Press release
U.S. Small Business Employment and Revenue Declined in 2024 with Signs of Recovery, finds Intuit QuickBooks Small Business Annual Index Report
Higher Interest Rates & Access to Credit Impacted Small Business Growth MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Today, Intuit Inc. (Nasdaq: INTU), the
About this update from Intuit Inc.
[{"type":"text","content":"\nHigher Interest Rates & Access to Credit Impacted Small Business Growth\n\n\n MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--\nToday, Intuit Inc. (Nasdaq: INTU), the global financial technology platform that makes Intuit TurboTax, Credit Karma, QuickBooks, and Mailchimp, released the findings of its 2025 Intuit QuickBooks Small Business Index Annual Report. Developed in collaboration with leading global economist University of Chicago Professor Ufuk Akcigit and his co-authors, the report reveals how high interest rates were a growth inhibitor for small businesses as US small business employment experienced its largest year-over-year decline in 2024 since 2015, with the leisure and hospitality industries hardest hit.\n\n\nFresh Insights on US Small Businesses\n\n\nWhile overall employment is rising in the US, small business growth is lagging, indicating that jobs are moving from small businesses to larger businesses. The report found that small business employment declined by 51,200 jobs over the past 12 months while revenue declined by $11,850 per small business, on average. This was the largest year-over-year decline in employment since 2015 and the third consecutive year-over-year decline in revenue. And on an annual basis, all 12 sectors and four of the eight US regions the study covers show declining employment from October 2023 to October 2024.\n\n\nLooking more closely at the monthly data over that period, however, reveals that most of the job losses occurred between October 2023 and January 2024. Since then, the declines have generally slowed or even reversed—offsetting some of the earlier job losses. For example, while the construction sector lost 13,100 jobs at the end of 2023, it created 11,400 jobs at small businesses in 2024.\n\n\nOverall, small businesses grew more slowly after the spike in interest rates if they had less access to credit. Those that were hit the hardest had up to 30% lower revenue growth and 4% lower employment growth compared to other small businesses. Meanwhile, small businesses working with banks that were able to offer greater access to credit have been able to grow faster—at least in the short term. However, this may also carry longer-term risks, as this growing reliance on credit cards can significantly increase the cost of small business growth and debt repayments.\n\n\nRising Credit Card Usage C...