Number of Small Businesses in Santa Cruz County, CA: 2023 Outlook

According to the latest statistics, there are 31,790 small businesses in Santa Cruz County, CA. These small businesses make up nearly 99.97 percent of all businesses in the county.
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Updated Jan 24, 2023
The number of small businesses in Santa Cruz County, CA

As per the U.S. Small Business Administration a small business is defined as one with fewer than 500 employees. To learn more about the trends related to the number of small businesses in Santa Cruz County, we’ve analyzed all of the most essential data reported by relevant surveys across various departments at the U.S. Census Bureau. 

How many small businesses are there in Santa Cruz County, CA?

Key small business stats

Our research yielded several striking findings related to the number of small businesses in Santa Cruz County, CA:

  • According to the 2022 Small Business profile from the Office of Advocacy, U.S. SBA and Statistics of US Businesses, the number of small businesses totaled 31,790 in Santa Cruz County, CA.
  • The small businesses make up nearly all (99.97 percent) businesses in Santa Cruz County, CA.
  • Most of Santa Cruz County’s small businesses are very small as 97.31 percent of all businesses did not have employees or have fewer than 20 employees.
  • As per the Non employer statistics, self-employment in Santa Cruz County, CA increased by 5.40% over the last 8 years. .  
  • Between 2021 and 2022, the number of small businesses in Santa Cruz County, CA decreased by 632 ( 1.95% ). Overall the number of small businesses marked a a growth of 1,545 ( 5.11% ) between 2014 and 2022.

Santa Cruz County, CA: Small businesses with no employees

As of Sep 2022, there were 24,733 small businesses with no employees in Santa Cruz County, CA. Compared to 2014, that is an increase of 1,268 ( 5.40% ) in the number of self employed population in the county.

Most recently, especially after the COVID-19 pandemic, the number of small businesses with no employees decreased by 645 from being 25,378 in 2021.

In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, across the United States, we witnessed an ongoing economic trend of the rise of gig economy and the beginning of the great resignation. The biggest impact was found in the economic activity related to the small businesses with no employees.

Its impact in Santa Cruz County, CA is clearly reflected in the below chart, displaying number of small businesses with no employees between 2016 and 2022 (Exhibit 2).

Exhibit 2
The number of small businesses with no employees in Santa Cruz County, CA
Year Reported Businesses With No Employees
2016 23,649
2017 24,427
2018 25,004
2019 25,079
2020 25,175
2021 25,378
2022 24,733
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Santa Cruz County, CA: Small businesses with less than 20 employees

Between 2014 and 2022, the number of small businesses with less than 20 employees increased by 130 ( 2.14% ). In 2014 the number of businesses were 6,081, which increased to 6,211 in 2022.

Overall most of the small businesses in Santa Cruz County, CA are very small, and have less then 20 employees. These micro businesses account for nearly 87.89% of the total businesses with employees in the county.

The trend in the number of small businesses with less than 20 employees is visible in the below chart ( Exhibit 3).

Exhibit 3
The number of small businesses with less than 20 employees in Santa Cruz County, CA


Santa Cruz County, CA: Small businesses with 20 - 99 employees

Of the 3,195 counties reviewed across the United States, the small businesses with 20 - 99 employees was found to be resilient set with respect to the impact of the pandemic. 

In Santa Cruz County, CA the number of small businesses with 20 - 99 employees increased from being 616 in 2014 to 732 in 2022. In percentage terms the change is an increase of approximately 18.83%.

We have charted the number of small businesses with 20 - 99 employees since 2016 ( Exhibit 4):

Exhibit 4
The number of small businesses with 20 to 99 employees in Santa Cruz County, CA

Over the last 7 years, the number of small businesses with 20-99 employees is tabulated below:

Santa Cruz County, CA: Small businesses with 100 - 499 employees

As per the U.S. Small Business Administration, the businesses with 100 - 499 employees are the largest businesses eligible to be classified under the category of being called as a small business. In Santa Cruz County, CA the number of such businesses changed from 83 in 2014 to 114 in 2022.

An increase in the number of these businesses is a good economic indicator for a county. With an increase of 31 such businesses between 2014 and 2022 shows that this is a great county for business growth.

Full set of data related to the number of small businesses with 100 - 499 employees is shown in the below chart ( Exhibit 5):

Exhibit 5
The number of small businesses with 100 to 499 employees in Santa Cruz County, CA

You can also find the table below with the number of small businesses with 100 - 499 employees in Santa Cruz County, CA:

References

Data used for the report on number of small business in the Santa Cruz County, CA was sourced from the following programs, surveys and reports within the US Census Bureau: 

1) Annual small business profile published by the U.S. Small Business Administration, Office of Advocacy.

2) Nonemployer Statistics, U.S. Census Bureau

3) County Business Patterns, U.S. Census Bureau

4) Statistics of US Businesses, U.S. Census Bureau

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Neilsberg Research
Neilsberg Research team are data scientists with expertise in processing, analysis and visualization of big data helping small businesses make right decisions.

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