The Best Small Cities to Start a Business – WalletHub Report

(4/21/25) Personal-finance website WalletHub recently released a report listing the best small cities to start a business in 2025, and two Florida cities were ranked in the top 20 out of more than 1,300 cities analyzed.

The report, called 2025’s Best Small Cities to Start a Business, lists the most business-friendly small markets in the U.S. To compile the report, WalletHub compared more than 1,300 cities with fewer than 100,000 residents across three main metrics:  the local business environment, access to resources and business costs.

The top-ranked small city for starting a business was St. George, Utah, according to WalletHub, due to its cheap office space, high job growth and short commutes, among other factors. Fort Myers, Fla. ranked second, with one of the highest number of investors per capita in the country, which increases the chances that an entrepreneur will attract capital. Fort Myers also ranks highly because of affordable office space.

Boca Raton, Fla. was the only other Florida city that ranked in the top 20.

"Boca Raton ranks 20th out of more than 1,300 cities analyzed, making it one of the best small cities to start a business,” said Chip Lupo, an analyst at WalletHub. “What makes Boca Raton especially appealing is its strong access to resources, where it ranks ninth overall. That means new business owners in Boca can tap into solid investor networks, a pool of educated employees and other critical support systems that help startups get off the ground.”

Lupo also said Boca Raton has a healthy startup scene and a solid pace of small business growth. While business costs are a bit high, he said, Boca Raton’s overall infrastructure and access to talent more than make up for it, “especially for entrepreneurs looking to build lasting connections and grow in a stable, resource-rich environment.”