Texas climbed two spots this year to sit at No. 2 on the Forbes 2017 list of the best states for business. Analyzed across six categories — business costs, labor supply, regulatory environment, economic growth, climate prospects and quality of life — the $1.6 trillion Texas economy is second only to California.
Due to strong employment and gross state product growth over the past five years, Texas ranks first for current economic climate. Texas boasts a strong gross state product, with 2.2 percent job growth and the cost of doing business 11.5 percent below the national average. AT&T, ExxonMobil and Dell are just a few of the major companies headquartered in Texas. In total, Texas is home to 100 of the 1,000 largest public and private companies in the United States.
Holding Texas back from a top overall ranking remains the education rate among its labor supply. Only 83 percent of adults obtained a high school degree, a percent that puts Texas at the second lowest in the country for education. However, startup activity within larger states tends to surpass others in the nation, according to the Kauffman Foundation and Texas is also ranked No. 3 in terms of business costs.
