A new study from WalletHub ranked the best small cities in the U.S. to start a business, and a Florida city ranked as one of the four top cities.
The Florida cities that topped the list include Fort Myers, No.3; Dania Beach, No. 11; Boca Raton, No. 14; and Deerfield Beach, No. 15. Cities such as Davie and Miami Beach ranked in the top six for most startups per capita.
WalletHub compared the quality of business-friendliness of more than 1,200 small cities across the country, using criteria such as business environment, access to resources, and business costs. The study defined cities as those with a population of between 25,000 and 100,000 residents. They then used metrics such as average growth in number of small businesses and investor access to labor costs to evaluate the cities, according to the site.
WalletHub also consulted a panel of experts for insights on starting a small business in a small city. Alexandra Morgan, Clinical Instructor of Entrepreneurship for the College of Business at Purdue University Northwest, said smaller cities can create a sense of community and allow small businesses to create more genuine connections with customers, but smaller regions can also have less resources making it difficult to sustain.
