It is important to note the presence of some states that have not appeared on the top-20 list as near the top as they are this year or at all. These states reflect well on their respective state’s economic development organizations and team members. In addition, they have demonstrated success in winning projects and addressing key issues impacting site selection decisions.
No state is perfect, and every state has policies or other attributes that need to be made better. Talent, infrastructure, real estate, quality of place, tax structure, regulatory environment, and economic development incentives all have an important role to play in the site selection process for corporate decision-makers.
The lesson learned from the states appearing on this list is that they are proactively working on their weaknesses, leveraging their assets, and have talented economic development officials focused on growing the economies of their cities, regions, and states. As a result, they have established a demonstrated track record of success and positioned themselves well for the future. The closing message to all economic development officials is to not get complacent and continue to innovate for long-term success.
TOP STATES FOR DOING BUSINESS 2023
- 1. Georgia
- 2. South Carolina
- 3. Tennessee
- 4. North Carolina
- 5. Ohio
- 6. Alabama
- 7. Indiana
- 8. Texas
- 9. Virginia
- 10. Mississippi
- 11. Louisiana
- 12. Arizona
- 13. Michigan
- 14. Kentucky
- 15. Florida
- 16. New York
- 17. Iowa
- 18. Arkansas
- 19. Kansas
- 20. Illinois
Individual Categories
Workforce Training Programs
- 1. Georgia
- 2. Virginia
- 3. South Carolina
- 4. Louisiana
- 5. Alabama
- 6. Tennessee
- 7. North Carolina
- 8. Indiana
- 9. Arizona
- 10. Ohio
Overall Cost of Doing Business
- 1. Georgia
- 2. Alabama
- 3. Tennessee
- 4. South Carolina
- 5. North Carolina
- 6. Indiana
- 7. Mississippi
- 8. Ohio
- 9. Texas
- 10. Louisiana
Business Incentives Programs
- 1. Georgia
- 2. South Carolina
- 3. Ohio
- 4. Indiana
- 5. Tennessee
- 6. North Carolina
- 7. Alabama
- 8. Virginia
- 9. Arkansas
- 10. Mississippi
Access to Capital & Funding
- 1. California
- 2. New York
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- 3. Texas
- 4. Massachusetts
- 5. Georgia
- 6. Virginia
- 7. Illinois
- 8. North Carolina
- 9.Arizona
- 10. Maryland
Competitive Labor Environment
- 1. Georgia
- 2. North Carolina
- 3. Ohio
- 4. South Carolina
- 5. Indiana
- 6. Texas
- 7. Virginia
- 8. Tennessee
- 9. Arizona
- 10. Alabama
Energy Availability & Costs
- 1. Georgia
- 2. Tennessee
- 3. South Carolina
- 4. Alabama
- 5. North Carolina
- 6. Texas
- 7. Washington
- 8. Oregon
- 9. Indiana
- 10. Iowa
Water Availability
- 1. Ohio
- 2. Michigan
- 3. Tennessee
- 4. South Carolina
- 5. North Carolina
- 6. Georgia
- 7. New York
- 8. Wisconsin
- 9. Washington
- 10. Virginia
Logistics & Infrastructure
- 1. Georgia
- 2. Texas
- 3. Indiana
- 4. Ohio
- 5. South Carolina
- 6. Virginia
- 7. Tennessee
- 8. Kentucky
- 9. North Carolina
- 10. Illinois
Available Real Estate
- 1. South Carolina
- 2. Texas
- 3. Ohio
- 4. Georgia
- 5. North Carolina
- 6. Indiana
- 7. Tennessee
- 8. Virginia
- 9. Alabama
- 10. Arizona
Cooperative & Responsive State Government
- 1. Georgia
- 2. Tennessee
- 3. North Carolina
- 4. South Carolina
- 5. Ohio
- 6. Indiana
- 7. Virginia
- 8. Alabama
- 9. Arizona
- 10. Michigan
Corporate Tax Structure
- 1. Florida
- 2. North Carolina
- 3. Texas
- 4. Tennessee
- 5. Indiana
- 6. Georgia
- 7. Nevada
- 8. South Dakota
- 9. Ohio
- 10. Arizona
Site-Readiness Programs
- 1. South Carolina
- 2. Georgia
- 3. Ohio
- 4. Tennessee
- 5. Indiana
- 6. North Carolina
- 7. Virginia
- 8. Alabama
- 9. Kentucky
- 10. Iowa
Favorable Regulatory Environment
- 1. Alabama
- 2. South Carolina
- 3. Georgia
- 4. Tennessee
- 5. North Carolina
- 6. Indiana
- 7. Ohio
- 8. Texas
- 9. Louisiana
- 10. Mississippi
Speed of Project Permitting
- 1. South Carolina
- 2. Alabama
- 3. Georgia
- 4. Mississippi
- 5. Tennessee
- 6. Indiana
- 7. Virginia
- 8. Ohio
- 9. Iowa
- 10. North Carolina
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Categories:
- Workforce Training Programs
- Overall Cost of Doing Business
- Business Incentive Programs
- Access to Capital & Funding
- Competitive Labor Market
- Energy Availability & Costs
- Water Availability
- Logistics & Infrastructure
- Available Real Estate
- Cooperative & Responsive State Government
- Corporate Tax Structure
- Site-Readiness Programs
- Favorable Regulatory Environment
- Speed of Project Permitting