Business ownership in 2026: Freedom over fortune

A new QuickBooks survey reveals why owners value autonomy over fortune, and the hidden personal costs they pay to keep the doors open.

2026 Business ownership statistics key findings

Business ownership statistics from a survey of 1,305 US small business owners

Success redefined: Autonomy outranks the buyout. Most owners (35%) define success as reaching a point where the business runs profitably without them. Selling for a life-changing amount of money ranks last (8%).
Funding barrier: Many owners stop before they apply. Thirty-five percent (35%) skipped applying for business funding because they expected a denial. Black owners (40%) are most likely to believe race, gender, or age will count against them.
Financial risk: Personal credit often becomes the backstop. Using personal credit cards is the biggest personal financial risk for 48% of owners. Asian-American owners reported the highest levels of this exposure (58%).
Personal toll: Ownership pulls from sleep and pay. Half of owners (50%) sacrificed sleep or rest in the past year. Most owners (54%) skipped or reduced their own pay at least once to keep bills or payroll covered.
AI vs. human trust: High-stakes decisions still lean human. Most owners (37%) trust a human expert for cost-cutting and growth advice, compared with 20% who would trust AI alone.
Future outlook: Collaboration wins over automation. The largest share of owners (42%) predicts an AI-assisted future where humans lead and technology provides leverage. Only 6% see AI driving the majority of decisions.
Tax pressure: Owners are nearly twice as likely to fear underpaying taxes (23%) as overpaying (12%). While nearly a third report no anxiety, the largest group (34%) faces a double bind where they worry about both risks equally.

For years, the small business storyline sounded the same: start lean, scale fast, sell big. That plot centers the exit.

Owners are writing a different script.

Data from 1,305 US respondents in the 2026 Intuit QuickBooks Business Owner Report shows owners chasing a different win. They want a business that holds up, stays profitable, and gives them room to step back from daily operations.

Pressure still runs through the story. Payment delays trigger cash gaps. Many owners report taking personal risks to cover payroll and pay bills. Some feel they must change how they show up to avoid bias. Taxes stay high-stakes. And AI is part of the toolkit, but trust and money decisions still call for people.

Read the key findings below to see what is driving business ownership in 2026. Download the full PDF for charts, deep dives by racial groups, and the complete data set.

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What motivates business owners in 2026?

Success is shifting. The strongest pull is not a massive buyout. Owners want a business that can keep running without constant involvement.

Freedom first

The top definition of “winning the gold medal” in business is freedom. One in 3 (35%) owners say winning means reaching a point where the business runs profitably without them. That view is strongest among Asian American owners (44%). Fewer than 1 in 10 (8%) see selling the business for a life-changing amount of money as the ultimate win.

Source: 2026 Intuit QuickBooks Business Owner Report. Commissioned online survey, Dec. 2025. Sample: 1,305 US business owners (18+) with 0-250 employees.

Purpose-driven

Money matters, but it is not the main spark. Owners are most likely to describe their business as a calling or life’s passion (42%), ahead of financial security (36%).

Generational influence

Most owners are first-generation entrepreneurs (61%). Among those who grew up with a business-owning parent (39%), the most common impact is confidence to start. That boost is strongest among Black (78%) and Asian (77%) owners.

What are the financial barriers to business ownership?

Cash flow is where ambition meets reality. Delays in payments hitting the bank, funding friction, and personal exposure combine to create a cumulative squeeze.

The $1,000 tipping point

Late payments do not need to be large to cause trouble. A single late payment threatened payroll or bills for 39% of owners in the past year. Even the smallest shortfalls mattered, with 12% reporting financial trouble after a late payment under $1,000. Hispanic owners report the highest rate of trouble from these smaller shortfalls (20%).

Source: 2026 Intuit QuickBooks Business Owner Report. Commissioned online survey, Dec. 2025. Sample: 1,305 US business owners (18+) with 0-250 employees.

The no before the ask

Access to capital can end before the application starts. Fear of denial kept 1 in 3 (35%) owners from applying for funding. For Black owners, bias concerns show up alongside that hesitation, making them more than 2x more likely than their white, Hispanic, Asian, and Other peers to say they believed their race, gender, or age would negatively impact the decision. This tracks with federal data on discouraged borrower trends.

The personal piggy bank

When gaps open, owners lean on themselves. Nearly half (48%) of owners reported using a personal credit card as their biggest financial risk. Exposure to this risk is highest among Asian-American owners (58%).

What is the personal cost of business ownership?

Freedom is the goal, but the cost can show up in places owners can’t expense. Tradeoffs often land in health, time, and relationships.

Rest is the first casualty

Eight in 10 (82%) owners made significant personal sacrifices in the past year. Sleep or rest was the top tradeoff (50%). Time followed close behind, with 49% cutting hobbies and 49% cutting social time.

Source: 2026 Intuit QuickBooks Business Owner Report. Commissioned online survey, Dec. 2025. Sample: 1,305 US business owners (18+) with 0-250 employees.

Paychecks come last

To keep employees paid and bills covered, 54% of owners skipped or reduced their own pay at least once in the past year.

Missing the moments

Business demands pushed 57% of owners to miss at least one major personal milestone last year. Asian-American owners were the most likely to miss a planned family vacation due to work demands (38%). That is more than double the likelihood of white owners (18%).

How does fear of bias impact business owners?

For many owners, identity shapes trust and credibility in ways a balance sheet can’t capture.

The cost of authenticity

More than 2 in 5 owners (46%) feel they need to change how they speak, look, or act to be taken seriously by vendors, customers, and lenders. This pressure to code-switch is not shared equally. White owners are the most likely to say they feel no pressure at all.

Source: 2026 Intuit QuickBooks Business Owner Report. Commissioned online survey, Dec. 2025. Sample: 1,305 US business owners (18+) with 0-250 employees.

Bias changes behavior

Actions to avoid potential bias were reported by 41% of owners. The most common moves were avoiding identity markers in marketing, changing dress or hair to avoid stereotypes, and using initials in emails. White owners were the most likely to report no changes (67%).

Pricing push-back often feels personal

More than half (58%) of owners felt a customer questioned their pricing in a way they believed was influenced by race, age, or gender in the last year. White owners were the least likely to face this. Nearly half (49%) report zero incidents in the last year, compared with lower rates for their Black, Hispanic, and Asian counterparts.

Source: 2026 Intuit QuickBooks Business Owner Report. Commissioned online survey, Dec. 2025. Sample: 1,305 US business owners (18+) with 0-250 employees.

Community impact

Plans to strengthen local communities show up for 3 in 4 (76%) owners. Job creation leads, with 41% planning to hire local residents in the next five years. Black owners lead with plans to hire locally while Asian-American owners lead on buying local.

How do business owners view AI in 2026?

AI is moving from buzzword to business plan. But owners draw a hard line on trust. They view AI as a tool for leverage, not leadership.

AI as a sidekick

Most owners expect a human-led future with AI support. Over the next five years, 42% predict an AI-assisted approach where they still lead operations while using AI as a daily tool. Another 36% see AI staying in a minor background role. Few pick the extremes: 16% predict an AI-free business and 6% expect AI to drive most decisions.

Source: 2026 Intuit QuickBooks Business Owner Report. Commissioned online survey, Dec. 2025. Sample: 1,305 US business owners (18+) with 0-250 employees.

The adoption gap

Competition adds pressure. Concern about falling behind without AI adoption or upgrades hits 40% of owners, led by Asian owners (52%).

The first hand-off

If owners could trust AI to do one job perfectly, they would start with the math. Bookkeeping and taxes rank as the top task they’d outsource (17%). Creative marketing ranks second (15%).

Source: 2026 Intuit QuickBooks Business Owner Report. Commissioned online survey, Dec. 2025. Sample: 1,305 US business owners (18+) with 0-250 employees.

Trust stays human

Owners trust people over programs. The largest share (37%) would turn to a human expert for next-quarter cost cuts and revenue growth. Only 20% would trust a financial analysis tool alone. Another 34% would trust both equally. Human trust is highest among Black owners (41%).

Tax season: Stress, timing, and risk

Taxes trigger defense mode for many owners. The risk of getting it wrong looms larger than the chance of a missed refund, and many push filing close to the deadline. Stress builds as the date approaches, yet confidence remains high by the time they file.

The stress spike

Tax anxiety affects 3 in 4 (77%) owners. For nearly 1 in 3 (32%), the stress kicks in about a month before the deadline.

Source: 2026 Intuit QuickBooks Business Owner Report. Commissioned online survey, Dec. 2025. Sample: 1,305 US business owners (18+) with 0-250 employees.

Compliance risk outweighs refund regret

The largest share of owners (34%) worry about underpaying and overpaying equally. When forced to choose, more fear underpaying and IRS trouble (23%) than overpaying and tying up cash (12%). Nearly a third (31%) don’t worry about either.

Confidence holds

Despite the pressure, most (80%) feel confident in their ability to prepare their business for tax season.

Just-in-time filing

Tax season timing is tight for many small business owners. Most plan to file right at the deadline (44%), beating early filers (39%) and extension filers (13%). Asian owners lead on deadline filing (53%).

Sample and methodology

In December 2025, Intuit QuickBooks commissioned an online survey of 1,305 US business owners. Respondents were adults aged 18+ who identified as a sole owner, co-owner, or co-founder of a business with 0–250 employees.

Making demographic comparisons possible

To support reliable comparisons across groups, the survey oversampled Black, Hispanic, and Asian owners. Overall results were then weighted to reflect the demographic makeup of US business owners. Weighting targets came from the US Census Bureau’s 2025 owner characteristics (based on the 2024 Annual Business Survey and 2023 Nonemployer Statistics by Demographics).

Sample by group

White: N=301 (23% raw, 65% weighted)
Black or African American: N=300 (23% raw, 7% weighted)
Hispanic, Latino, or Spanish origin: N=304 (23% raw, 12% weighted)
Asian or Asian American: N=300 (23% raw, 14% weighted)
Other: N=100 (8% raw, 2% weighted)

Note: The gender distribution of the sample was 62% male and 38% female.

Data quality and reporting notes

Responses were collected via Prodege audience pools and partner networks with double opt-in validation and random device engagement checks to ensure data quality. Respondents received compensation for their participation. Reported differences between racial groups are statistically significant at the 95% confidence level (p < 0.05). For the total sample (N=1,305), the estimated credibility interval (a measure of precision for online non-probability sample) is ±2.7 percentage points at the 95% level. Percentages have been rounded to the nearest whole number, so values shown in charts and graphics may not add up to 100%. Responses to multiple-choice survey questions are shown as a percentage of the number of respondents, not the total number of responses, and may sum to more than 100%.

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