Comparable baseline
Nevada at a glance
| Population | 3,282,188 | July 1, 2025; +5.3% since 2020 |
|---|---|---|
| Business applications | 6,174 | July 2026, seasonally adjusted |
| Trailing-12-month applications | 69,034 | 2,103.3 per 100,000 residents |
| High-propensity applications | 1,523 | 24.7% of July applications |
| Projected employer formations | 305 | Census four-quarter projection for July's cohort |
| Small businesses | 353,621 | SBA 2025 profile; underlying employer and nonemployer data are from 2022 |
| Small-business employment | 578,767 | 45.0% of private employment in 2022 |
| Employer establishments | 77,297 | 2023 County Business Patterns |
Application rankings cover the 50 states and use unrounded figures. Applications are qualifying EIN filings, not confirmed business openings. Measurement years differ because federal datasets are released on different schedules.
Nevada’s statewide business figures are, to a remarkable degree, Clark County figures. The county contained 974,603 private employees in 2023 County Business Patterns—72.4% of the state total and the largest leading-county share among all 50 states.
Current business-application activity is also high relative to population, though it is not growing especially fast. Nevada recorded 6,174 seasonally adjusted applications in July 2026, ranking 31st by count but tenth at 188.1 applications per 100,000 residents. The trailing-year rate ranked eighth; trailing-year growth ranked 45th.
A top-ten rate with bottom-ten growth
Nevada recorded 69,034 applications during the 12 months ending July 2026, equal to 2,103.3 per 100,000 residents. The total increased 9.8% from the preceding 12 months. That is growth—not contraction—but 44 states grew faster.
July applications were 18.9% above July 2025 and 7.0% above June. The current July count was 109.4% above July 2019. The evidence supports a high application level and a slower recent rate of increase, not a current boom or collapse.
Nevada’s population reached 3,282,188 in July 2025, up 5.3% from the 2020 base and 12th-fastest nationally. Its high-propensity share and modeled formations per 100 applications both ranked near the middle despite the top-ten application rate.
Clark and Washoe account for 88% of measured employment
Nevada’s 2023 CBP data counted 77,297 employer establishments and 1,345,222 employees. Clark County alone held nearly three-quarters of those jobs. Washoe County added 209,307, or 15.6%, bringing the two counties’ combined share to 88.0%. Carson City held another 22,826, or 1.7%.
The top three county-equivalents accounted for 89.7% of measured employment, second only to Delaware in the 50-state comparison. State averages will often describe the Las Vegas and Reno areas far better than rural Nevada. County figures measure workplace jobs, not residents, headquarters, sales, or economic output, but the concentration is too large to ignore.
Accommodation and food services shape the employer mix
Accommodation and food services employed 314,186 people, or 23.4% of Nevada’s private CBP employment. That share was 2.24 times the 50-state share. Retail trade followed with 164,986 employees, and health care and social assistance with 150,070.
The sector concentration establishes Nevada’s unusual hospitality exposure without explaining recent application activity. It also does not mean every part of the state shares Clark County’s industry mix.
The SBA profile reports 353,621 small businesses from underlying 2022 data: 59,092 small employer firms and 294,529 nonemployer establishments. Nonemployers made up 83.3% of the count. Small firms employed 578,767 people, or 45.0% of private employment and rank 37.
Nevada’s official business path
- SilverFlume handles entity filings and the state business license; its New Business Checklist also routes local steps.
- The Department of Taxation explains how to register a business for applicable tax permits.
- The Department of Business and Industry maintains a licensing and permit directory and broader Business Resource Hub.
- The Nevada SBDC offers statewide no-cost, confidential advising.
The state portal is a useful starting point, but it does not make every county, city, or professional approval identical.
Source and calculation note
July figures use the seasonally adjusted July 2026 BFS release. The trailing-year total sums unadjusted applications from August 2025 through July 2026 and compares them with the preceding 12 months. Rates use Nevada’s July 1, 2025 population estimate; ranks compare 50 states using unrounded values. Small-business measures use 2022 SBA profile components, and county/industry employment uses 2023 CBP after excluding statewide and unclassified geography from concentration calculations. Sources were retrieved or checked September 3, 2026.