Startup Sentiment Remains Solid Despite Wavering Consumer Confidence
By: Michael Alston for Franchise Insights
October 7, 2026 – After a run of declining startup sentiment in the second quarter of 2026, September saw the third month of strong optimism as 64.7% of persons exploring franchise ownership agree or strongly agree that “now is a good time for startup”, similar to the preceding two months.
This jump in optimism about business startup conditions comes as consumer confidence “deteriorated notably” in September according to a Conference Board spokesperson. The September University of Michigan survey showed the lowest readings in four months.
Nonetheless, over 94% of this month’s respondents say they are ‘more or much more’ likely to start a business now than three months ago. So for reasons related to their own personal situations and calendars, they are more likely to move forward now than they were before summer began.
With respect to future conditions, 70.3% of respondents to the monthly sentiment survey see business conditions “about the same” in three months, with another 18.9% seeing them “better” or “much better” in three months.
In September 2026, 88.2% of aspiring franchisees saw business conditions the same or better three months ahead.
When asked about timing, 47.8% of respondents planned their startups within the next three months, and 70.1% expected their launches within the next six months. The percentage of entrepreneurs planning their startups at some time within the next twelve months grew to 85.1%.
Additional Survey highlights:
- Future business conditions: Despite war headlines and spiking oil prices, 88.2% of respondents see conditions no worse – staying the same or getting better – three months out. Accordingly, only 11.8% of respondents are worried that conditions will be “worse or much worse” in three months.
- Access to funding: 70.6% of entrepreneurs were concerned about finding adequate funding (consistently the top concern), still below 78.9% in January 2026. Those who see funding “harder or much harder” to obtain in the next three months were 23.5% of the total. “Economic climate” was the second most common concern at 35.3% of respondents, and “political changes” rose to third at 29.4% as the mid-term elections loom.
- Current Employment: Of these respondents, 35.3% were currently employed full-time, up from last month’s 29.6% low. Another 12% of respondents were current business owners seeking an additional or replacement business. Freelancers and consultants were also 35.3%, while part-timers were at 17.6%, and less than 1% were active military.
- Age Cohorts: Gen-X tied with Baby Boomers, each at one third of respondents, and topping the 26.7% who were Gen-Y (Millennials). Millennials are the largest cohort in the adult population, but years away from the peak age for business ownership. Gen-Z came in at 6.7%, and the “Silent Generation” had no respondents.
With the mid-term elections looming, ‘political changes’ rose to the third biggest concern of entrepreneurs planning startups.
The FranchiseInsights.com Small Business Startup Sentiment Index™ (SSI) is based on a monthly survey of individuals who have recently inquired about businesses or franchises for sale on the Franchise Ventures lead generation platform. This survey was conducted September 23-30, 2026.
Franchise Ventures is the leading franchise lead-generation platform for potential franchisees to thousands of growing franchise systems in the United States and Canada. Its franchise lead generation brands include Franchise.com, Franchise Solutions, Franchise Gator, Franchise Opportunities, Franchise For Sale, SmallBusinessStartup.com and BusinessBroker.net, and together they provide the largest aggregation of prospective franchise buyers in the U.S.
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Published on Wednesday, October 7th, 2026.