Nationwide, there are close to 16 million self-employed individuals, representing around 10 percent of all workers. Interestingly, the median income for self-employed full-time individuals in the U.S. is only slightly higher than the median income for all workers ($50,000 vs. $48,000).
Self-employed individuals are found in every industry, but out of all workers, they make up the largest share of workers in the Other Services, Except Public Administration and the Agricultural, Forestry, Fishing and Hunting, and Mining sectors. Other non-public administration services include service providers such as mechanics and hairdressers. The Construction industry also has a large percentage of workers that are self-employed, while Manufacturing has the lowest share.
Just as self-employment varies by industry, it also varies by location. To better understand this variation, researchers at CloudKitchens wanted to see which cities in the U.S. have the most entrepreneurs. To find the most entrepreneurial cities, they analyzed U.S. Census Bureau data and calculated the percentage of all workers who are self-employed in either their own incorporated or unincorporated business.
In addition, CloudKitchens calculated median incomes for self-employed individuals and all workers, as well as the most overrepresented industry for entrepreneurs in each metro. The most overrepresented industry represents a disproportionately high rate of entrepreneurs within the metro relative to the national level.
The data showed that states with the largest share of self-employed individuals are geographically diverse; however, states in the Midwest generally have the lowest percentage of self-employed individuals.
At the metropolitan level, areas with the highest levels of self-employment are also spread out. However, similar to the state-level analysis, locations in the Midwest tend to have fewer self-employed individuals.
Here is a summary of the data for the most entrepreneurial cities in the U.S.:
For more information, a detailed methodology, and complete results, you can find the original report here: https://www.cloudkitchens.com/the-most-entrepreneurial-cities-in-the-u-s/