There were 33,992 small businesses in the Australian Capital Territory (ACT) on 30 June 2023, representing 1% of all Australian small businesses. This is consistent with the proportion of Australia’s population living in the ACT (2%)1.
The areas in the ACT with the highest number of small businesses were:
- Civic (1,450 small businesses)
- Fyshwick (1,448 small businesses)
- Kingston (907 small businesses)
- Deakin (764 small businesses)
- Gungahlin (764 small businesses)
1Australian Bureau of Statistics, Regional Population, 2021-22, Accessed 15 January 2024
Table 1: Businesses in ACT by size, 30 June 2023
* Includes businesses where information is only available at the state/territory level.
1 This includes a small number of businesses which have income tax withholding roles for purposes other than withholding amounts from wages and salaries (and as such have zero employment).
2 Calculated by ASBFEO based on the ABS definition of small business of 0-19 employees.
Source: Based on Australian Bureau of Statistics, customised data, 2023.
Changes in small businesses numbers for the ACT
Chart 1: Annual change in the number of small businesses in the ACT
| Australian Capital Territory Total | |
|---|---|
| 2019 | 5.4 |
| 2020 | 2.8 |
| 2021 | 5.9 |
| 2022 | 7.7 |
| 2023 | 3.3 |
Total includes a small number of businesses where information is only available at the state/territory level.
Source: Based on Australian Bureau of Statistics, customised data, 2023.
The number of small businesses in the ACT increased by 1,086 (3%) over the year to 30 June 2023. The areas with the largest increase were:
- Braddon (increased by 89 small businesses)
- Dickson (increased by 66 small businesses)
- Franklin (increased by 53 small businesses).