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Today's small business insights to understand tomorrow's economy

MYOB has released a new edition of the Quarterly MYOB Small and Medium Enterprise (SME) Performance Indicator.

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  • National data
  • Industry insights
  • Economic trends
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Economic insights for the small businesses sector

The SME Performance Indicator is an aggregation of gross value added (GVA) for the small business sector (1-19 employees).

Analysis of this sector, including breakdowns of key industries, provides insight into our economic future.

Graph showing MYOB SME Performance Indicator (purple line) and Australian GDP (black dotted line) trends from 2020-2025.

SME Performance Score

In Q4 2025, the SME Performance score increased by 1% over three months and +3% over the year, reinforcing the gradual improvement seen since early 2025.

Graph showing SME Gross Value Added per employee (purple bars) and employment numbers (pink line) from 2020-2025 in Australia.

Employment patterns for SMEs

Employment remained relatively stable over the year while productivity improved, with GVA per employee rising and profitability strong, particularly in construction.

Explore performance by featured sector

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Rows of sealed red jars on a food production line with a worker's hand visible in a processing facility.

Office workers laughing while they work

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The most recent MYOB SME Performance Indicator shows a strong quarterly performance.

The SME sector continues its upwards trajectory over the last quarter of 2025, rising by 1%.

Previous SME Performance Indicator reports

2025

2024

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Industry

Construction

The SME construction sector rose 3% over the three months to December 2025 and delivered 5.3% annual growth, its strongest result in three years. Construction remains one of the most important sectors in the SME economy and is a key driver for a positive total SME output this quarter.

Line graph showing construction industry trends from 2020-2025, comparing Construction SME GVA, Australian GDP, and Industry GVA performance.

Top performing sector

Manufacturing

Australian manufacturing grew about 3 % in Q4 2025 as stronger turnover, sustained domestic and export demand, and ongoing investment and production activity helped offset broader cost and supply-chain pressures.

Line graph showing manufacturing industry trends from 2020-2025, comparing SME GVA (purple), Australian GDP (black), and Industry GVA (pink).

Low performing industry

Public safety and administration

SMEs in Australia’s public administration and related services sector recorded around 6% growth in Q4 2025, driven by increased government spending, rising public sector employment and wages, and stronger public investment activity supporting service demand.

The SME sector of the public safety and administration industry has dropped by 14% over the three months to September 2025, marking a 9% decrease compared to this time last year.
Line graph showing Public Administration industry performance from 2020-2025, with purple SME GVA line outperforming GDP and industry GVA trends.

Top performing sector

Financial services

The latest MYOB SME Performance Indicator shows small and medium businesses across Australia remain in a stable position and have started to steadily grow.

Low performing industry

Arts and recreation

The latest MYOB SME Performance Indicator shows small and medium businesses across Australia remain in a stable position and have started to steadily grow.

Line graph showing Arts and Recreational Services industry performance from 2020-2025, comparing SME GVA, Industry GVA, and Australian GDP trends.

Low performing industry

Hospitality and accommodation

The latest MYOB SME Performance Indicator shows small and medium businesses across Australia remain in a stable position and have started to steadily grow.