SBA size standards by NAICS code

The SBA defines "small business" industry by industry. Every six digit NAICS code has a size standard, the maximum a business can be and still count as small, measured either in average annual receipts or in average number of employees. The standards are published in 13 CFR 121.201 and in the SBA Table of Size Standards. Your NAICS code decides which standard applies to you, so the code comes first: describe the business in the NAICS calculator and it returns the code.

How the SBA measures size

Each code uses one of two measures.

Receipts means total income plus cost of goods sold as reported on your federal tax return, not profit. Employees includes full time, part time and temporary staff, each counted as one person.

Size always includes affiliates. If you own or control another company, or another company controls yours, the SBA adds their receipts or employees to yours (13 CFR 121.103). A holding structure with three restaurants is measured as one business against the restaurant standard.

Where to look up your size standard

1. Find your six digit NAICS code. The guide to finding your NAICS code and the calculator both get you there.
2. Open the SBA Table of Size Standards on sba.gov or read 13 CFR 121.201 on eCFR. Both list every code with its standard.
3. Check for footnotes. Some codes carry exceptions or special rules on what counts as receipts.
4. Compare your own five year average receipts or 24 month average employees against the number.

If you register in SAM.gov, the system does step 4 for you. You enter your receipts and employees, and SAM.gov shows whether you are small for each NAICS code on your registration.

Size standards for common NAICS codes

These are the standards in 13 CFR 121.201 today.

A few patterns stand out. General building and heavy civil construction sit at $45 million, while specialty trades such as electrical, plumbing and drywall sit at $19 million. Manufacturing runs from 500 to 1,500 employees depending on how capital intensive the industry is. Professional services mostly fall between $15.5 million and $34 million, and engineering reaches $47 million for military, aerospace and marine work. Freight brokers (488510) and real estate brokers (531210) count only the commissions they keep as receipts, not the full value of the loads or homes they arrange.

Why size standards matter for SBA loans

To get an SBA 7(a) or 504 loan, the business and its affiliates must be small. There are two ways to qualify under 13 CFR 121.301:

• Industry standard. Your receipts or employees are at or below the standard for your primary NAICS code.
• Alternative size standard. Tangible net worth of $15 million or less and average net income after federal taxes of $5 million or less for the two full fiscal years before the application.

Most small businesses clear the industry standard with room to spare. The alternative standard helps businesses with high revenue or headcount and modest profits that would otherwise be too large under their code.

Size is only the first gate. The SBA also has industries it will not finance at all, such as lending, speculation and passive real estate investment. Our page on NAICS codes and business loans covers the ineligible list and what lenders do with your code once you clear it.

Why size standards matter for federal contracts

Every federal solicitation set aside for small business names one NAICS code, chosen by the contracting officer, and you must be small under that code's standard to bid. Your size is judged on each contract, not once for the company. A firm that is small for 541611 at $24.5 million may be other than small for 541613 at $19 million.

That is why SAM.gov lets you list several NAICS codes. List every code you perform, and SAM.gov reports your size status for each one.

The 2022 inflation adjustment

The SBA raised every receipts based size standard by about 13.65% for inflation in an interim final rule published November 17, 2022 and effective December 19, 2022. That is when general construction moved from $39.5 million to $45 million and specialty trades from $16.5 million to $19 million. Employee based standards were not changed by that rule.

The Small Business Jobs Act of 2010 requires the SBA to review every size standard at least once every five years, so the table moves over time. On August 20, 2026 the SBA proposed a broad overhaul of size standards across many industries, which is not yet final, so the numbers above remain the ones in force.

Getting the code right first

The size standard is only as accurate as the NAICS code under it. A specialty contractor classified as a general builder sees a $45 million standard where $19 million applies, and a lender or contracting officer will catch it. If your code no longer matches what you do, the guide on how to change your NAICS code shows where to update it.

Once the code is right, financing follows it. Start an application and the AI matches the deal to lenders that fund your code.