Self Employment in Urban and Rural America

My good friend and colleague, Mark White of the University of Illinois, has recently published an interesting analysis of self-employment trends across the US. A lot of economic developers neglect focusing on self-employment, but these firms are an important part of any local economy.  After all, they represent the vast majority of businesses in every community!   Mark’s analysis summarize what we’re seeing in new Census Bureau data. Across the US, the average location is home to around 91 self-employment ventures for every 100 residents. This figure can vary widely—places like FL, GA, WY, NY and VT have higher levels, while states like WV, WA, and NM have much lower levels of self-employment. 

These trends also vary greatly across the urban-rural spectrum.  Self-employment levels are higher in rural places, especially those with strong recreation economies.  In urban areas, larger shares of non-employer firms operate in sectors like professional services and transportation services.  In rural places, construction is the number 1 sector, followed by other services which often refers to personal care such as hair stylists and nail salons. Understanding these patterns can help in local efforts to strengthen entrepreneurial ecosystems.