California is barely a middle-of-the-pack performer when scoring the state’s business climate against the rest of the nation.
States at the bottom of this scorecard include some of the nation’s smallest economies – Hawaii, Louisiana, Alaska, New Mexico and Rhode Island.So, what does the Golden State’s mediocre scores tell us about California’s business climate? Well, ponder its grades – from worst to best – in these eight metrics that built the rankings, stats that are decidedly sympathetic to bosses’ concerns …
When it came to the places where you should start a business, this magazine’s website ranked California No. 37.Best spots were North Dakota, Indiana, Arkansas, South Dakota and North Carolina. Worst? Vermont, New York, Washington, New Mexico and Florida. Texas was No. 32. The swiftest growth was in Idaho, Florida, Nevada, Tennessee and Arizona. Texas was No. 7. The national laggards were North Dakota, Louisiana, Hawaii, Delaware and Illinois.
California ranked No. 1 for the number of firms it has on Inc magazine’s 2024 list of most-successful small companies. Then came Texas, Florida, New York and Virginia. Conversely, the highest statistical agreement was found in three of the top four business climates – North Carolina, Utah and Tennessee.Measuring these rankings against the recent presidential election suggests that “pro-business” was a winning argument in 2024.