South Florida’s economy continues to outpace national growth, driven by strong employment gains and a surge in business creation, according to a new economic outlook report from Florida Atlantic University.

South Florida’s economy continues to outpace national growth, driven by strong employment gains and a surge in business creation, according to a new economic outlook report from Florida Atlantic University.

While the information and financial service sectors are the highest-paying industries in Palm Beach, Broward, and Miami-Dade Counties, Trade, Transportation and Utilities, and professional and business services were the two largest employers in Palm Beach County and Broward County, and Trade, Transportation and Utilities, Education, and Health Services were the two largest employers in Miami-Dade County.

In terms of total businesses, Miami-Dade County leads with over 126,000 businesses, followed by Broward (84,000), and Palm Beach (73,000), reflecting a sustained post-pandemic recovery and continued migration of businesses to the region, according to the South Florida Economic Outlook Report.

“Since the pandemic, we’ve seen pretty consistent growth in employment and salary growth in these sectors,” said Bryan Cutsinger, Ph.D., assistant professor of economics in FAU’s College of Business. “A large part of it can be attributed to finance firms setting up in South Florida as the new ‘Wall Street South.’ As more companies migrate, you are going to need more management of companies and enterprises.”  

The South Florida Economic Outlook Report, produced by Cutsinger and updated quarterly, offers localized, industry-specific data at the county level for Palm Beach County, Broward County, and Miami-Dade County. Through three trackers, The Tri-County Business Tracker , The Tri-County Labor Market Tracker , and The Tri-County Output Insights , the report offers a clear view of the evolving business landscape, employment levels and annual salaries by industry, and economic production in the tri-county area.

Together, these new products by Cutsinger provide a clearer picture of what’s driving growth in South Florida to assist business owners, policy makers, and engaged residents in monitoring performance, emerging trends, and making more informed decisions about the region’s future.

South Florida’s economic outputs have been growing steadily, outperforming the national level. Real (inflation-adjusted) GDP grew 2.89% on a national level as of the most recently reported data in 2023, while real GDP in Palm Beach County grew 4.81%, 4.14% in Broward County, and 3.5% in Miami-Dade County.

There is over $400 billion in combined real GDP across Broward, Miami-Dade, and Palm Beach counties, making South Florida one of the largest regional economies in the United States.

“South Florida alone makes up about 31% of the total Florida GDP,” Cutsinger said. “The South Florida economy has been growing a little bit faster on average over the past few years compared to the previous period.”

-FAU-