New businesses in Bastrop County, Texas
From Oct 2025 to Sep 2026, the Texas Comptroller issued 641 new sales-tax permits to business locations in Bastrop County. That ranks #39 of 254 Texas counties and is 0.4% of all new permits statewide. It is part of the Austin metro.
- New permits rose 43% compared with the 12 months before (449 then).
- The busiest month was Sep 2026 (68); the slowest was Nov 2025 (23).
- Food & lodging is over-represented: 1.3x its share statewide.
- Professional services is under-represented at 0.6x the state share, which can mean less local competition.
- 51% of new permits went to LLCs.
- The single most common new business type in Bastrop County was Electronic Shopping and Mail-Order Houses (79 permits).
New permits by industry
| Industry | Permits | Share in Bastrop County | Share in Texas |
|---|---|---|---|
| Retail | 246 | 38% | 42% |
| Food & lodging | 119 | 19% | 14% |
| Manufacturing | 55 | 9% | 6% |
| Other services (repair, personal care) | 41 | 6% | 8% |
| Construction | 35 | 5% | 4% |
| Admin & support services | 33 | 5% | 4% |
| Arts & recreation | 24 | 4% | 3% |
| Professional services | 20 | 3% | 5% |
Most common new business types
| Business type (NAICS) | Code | New permits |
|---|---|---|
| Electronic Shopping and Mail-Order Houses | 454110 | 79 |
| Mobile Food Services | 722330 | 47 |
| Other Direct Selling Establishments | 454390 | 32 |
| Full-Service Restaurants | 722511 | 25 |
| Limited-Service Restaurants | 722513 | 20 |
| All Other Miscellaneous Store Retailers (except Tobacco Stores) | 453998 | 14 |
| Landscaping Services | 561730 | 13 |
| Independent Artists, Writers, and Performers | 711510 | 12 |
| Snack and Nonalcoholic Beverage Bars | 722515 | 10 |
| General Automotive Repair | 811111 | 9 |
Cities and towns with the most new permits
| City (mailing address) | New permits |
|---|---|
| Bastrop | 273 |
| Elgin | 116 |
| Cedar Creek | 94 |
| Smithville | 60 |
| Del Valle | 26 |
| Paige | 19 |
| Dale | 16 |
| Red Rock | 16 |
Entity types
| Entity | Permits | Share |
|---|---|---|
| LLC | 328 | 51% |
| Sole proprietor | 240 | 37% |
| Corporation | 34 | 5% |
| Partnership | 24 | 4% |
| Nonprofit | 11 | 2% |
| Other | 4 | 1% |
Monthly new permits
| Month | New permits | |
|---|---|---|
| Oct 2025 | 64 | |
| Nov 2025 | 23 | |
| Dec 2025 | 35 | |
| Jan 2026 | 42 | |
| Feb 2026 | 51 | |
| Mar 2026 | 55 | |
| Apr 2026 | 54 | |
| May 2026 | 53 | |
| Jun 2026 | 66 | |
| Jul 2026 | 66 | |
| Aug 2026 | 64 | |
| Sep 2026 | 68 |
Household income in Bastrop County ZIP codes
Average adjusted gross income per tax return from IRS Statistics of Income (tax year 2022), for the ZIP codes where this county's new permits were mailed.
| ZIP | Town | Tax returns | Avg. income per return | New permits (12 mo) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 78602 | Bastrop | 16,820 | $88,735 | 275 |
| 78621 | Elgin | 14,220 | $66,128 | 160 |
| 78617 | Del Valle | 12,480 | $49,056 | 129 |
| 78612 | Cedar Creek | 7,870 | $67,550 | 103 |
| 78616 | Dale | 5,100 | $48,838 | 68 |
| 78957 | Smithville | 4,520 | $78,793 | 65 |
| 78659 | Paige | 1,860 | $72,119 | 21 |
| 78941 | Flatonia | 1,570 | $82,399 | 33 |
Get the names and addresses
The weekly paid list has every new business with its address, industry and entity type, including a Austin tier. Texas New Business Weekly · free sample.
Other Austin counties
- Travis County (9,114)
- Williamson County (4,741)
- Hays County (1,789)
- Caldwell County (290)
Counties with similar volume
- Gregg County: 702 new permits (#36)
- Taylor County: 695 new permits (#37)
- Randall County: 690 new permits (#38)
- Tom Green County: 626 new permits (#40)
- Liberty County: 560 new permits (#41)
- Wise County: 558 new permits (#42)
All Texas counties · Start a business in a Texas city · Texas ZIP code data
Free: Texas New Business Weekly, Free Edition
Every week: the top 25 new businesses in each big metro, counts by industry, and what's trending. Free, by email. Unsubscribe any time.
Get the free weekly email or grab a free Austin sample spreadsheet
Notes on the data
Counts are new outlet sales-tax permits issued by the Texas Comptroller from Oct 2025 to Sep 2026, from the public Active Sales Tax Permit Holders dataset. A permit can be a brand-new business, a new location of an existing one, or a re-permit. Because the source lists only permits that are still active, the prior-year count leaves out businesses that have since closed, so year-over-year growth reads somewhat high. Businesses that don't sell taxable goods or services (many professional firms) don't need a permit and aren't counted. Updated 2026-10-15.
Every new Texas business, every week
Name, address, industry and entity type for every new sales-tax permit, as an Excel file each Sunday. From $29/month.
Free weekly email: new Texas businesses, top 25 per metro, plus new free tools as we publish them. Subscribe free on Gumroad
Data from the Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts (public domain). Independent compilation, not affiliated with the State of Texas. Check the original source before relying on it. Not legal advice. Numbers are illustrative; your lender's statements control.