New businesses in Howard County, Texas
From Oct 2025 to Sep 2026, the Texas Comptroller issued 137 new sales-tax permits to business locations in Howard County. That ranks #102 of 254 Texas counties and is 0.1% of all new permits statewide.
- New permits rose 26% compared with the 12 months before (109 then).
- The busiest month was Sep 2026 (23); the slowest was Nov 2025 (5).
- Mining & oil/gas is over-represented: 14.4x its share statewide.
- Other services (repair, personal care) is under-represented at 0.5x the state share, which can mean less local competition.
- 50% of new permits went to LLCs.
- The single most common new business type in Howard County was Electronic Shopping and Mail-Order Houses (17 permits).
New permits by industry
| Industry | Permits | Share in Howard County | Share in Texas |
|---|---|---|---|
| Retail | 55 | 40% | 42% |
| Food & lodging | 24 | 18% | 14% |
| Manufacturing | 10 | 7% | 6% |
| Transportation | 7 | 5% | 1% |
| Other services (repair, personal care) | 6 | 4% | 8% |
| Arts & recreation | 5 | 4% | 3% |
| Wholesale | 5 | 4% | 5% |
| Mining & oil/gas | 5 | 4% | 0% |
Most common new business types
| Business type (NAICS) | Code | New permits |
|---|---|---|
| Electronic Shopping and Mail-Order Houses | 454110 | 17 |
| Mobile Food Services | 722330 | 10 |
| All Other General Merchandise Stores | 452319 | 5 |
| All Other Miscellaneous Store Retailers (except Tobacco Stores) | 453998 | 5 |
| Support Activities for Oil and Gas Operations | 213112 | 5 |
| Full-Service Restaurants | 722511 | 4 |
| Limited-Service Restaurants | 722513 | 3 |
| Convenience Stores | 445120 | 3 |
| Women's Clothing Stores | 448120 | 3 |
| Beer, Wine, and Liquor Stores | 445310 | 3 |
Cities and towns with the most new permits
| City (mailing address) | New permits |
|---|---|
| Big Spring | 122 |
| Coahoma | 7 |
| Knott | 3 |
| Forsan | 3 |
| Stanton | 1 |
| Ackerly | 1 |
Entity types
| Entity | Permits | Share |
|---|---|---|
| LLC | 69 | 50% |
| Sole proprietor | 50 | 36% |
| Corporation | 11 | 8% |
| Partnership | 5 | 4% |
| Nonprofit | 2 | 1% |
Monthly new permits
| Month | New permits | |
|---|---|---|
| Oct 2025 | 12 | |
| Nov 2025 | 5 | |
| Dec 2025 | 6 | |
| Jan 2026 | 12 | |
| Feb 2026 | 5 | |
| Mar 2026 | 5 | |
| Apr 2026 | 11 | |
| May 2026 | 16 | |
| Jun 2026 | 15 | |
| Jul 2026 | 18 | |
| Aug 2026 | 9 | |
| Sep 2026 | 23 |
Household income in Howard 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) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 79720 | Big Spring | 11,080 | $87,742 | 126 |
| 79782 | Stanton | 2,000 | $183,581 | 32 |
| 79511 | Coahoma | 600 | $156,328 | 9 |
| 79713 | Ackerly | 230 | $297,848 | 1 |
Get the names and addresses
The weekly paid list has every new business with its address, industry and entity type. Texas New Business Weekly · free sample.
Counties with similar volume
- Panola County: 147 new permits (#99)
- Jasper County: 144 new permits (#100)
- Milam County: 140 new permits (#101)
- Shelby County: 133 new permits (#103)
- Lavaca County: 133 new permits (#104)
- San Jacinto County: 132 new permits (#105)
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.