Florida New Business Formation Report: June 2026

Calhoun County posted a 60.0% month over month gain, rising to 16 formations from 10, the largest percentage increase among northwest counties. Walton County, home to the 30A beaches, added 11.3% to reach 266. The bigger story sat at the top of the region. Leon County (Tallahassee) grew 4.9% to 573 and passed Escambia County (Pensacola), which fell 4.7% to 546. The two anchor counties swapped ranks from May. Wakulla County, just south of the capital, logged 11 formations, more than double its recent monthly pace.

Northwest Florida recorded 2,922 new business formations in June 2026, up 12.0% from the 2,609 filed in June 2025. That year over year gain ran ahead of the statewide rate of 10.0%. Month over month the region slipped 1.5% from May's 2,967, a touch softer than the state, which eased 0.4%. The region holds about 3.2% of all Florida formations, one of the smaller shares among the state's seven regions. Its yearly growth is the clearer read here, and it points up.

Leon County, home to Tallahassee and state government, led the region with 573 formations, up 4.9% from May. Escambia County, anchored by Pensacola, came in second at 546, down 4.7%. The two counties traded places from the prior month. Okaloosa County, which includes Fort Walton Beach and Destin, held flat at 491, a single filing above May. Walton County, home to the 30A beach towns, rose 11.3% to 266.

Professional, scientific and technical services led the region's industries with 388 new businesses. This group covers firms like consultants, engineers, lawyers and accountants. Other services followed at 346, a category that holds repair shops, personal care businesses and civic groups. Construction placed third at 313. Real estate and rental and leasing and administrative and support services tied at 266 each. The mix reflects the region's two engines. One is a government and professional core around Tallahassee. The other is a building and property sector along the Emerald Coast.

The rural interior produced the sharpest percentage move. Calhoun County jumped from 10 formations in May to 16 in June, a 60.0% gain and the largest in the region. These are small counts, so one busy month swings the rate. Wakulla County, just south of Tallahassee, logged 11 formations, more than double its recent monthly pace. Along the coast, Walton County's 11.3% rise stood out among the larger Panhandle counties. Public money is flowing into the western Panhandle. Triumph Gulf Coast advanced up to $76 million in January for a shipbuilding plant at the Port of Pensacola in Escambia County, and its board granted a second approval on June 22, 2026.

The region's formation base is structurally smaller than South Florida's high volume markets, so its counts move in the hundreds, not the thousands. Even so, the 12.0% year over year gain outpaced the state and every other region except Tampa Bay. Much of Escambia County's near term growth is tied to defense and maritime work at the Port of Pensacola, where the shipbuilding grant cleared a second review in June. That kind of project builds over years. Its effect on monthly formation counts will show up slowly, not in one month.

Emerging counties: Calhoun (+60%), Walton (+11.3%).

North Central Florida held exactly even with May at 1,753 formations, a 0.0% change. It was the only one of Florida's seven named regions that did not lose ground month over month, while every other region fell between 1.3% and 7.3%. Year over year the region is up 8.7% from 1,612 formations in June 2025, a gain of 141 filings. Seven of the state's ten emerging hotspot counties sit in this region, led by Columbia County at 134 formations, up 31.4% from May.

North Central Florida recorded 1,753 new business formations in June 2026, 1.9% of Florida's statewide total of 90,590. The region held flat against May, a 0.0% change. That made it the only one of Florida's seven named regions that did not slip month over month. Every other named region fell, from a 1.3% dip in Central Florida to a 7.3% drop in Southwest Florida. Statewide formations eased 0.4% in June, the third month in a row of small decline.

The year over year read is the stronger signal. June came in 8.7% above the 1,612 formations of June 2025, a gain of 141 filings. That annual growth rate is the third highest among the seven named regions, behind Tampa Bay at 16.7% and Northwest Florida at 12.0%. The gain rests on a small base. It has held steady across the year.

Marion County, home to Ocala, led the region with 799 formations, down 3.6% from May. Alachua County, home to Gainesville and the University of Florida, added 497, down 7.4%. Both anchor counties softened, and the region still stayed level. Smaller rural counties made up the gap. The industry mix leaned on services and building trades. Professional, Scientific and Technical Services led at 219 formations, followed by Other Services at 217, Administrative and Support Services at 151, Construction at 150, Management of Companies and Enterprises at 142, and Real Estate and Rental and Leasing at 133.

The rural counties are where growth is gathering. Seven of Florida's ten emerging hotspot counties in June sit in North Central Florida. Columbia County led them with 134 formations, up 31.4% from May. Suwannee County rose 27.8% to 69. Levy County added 79, up 11.3%. Bradford reached 40, up 25.0%. Gilchrist hit 35 and Taylor hit 28, each up 16.7%. Union County jumped 50.0% to 15, on a base small enough that one or two filings swing the rate. These are Nature Coast and Heartland counties, and the pattern points to activity spreading outward from Gainesville and Ocala into the countryside around them. One month is not a trend. Two months of the same movement would be.

Emerging counties: Union (+50%), Columbia (+31.4%), Suwannee (+27.8%), Bradford (+25%), Gilchrist (+16.7%).

Northeast Florida added 4,088 new businesses in June 2026, a 4.5% share of the state, and its year over year gain of 8.5% trailed the statewide 10.0%. Duval County held up better than the region as a whole, down 1.5% from May to 2,587 formations, while St. Johns County slipped 3.1% to 560. No First Coast county ranked among the state's fastest growing small counties this month.

Northeast Florida recorded 4,088 new businesses in June 2026, a 4.5% share of the statewide total of 90,590. Read the year over year line first. The region is up 8.5% from 3,768 a year ago. That gain is real, and it trails the 10.0% pace for the state as a whole. Month over month, the region slipped 2.2% from 4,180 in May. Florida overall fell only 0.4% in the same stretch, its third monthly decline in a row, so the First Coast gave back a little more ground than the state did.

Duval County held steadier than the region around it. Duval posted 2,587 formations, down just 39 from 2,626 in May, a 1.5% dip. St. Johns County came in at 560, down 18 from 578, a 3.1% decline. Those are the two First Coast counties large enough to rank on their own this month. Duval alone makes up the largest share of the region's volume, so its mild slowdown kept the region's overall drop shallow.

Everyday service businesses led the First Coast in June. Other Services, a catch all for repair shops and personal care businesses, topped the region with 558 new formations. Professional, Scientific and Technical Services followed close behind at 543. Construction added 360. Real Estate and Rental and Leasing brought 346, and Administrative and Support Services 343. Management of Companies and Enterprises registered 338, Retail Trade 274, and Finance and Insurance 228.

Transportation and Warehousing added 209 new businesses, a category tied closely to the port. The Jacksonville Port Authority, known as JAXPORT, reported on June 1, 2026 that it had reached the halfway point on a new vehicle berth at its Blount Island Marine Terminal, part of a $60 million investment, with the berth slated for completion in early 2027. JAXPORT said its auto processors moved more than 506,000 vehicles in 2025. A month earlier, on May 6, 2026, the port put a third new ship to shore container crane into service, part of a $93 million plan to modernize its crane fleet. Steady port investment gives logistics and trade businesses a reason to set up near the river.

Among the seven regions the state tracks, Northeast Florida ranks fifth by volume in June, ahead of Northwest Florida and North Central Florida, and just behind Southwest Florida at 4,234. The year over year growth is the number to hold onto. The month over month softness sits mostly in the smaller counties, since Duval barely moved. If the port build out keeps drawing freight and vehicle traffic, Transportation and Warehousing and the trade services around it are the categories most likely to hold up through the summer.

Central Florida recorded 13,366 new formations in June 2026. That is up 7.2% from 12,465 a year earlier, an increase of 901 formations, and it is the cleaner read on the region. Month over month the region slipped 1.3% from May's 13,541, part of the state's third straight month of decline. Orange County anchors the region with 5,242 formations, about 39% of the central total, and it fell 5.4% from May. The softer month did not touch every county. Volusia rose 9.1%, Polk gained 5.5%, and Sumter jumped 27.3% off a small base. The split points to steady structural growth under a mild seasonal dip.

Central Florida logged 13,366 new formations in June 2026, 14.8% of the state total and third among Florida's seven assigned regions, behind Southeast and Tampa Bay. Year over year the region is up 7.2% from 12,465 in June 2025. Month over month it fell 1.3% from May's 13,541, in step with a statewide seasonal pullback that marked the third consecutive month of decline. The yearly gain is the stronger signal. June formation counts in Florida carry heavy seasonality, so the year over year read cuts through the monthly noise.

Orange County produced 5,242 formations, the most in the region. Polk followed at 2,043, then Volusia at 1,361, Brevard at 1,269, Osceola at 1,242, Seminole at 1,023, and Lake at 948. Sumter added 238. Four counties grew from May. Volusia led the region at plus 9.1%, Polk rose 5.5%, Lake gained 2.4%, and Sumter climbed 27.3%. Orange (-5.4%), Seminole (-8.0%), Brevard (-3.9%), and Osceola (-2.4%) gave ground. Seminole posted the region's sharpest county decline.

Professional, Scientific & Technical Services led the regional industry mix at 1,907 formations. Other Services came next at 1,544, then Management of Companies & Enterprises at 1,276 and Finance & Insurance at 1,130. Construction contributed 1,037 and Real Estate and Rental & Leasing 1,026. Administrative & Support Services reached 947, Retail Trade 771, Transportation & Warehousing 714, and Health Care & Social Assistance 669. The region's professional services count of 1,907 trails only Southeast and Tampa Bay. Its transportation count of 714 is second among all regions behind Southeast's 1,292, ahead of Tampa Bay's 541, a reflection of the distribution role that runs along the I-4 spine through Orlando.

Port Canaveral is putting nearly $175 million into two Brevard County projects that support more than 2,000 jobs in Central Florida. Cruise Terminal 5 is expanding from 90,000 to about 170,000 square feet to hold ships carrying up to 5,600 passengers, at a construction cost of $78 million, with completion targeted for December 2026. A new 13-story garage next to Cruise Terminal 6 adds about 3,700 spaces at a cost of $93 million and lifts port-wide parking to nearly 17,500 spaces. Brevard County recorded 1,269 new formations in June 2026. (Source: Port Canaveral, https://www.portcanaveral.com/media-center/latest-news/blog/2026/07/14/port-canaveral-offers-behind-the-scenes-look-at-reimagined-cruise-terminal-5--new-13-story-parking-garage-adjacent-to-cruise-terminal-6)

Osceola County is drawing advanced manufacturing to its NeoCity technology district. In May 2026 the county secured a $470 million semiconductor investment set to bring 600 high-wage jobs on a site of nearly 40 acres, the largest private footprint at NeoCity to date. Osceola County recorded 1,242 new formations in June 2026. (Source: Choose Osceola, https://www.chooseosceola.com/osceola-county-secures-470m-semiconductor-investment-at-neocity/)

Orlando International Airport opened a new wing at Terminal C on July 1, 2026, a $462 million expansion. The wing adds gates numbered 250 through 254 and room for 10 to 12 million more passengers a year, building on the nearly 58 million passengers who moved through the airport in 2025. Orange County produced 5,242 new formations in June 2026, the most of any county in the region. (Source: Greater Orlando Aviation Authority, https://flymco.com/media/press-releases/item/orlando-international-airport-opens-new-wing-at-terminal-c-as-virgin-atlantic-moves-operations/)

Emerging counties: Sumter (+27.3%).

Tampa Bay recorded 15,310 new business formations in June 2026, up 16.7% from a year earlier. That is the fastest year over year growth of any Florida region this month. Pinellas County drove it, posting 6,497 formations, the third highest county total in the state and up 2.1% from May while most of the region cooled.

Tampa Bay filed 15,310 formations in June 2026. That is 16.7% above the 13,116 filed in June 2025, the strongest year over year gain of any Florida region. Month to month the region eased 1.4% from May's 15,525. The small step down matches the wider state. Florida slipped 0.4% from May, its third straight month of soft decline after the spring high, and still ran 10.0% ahead of last June.

Pinellas County leads the region with 6,497 formations, the third highest county total in Florida. It was also the only Tampa Bay county to gain from May, up 2.1% from 6,361. Hillsborough followed at 4,528, down 4.1%. Sarasota was nearly flat at 1,366, off 0.1%, and still climbed to tenth among all Florida counties. Pasco reached 1,310, down 8.3%, the softest read in the region. Manatee filled out the top five at 1,036, down 1.5%.

Professional, scientific and technical services led the region with 2,364 formations, 15.4% of the Tampa Bay total. That is the second largest count for this category in any Florida region, behind only Southeast Florida. Management of companies and enterprises came next at 1,930 (12.6%), also second in the state. Other services added 1,494 (9.8%). Real estate and leasing brought 1,243 (8.1%) and construction 1,157 (7.6%).

Finance and insurance is a signature of this market, and it showed up again. The region logged 1,088 finance and insurance formations (7.1%), third among Florida regions. Health care and social assistance added 815 (5.3%), the second highest regional health care count in the state. Retail trade brought 814 (5.3%) and transportation and warehousing 541 (3.5%). The spread across finance, health, real estate and the trades points to broad demand rather than one hot sector.

The wider property view, which folds in seasonal and asset protection holdings, sits in the property note below. No Tampa Bay county stood out as unusual against its own recent pace this month. The region grew across the board, led by Pinellas.

Professional, scientific and technical services led Southwest Florida with 528 new firms in June, but the building trades tell the sharper story. Construction ranked third at 436 and real estate fourth at 403, together holding two of the region's top four spots. That mix lines up with a heavy development pipeline, led by Cape Coral's 131 acre, $700 million Coral Grove town center, where site work is due to start in summer 2026.

Southwest Florida logged 4,234 new business formations in June 2026. That is up 5.2% from the 4,024 filed in June 2025, and down 7.3% from May. The year over year gain is the cleaner read. Month to month, the region slipped for a third straight month, and its June drop was the steepest of Florida's seven main regions. Statewide, formations eased just 0.4% from May and rose 10.0% over the year, so the region ran cooler than the state on both counts.

Lee County did most of the work with 2,316 formations, down 7.5% from May. Collier County added 1,112, off 10.5% from the month before. The two counties anchor the region, and the rest came from its smaller counties. Both anchors cooled at once. That pulled the June total below the April and May pace.

Professional, scientific and technical services led the region with 528 new firms. Other services came next at 473. Construction ranked third at 436, and real estate fourth at 403. The change worth noting sits lower in the list. Management of companies, the category that topped this region a month earlier, fell to 374 and sixth place. That pullback tracked a broader statewide retreat in holding and management filings. Construction and real estate still held two of the region's top four spots, the mix you expect in a market built on property and building.

The building signal has real projects behind it. In Cape Coral, the 131 acre Coral Grove town center is moving from plan to ground. The developer has committed $700 million in private money, and the city expects about $1.3 billion in total economic impact. Site work is set to start in summer 2026, with the first buildings, including an anchor store and the first apartments, following in fall 2026. Bones Coffee is also consolidating its national headquarters and production in Cape Coral, a $27.3 million investment tied to 130 jobs that pay about 40% above the city average. Work like this keeps trade contractors and their suppliers forming month after month, not just once.

At 5.2%, Southwest Florida's year over year gain sits near the bottom of the state. Only Southeast Florida grew slower. Tampa Bay, just up the coast, rose 16.7% over the same year. That reflects a mature market. Southwest Florida is a settled coastal economy with a steady base of retirees and property owners, so its formation pace holds a firm line instead of swinging on one project or one hot year.

Miami-Dade County recorded 13,586 formations in June 2026, the single largest county total in Florida, making up 48.7% of the Southeast region on its own. The region's Professional, Scientific & Technical Services count of 4,257 is the highest for that industry of any Florida region, and its Management of Companies & Enterprises count of 3,455 also leads every region in the state.

Southeast Florida filed 27,906 new businesses in June 2026, 30.8% of the state total. That share keeps it the largest region by a wide margin, nearly twice the size of the next region, Tampa Bay, at 16.9%. Year over year, the cleaner read, the region grew 4.9% from 26,615 formations in June 2025. Month over month, formations fell 6.3% from May's 29,791. The statewide June pullback was only 0.4%, so the Gold Coast fell much harder than the state on the monthly read. June was the third straight month of statewide monthly decline after the March high of 101,122.

Miami-Dade anchors the region at 13,586 formations, down 6.7% from May. Broward contributed 7,375, down 6.4%, and Palm Beach 5,301, down 5.9%. On the Treasure Coast, St. Lucie posted 679, down 2.0%. These four counties are the region's largest, with the rest coming from the smaller Treasure Coast counties and the Keys. The declines track Florida's spring formation pattern. March 2026 was the statewide peak at 101,122, and June is the third month off that high. Some of the steeper monthly drop here reflects a shift toward filings that list no Florida county, a group that rose 12.7% from May. Those filings count in the state total but sit outside every region, which pulls county based regions like the Gold Coast lower on the monthly read.

Professional, Scientific & Technical Services leads the Southeast with 4,257 formations, 15.3% of the region and the highest count of that category in any Florida region. Management of Companies & Enterprises follows at 3,455, 12.4% of the region, also the state's highest and a marker of the Gold Coast's role as a holding entity center. Other Services placed third at 2,864, 10.3%. Finance & Insurance reached 2,301, 8.2%, and Real Estate and Rental & Leasing 2,285, 8.2%, and both are the largest regional counts of their kind statewide. Health Care & Social Assistance rounded out the group at 1,817.

The year over year gain of 4.9% is positive but below the statewide pace of 10.0%, so the region grew more slowly than Florida as a whole over the past year. The rolling twelve month direction for the state is still rising. The monthly drop reads as seasonal cooling after the spring peak, steeper on the Gold Coast than in most regions, with no sign of a structural break.