The U.S. Census Bureau has published the latest Business Formation Statistics (BFS) for January 2026, offering updated data on new business applications and formations across the United States and Puerto Rico. The BFS is a monthly product that provides both seasonally adjusted and unadjusted figures, covering national, regional, and state levels.
Developed in partnership with economists from the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta, the University of Maryland, and the University of Notre Dame, the BFS aims to deliver timely insights into business activity trends.
The dataset includes 12 series—four related to business applications and eight focused on business formations. For Puerto Rico, four monthly business application series are included as part of the standard release.
According to the Census Bureau: “The BFS provide timely and high frequency information on new business applications and formations in the United States and Puerto Rico. The BFS are a standard data product of the Census Bureau, developed in research collaboration with economists affiliated with the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta, the University of Maryland, and the University of Notre Dame.”
There was no separate news release issued for this announcement; only a tip sheet was provided.
