283-2024

In 2023, Portland Metro Chamber contracted with consulting firm ECOnorthwest to better understand the barriers to starting and maintaining a business in the city of Portland.  To do so, ECOnorthwest solicited the perspectives and experiences of small business owners, local economic development agencies, and local government to create an accurate and whole picture of the realities that small business owners face.  

For the purposes of this 2023 State of Small Business Report, small businesses were defined as those with between one and 50 employees.  The report includes a quantitative assessment of small businesses, an analysis of the City of Portland’s permitting process, and a comparison of small business resources in Portland to its peer cities.

Among the report findings:

• 35.1% - percent of all workers employed by small businesses in Multnomah County, 28% in Portland metro.
• 94% - percent of all establishments in Multnomah County are small businesses.
• 41% - percent of small businesses owned by women in Portland metro, 5% higher than national average.
• 16% - percent of minority-owned small businesses in Portland metro, 6% below national average.
• $64,885 – average annual wage of workers employed by small businesses in Multnomah County.
• Portland has the largest share of employees who work for small businesses among peer cities. At 28%, it exceeds the national average and significantly surpasses metros like Salt Lake City or Indianapolis. This reflects Portland's vibrant small business ecosystem and relative lack of large anchor employers.
• Portland fares relatively well in supporting women entrepreneurs - its share is 5% above the national average and second only to Seattle among peers. 
• Only 16% of Portland's small businesses are minority-owned, below the national rate and trailing metros like Seattle and Austin. 
• Small businesses employ over 35% of Multnomah County's workforce - that's one in three workers. And their share is growing. Small business employment jumped the most in 15 years, from 32.7% to 35.1% in 2022. Small businesses also pay nearly one-third of all wages countywide.
• Professional services, healthcare, and restaurants are the top industries for small businesses in Multnomah County. Professional services led with 4,716 establishments in 2022, followed by 3,490 in healthcare. Notably, though fewer in number of businesses, accommodation and food service employed the most workers at 23,399.
• Microbusinesses dominate professional services and healthcare, composing roughly 75% of establishments. Meanwhile restaurants had the highest share of small businesses with 6-50 employees.
• Minority-owned small businesses are slightly more concentrated in firms with 1 to 9 employees. There may be barriers for small firms to grow at certain points in their development, including funding needs and operational challenges.
• In Portland MSA, women-owned businesses account for 41% of all firms. Women own a higher share of microbusinesses relative to larger businesses.