New businesses in Hays County, Texas
From Oct 2025 to Sep 2026, the Texas Comptroller issued 1,789 new sales-tax permits to business locations in Hays County. That ranks #15 of 254 Texas counties and is 1.1% of all new permits statewide. It is part of the Austin metro.
- New permits rose 54% compared with the 12 months before (1,161 then).
- The busiest month was Sep 2026 (189); the slowest was Nov 2025 (89).
- Arts & recreation is over-represented: 1.5x its share statewide.
- Other services (repair, personal care) is under-represented at 0.8x the state share, which can mean less local competition.
- 59% of new permits went to LLCs.
- The single most common new business type in Hays County was Electronic Shopping and Mail-Order Houses (256 permits).
New permits by industry
| Industry | Permits | Share in Hays County | Share in Texas |
|---|---|---|---|
| Retail | 731 | 41% | 42% |
| Food & lodging | 202 | 11% | 14% |
| Manufacturing | 159 | 9% | 6% |
| Other services (repair, personal care) | 116 | 6% | 8% |
| Professional services | 103 | 6% | 5% |
| Admin & support services | 84 | 5% | 4% |
| Construction | 83 | 5% | 4% |
| Arts & recreation | 81 | 5% | 3% |
Most common new business types
| Business type (NAICS) | Code | New permits |
|---|---|---|
| Electronic Shopping and Mail-Order Houses | 454110 | 256 |
| Other Direct Selling Establishments | 454390 | 80 |
| Mobile Food Services | 722330 | 71 |
| Independent Artists, Writers, and Performers | 711510 | 49 |
| All Other Miscellaneous Store Retailers (except Tobacco Stores) | 453998 | 42 |
| Full-Service Restaurants | 722511 | 37 |
| All Other General Merchandise Stores | 452319 | 34 |
| Snack and Nonalcoholic Beverage Bars | 722515 | 31 |
| Limited-Service Restaurants | 722513 | 30 |
| Vending Machine Operators | 454210 | 25 |
Cities and towns with the most new permits
| City (mailing address) | New permits |
|---|---|
| San Marcos | 456 |
| Kyle | 406 |
| Buda | 303 |
| Dripping Springs | 213 |
| Wimberley | 178 |
| Austin | 137 |
| Driftwood | 26 |
| Uhland | 18 |
Entity types
| Entity | Permits | Share |
|---|---|---|
| LLC | 1,061 | 59% |
| Sole proprietor | 523 | 29% |
| Corporation | 143 | 8% |
| Partnership | 31 | 2% |
| Nonprofit | 21 | 1% |
| Other | 10 | 1% |
Monthly new permits
| Month | New permits | |
|---|---|---|
| Oct 2025 | 138 | |
| Nov 2025 | 89 | |
| Dec 2025 | 127 | |
| Jan 2026 | 136 | |
| Feb 2026 | 137 | |
| Mar 2026 | 150 | |
| Apr 2026 | 180 | |
| May 2026 | 140 | |
| Jun 2026 | 163 | |
| Jul 2026 | 155 | |
| Aug 2026 | 185 | |
| Sep 2026 | 189 |
Household income in Hays 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) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 78660 | Austin | 57,190 | $87,252 | 5 |
| 78666 | San Marcos | 36,290 | $65,196 | 498 |
| 78640 | Kyle | 35,970 | $67,103 | 426 |
| 78745 | Austin | 31,130 | $85,258 | 421 |
| 78748 | Austin | 27,480 | $90,177 | 298 |
| 78704 | Austin | 25,760 | $185,940 | 520 |
| 78681 | Austin | 25,410 | $131,950 | 1 |
| 78744 | Austin | 25,020 | $69,320 | 341 |
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)
- Bastrop County (641)
- Caldwell County (290)
Counties with similar volume
- El Paso County: 3,883 new permits (#12)
- Cameron County: 2,437 new permits (#13)
- Bell County: 2,048 new permits (#14)
- Brazoria County: 1,772 new permits (#16)
- Lubbock County: 1,749 new permits (#17)
- Galveston County: 1,726 new permits (#18)
All Texas counties · Start a business in a Texas city · Texas ZIP code data
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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.
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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.