Main Street Health Report
July 2024
Labor and wage stats
Every month we measure how small businesses are actually doing, from the timesheets of more than 100,000 of them: who is working, how many hours, what they are paid, and how that compares with the same month in previous years.
Entertainment saw the biggest jump in its peak demand month, as other sectors stayed relatively flat
- Hourly employees
- 2M+
- Small businesses
- 100K+
- Measured, not surveyed
- Timesheet data
Hourly employees
Small businesses
Measured, not surveyed
Main Street at a glance
The top things to know this month
Hourly Wages
Entertainment saw the biggest jump in its peak demand month, as other sectors stayed relatively flat
Hourly Wages
Similar to last year, July saw higher costs for business owners for the second straight month
Number of Jobs Added
As seasonal demand peaked, additions to rosters tapered off
What the data shows
Each finding below takes one measure of Main Street, participation, hours, wages, hiring and turnover, and compares July 2024 with the same month in the two years before it. Every chart is drawn from the figures, which are published alongside it for anyone who wants to check or reuse them.
Hourly Wages
Wages saw slight increases in July
Entertainment saw the biggest jump in its peak demand month, as other sectors stayed relatively flat
(Monthly change in average “Hourly Wages” across all jobs)
| Category | July 2024 |
|---|---|
| Food & Drink | $12.83 |
| Entertainment | $13.48 |
| Retail | $14.26 |
| Health Care | $18.60 |
| Professional Services | $15.08 |
Hourly Wages
Labor costs continued to rise for SMB owners
Similar to last year, July saw higher costs for business owners for the second straight month
(Percent change in average “Hourly Wages” across all jobs, relative to January 2022)
| Period | All industries |
|---|---|
| Point 1 | 1.3% |
| Point 2 | 1.1% |
| Point 3 | 2.7% |
| Point 4 | 3.3% |
| Point 5 | 3.7% |
| Point 6 | 4.4% |
| Point 7 | 5.1% |
| Point 8 | 6.0% |
| Point 9 | 7.3% |
| Point 10 | 7.7% |
| Point 11 | 9.4% |
| Jan'23 | 11.8% |
| Point 13 | 13.4% |
| Point 14 | 13.5% |
| Point 15 | 14.1% |
| Point 16 | 15.0% |
| Point 17 | 15.7% |
| Point 18 | 16.6% |
| Point 19 | 16.7% |
| Point 20 | 18.5% |
| Point 21 | 19.8% |
| Point 22 | 21.2% |
| Point 23 | 22.2% |
| Jan'24 | 24.7% |
| Point 25 | 25.9% |
| Point 26 | 25.8% |
| Point 27 | 26.5% |
| Point 28 | 26.9% |
| Point 29 | 27.5% |
| Jul'24 | 27.9% |
Number of Jobs Added
Hiring dropped in July after months of build-up
As seasonal demand peaked, additions to rosters tapered off
(Monthly change in average “Number of Jobs Added” across all jobs)
| Category | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan – Feb | (2.9%) | 2.0% | 3.1% |
| Feb – Mar | 1.4% | (3.3%) | 0.7% |
| Mar – Apr | 8.7% | 7.3% | 7.0% |
| Apr – May | 1.9% | 3.8% | 2.8% |
| May – Jun | (1.8%) | (1.4%) | 1.2% |
| Jun – Jul | (6.1%) | (7.0%) | (11.7%) |
Number of Jobs Archived
Turnover stayed low alongside slow hiring
With summer rosters set, staff changes were minimal across the board in July
(Monthly change in average “Number of Jobs Archived” across all jobs)
| Category | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan – Feb | 1.4% | (3.9%) | (1.7%) |
| Feb – Mar | (5.0%) | (2.1%) | (0.1%) |
| Mar – Apr | 3.4% | 3.7% | 9.6% |
| Apr – May | (0.1%) | 7.7% | 6.0% |
| May – Jun | 1.8% | 1.9% | (10.8%) |
| Jun – Jul | (4.0%) | (0.2%) | (4.8%) |
Employees Working
Hot Summer temperatures cool down growth run
Small businesses saw significant drop in employees working in the last 3 years
(Monthly change in 7-day average of “Employees Working”, relative to January 2024)
| Category | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan – Feb | 6.0% | 1.4% | 2.1% |
| Feb – Mar | (0.2%) | 0.1% | 1.2% |
| Mar – Apr | 0.7% | 1.5% | 0.3% |
| Apr – May | 1.5% | 1.0% | 1.1% |
| May – Jun | 3.2% | 1.8% | 2.5% |
| Jun – Jul | (0.9%) | (0.4%) | (1.9%) |
Hours Worked
Employees feel the impact of rising temperatures
Employee activity was the lowest, similar to Employees working, in the last 3 years
(Monthly change in 7-day average of “Hours Worked”, relative to January 2024)
| Category | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan – Feb | 6.2% | 1.5% | 2.7% |
| Feb – Mar | (0.2%) | 0.9% | 2.1% |
| Mar – Apr | 0.6% | 0.6% | (0.6%) |
| Apr – May | 2.1% | 1.6% | 2.0% |
| May – Jun | 3.3% | 2.2% | 2.7% |
| Jun – Jul | (0.6%) | (0.1%) | (2.0%) |
Homebase data, by region
The Southwest was hit the hardest as temperatures soar
All regions saw a decline in “Businesses Open” this month
(Month-over-month change in core economic indicators, by Census region)
| Region | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Midwest | no data | no data | −2.5% |
| Northeast | no data | no data | −1.3% |
| Southeast | no data | no data | −2.1% |
| Southwest | no data | no data | −7.6% |
| West | no data | no data | −1.6% |
| Mid-Atlantic | no data | no data | −2.9% |
| Other | no data | no data | −1.2% |
Region classification - Midwest: ND, SD, NE, KS, MN, IA, MO, WI, IL, IN, OH, MI; West: NV, UT, AZ, NM, CO, WY, MT, ID, OR, WA,
Employees Working
Hospitality and Entertainment outperform others
All industries saw fewer employees working compared to the last 2 years
(Monthly change in 7-day average of “Employees Working”, relative to January 2024)
| Category | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan – Feb | 6.0% | 1.4% | 2.1% |
| Feb – Mar | (0.2%) | 0.1% | 1.2% |
| Mar – Apr | 0.7% | 1.5% | 0.3% |
| Apr – May | 1.5% | 1.0% | 1.1% |
| May – Jun | 3.2% | 1.8% | 2.5% |
| Jun – Jul | (0.9%) | (0.4%) | (1.9%) |
Entertainment includes events/festivals, sports/recreation, parks, movie theaters, and other categories.
How we measure Main Street
The dataset is based on Homebase data gathered from more than 100,000 businesses and 2 million hourly employees active in the US on our platform, one of the largest and most trusted sources of real-time data on employment growth across the small business landscape.
Data from prior years uses similar cohort-based logic. Unless indicated otherwise, daily figures are calculated relative to the median value for that specific day for the baseline month, net of the first four days of the month.
Every chart on this page is drawn from the underlying figures rather than copied from the PDF. Those figures come from the same model the report is built on, which is refreshed each month as more timesheets land, so a value here may differ slightly from the one printed in the original slide. The PDF stays available above as published.
If you use any content from this report, please include a link to joinhomebase.com.
Measured from timesheets, not surveys
- Hourly employees
- 2M+
- Small businesses
- 100K+
Hourly employees
Small businesses
- Hours worked
Calculated from hours recorded in Homebase timecards.
- Businesses open
Based on whether a business had at least one employee clock-in.
- Employees working
The distinct number of hourly workers with at least one clock-in.
- Wage inflation
The monthly change in average hourly wages at businesses that ran Payroll with Homebase in March 2026 and March 2025.
The story behind the numbers
Read the monthly analysis
Every month the team writes up what these figures mean for the people running the businesses behind them: what changed, what it costs, and what to do about it.
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