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The 1M dataset · snapshot 2026-09-30
3,149 businesses, 1,997 founder-reported revenues
Project list from Starter Story founder interviews and business profiles (snapshot 2026-09-30). Revenue in interviews is self-reported by founders at interview time; profile revenue is a Starter Story estimate and is excluded from medians and shares. Industry, business model and growth-channel groupings are 1M.chat classifications.
By industry
Median revenue and $1M+ share by industry
| Industry | Businesses | Founder-reported | Median / month | At $1M+ a year | Median employees | Solo founders |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Other physical products | 133 | 117 | $167K | 63% | 5 | 52% |
| Finance & real estate | 74 | 41 | $128K | 61% | 10 | 54% |
| Outdoor, sports & travel | 79 | 68 | $77.5K | 49% | 3 | 54% |
| Health, fitness & wellness | 99 | 76 | $74.5K | 46% | 3 | 59% |
| Beauty & personal care | 61 | 55 | $70K | 44% | 3 | 62% |
| Food & beverage | 85 | 75 | $56K | 40% | 4 | 44% |
| Marketplaces & platforms | 145 | 89 | $51K | 44% | 5 | 38% |
| Local & brick-and-mortar businesses | 84 | 77 | $50K | 43% | 3 | 68% |
| Agencies & services | 461 | 381 | $48K | 35% | 5 | 63% |
| Software & SaaS | 798 | 354 | $40K | 35% | 4 | 45% |
| Fashion, apparel & accessories | 149 | 132 | $40K | 38% | 2 | 53% |
| Home, lifestyle & gifts | 141 | 121 | $30K | 35% | 2 | 55% |
| Courses & education | 171 | 118 | $20.4K | 26% | 1 | 80% |
| Mobile apps & games | 105 | 37 | $17K | 19% | 1 | 60% |
| AI tools & apps | 209 | 84 | $16.5K | 26% | 2 | 42% |
| Newsletters, blogs & media | 307 | 162 | $8.5K | 11% | 1 | 83% |
By business model
| Marketplace commissions | $79.2K | 47% |
| Selling physical products | $50K | 44% |
| Usage-based fees | $50K | 38% |
| Services, agency & consulting | $43K | 36% |
| Subscriptions (SaaS & memberships) | $35K | 36% |
| Courses & digital products | $20.8K | 20% |
| Ads, sponsorships & affiliate | $8.6K | 14% |
Median per month · share at $1M+ a year.
Revenue bands
| Under $1K/mo | 82 |
| $1K–$10K/mo | 417 |
| $10K–$50K/mo | 577 |
| $50K–$83K/mo | 196 |
| $1M+ a year | 596 |
| $1M+ a month | 129 |
Where they are based
| United States | 1,056 |
| United Kingdom | 159 |
| Canada | 123 |
| India | 95 |
| Australia | 71 |
| Netherlands | 25 |
| Spain | 25 |
| Germany | 23 |
| France | 21 |
| Singapore | 18 |
| Romania | 13 |
| Hong Kong | 11 |
Founder-reported businesses with a known country.
Read this before you use the numbers
- Self-selected sample. Founders chose to be interviewed, usually once the business was working. The medians describe these businesses, not the odds for a new one.
- Revenue at a point in time. Each figure is what the founder said at the interview (2015–2026). Businesses grow, shrink, get sold or close afterwards.
- Revenue, not profit. Few founders reported margins consistently, so none are compared here.
- Estimates kept apart. 371 business profiles carry a Starter Story revenue estimate; they are labelled as estimates and left out of every median and share.
- Our groupings. Industry, business model and growth-channel groups are 1M.chat classifications. See method & sources.
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