ORLANDO, Fla. — Orlando ranked first in a new analysis of midsized U.S. cities for small-business growth.
The report from employee experience software company Blink gave Orlando a score of 46.8, placing it ahead of McKinney and Frisco, Texas. Tampa ranked fourth.
Blink evaluated the 200 most populous U.S. cities with populations of 500,000 or fewer.
The analysis considered retail, food and hospitality businesses; employment and population growth; internet searches for local businesses and downtown activities; and walkability.
The report listed 1,997 new retail businesses and 6,746 new food and hospitality businesses in the Orlando area. It also reported average employment growth of 6.1%.
Orlando recorded 8,140 searches for small businesses and 25,800 searches for things to do downtown, according to the analysis. The city also added 7,464 residents in one year.
Blink used data from the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2023 County Business Patterns, Quarterly Workforce Indicators and American Community Survey, along with search and walkability data.
The methodology assigned the same metro-level business and workforce data to cities within the same metropolitan area, meaning some figures were regional rather than specific to city limits. The data was current as of May 15.
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