Counts of Australian Businesses, including Entries and Exits

Latest release

Counts of actively trading businesses, rates of entry to and exit from the market sector of the economy, and rates of business survival

Reference period

July 2019 - June 2023

Released

22/08/2023

Next release 27/08/2024

Key statistics

At 30 June 2023 there were 2,589,873 actively trading businesses in the Australian economy.

In 2022-23 there was a:

2.0% or 50,149 increase in the number of businesses
16.0% entry rate, with 406,365 entries
14.0% exit rate, with 356,216 exits

Entries and exits

The number of actively trading businesses in this release differs from the total number of entities with an Australian Business Number (ABN).

A table of the conceptual and practical basis of counts is published in the Methodology publication detailing how these counts differ.

Business entries and exits, 2019-20 to 2022-23, Australia
	Entries	Exits	Net change
2019-20	336,499	-291,049	45,450
2020-21	365,480	-277,674	87,806
2021-22	442,555	-305,085	137,470
2022-23	406,365	-356,216	50,149

Business entries and exits, 2019-20 to 2022-23, Australia

["","Entries","Exits","Net change"]

[["2019-20","2020-21","2021-22","2022-23"],[[336499],[365480],[442555],[406365]],[[-291049],[-277674],[-305085],[-356216]],[[45450],[87806],[137470],[50149]]]

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Industry

In 2022-23 the three industries with the largest percentage increase in businesses were:

Health Care and Social Assistance (increase of 6.7% to 185,260 businesses)
Transport, Postal and Warehousing (increase of 4.2% to 218,662 businesses)
Electricity, Gas, Water and Waste Services (increase of 2.9% to 8,582 businesses)

The industries with the largest percentage decrease in businesses in 2022-23 were:

Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing (decrease of 0.4% to 174,471 businesses)
Accommodation and Food Services (decrease of 0.2% to 110,175 businesses)

Annual percent change in businesses by industry division, 2022-23
	Annual percent change
Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing	-0.4
Mining	1.1
Manufacturing	0.7
Electricity, Gas, Water and Waste Services	2.9
Construction	2
Wholesale Trade	0.1
Retail Trade	-0.2
Accommodation and Food Services	-0.2
Transport, Postal and Warehousing	4.2
Information Media and Telecommunications	0.2
Financial and Insurance Services	2.8
Rental, Hiring and Real Estate Services	1.5
Professional, Scientific and Technical Services	1.9
Administrative and Support Services	2.6
Public Administration and Safety	0.5
Education and Training	1.1
Health Care and Social Assistance	6.7
Arts and Recreation Services	2.8
Other Services	2.2

Annual percent change in businesses by industry division, 2022-23

["","Annual percent change"]

[["Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing","Mining","Manufacturing","Electricity, Gas, Water and Waste Services","Construction","Wholesale Trade","Retail Trade","Accommodation and Food Services","Transport, Postal and Warehousing","Information Media and Telecommunications","Financial and Insurance Services","Rental, Hiring and Real Estate Services","Professional, Scientific and Technical Services","Administrative and Support Services","Public Administration and Safety","Education and Training","Health Care and Social Assistance","Arts and Recreation Services","Other Services"],[[-0.40000000000000002],[1.1000000000000001],[0.69999999999999996],[2.8999999999999999],[2],[0.10000000000000001],[-0.20000000000000001],[-0.20000000000000001],[4.2000000000000002],[0.20000000000000001],[2.7999999999999998],[1.5],[1.8999999999999999],[2.6000000000000001],[0.5],[1.1000000000000001],[6.7000000000000002],[2.7999999999999998],[2.2000000000000002]]]

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States and territories

In 2022-23 there was a:

16,385 increase in the number of businesses in New South Wales, the largest net increase in any state/territory
14,662 increase in the number of businesses in Queensland
1,311 increase in Australian Capital Territory, with the largest percentage increase at 3.9%

All states and territories showed a growth in business counts.

Institutional sector

In 2022-23 there was a:

5.1% (4,659) increase in financial corporations to a total of 96,082 businesses
3.3% (35,104) increase in non-financial corporations to a total of 1,109,777 businesses
0.8% (10,378) increase in households to a total of 1,381,741 businesses

Households accounted for 53.4% of all businesses, the largest of any institutional sector.

Type of legal organisation

In 2022-23 total companies showed the largest net growth among types of legal organisations, showing a 4.0% (42,246) increase in 1,094,465 businesses in total, with 137,164 entries.

There was also a:

3.8% (8,790) decrease in partnerships to 223,048 total
2.2% (16,711) increase in sole proprietors to 784,744 total

Employment size

In 2022-23 the number of non-employing businesses increased by 4.2% (64,265), with a net movement of 35,509 surviving businesses from employing to non-employing.

There was also a:

8.8% (5,221) increase in businesses with 20-199 employees to 64,559 total
8.0% (362) increase in businesses with 200+ employees to 4,895 total
3.3% (23,990) decrease in businesses with 1-4 employees to 703,467 total

Annual percent change in businesses by employment size range, 2022-23
	Annual percent change
Non–employing	4.2
1–4 employees	-3.3
5–19 employees	1.9
20–199 employees	8.8
200+ employees	8

Annual percent change in businesses by employment size range, 2022-23

["","Annual percent change"]

[["Non\u2013employing","1\u20134 employees","5\u201319 employees","20\u2013199 employees","200+ employees"],[[4.2000000000000002],[-3.2999999999999998],[1.8999999999999999],[8.8000000000000007],[8]]]

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Turnover size

In 2022-23:

91.9% of businesses had turnover of less than $2 million
24.7% of businesses had turnover of less than $50,000
Businesses with turnover of $2m or more increased by 9.9% (18,876 businesses)
There was a large net movement of surviving businesses into the upper turnover size ranges, with surviving businesses having a turnover at or above $200,000, increasing by 53,271
The $10 million or more turnover size range showed the largest percentage change, increasing by 12.1%, driven largely by the movement of 7,017 businesses out of the $5m to less than $10m turnover size range

Interactive map

Interactive map - Count of Australian businesses including entries and exits, July 2019 – June 2023

How to use

Use the headings under the main title to navigate to a topic and then use the buttons on the left to view different subsets of the data.
If viewing on a mobile device or small screen the buttons to switch between data subsets may move to below the map.
Click on a region of interest to view data about that region.
To search, click on the magnifying glass to open the search function. You can search for addresses, suburbs, and postcodes.

Geographic areas

The boundaries used in the interactive map are:

Statistical Area Level 2 (SA2) 2021, ASGS Edition 3 Main Structure boundaries according to the Australian Statistical Geography Standard (ASGS) Edition 3
Local Government Area (LGA) 2021, ASGS Edition 3 Non-ABS Structures boundaries according to the Australian Statistical Geography Standard (ASGS): July 2023

Map data

The data displayed in the interactive map can be accessed from the Data downloads section below.

Quarterly experimental counts

In the March quarter 2024 there was a:

1.0%, or 26,017 increase in the number of businesses
4.2% entry rate, with 110,368 entries
3.2% exit rate, with 84,351 exits
1.6% (25,143) increase in non-employing businesses and 0.1% (874) increase in employing businesses

For more information on the methodological differences between the quarterly and annual counts, see the Technical note.

Business entries and exits, June quarter 2020 to March quarter 2024, Australia
	Entries	Exits	Net change
Jun-20	97,021	-66,534	30,487
Sep-20	116,148	-80,992	35,156
Dec-20	101,445	-105,730	-4,285
Mar-21	96,278	-73,089	23,189
Jun-21	107,206	-72,941	34,265
Sep-21	152,194	-109,482	42,712
Dec-21	125,083	-116,438	8,645
Mar-22	119,038	-76,510	42,528
Jun-22	121,965	-78,380	43,585
Sep-22	132,626	-110,853	21,773
Dec-22	116,297	-140,921	-24,624
Mar-23	106,401	-92,537	13,864
Jun-23	122,749	-83,613	39,136
Sep-23	141,964	-114,171	27,793
Dec-23	131,280	-137,846	-6,566
Mar-24	110,368	-84,351	26,017

Business entries and exits, June quarter 2020 to March quarter 2024, Australia

["","Entries","Exits","Net change"]

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Industry subdivision

In the March quarter 2024, the subdivisions with the largest quarterly net increase in businesses were:

Transport Support Services (2,667 businesses or 4.0%)
Medical and Other Health Care Services (2,651 businesses or 1.7%)

The subdivisions with the largest quarterly net decrease in businesses were:

Agriculture (151 businesses or 0.1%)
Grocery, Liquor and Tobacco Product Wholesaling (88 businesses or 0.7%)
Other Goods Wholesaling (67 businesses or 0.4%)

Seasonally adjusted data

There is a strong seasonal pattern in the counts of Total Businesses, Business Entries and Business Exits. To assist in distinguishing between short-term trends and the seasonal patterns, seasonally adjusted counts have been prepared for these headline figures. For more information, see the Methodology.

In the March 2024 quarter, in seasonally adjusted terms, there was a:

0.8%, or 21,755, increase in the number of businesses
4.6% entry rate, with 123,352 entries
3.8% exit rate, with 100,164 exits

Count of total businesses, March 2013 to March 2024, Australia
	Original	Seasonally Adjusted
Mar-13	1,990,082	1,997,330
Jun-13	2,002,577	1,999,858
Sep-13	2,008,431	1,995,589
Dec-13	1,991,609	1,999,878
Mar-14	1,997,550	2,004,905
Jun-14	2,017,609	2,014,987
Sep-14	2,023,188	2,010,018
Dec-14	2,010,857	2,019,207
Mar-15	2,017,669	2,025,245
Jun-15	2,031,438	2,029,026
Sep-15	2,051,643	2,037,756
Dec-15	2,040,311	2,048,934
Mar-16	2,055,267	2,063,231
Jun-16	2,076,090	2,073,773
Sep-16	2,102,907	2,088,045
Dec-16	2,093,821	2,102,933
Mar-17	2,107,771	2,116,225
Jun-17	2,137,796	2,135,412
Sep-17	2,174,845	2,158,953
Dec-17	2,163,812	2,173,502
Mar-18	2,179,779	2,188,812
Jun-18	2,208,447	2,205,743
Sep-18	2,238,120	2,221,591
Dec-18	2,224,064	2,234,265
Mar-19	2,241,846	2,251,223
Jun-19	2,268,998	2,265,948
Sep-19	2,292,270	2,275,353
Dec-19	2,272,269	2,282,974
Mar-20	2,283,961	2,293,467
Jun-20	2,314,448	2,310,896
Sep-20	2,349,085	2,332,105
Dec-20	2,344,800	2,356,067
Mar-21	2,367,989	2,377,577
Jun-21	2,402,254	2,398,250
Sep-21	2,444,966	2,427,707
Dec-21	2,453,611	2,465,672
Mar-22	2,496,139	2,505,777
Jun-22	2,539,724	2,535,215
Sep-22	2,561,497	2,543,937
Dec-22	2,536,873	2,549,573
Mar-23	2,550,737	2,560,010
Jun-23	2,589,873	2,585,277
Sep-23	2,617,666	2,599,923
Dec-23	2,611,100	2,624,496
Mar-24	2,637,117	2,646,251

Count of total businesses, March 2013 to March 2024, Australia

["","Original","Seasonally Adjusted"]

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Count of businesses, entries and exits, December 2023 and March 2024, Australia
	Dec-23	Change (%)	Mar-24	Change (%)
Original
Total Businesses	2,611,100	-0.2	2,637,117	1
Business Entries	131,280	5	110,368	4.2
Business Exits	137,846	5.3	84,351	3.2
Seasonally Adjusted
Total Businesses	2,624,496	0.9	2,646,251	0.8
Business Entries	131,037	5	123,352	4.7
Business Exits	104,672	4	100,164	3.8

Trend estimates are not calculated for these series as they require the irregular component to be accounted for and this cannot be accurately estimated.

Data downloads

Download all (28.12 MB)

Annual data cubes

Data cube 1 tables 1-16 are released in August.

Data cube 1 tables 17-20 and data cubes 2-11 are released in December.

Data files

Data cube 1: Tables 1-20 of counts of Australian businesses, including entries and exits
Download xlsx [232.54 KB]
Data cube 2: Businesses by main state by industry class by employment size ranges
Download xlsx [2.05 MB]
Data cube 3: Businesses by main state by industry class by turnover size ranges
Download xlsx [2.49 MB]
Data cube 4: Survival of businesses by main state by subdivision by employment size ranges
Download xlsx [419.47 KB]
Data cube 5: Survival of entries by main state by subdivision by employment size ranges
Download xlsx [329.92 KB]
Data cube 6: Survival of businesses by main state by subdivision by turnover size ranges
Download xlsx [434.7 KB]
Data cube 7: Survival of entries by main state by subdivision by turnover size ranges
Download xlsx [469.68 KB]
Data cube 8: Businesses by industry division by Statistical Area Level 2 by employment size ranges
Download xlsx [11.22 MB]
Data cube 9: Businesses by industry division by Statistical Area Level 2 by turnover size ranges
Download xlsx [7.92 MB]
Data cube 10: Businesses by industry division by Local Government Area (LGA) by employment size ranges
Download xlsx [2.27 MB]
Data cube 11: Businesses by industry division by Local Government Area (LGA) by turnover size ranges
Download xlsx [2.35 MB]

Download all (395.06 KB)

Quarterly data cubes

Quarterly and seasonally adjusted data is released in February, May, August and December.

Data files

Data cube 12: Quarterly Counts of Australian Businesses, entries and exits, experimental estimates
Download xlsx [380.04 KB]
Data cube 13: Counts of Australian Businesses, including Entries and Exits, time series and seasonally adjusted
Download xlsx [49.3 KB]

Revision of 2021-22 data

Unusual reporting of some units during the COVID-19 pandemic and impacts of the ATO-led Operation Protego led the ABS to conclude that a number of units did not engage in any meaningful economic activity as per ABS definition of a business for the purpose of the CABEE publication in the 2021-22 reference year.

The total counts of businesses for the 2021-22 financial year have been revised in the relevant data cubes and will not align if compared to a previous release.

Please refer to the Technical Note in the Methodology for further information.

Post-release changes

07 May 2024 - March quarterly data are also being released today.

13 February 2024 - December 2023 quarterly data are being released today.

19 December 2023 - Datacube 9 was re-released to correct an error. This error was exclusive to this datacube. No other datacubes have been affected.

18 December 2023 - Datacubes 2-11 and tables 17-20 in datacube 1 as well as September 2023 quarterly data are being released today.

Methodology

Scope

All actively trading businesses in the Australian market sector

Excluding:

Reserve Bank of Australia
General Government
Non-Profit Institutions Serving Households

Geography

Data available for:

Australia
States and Territories
Statistical Area Level 2 (SA2)
Local Government Area (LGA)

Source

Australian Bureau of Statistics Business Register (ABSBR)

Collection method

Administrative data collected quarterly or annually for Australian Business Number (ABN) registrations recorded in the Australian Business Register (ABR), and business data from the Australian Tax Office (ATO)

Concepts, sources and methods

Classifications used to compile the data:

History of changes

Since the 2020-21 release, ANZSIC class 6330 (superannuation funds) has been removed from scope

Full history of changes

View full methodology

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APA

Counts of Australian Businesses, including Entries and Exits

APA

Key statistics

Entries and exits

Industry

States and territories

Institutional sector

Type of legal organisation

Employment size

Turnover size

Interactive map

How to use

Geographic areas

Map data

Quarterly experimental counts

Industry subdivision

Seasonally adjusted data

Data downloads

Annual data cubes

Data cube 1: Tables 1-20 of counts of Australian businesses, including entries and exits

Data cube 2: Businesses by main state by industry class by employment size ranges

Data cube 3: Businesses by main state by industry class by turnover size ranges

Data cube 4: Survival of businesses by main state by subdivision by employment size ranges

Data cube 5: Survival of entries by main state by subdivision by employment size ranges

Data cube 6: Survival of businesses by main state by subdivision by turnover size ranges

Data cube 7: Survival of entries by main state by subdivision by turnover size ranges

Data cube 8: Businesses by industry division by Statistical Area Level 2 by employment size ranges

Data cube 9: Businesses by industry division by Statistical Area Level 2 by turnover size ranges

Data cube 10: Businesses by industry division by Local Government Area (LGA) by employment size ranges

Data cube 11: Businesses by industry division by Local Government Area (LGA) by turnover size ranges

Quarterly data cubes

Data cube 12: Quarterly Counts of Australian Businesses, entries and exits, experimental estimates

Data cube 13: Counts of Australian Businesses, including Entries and Exits, time series and seasonally adjusted

Revision of 2021-22 data

Post-release changes

Methodology

Scope

Geography

Source

Collection method

Concepts, sources and methods

History of changes

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Request data

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