An analysis by NerdWallet of 65 cities in the state ranked Fountain Hills 15th among the best places to start a business in Arizona.

Each city had at least 500 businesses and a population of at least 5,000.

Tolleson headed the list, followed in order by Sedona, Wickenburg, Prescott, Scottsdale, Globe, Snowflake, Payson, Flowing Wells, Cottonwood, Show Low, Tempe, Flagstaff, Paradise Valley and Fountain Hills.

The town was listed as having 3,217 businesses; the average revenue per business was reported as $322,835.

NerdWallet’s analysts said they were surprised that some of the smaller cities bring in the highest revenue — which propelled some of the smaller lesser known cities to the top of the list.

Of the 65 communities studied, Tempe, Phoenix, Scottsdale and Chandler had some of the highest average revenue per business. Each of these cities has more than 160,000 residents.

The average revenue per business in Tempe was reported as $2,375,777. The comparative figure in Tolleson was $18,544,379.

Phoenix — with a population of 1.47 million — only made No. 38 on the list, while Tucson, with a population of 523,278, ranked 40th.

NerdWallet is an American personal finance and information service that provides information and comparison tools to consumers preparing to make financial decisions.

Its web site is geared toward millennials, according to the company’s profile.

In determining the rankings, census data about business climate (namely average revenue of business and percentage of businesses with paid employees and businesses per 100 people) and local economic health (median annual income, median monthly housing costs and unemployment rate) were compared.

Information:

http://www.nerdwallet.com/blog/small-business/places-to-start-a-business-in-arizona/