Updated October 13, 2026
South Carolina had 530,402 small businesses in 2022, which is 99.4% of all businesses in the state, and they employed 863,326 people, or 42.9% of the state's employees. BizBuySell's published tables do not include a metro area centered in South Carolina, so this page has no sale-price figures.
South Carolina had 530,402 small businesses in 2022, which is 99.4% of all businesses in the state.
| Measure | Figure | Data year |
|---|---|---|
| Small businesses | 530,402 (99.4% of all businesses) | 2022 |
| Small businesses without employees | 440,037 | 2022 |
| Employers with 1 to 19 employees | 79,440 | 2022 |
| Employers with 20 to 499 employees | 10,925 | 2022 |
| Small business employees | 863,326 (42.9% of state employees) | 2022 |
| Establishments opened, all businesses | 20,541 | March 2023 to March 2024 |
| Establishments closed, all businesses | 17,427 | March 2023 to March 2024 |
| Openings by small businesses | 19,401 | March 2023 to March 2024 |
| Closings by small businesses | 16,287 | March 2023 to March 2024 |
| Net job change, all businesses | +35,780 | March 2023 to March 2024 |
| Net job change, small businesses | +25,358 (70.9% of the net change) | March 2023 to March 2024 |
| Female-owned businesses | 220,824 (46.3%) | 2022 |
| Veteran-owned businesses | 39,059 (8.4%) | 2022 |
Source: SBA Office of Advocacy, South Carolina 2025 Small Business Profile. Business counts and owner demographics are Census data. Opening, closing, and job figures are Bureau of Labor Statistics data. Small businesses are firms with fewer than 500 employees.
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The SBA Office of Advocacy counted 530,402 small businesses in South Carolina in 2022, which is 99.4% of all businesses in the state. Of these, 90,365 had employees.
Small businesses in South Carolina employed 863,326 people in 2022, which is 42.9% of the state's employees, according to the SBA Office of Advocacy.
Between March 2023 and March 2024, 20,541 establishments opened and 17,427 closed in South Carolina. Small businesses accounted for 19,401 of the openings and 16,287 of the closings.
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This page is informational. It is not an appraisal, an offer, or a prediction of what any business will sell for. Figures come from the sources listed and may change when those sources are updated.
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