Money Makers - Best Metro Areas for Women-Owned Businesses

CoworkingCafe's latest analysis ranks the best U.S. metro areas for women-owned businesses, highlighting where female entrepreneurs have the strongest support systems and growth opportunities. For a fair comparison, the metros were split into three population brackets – large metros (over 1 million), mid-sized metros (500K–1M), and small metros (under 500K).

Our study analyzed over 200 metros across 14 metrics grouped into three main categories: women's entrepreneurship, economic context, and labor and talent pool, covering indicators from share of women-owned businesses and median earnings to coworking prices and educational attainment.

Women-owned businesses represent nearly 22.9% of U.S. firms, and the geography of women’s entrepreneurship is shifting quickly – with Southern and Sun Belt metros leading across all three size brackets, alongside strong growth and comparatively favorable cost conditions.

Key national benchmarks: median earnings for women are $42,361 (a 74.1% women-to-men pay ratio); the business formation rate is 1,529 per 100K population; 58.9% of women participate in the workforce; and the median coworking membership price is $224.

These are the top metros for women-owned businesses by population bracket:

• Large metros: Austin leads on women-owned business density (26% of firms), Denver tops the pack on women’s earning power ($53,602 median), and Raleigh stands out for population growth (11% population growth since 2020) – together showing that the best big-city ecosystems blend ownership, income potential, and fast-expanding demand.
• Mid-sized metros: Durham, NC, sets the bar for women founders with the highest women-owned business share (28%), Charleston, SC, boasts the strongest entrepreneurial churn (2,112 new businesses per 100K population), and Des Moines, IA, wins on affordability for building sustainably (regional price parity 91.7) – a trio that pairs equity and ownership with start-up energy and margin-friendly economics.
• Small metros: Naples, FL, dominates on entrepreneurial intensity (18% self-employment among population 16+ years), Savannah, GA, is the most accessible place to launch a business ($129/month coworking, lowest in the top five), and Crestview, FL delivers standout start-up activity (2,163 new businesses per 100K population) – highlighting how smaller metros can outperform when demand is rising and the cost of starting up stays low.

You can read the full study here: https://www.coworkingcafe.com/blog/best-places-for-women-owned-businesses/

CoworkingCafe, part of Yardi, is a global coworking and flexible workspace discovery platform, publishing original market research and analysis on coworking, office and remote work trends in the U.S. and UK.