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Visualized: How Many Businesses Survive 10 Years?
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Key Takeaways
- If 100 new U.S. businesses are born in a year, 20% will not survive till the second year.
- By the 10-year mark, only about one-third (35%) will survive.
AI is making it easier than ever to start a business, acting as idea generator, sales rep, and marketing director all in one.
But if you’re thinking of getting into the game, have a look at the data before making decisions.
We visualize how many U.S. businesses survive over a 10-year period. This data is sourced from LendingTree which analyzed Bureau of Labor Statistics data dating back to 2014.
U.S. Business Survival Rates
If 100 new U.S. businesses are born in a year, 20% will not survive till the second year.
| Time frame | % of Business That Survive |
% of Businesses That Fail |
|---|---|---|
| Year 0 | 100 | 0 |
| Year 1 | 78.5 | 21.5 |
| Year 2 | 65.1 | 34.9 |
| Year 3 | 59.2 | 40.8 |
| Year 4 | 57.3 | 42.7 |
| Year 5 | 51.6 | 48.4 |
| Year 6 | 47.5 | 52.5 |
| Year 7 | 43.2 | 56.8 |
| Year 8 | 39.9 | 60.1 |
| Year 9 | 37.4 | 62.6 |
| Year 10 | 34.9 | 65.1 |
Why is that first year so brutal?
In short, because it’s new for most of the people setting up a business. And a new business will not generate revenue (let alone profit) immediately.
Which means a new owner needs to retain emotional resilience while still maintaining long hours to grow sales, under the crushing pressure of financial insecurity.
This is a deadly cocktail: it can lead to self-doubt, and short-sighted decision making, creating more opportunities to fail.
And of course, the demands of running a business far outpace the demands of a regular 9–5 job. A skilled worker still needs to learn new roles for running a business (sales, marketing, leadership) all the while anticipating market needs and innovating as disruptions occur.
Interestingly, experience does pay. The rate of failure falls steadily as the years progress.
However, even then, only about one-third (35%) will survive to celebrate their first decade.
The Post-Pandemic Entrepreneur
Americans are in their entrepreneurship era, ever since the pandemic forced them to take stock of their life and gave them opportunities through digital markets.
New business applications are still way above pre-pandemic averages.
And as mentioned earlier, starting a business has never been easier with AI tools.
Keeping it going? That’s the real challenge.
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Want to stay in a regular 9–5? Check out, Ranked: America’s Best Places to Work in 2025 for the best environment.