How Many Small Businesses Are in Michigan in 2026?

Michigan is home to 983,079 small businesses in 2026, which make up 99.6% of all firms in the state and employ 1.9 million people. What follows is the current picture of Michigan’s small business economy, from its manufacturing core to filing costs and county-level hotspots.

Michigan Small Business Numbers in 2026

Michigan’s small businesses are 99.6% of all employers and give work to nearly half the private workforce. The counts trace to the latest SBA state profile for Michigan.

Michigan has 983,079 small businesses, which is 99.6% of all businesses in the state.
Small businesses employ 1.9 million people in Michigan, about 47.7% of the state’s workforce.
The state is home to 809,426 nonemployer businesses, solo ventures with no paid staff, which together took in $41.7 billion in receipts.
The small business count grew from 945,788 in the 2024 profile to 983,079, a year-over-year gain.

Michigan Paychecks by Sector

Michigan’s best-paid work sits in utilities and management near $143,000 a year, while manufacturing pays above the statewide average and hospitality trails at about $26,000.

The state’s 3.8 million private-sector workers earned an average of $68,395 in 2024.
The highest-paying sectors are utilities ($143,795) and management of companies ($142,550).
Manufacturing pays $82,422 a year on average, above the private-sector average.
The lowest-paying major sector is accommodation and food services, at $25,563 a year.

Michigan’s Core Industries

Michigan’s 292,907 private establishments employ about 3.8 million workers. Health care leads on jobs, with the state’s manufacturing sector a very close second.

Health care and social assistance is the largest employer, with 621,590 jobs across 35,341 establishments.
Manufacturing remains Michigan’s signature industry, with 600,753 jobs across 19,736 establishments, though employment slipped 2.0% year over year.
Retail trade supports 451,243 jobs across 31,630 establishments.
Accommodation and food services employs 369,856 workers across 20,514 establishments.
Professional, scientific and technical services spans 43,190 establishments and 314,330 jobs.

Michigan’s Fastest-Growing Jobs

Three sectors led Michigan’s 2024 hiring: the arts, construction, and health care.

Arts, entertainment and recreation grew employment 5.4%, the fastest among major sectors.
Construction and health care each rose 3.6% between 2023 and 2024.

Michigan’s Business Centers: Oakland, Wayne and Kent

Southeast Michigan and the Grand Rapids area concentrate a large share of the state’s employers. Each county number here reflects every private business on record, small operators and large companies alike.

Oakland County leads with 42,606 establishments and 676,710 jobs.
Wayne County (Detroit) has 36,093 establishments and 641,267 jobs.
Kent County (Grand Rapids) hosts 17,465 establishments and 389,176 jobs.

Michigan’s New Business Applications

Michiganders started more businesses in 2025 than in any year since 2020.

Michiganders filed about 153,000 new business applications in 2025, the most in the past six years.
Applications have ranged between about 132,000 and 153,000 a year since 2020, peaking in 2025.

Federal Loans for Michigan Businesses

Michigan businesses picked up about $1.1 billion in SBA-backed loans during fiscal year 2024, according to SBA loan approval data.

SBA 7(a) loans totaled 2,714 loans for $971.0 million.
SBA 504 loans added 123 loans for $133.6 million, and the Microloan program provided 85 loans for $2.1 million.

Michigan’s Small Business Owners

Of the 163,220 Michigan firms with employees in 2022, ownership reaches across women-led, veteran-owned, and minority-owned companies.

Women own 31,497 Michigan employer firms, the largest ownership group tracked here.
Asian-owned employer firms number 9,251, followed by Black-owned (3,892) and Hispanic-owned (2,875).
Veteran-owned employer firms total 5,465, and American Indian or Alaska Native-owned firms add 809.
In all, 16,643 Michigan employer firms are minority-owned.

Michigan’s Economy and Visitor Spending

Michigan’s broad economy, built on more than manufacturing, gives local firms a wide customer base.

Michigan’s GDP reached $730.1 billion in 2025 in current dollars.
Adjusted for inflation, real GDP was $568.9 billion.
Nonemployer businesses alone generated $41.7 billion in receipts in 2022.

What Tourism Brings Michigan

Michigan’s travel season keeps its lodging, dining, and retail firms busy, and Pure Michigan (Travel Michigan) puts a yearly figure on it.

Tourism generated $54.8 billion in total economic impact in 2024, on $30.7 billion in visitor spending.
The state drew 131.2 million visitors, and tourism supported 351,292 jobs.

What Michigan Charges to Start a Business in 2026

Michigan runs business filings through the Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs (LARA). Our step-by-step guide to starting an LLC in Michigan covers the full process.

Registering a Michigan LLC or Corporation

LARA sets the LLC and corporation fees listed here.

Filing Articles of Organization for a Michigan LLC costs $50.
Michigan LLCs must file an annual statement with a $25 fee, due by February 15 each year.
Filing Articles of Incorporation for a corporation starts at $60. Every entity must appoint a Michigan registered agent. To compare providers, see the best Michigan LLC services.

Michigan Tax Rates and the 2026 Minimum Wage

Michigan levies a flat personal income tax and a 6% sales tax, and its minimum wage rose again for 2026.

Michigan’s individual income tax is a flat 4.25%.
The state sales tax rate is 6%.
Michigan’s minimum wage rose to $13.73 per hour in 2026 (tipped wage $5.49).

Answers for Michigan Small Business Owners

Founders weighing a Michigan launch tend to raise the same handful of questions, answered here with figures from state and federal records.