---
title: "CNBC: These are the 10 Worst Places in America to Start a Business"
url: https://burnaze.com/article/912d9bc1-c305-46ed-8192-8784b71e641a
source: "1851 Franchise"
original_url: https://1851franchise.com/cnbc-these-are-the-10-worst-places-in-america-to-start-a-business-5602
category: "General"
published: 2016-08-24T18:13:26.000Z
modified: 2026-11-01T04:15:00.926Z
image: https://newimage.1851franchise.com/cdn-cgi/image/quality=85,format=webp,width=1280,height=720/story/featureImage/e7045a021baf6c5b01cbc0961ff6a1668538160824131026.jpg
---

# CNBC: These are the 10 Worst Places in America to Start a Business

**TL;DR:** CNBC ranked the 10 worst places to start a business in the US, with Stockton, California coming in as the worst. The ranking was based on data from the 107 largest metro areas in the US.

*originally published in 1851 Franchise on 2016-08-24. [Read the original](https://1851franchise.com/cnbc-these-are-the-10-worst-places-in-america-to-start-a-business-5602).*

## Story

More new businesses fail than succeed—that’s nearly common knowledge at this point. So to better your chances, it’s important to open your new business in an area where the odds are in your favor.

The new CNBC Metro 20: America’s Best Places to Start a Business ranking identified metro areas where the likelihood of business success is highest. For that ranking, CNBC reviewed data on the 107 largest metro areas in the United States.

Plagued by social, economic and government hurdles to success, here are the 10 cities that came in at the very bottom of that list:

10. Jackson, Mississippi

9. Albuquerque, New Mexico

8. Louisville, Kentucky

7. Providence, Rhode Island

6. Fresno, California

5. Santa Rosa, California

4. Allentown, Pennsylvania

3. San Bernardino, California

2. Modesto, California

1. Stockton, California

## Entities

- 1851 Franchise (publication)
- General (sector)
- Louisville (location)
- Allentown (location)
- Albuquerque, New Mexico (location)
- Jackson, Mississippi (location)
- Providence, Rhode Island (location)
- Stockton, California (location)
- Fresno, California (location)
- Modesto, California (location)
- business ranking (topic)
- startup success (topic)

---
Originally reported by 1851 Franchise (https://1851franchise.com/cnbc-these-are-the-10-worst-places-in-america-to-start-a-business-5602). Summarized by Burnaze (https://burnaze.com/article/912d9bc1-c305-46ed-8192-8784b71e641a).