About the Biz2Credit Women-Owned Business Study
Biz2Credit's 2023 Women-Owned Business Study is an annual review of the financial performance of women-owned small to midsized companies in the United States. The Study reviews over a hundred thousand credit inquiries and applications from small to midsized businesses across the country for the full prior year (2022). Results from the study are a trusted source of insight on the performance of women-owned private companies over the past 12 months. The Study is frequently cited in major publications covering finance and the American economy.
Executive Summary
The annual Biz2Credit Women-Owned Business Study found that revenues and earnings rose while expenses dropped for women-owned businesses in 2022; Texas, Georgia, and Florida are the top states for loan requests from women-owned companies.
Women-owned businesses' average earnings* increased by 27% (from $45,295 in 2021 to $57,712 in 2022), while average earnings for men-owned businesses increased by 22% (from $88,328 in 2021 to $108,067 in 2022).
The analysis also revealed that the average credit score** (587) of women business owners was consistent with last year's credit score (588), 23 points lower than the average score of men business owners (610), and 12 points lower than overall industries' average score (599).
In 2022, Biz2Credit received higher revenue applications from overall businesses compared to 2021. Year over year, the analysis shows a 2% increase in overall annual revenue and a 3% decline in operating expenses.
*Average earnings is calculated by annual revenue minus operating expenses
**Average credit score is derived from the personal FICO credit score of business owners.
OVERALL GROWTH OF WOMEN BUSINESSES
According to the National Women's Business Council's (NWBC) 2022 Annual Report, women-owned firms contribute greatly to entrepreneurship in the United States. The most recent statistics (2019) stated that 1.2 millions of all enterprises with workers are owned and operated by women. In contrast to the 5.2% growth rate for enterprises owned by men, women-owned companies saw a 16.7% growth between 2012 and 2019.
Women-owned businesses had an estimated $1.9 trillion in receipts, 10.9 million employees, and $432.1 billion in annual payroll according to Census Bureau (Nov. 2022).
Source: Census Bureau, NWBC
Women-owned businesses did very well in 2022. Their earnings rose by 27%, which is higher than male-owned firm's growth from over the year prior. We saw growth among women-owned companies in sectors including Manufacturing, IT, Retail, Accommodation and Food, and Healthcare. 
Rohit Arora
CEO & Co-Founder Of Biz2credit
KEY FINDINGS: BUSINESS PERFORMANCE FOR WOMEN-OWNED BUSINESS
Average annual revenue for women-owned businesses increased by 2%, i.e. from $258,590 in 2021 to $263,091 in 2022.
Average earnings (Annual Revenue - Operating Expenses) of women-owned business has increased by 27%, i.e., from $45,295 in 2021 to $57,712 in 2022. This significant jump is due to a 2% increase in overall annual revenue and a 4% decline in operating expenses.
Average credit score for women-owned businesses remained consistent, from 588 in 2021 to 587 in 2022.
Texas was the state with the most business loan applications originations (10.3%) for women-owned businesses, same as last year.
Top Industry: Services (except Public Administration) is the largest category of businesses represented, with nearly 28.9% of the women-owned companies classifying as this industry in the Biz2Credit study.
The funding acceptance rate was close between men-owned businesses (37%) and women-owned business (41%).
COMPARISON: WOMEN-OWNED BUSINESSES VS MEN-OWNED BUSINESSES
Average credit score for women business owners remained consistent YoY, but 23 points lower than men business owners in 2022.
Average age of business (in months) for women-owned businesses decreased by 2 months YoY, and 9 months lower than men-owned businesses in 2022.
Women-owned businesses revenue ($263,091) was 44% less than for men-owned businesses ($469,372) in 2022. Men-owned businesses outperformed women-owned across all 3 categories, which followed the same trend YoY.
WOMEN-OWNED VS MEN-OWNED BUSINESSES AVERAGE EARNINGS
Average earnings (Annual Revenue - Operating Expenses) of women-owned business increased by 27% YoY, outpacing men-owned business which saw an increase of 22%.
Average annual revenue of women-owned business increased by 2%, i.e., $263,091 in 2022 from $258,590 in 2021, similar to men-owned business which also saw an increase of 2%.
Average operating expenses of women-owned business decreased by 4%, i.e., $205,378 in 2022 from $213,296 in 2021, outperforming men-owned business which saw a decrease of only 3%.
WOMEN-OWNED BUSINESSES VS. MEN-OWNED BUSINESSES (YEAR-OVER-YEAR COMPARISONS)
On average, women-owned businesses and men-owned businesses both saw annual revenue increase by 2%. However, women-owned businesses saw a 5% greater increase in average earnings and a 1% greater decline in operating expenses than men-owned businesses.
| Key Categories | Women YoY Difference | Men YoY Difference |
|---|---|---|
| Average Annual Revenue | +2% | +2% |
| Average Operating Expenses | -4% | -3% |
| Average Earnings | +27% | +22% |
| Average Credit Score (in points) | -1 pt | -2 pts |
| Average Age of business (in Months) | -2 mo. | -2 mo. |
Source: Biz2Credit Women-Owned Business Study for 2021-2022
Jonathan Sprout is a woman-owned business in a male-dominated industry. I have found, thankfully, that the women who came before me and paved the way made it so that it is not as difficult as one might imagine. And, if there are any difficulties, I don't let it hold me back.
Elizabeth Riley,
CEO of Jonathan Sprouts, inc.
WOMEN-OWNED VS MEN-OWNED BUSINESS FINANCING APPLICATIONS IN 2022
The ratio of applications for financing from women-owned businesses fell by 7% in 2022 (37%) versus 2021 (44%), and the gap of submitted applications between women-owned and men-owned company owners widened year over year.
FUNDING RATE FOR WOMEN-OWNED COMPANIES VS MEN-OWNED COMPANIES
The funding rate* was slightly higher for womenowned business applicants (41%) vs. men-owned business applicants (37%), indicating that women were more likely to take funding compared to men.
Average funding size for women-owned companies was $55,898, vs. $93,976 for men-owned companies in 2022. This could be due to many factors, including but not limited to, the age of the business, industry type, the size of business in revenue, and past funding history.
*Funding Rate is the number of funded application divided by the number of approved applications
TOP 5 STATES FOR LOAN ORIGINATIONS
Texas had the highest rate (10.3%) of women-owned applicants in the nation, followed by Georgia (9.0%), Florida (9.0%), California (8.5%), and Illinois (5.0%) in 2022. These rates measure the oncentration of applications received by women-owned and men-owned businesses in each state relative to the national total.
WOMEN-OWNED LOAN ORIGINATION BY INDUSTRIES
Services (except Public Administration) is the largest industry category represented by women-owned companies (28.9%) in the Biz2Credit study. The industries that followed were Retail Trade (16.5%) Accommodation and Food Services (8.9%), Healthcare and Social Assistance (7.2%), Arts, Entertainment, and Recreation (6.1%), Transportation and Warehousing (6.0%), Construction (4.6%), Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services (4.3%), Real Estate and Rental Leasing (4.3%) and Educational Service (2.9%) in 2022.
Industry Category Source: 2022 NAICS Manual https://www.census.gov/naics/
ASSOCIATION OF WOMEN'S BUSINESS CENTERS (AWBC)
Biz2Credit partnered with the Association of Women's Business Centers, which works to secure economic justice and entrepreneurial opportunities by supporting and sustaining a national network of 150 Women's Business Centers (WBC). This robust network helps women succeed by providing training, mentoring, business development, and financing opportunities to over 150,000 women entrepreneurs each year.
In 2022, AWBC's SBA-funded WBC locations served more than 85,000 clients, helped start more than 3,000 firms, and helped clients access a record $1 billion in capital.
Women's Business Centers have expanded, now reaching into every state to assist women to access networks and funding for their businesses. The work has gotten tougher compared to recent years,
The national network of nearly 150 Women's Business Centers is seeing more business starts but also greater challenges accessing opportunities and funding to help them grow and succeed.
Corinne Goble, CEO of AWBC
(Association of Women's Business Centers)
About Biz2Credit
About Biz2Credit Founded in 2007, Biz2Credit has arranged more than $7 billion in small business financing and has several times been named to Crain's New York's Fast 50 and was recently ranked among the top 200 fast-growing companies on Deloitte's 2022 Technology Fast 500. Biz2Credit is expanding its industry-leading technology in custom digital platform solutions for leading banks and other financial institutions, investors and service providers in the U.S.
