Americans filed a record 4.9 million business applications in the first nine months of 2026, Census data show
US business applications reached 4.93 million from January to September 2026, up 15.3% on a year earlier and the most for that period on record, Census Bureau data show. September's 534,947 was up 4.4% year on year.
The story in focus
Americans filed 4,927,840 applications to start businesses in the first nine months of 2026, according to the Census Bureau's Business Formation Statistics, compiled in the CorporaWire US new business applications tracker. That is 15.3% more than in the same period of 2025 and the highest January-to-September total since the series began in 2004. Seasonally adjusted applications were 534,947 in September, up 4.4% from a year earlier, but the share of applications most likely to become employers has fallen to near a record low.
- Business applications totalled 4,927,840 from January to September 2026 (not seasonally adjusted), up 15.3% from 4,273,086 a year earlier and above the previous high for the period of 4,312,942 in 2021.
- Seasonally adjusted applications were 534,947 in September 2026, up 0.5% from August and 4.4% from September 2025; July's 576,264 was the highest monthly figure on record, and applications have topped 500,000 for six months in a row.
- High-propensity applications, those most likely to turn into businesses with payroll, rose only 4.7% in January to September, and made up 27.5% of all applications in September, against an average of 37.6% in 2019.
- Professional, scientific and technical services accounted for about a quarter of this year's increase, with 728,921 applications (+29.6%); Florida led the states with 577,694, and 48 of the 50 states recorded increases.
What the latest data show
The Census Bureau's Business Formation Statistics release of 14 October 2026 (CB26-163) put seasonally adjusted business applications at 534,947 in September, an increase of 0.5% from 532,051 in August. Compared with September 2025, when 512,569 applications were filed, the figure is 4.4% higher.
September was the sixth straight month above 500,000. Before September 2025, monthly applications had exceeded that level only twice, in July 2020 and May 2021, during the pandemic-era surge in new business filings. July 2026, at 576,264, is the highest monthly total since the series began in July 2004. The September level is about 82% above the 2019 monthly average of 293,134.
A record pace for the year
Without seasonal adjustment, Americans filed 4,927,840 business applications from January to September 2026, compared with 4,273,086 in the same months of 2025, an increase of 654,754 or 15.3%. The previous high for the first nine months of a year was 4,312,942, in 2021.
The full-year record is 5,671,836 applications, set in 2025. To beat it, 2026 needs 743,996 more applications in October to December, about half the 1,398,750 filed in the last three months of 2025.
Fewer of the new filings look like future employers
The Census Bureau classifies some applications as high-propensity, meaning they have characteristics, such as a corporate legal form, planned wages or certain industries, that make them more likely to become businesses with employees. These rose to 147,331 in September, up 1.3% on the month and 3.1% on the year. From January to September they totalled 1,386,358, up just 4.7%, while all other applications rose 20.1% to 3,541,482.
As a result, high-propensity applications made up 27.5% of all applications in September, close to the record low of 26.3% in July 2026 and well below the 2019 average of 37.6%. Applications from businesses planning to pay wages fell 2.8% from a year earlier to 35,786 in September, after dropping to 34,310 in August, the lowest since April 2020. Applications for corporations were down 6.3% on the year at 40,951.
The Census Bureau projects that 29,022 new businesses with payroll will emerge within four quarters from the September cohort of applications, up 1.4% from August and 4.3% from September 2025.
Professional services and Florida lead
By industry, professional, scientific and technical services had the largest increase. Applications in the sector rose 29.6% to 728,921 in the first nine months of 2026, adding 166,440, about a quarter of the national increase. Retail trade remained the largest sector, with 933,528 applications (+10.4%). Information rose fastest of any sector, up 39.8% to 116,919. Administrative and support services rose 21.4% to 356,589. Only agriculture (-2.6%) and utilities (-8.5%) declined.
Florida recorded the most applications, 577,694 (+15.7%), followed by California with 497,172 (+18.1%), Texas with 457,383 (+13.6%), New York with 255,797 (+12.0%) and Georgia with 224,142 (+16.1%). The fastest growth was in Alaska (+48.1%), Oklahoma (+35.4%) and Kentucky (+34.0%). Of the 50 states, only Washington (-18.8%) and Hawaii (-7.1%) recorded fewer applications than a year earlier; the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico both rose.
About the data
Business Formation Statistics count applications for an Employer Identification Number (EIN) filed with the IRS that indicate a new business, excluding those for tax liens, estates, trusts and some other non-business purposes. An application is not the same as a business start: many applicants, including freelancers and sole proprietors, never hire employees. The Census Bureau's projected business formations estimate how many applications will lead to a business with payroll. Monthly national figures are seasonally adjusted; year-to-date, industry and state totals in this article are not seasonally adjusted. Figures may be revised.
The CorporaWire US new business applications tracker publishes the national seasonally adjusted series since July 2004, updated daily from the official source, with a free CSV download and an embeddable chart. All 267 monthly values in the tracker matched the Census Bureau's bfs_monthly.csv file when checked on 27 October 2026; industry, state and high-propensity figures come directly from that file.
How many business applications were filed in the US in 2026?
Americans filed 4,927,840 business applications from January to September 2026, up 15.3% from a year earlier and the most for that period since Census Bureau records began in 2004. In September alone, seasonally adjusted applications were 534,947, up 4.4% from September 2025.
Sources & further reading
- Business Formation Statistics, September 2026 release CB26-163 (U.S. Census Bureau) ↗census.gov
- Business Formation Statistics by industry and state, bfs_monthly file (U.S. Census Bureau) ↗census.gov
- CorporaWire US new business applications tracker: monthly Census figures since 2004 ↗corporawire.com
- Seasonally adjusted national business applications, spreadsheet file ↗corporawire.com
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