Smallest Businesses Ignite Cobb County's Economy, Report Shows

Small businesses continue to be the engines that power Cobb County's economy, with businesses employing fewer than 10 people making up 74% of the county's overall business community.

Businesses with fewer than 10 employees are the engines that power Cobb County's economy and employment, a Census Report confirms.Photo byJennifer BonaueronUnsplash

That's from the latest data published by the US Census in the County Business Patterns report released in June 2024. Data included in the report is from 2022.

According to the Census Bureau report, Cobb County is home to approximately 22,150 businesses, including 16,300 small businesses which employ fewer than nine full-time employees. Both the total number of businesses and the total number of small businesses in Cobb County has grown since 2020, the data show.

Businesses employing between 10 and 100 people comprised the second largest group in Cobb County, totaling 5,268 businesses. A total of 553 businesses employed between 100 and 999 people, according to the report.

Only 28 business entities within Cobb County employed more than 1,000 people, the data show.

Overall, Cobb County businesses employed approximately 377,000 people, and paid out salaries totaling more than $27 billion for the reporting year.

Cobb County employees earned an average salary of $70,800, the Census data show. The highest average salaries paid in Cobb County were reported in five industry subsegments, including:

• $122,700, Management of Companies and Enterprises
• $115,600, Utilities
• $105,300, Information
• $105,100, Finance and Insurance
• $102,000, Mining, Quarrying, and Oil and Gas Extraction

Lodging and foodservice and retail trade businesses paid the lowest annual salaries in the county. Retail trade business salaries averaged $36,500, while lodging and foodservice salaries averaged $23,000.