2026 Chartbook on Nonemployer Firms (Federal Reserve Banks (Small Business Credit Survey))

Summary

• The 2025 Small Business Credit Survey yielded 11,552 responses: 6,525 from employer firms and 5,027 from nonemployer firms.p.3
• Nonemployer firms are less likely to be profitable than employer firms, but they are more optimistic about future revenue growth.p.6
• Nonemployer firms were more likely than employer firms to rely on owners' personal funds to address financial challenges (64% and 54%, respectively).p.6
• About half of nonemployer firms had no debt, and 31 percent reported that they did not regularly use external financing.p.6
• Nearly a third of nonemployer firms planned to add employees in the next 12 months.p.6

Key insights

1. The 2025 SBCS was fielded from September through November 2025 among firms with fewer than 500 employees.p.3
2. Nonemployer firms are defined as those with no paid employees except the owner(s).p.3
3. Employer firms are defined as those with 1-499 employees.p.3
4. The SBCS is not a random sample, so results should be analyzed with awareness of potential convenience-sample biases.p.3