Colorado · Economy & Workforce
Net Employer Business Formation in Colorado
Net new employer businesses as a share of existing stock; new businesses opened minus closures, scaled to state size.
0.6% in 2023
#36 of 50 · Bottom tier (higher is better)
Colorado is worse than the 50-state median (1.0%). That's a gap of 0.4%.
View interactive chart & trend → See full 50-state ranking →
1978 – 2023 · Colorado only · interactive chart with US median overlay →
About net employer business formation
What this measures: Net change in employer businesses (births minus closures) as a share of existing stock.
Why it matters: Net formation tells you whether a state's business base is growing or shrinking, beyond just the count of new firms.
Watch out: Can hide a lot of churn. A flat net number is consistent with high entry plus high exit.
Recent trend
| Year | Colorado | US median |
|---|---|---|
| 2014 | 2.1% | 0.7% |
| 2015 | 2.0% | 0.9% |
| 2016 | 2.8% | 1.5% |
| 2017 | 1.8% | 0.1% |
| 2018 | 1.4% | 0.2% |
| 2019 | 1.5% | 0.8% |
| 2020 | 0.6% | -0.0% |
| 2021 | 2.2% | 0.8% |
| 2022 | 1.5% | 1.7% |
| 2023 | 0.6% | 1.0% |
Colorado vs. neighboring states
Same metric (net employer business formation), latest year with full state coverage. Click any name for that state's full report.
| State | Net Employer Business Formation | National rank |
|---|---|---|
| Wyoming | 2.4% | #3 of 50 |
| Nebraska | 0.7% | #34 of 50 |
| Kansas | 0.9% | #30 of 50 |
| Oklahoma | 1.1% | #23 of 50 |
| New Mexico | 1.0% | #26 of 50 |
| Arizona | 2.2% | #6 of 50 |
How Colorado compares (2023)
Bottom 5
| #46 | Connecticut | 0.3% |
| #47 | Minnesota | 0.3% |
| #48 | New Hampshire | 0.3% |
| #49 | Iowa | 0.2% |
| #50 | Pennsylvania | 0.1% |
Source and methodology
Source: Census Business Dynamics Statistics · Direction: higher is better · Unit: %
Download raw CSV (all 50 states, all years)