Colorado ranks second in an analysis of the best states for women small business owners.

Lendio, an online loan marketplace in the United States targeting small business owners, analyzed seven metrics to determine the rankings, including the share of employer businesses owned by women, the proportional change of women-owned businesses between 2012 and 2020, the employment rate among women, the proportion of women-owned businesses earning $1 million or more, the percentage of patents filed by women and venture capital deals per women-owned businesses.

The analysis used information from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Census Bureau and U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, among other sources.

Colorado fared well for the 36 percent of employer businesses owned by women in 2021. The proportion of women-owned businesses increased 19 percent between 2012 and 2020. The employment rate for women stood at 63 percent in 2022. Meanwhile, 27 percent of women-owned businesses in the state earn $1 million or more, 10 percent of patents were filed by women and 2 percent of women-owned firms received venture capital.

Washington ranked as the best state for women small business owners, while Delaware, Oregon, California, Utah, Maryland, Arizona, Hawaii and Wyoming rounded out the top 10.

Maine came in 50th in the ranking, while Alabama, Mississippi, Kentucky, Connecticut, North Dakota, Tennessee, Louisiana, Ohio and Pennsylvania rounded out the bottom 10. The District of Columbia ranked 43rd.

The number of women-owned businesses in the United States increased 13.6 percent from 2019 to 2023 to make up 39.1 percent of all businesses nationwide.

According to separate research by Wells Fargo, women own 13.8 million businesses, employ 10 million people and generate $3.9 trillion in revenue.