Atlanta lands in top 5 of best cities for Black-owned businesses

Black business ownership has grown significantly in the last several years.

Data from the U.S. Census Bureau and the 2007 and 2012 Survey of Business Owners show that there are over 2.6 million Black-owned companies in the United States.

Although such businesses are widespread, a new report shows that some cities provide better options for Black-owned businesses than others.

Career-resource website Overheard on Conference Calls evaluated which cities have the most successful Black-owned businesses. The results were compiled after analyzing 124 cities throughout the nation on seven different metrics, including the percentage of Black-owned businesses, the average pay for employees, annual revenue of Black-owned businesses and the local unemployment rate.

Metrics were weighted on a 10-point scale according to their importance to remote workers.

“After analyzing the data, we compiled the city’s weighted average across all metrics to calculate its overall score,” Overheard on Conference Calls explained in its methodology. “Those scores were used to rank-order our sample with a total score of 110. A score of 110 would be a city where Black-owned businesses are completely thriving.”

Sources used were the Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Census Bureau’s Annual Business Survey, Census Bureau’s Statistics of U.S. Businesses and the Census Bureau’s American Community Survey.

Atlanta landed at No. 5 on the website’s list.

Georgia’s capital city, like others in the top five, has a high percentage of Black-owned businesses — nearly 30% — that aided in it securing a score of 56.7. Atlanta and the metro area, which includes Sandy Springs and Roswell, has 98 companies per capita and an average of 15 employees at each Black-owned company. Employees’ average pay is $27,927 each and Black-owned companies generate $39,826 in average annual revenue.

The Big Peach wasn’t the only Georgia city that made it onto the list. Savannah and its metro area came in at No. 20 with a total score of 45.3. Savannah’s businesses are 23% Black-owned and the city has a 5.6 unemployment rate.

The Best Cities for Black-Owned Businesses in 2021