Tampa, Orlando, Jacksonville, Hialeah, and St. Petersburg are the best large cities in the United States to start a business in 2026, according to a study released by WalletHub this week.
“Starting a business can be very scary, considering one in every five startups doesn’t make it past the first year," WalletHub Analyst Chip Lupo said. "That’s why it’s especially important to live in a city that provides an environment where new businesses can thrive, with enough capital, workers and customers to keep it going long-term.”
According to WalletHub, Tampa ranked No. 1 with a total score of 64.15. Moreover, Tampa placed third for business environment, seventh in access to resources, and 37th in business costs.
Specifically, WalletHub credited Tampa for its low corporate tax rate, high number of investors per capita, and a combination of low taxes and high capital in its ranking. The study also credited Tampa for having a large number of startups.
For its findings, WalletHub compared 100 U.S. cities for business environment, access to resources, and business costs using 19 different metrics
Orlando received a total score of 63.74, followed by Jacksonville (62.98), Hialeah (60.94), and St. Petersburg (59.24). Notably, Orlando ranked first for business environment, with Hialeah, Tampa, and Jacksonville following.
Tampa ranked highest for access to resources among Florida cities at No. 7, while Jacksonville had the highest business costs rank at No. 23.
Miami also finished 10th overall with a score of 57.33.
Durham, North Carolina, ranked at No. 6 with an overall score of 58.94. Raleigh, North Carolina (58.71), Tulsa, Oklahoma (58.43), and Oklahoma City (58.34) also finished in the top ten.
Washington, D.C., ranked as the worst place to start a business in America with an overall score of 34.18. Moreover, D.C. placed 99th for business environment, 96th for business costs, and 25th for access to resources.
San Jose, California (38.84), Honolulu, Hawaii (39.24), San Francisco, California (41.01), Riverside, California (41.19), Memphis, Tennessee (41.27), Oakland, California (41.31), Seattle, Washington (41.71), Chesapeake, Virginia (42.15), and Chula Vista, California (42.33) followed in the bottom 10.
St. Paul, Minnesota, was ranked as having the worst business environment in America. Norfolk, Virginia, had the worst access to resources, while San Francisco had the worst business costs.
