How to start a business with no experience

You can start a business without having run one before. Begin small, learn how your market works, write a one-page plan, and use the free advice that many governments offer new founders. Keep your first costs low, because official statistics show that many new businesses do not last ten years.

Updated 3 October 2026

Do I need experience to start a business?

Many of the first steps are choices and paperwork, not past results: a business structure, registrations, and sometimes licences. The UK government notes that the structure you choose "can affect the way you pay tax and your legal responsibilities." [1]

There is one important exception to watch for. Some countries ask for experience when they give a residence permit to a foreigner who wants to work for themselves. Sweden is one example: its Migration Agency lists "good experience in the industry and in running your own business" among its requirements for that permit. [2] That permit is for people from outside the EU and EEA. Citizens of another EU or EEA country "have the right to live and work in Sweden without a residence permit." [10] Our guide to starting a business in Sweden explains the difference.

Where can I get free help when I am new?

Look for public advice before you pay anyone. In the United States, the Small Business Administration says it and its partners "offer free or low-cost counseling and resources." [3] Its page also lists the mentoring network SCORE with "Free counseling and workshops from volunteer business mentors." [3] The Small Business Development Centers are described as giving advice and technical help to existing small businesses and to "pre-venture entrepreneurs," which means people who have not started yet. [4]

Other countries have their own versions. In Sweden, the government portal verksamt.se has pages on planning your start, and says that "a well-formulated business concept is the first step towards becoming an entrepreneur." [5] Search for your own country's small business office, and check that the address belongs to a government or a public body.

How do I start small and learn as I go?

A small start lets you learn at low cost. Here is a way to do it.

Pick one customer and one problem. Write it in one sentence.
Learn the market. Use the steps in our guide to market research for a business idea.
Write a one-page plan. The SBA says lean startup plans "can take as little as one hour to make and are typically only one page." [6] It also calls a business plan "a roadmap for how to structure, run, and grow your new business." [6]
Test with real people before you build. See how to validate a business idea without spending money.
Check the permits. The SBA says requirements and fees "vary based on your business activities, location, and government rules." [7]

How do I find my first customers?

Start with the people who already have the problem, and ask them directly. You do not need a large audience or a finished website to do that. Our guide to getting your first 10 customers goes through ways to do it, one step at a time. Expect it to feel slow at first. Each conversation teaches you something about the price, the words people use, and what they will not pay for.

How much money do I need to start?

It depends on the business, so list your costs before you decide. The SBA separates one-time costs, the ones you need to get started, from monthly costs such as salaries, rent and utilities. [8] When you pay for the start yourself, it warns you to be "careful not to spend more than you can afford." [8]

Use the startup budget template to list both kinds of cost, and the runway calculator to see how many months your savings would cover them.

What do the official numbers say about risk?

Starting is risky for everyone, not only for beginners. The US Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that 34.7 percent of private-sector business establishments born in March 2013 were still operating in March 2023. [9] The survival rate fell most in the first year, by 20.4 percentage points. [9]

These figures count all new establishments in one country, not only first-time founders, and an establishment closing is not the same as a founder failing. Read them as a reason to keep early costs low and to learn quickly, not as a prediction for you.

A short checklist

I can describe my first customer and their problem in one sentence.
I wrote a one-page plan.
I contacted a free advice service for new founders.
I listed one-time and monthly costs, and I know how long my money lasts.
I checked the permits and registrations for my activity and my country.
I have one small test planned for this month.

What does a first month look like?

This is an example, not a real person. Someone with a job in logistics, but no business experience, wants to offer bookkeeping help to small shops in their town. In week one they write the one-page plan. In week two they talk to five shop owners about how they handle receipts today. In week three they book a free session with a local advisor to check the permits. In week four they offer the service to two shops at a low price and write down what went wrong. At the end of the month they know more about the work, the price and the customers than a long plan could have told them.

Easeable helps a person structure an idea, take it into execution, and run the business with them. You can describe your idea in the box at the end of this page.