Originally published: SMBtech, 14 October 2026
Australian small business owners are putting in longer hours without seeing a corresponding improvement in their own pay, according to the fifth annual State of Small Business Report published by the Council of Small Business Organisations Australia (COSBOA) and Square.
The report, which drew on aggregated and anonymised data from hundreds of thousands of Australian Square sellers and a national survey of 608 small business owners, paints a picture of a sector that is holding its ground in aggregate but stretching its operators thin in the process.
Revenue Flat In Real Terms
Revenue for the typical Square seller rose 3.9 per cent over the 12 months to June 2026, almost exactly in line with inflation of 3.8 per cent. In real terms, the typical business essentially stood still.
Around half of sellers grew over the period and almost as many declined. The typical business took no more payments and traded on no more days than the year before.
Where turnover did increase, profit followed for around two-thirds of those owners. But the picture is less encouraging when it comes to what owners are actually taking home.
Only around one in four owners are paying themselves more than a year ago, while about the same proportion are paying themselves less. Around two in five are working more hours, and one in four worked longer for pay that was flat or lower.
Methodology
The report draws on aggregated and anonymised data from hundreds of thousands of Australian Square sellers, comparing the 12 months to June 2026 with the prior 12 months for sellers active in both periods. The survey was conducted by Pureprofile in August 2026 among 608 Australian small business owners, operators and key decision-makers in businesses with fewer than 50 paid employees that had been trading for 12 months or more. The maximum margin of error is plus or minus 4.0 percentage points at the 95 per cent confidence level. The survey and Square data are separate and were not combined.
