The 15 Top Cities for Millennial Business Owners

Editor’s Note: This story originally appeared on Flippa.

Millennials today — folks born from 1981 to 1996 — are in the prime of their lives, and with a population of more than 72 million in the U.S., they would seem set to be a major force in society and the economy.

But the story is not so simple. Many millennials entered the workforce during or shortly after the Great Recession, when job openings were low and unemployment was high.

On top of that, most who attended college experienced dramatic increases in the cost of higher education without any proportional increase in wages. More recently, the housing market witnessed exploding costs just as millennials entered their peak homebuying age.

These challenges extend to millennial entrepreneurs. For millennials in some parts of the country, however, business ownership can prove much more lucrative than working as an employee.

The following is a breakdown of the areas with the most successful millennial business owners. The analysis was conducted by researchers at Flippa, a global online marketplace to buy and sell online businesses and digital assets, using data from the U.S. Census Bureau.

For more information on how each statistic was computed, refer to the methodology section at the end.

1. Spokane-Spokane Valley, WA

• Millennial business owner income differential: +90.6%
• Average income for millennial business owners: $101,258
• Average income for millennial employees: $53,113
• Percentage of millennial workers that are business owners: 7.4%
• Percentage of population that are millennials: 23.4%

2. Omaha, NE

• Millennial business owner income differential: +83.5%
• Average income for millennial business owners: $110,414
• Average income for millennial employees: $60,156
• Percentage of millennial workers that are business owners: 6.3%
• Percentage of population that are millennials: 23.4%

3. Wichita, KS

• Millennial business owner income differential: +75.7%
• Average income for millennial business owners: $84,863
• Average income for millennial employees: $48,294
• Percentage of millennial workers that are business owners: 6.0%
• Percentage of population that are millennials: 21.3%

4. Lancaster, PA

• Millennial business owner income differential: +53.9%
• Average income for millennial business owners: $92,518
• Average income for millennial employees: $60,102
• Percentage of millennial workers that are business owners: 8.4%
• Percentage of population that are millennials: 20.8%

5. Boise City, ID

• Millennial business owner income differential: +45.2%
• Average income for millennial business owners: $79,612
• Average income for millennial employees: $54,846
• Percentage of millennial workers that are business owners: 8.9%
• Percentage of population that are millennials: 21.3%

6. Greenville-Anderson-Greer, SC

• Millennial business owner income differential: +45.2%
• Average income for millennial business owners: $78,675
• Average income for millennial employees: $54,174
• Percentage of millennial workers that are business owners: 9.1%
• Percentage of population that are millennials: 20.3%

7. Modesto, CA

• Millennial business owner income differential: +32.8%
• Average income for millennial business owners: $69,858
• Average income for millennial employees: $52,588
• Percentage of millennial workers that are business owners: 7.9%
• Percentage of population that are millennials: 23.0%

8. Tucson, AZ

• Millennial business owner income differential: +29.4%
• Average income for millennial business owners: $63,458
• Average income for millennial employees: $49,040
• Percentage of millennial workers that are business owners: 8.2%
• Percentage of population that are millennials: 19.7%

9. Urban Honolulu, HI

• Millennial business owner income differential: +29.3%
• Average income for millennial business owners: $75,615
• Average income for millennial employees: $58,458
• Percentage of millennial workers that are business owners: 7.7%
• Percentage of population that are millennials: 22.0%

10. Birmingham, AL

• Millennial business owner income differential: +28.8%
• Average income for millennial business owners: $72,735
• Average income for millennial employees: $56,470
• Percentage of millennial workers that are business owners: 8.4%
• Percentage of population that are millennials: 20.8%

11. Buffalo-Cheektowaga, NY

• Millennial business owner income differential: +28.2%
• Average income for millennial business owners: $71,887
• Average income for millennial employees: $56,093
• Percentage of millennial workers that are business owners: 5.6%
• Percentage of population that are millennials: 20.7%

12. Jackson, MS

• Millennial business owner income differential: +28.0%
• Average income for millennial business owners: $65,973
• Average income for millennial employees: $51,538
• Percentage of millennial workers that are business owners: 10.5%
• Percentage of population that are millennials: 19.9%

13. Lakeland-Winter Haven, FL

• Millennial business owner income differential: +26.7%
• Average income for millennial business owners: $57,714
• Average income for millennial employees: $45,534
• Percentage of millennial workers that are business owners: 7.4%
• Percentage of population that are millennials: 21.4%

14. Las Vegas-Henderson-North Las Vegas, NV

• Millennial business owner income differential: +26.1%
• Average income for millennial business owners: $64,676
• Average income for millennial employees: $51,286
• Percentage of millennial workers that are business owners: 8.2%
• Percentage of population that are millennials: 23.3%

15. Portland-South Portland, ME

• Millennial business owner income differential: +21.8%
• Average income for millennial business owners: $82,182
• Average income for millennial employees: $67,489
• Percentage of millennial workers that are business owners: 9.6%
• Percentage of population that are millennials: 21.7%

Methodology

To find the locations with the most successful millennial business owners, researchers at Flippa analyzed the latest data from the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2022 “American Community Survey.”

The researchers ranked metros according to the difference between the average income for self-employed and employee millennials. Millennial workers were those individuals ages 26 to 41 in the year 2022 who worked and earned income in the prior 12 months.

To improve relevance, only the top 100 metropolitan areas by population were considered for the analysis.