Missouri Businesses by Size 2012

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by  Missouri Department of Economic Development, Missouri Economic Research and Information Center

2012 Missouri Businesses by Size
Number of Businesses by Size
Missouri reported 177,222 employers in 2012. Private
firms accounted for 94.4 percent of all employers, while
government accounted for the remaining 5.6 percent.
Very small businesses, those employing fewer than 10 em-
ployees, accounted for nearly 75 percent of Missouri estab-
lishments. Firms employing 1–50 employees make up nearly
94 percent of all businesses in Missouri.
Percentage of Employment by Number of Number of
Employees Businesses
Business Size
1-4 84,087
While small businesses make up the
5-9 28,489
majority of establishments in Missouri, they
10-19 21,008
do not account for the largest percentage 20-49 14,732
of employees. 28 percent of Missouri 50-99 5,562
workers are employed by medium-sized 100-249 2,869
250-499 741
businesses employing 10 to 49 workers.
500-99 256
Businesses with more than 250 workers also
1000+ 138
made up 28 percent of the state’s total em-
TOTAL 157,882
ployment.
100-249
1.8% 250+
< 10 50-99 0.7%
3.5%
250+ 13.4%
28.0%
10-49
28.0% 10-49
100-249 22.6%
16.3%
50-99
14.4%
< 10
71.3%
Department of Economic Development
Industry Highlights
In Missouri’s private sector, more than 16 percent of businesses are in the Other Services industry. Retail Trade makes
up 11.9 percent of the state’s businesses, while 9.9 percent are in the Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services
industry. By employment, however, Health Care and Social Assistance employs 16.3 percent of the state’s workforce,
with Retail Trade and Manufacturing employing 13.8 percent and 11.4 percent, respectively. The composition of
businesses and employment vary across industries.
Retail Trade
Small businesses make up the majority of Missouri’s Retail Trade industry, with nearly 66 percent of businesses
employing 10 or fewer employees. Further, only 5.7 percent of Missouri’s retail establishments employ more than 50
workers. However, retail employment is more equally divided among the establishment sizes, ranging between 13.7
and 33.6 percent of employment in each establishment size category.
2.1%
0.7%
3.0%
< 10 Employees
15.2% 17.0%
10-49 Employees
28.5%
19.8%
50-99 Employees
65.7%
100-249 Employees
33.6%
13.7%
250+ Employees
Businesses by Size Employees by Businesses by Size
Health Care and Social Assistance
More than 65 percent of Health Care and Social Assistance establishments employ less than 10 workers. These
establishments only accounted for 9.9 percent of the employment. While larger employers made up only 3.5 percent
of the establishments, they represent 55.1 percent of employment.
2.6% 0.9%
4.6%
< 10 Employees 9.9%
10-49 Employees
39.7%
26.7% 21.6%
50-99 Employees
65.3% 100-249 Employees
13.3%
250+ Employees 15.4%
Businesses by Size Employees by Businesses by Size
Wages by Business Size

The average wage in Missouri regardless of business size is
$42,686. Wages are highest at businesses that employ
more than 1,000 people with average wages equaling
$60,951, nearly 43% higher than average wages in the
state. Establishments that employ between 5-9 people have
the lowest average wage at $35,360.

The Missouri Economic Research and
Information Center (MERIC) monitors business
Average Wages by Business Size sizes through unemployment insurance
accounts established in the state. This allows
MERIC to gauge the number of businesses by
1000+ size, industry, and wages.
)
s
e
e
y 500-99 Business data is derived from the Quarterly
o
l
pm250-499 Census of Employment and Wages, a
e cooperative program between the Bureau of
fo100-249
r Labor Statistics and state labor market
e
bm 50-99 M information centers that monitors employing
un( e 20-49 issou businesses.
ziS 10-19 ri A Non-employer businesses, such as sole
ss ve proprietors, are monitored through a U.S.
e 5-9 ra
nis ge Census program that uses administrative data,
u
B 1-4 chiefly IRS returns, to develop statistics.
Non-employer businesses account for less
than 4 percent of all sales but do account for
the largest number of businesses. More
information is available at:
www.census.gov/econ/nonemployer/