennsylvania's official data source
- County Business Patterns – detailed statistics on business activity on the county and zip code level.
- Pennsylvania Department of Labor & Industry – publications with workforce statistics
- Foreign Trade - Pennsylvania export data
- Development Report Card for the States – development measures, including entrepreneurship by state.
Small Business in the U.S.
According to the latest data available from the Office of Advocacy at the SBA, there are 27.3 million small businesses in the United States. Small businesses are very important to the U.S. economy as they:
- Represent 99.7% of all employer firms
- Employ just over half of all private sector employees
- Pay 44% of total U.S. private payroll
- Generated 64 % of net new jobs over the past 15 years
- Are 52% home-based and 2% franchises
- Produce 13 times more patents per employee than large patenting firms; these patents are twice as likely as large firm patents to be among the one % most cited
Source: U.S. Small Business Administration, Office of Advocacy
More National Resources
- SBA Small Business Statistics - data on small businesses in the U.S.
- Bureau of Labor Statistics - wage and unemployment rates
- U.S. Bureau of the Census
- Statistical Abstract of the U.S. - abridged version of this popular compilation of statistics.
- Government Documents Center - central reference and referral point for information at all levels of government
- Small Business Economic Indicators - small business activity nationally with state rankings.
- Statistics About Business Size – national level data on firms by size and receipts
- Census Bureau Economic Pages - links to the most current available reports on number of businesses, non-employer statistics, the Economic Census, minority and women-owned businesses, manufacturers, and building permits in PA and its counties.
More Information
Check out our FAQ section on Small Business Statistics and Research.
