Where should I open my next location?

Pick an industry and a state. We rank the top 25US counties by a composite "best to open here" score blending market opportunity, low saturation, county opportunity index, and low exclusion risk. Built from US Census County Business Patterns 2022, ACS 2023 5-year, and HHS-OIG LEIE + GSA SAM exclusion data.

Top 25 counties — Construction (all states)

#CountyStateCompositeMarketSaturationOpportunityRiskDrill in
1Harris CountyTX+3.40+10.45+0.58+0.29+0.13market · cities
2Cook CountyIL+3.20+9.41+0.19+0.96+0.55market · cities
3Johnson CountyKS+3.09+8.69+0.12+1.57+0.39market · cities
4Fairfax CountyVA+2.98+9.27+0.31+0.19+0.41market · cities
5Hennepin CountyMN+2.98+7.65+1.33+0.90+0.38market · cities
6Douglas CountyNE+2.90+7.94+0.47+0.92+0.96market · cities
7St. Louis CountyMO+2.85+7.81+0.38+1.20+0.59market · cities
8Polk CountyIA+2.80+7.97+0.57+1.14-0.35market · cities
9Fulton CountyGA+2.76+7.06+0.38+1.62+0.81market · cities
10Jefferson CountyKY+2.75+9.23-0.50+1.22-1.17market · cities
11Wake CountyNC+2.55+7.02-0.18+1.58+0.66market · cities
12Marion CountyIN+2.37+6.30+0.49+1.01+0.55market · cities
13Hamilton CountyIN+2.29+4.12+0.14+3.74+0.55market · cities
14Minnehaha CountySD+2.29+6.51+0.29+0.69+0.53market · cities
15Oakland CountyMI+2.25+5.76+0.34+1.37+0.53market · cities
16New York CountyNY+2.22+2.66+1.53+3.65+0.34market · cities
17Franklin CountyOH+2.18+5.67+0.76+1.27-0.46market · cities
18Mecklenburg CountyNC+2.14+5.58-0.05+1.53+0.66market · cities
19Ada CountyID+2.13+5.77+0.37+0.68+0.78market · cities
20Los Angeles CountyCA+2.04+5.91+0.76+0.06+0.16market · cities
21King CountyWA+2.04+5.51+0.43+0.60+0.72market · cities
22Cass CountyND+1.98+5.51-0.10+0.97+0.75market · cities
23Dallas CountyTX+1.90+5.68+0.37+0.29+0.13market · cities
24Milwaukee CountyWI+1.87+5.06+1.63-1.14+0.97market · cities
25Oklahoma CountyOK+1.84+6.06-0.71+1.68-1.25market · cities

Methodology

Each of the four component scores is z-scored within the county universe, then weighted and summed into a composite. Z-scoring puts every component on the same scale so the weights below mean what they say. Higher composite = better county to open in.

ComponentSourceWeightDirection
marketACS 2023 county population × median HH income (within-state z)30%higher is better
saturationCBP 2022 establishments per 1k population in this NAICS (within-state z, inverted)30%lower density = better
opportunityComposite county score from /tools/opportunity-index (within-state z)25%higher is better
riskState LEIE+SAM exclusions per 1k state establishments (across-state z, inverted)15%lower exclusion intensity = better

Notes

  • Within-state z-scoring for market, saturation, and opportunity is intentional: it lets a small-state county still rank near the top when the picker is set to "Any state." A nationwide z-score would crush every county outside CA/TX/FL/NY.
  • Risk is z-scored across states (no per-county exclusion data is publicly published). It is the weakest signal, so weighted lowest at 15%.
  • Missing component values are treated as a neutral z = 0 rather than penalized.
  • Scored tuples: 49,166 across 19 NAICS sectors and 51 states + DC.

For deeper drill-down: open a county row's /markets page for its full NAICS sector mix, or its /cities state page for nearby Census places.

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