Virginia is among the best states in the country to start a business, while Maryland sits in the back of the pack.
That’s according to a new study from personal finance website GoBankingRates.com, which gauged the strength of small businesses and startups and the favorability of each state’s business climate to establish its new rankings.
The big difference between our two local states: New businesses in Virginia have a much greater chance at survival, according to the report.
GoBankingRates analyzed the following factors: startup activity (based on the rate of new entrepreneurs, opportunity share of new entrepreneurs and density of startups), business survival rate (based on the ratio of business creations to closings), productivity based on per capita GDP, availability of employees, education level of potential employees, business tax climate and cost of living.
Virginia placed No. 9 overall, while Maryland was at No. 45. The District was not included in the rankings.
Maryland was docked points for its “small percentage of workers available for new businesses,” as well as its high cost of living. The Old Line State also scored the nation’s third-worst business survival score, according to the study.