Understanding the Entrepreneurial Heartbeat of Australia

At Lawpath, we believe that serving small business owners well requires more than great products - it demands a deep, data-driven understanding of the entrepreneurial landscape. That’s why our teams have invested heavily in building intelligence capabilities that keep us connected to the real trends shaping Australian business.

The New Business Index: Our Window into Entrepreneurship

In 2025, our marketing team launched the Lawpath New Business Index - a monthly publication that has become one of Australia’s most comprehensive resources for understanding business formation trends.

As our Chief Marketing Officer Tom Willis explains:

“New business in 2025 was defined by broader participation and flexibility. With AI reducing the friction of starting and running a business, more Australians are entering the system earlier and with lighter structures, responding to rising living costs by creating income on their own terms.”

This insight didn’t come from guesswork - it came from rigorous analysis of verified data from the Australian Business Register (ABR) and ASIC, combined with anonymised patterns from the Lawpath platform.

2025: A Record Year for Australian Business Formation

The numbers tell a compelling story:

ABN Registrations Surged

Year	New ABNs	YoY Growth
2020	391,865	-
2021	468,536	+19.6%
2022	541,413	+15.6%
2023	757,308	+39.9%
2024	938,680	+23.9%
2025	1,308,115	+39.4%

1.3 million new businesses registered in a single year - a 27.3% average annual growth rate over the past five years.

Company Registrations Growing Steadily

364,748 new companies (ACNs) registered in 2025
+14.65% year-over-year growth
636,998 businesses registered for GST

What’s Driving This Surge?

Our analysis reveals several key factors:

1. The Rise of the Sole Trader

Sole trader registrations grew 55% year-over-year in 2025, making it the dominant structure choice. This reflects founders choosing flexibility and simplicity over complex corporate structures - testing ideas before committing to heavier compliance obligations.

2. Younger Founders Entering Earlier

The 18-24 age bracket saw the sharpest rise at +66% YoY growth. Young Australians are increasingly seeing entrepreneurship as a viable path, enabled by digital tools and AI that lower traditional barriers to entry.

3. International Diversity

A remarkable 65% of new founders were born outside Australia, bringing global perspectives and connections to the Australian market.

4. Geographic Decentralisation

While Sydney and Melbourne remain dominant, business formation is increasingly spreading beyond traditional CBD centres:

Western Australia led growth at +46% YoY
69% of new businesses are in metropolitan areas, but regional corridors are expanding
Suburban and regional hubs are emerging as viable bases for digital-first businesses

Industry Trends Worth Watching

Personal Services Leads the Way

Personal Services accounted for 20% of new registrations, with +18% YoY growth. This includes everything from consulting and coaching to trades and creative services.

The Professional Services Boom

Professional, Scientific and Technical Services continues to be Australia’s largest business category. These founders typically have higher compliance needs - from client agreements to IP protection to employment contracts.

NDIS: A Compliance-Intensive Vertical

The disability support sector has emerged as a significant growth area, with founders navigating complex regulatory requirements around service delivery, participant agreements, and operational compliance.

What We’re Seeing on the Platform

Beyond the public registration data, our platform intelligence reveals deeper patterns in what Australian businesses actually need day-to-day. Here’s what founders are asking about most:

Emerging Needs We’re Tracking

Terms & Conditions for online businesses continue growing as e-commerce expands
NDAs and Confidentiality requests spike alongside startup activity
Australian Consumer Law queries indicate founders are proactively seeking compliance knowledge
Debt Recovery questions have risen - a signal of cash flow pressures in the current economy

Industry-Specific Patterns

Different industries come to us with distinct needs:

Industry	Primary Legal Focus
Professional Services	Client agreements, IP protection
Construction	Contractor terms, compliance documentation
Health & NDIS	Service agreements, regulatory compliance
Retail & E-commerce	Terms & conditions, consumer law
Tech & Media	IP ownership, employment agreements
Transport & Logistics	Contractor vs employee, compliance

Geographic Insights

Our platform data mirrors the public trends - NSW and Victoria lead in volume, but we’re seeing proportionally higher engagement from:

Regional Queensland - particularly Gold Coast and Sunshine Coast corridors
Western Australia - Perth’s growth is translating to strong platform activity
Emerging suburban hubs - founders increasingly operate from home or co-working spaces rather than traditional CBDs

How We Stay Ahead

Data-Driven Marketing

Tom Willis and the marketing team don’t just publish the New Business Index - they use these insights to ensure Lawpath’s products and messaging resonate with what founders actually need.

When we see employment law queries rising, we know founders are hiring. When trademark interest spikes, we understand that brand protection is top of mind. When sole trader registrations surge, we adapt our onboarding to serve simpler structures.

AI-Powered Intelligence

Behind the scenes, our technology teams have built sophisticated systems - including what we call the Lawpath MCP (Model Context Protocol) - that aggregate and analyse patterns across our entire platform. This allows us to understand:

Industry trends - Which sectors are growing and what legal needs they have
Geographic patterns - Where new businesses are forming and how needs differ by location
Lifecycle stages - What founders need at formation vs. growth vs. maturity
Consultation patterns - What topics are rising or falling in our advisory calls
Service adoption - How businesses progress from basic needs to comprehensive legal support

This intelligence powers everything from personalised recommendations to proactive support - and it informs the insights you’ve read in this post.

The Power of Integrated Data

What makes our perspective unique is the integration of multiple data sources:

Public ABR/ASIC data tells us who is starting businesses
Platform activity shows us what they need
Advisory consultations reveal why they need it
Support interactions highlight where they get stuck

This 360-degree view helps us anticipate founder needs before they become pain points.

The Bigger Picture

The 2025 data tells a story of resilience and adaptation. Against a backdrop of economic uncertainty - elevated interest rates, cost-of-living pressures, and modest wage growth - Australians are increasingly taking their financial futures into their own hands.

As Tom Willis notes, starting a business in 2025 “appears less about rapid scale and more about income resilience, flexibility, and optionality.”

This shift has profound implications for how we serve founders:

Simpler starting points - Meeting founders where they are with accessible entry products
Progressive commitment - Allowing businesses to grow into more sophisticated services
Education-first approach - Helping founders understand what they need before they need it

What’s Next

The Lawpath New Business Index will continue tracking these trends monthly throughout 2026. Our commitment is to provide founders, policymakers, and industry observers with timely, accurate insights into the state of Australian entrepreneurship.

For the full 2025 Year in Review with interactive maps, demographic breakdowns, and detailed methodology, visit the New Business Index.

At Lawpath, understanding the entrepreneurial landscape isn’t just about numbers - it’s about ensuring we’re building the right products for the founders who trust us with their business journey.

How Lawpath Keeps a Pulse on Australian Entrepreneurship