business planner 2022

• Credit cards
• View all credit cards
• Banking guide
• Loans guide
• Insurance guide
• Personal finance
• View all personal finance
• Small business
• Small business guide
• View all taxes

You’re our first priority. Every time.

We believe everyone should be able to make financial decisions with confidence. And while our site doesn’t feature every company or financial product available on the market, we’re proud that the guidance we offer, the information we provide and the tools we create are objective, independent, straightforward — and free.

So how do we make money? Our partners compensate us. This may influence which products we review and write about (and where those products appear on the site), but it in no way affects our recommendations or advice, which are grounded in thousands of hours of research. Our partners cannot pay us to guarantee favorable reviews of their products or services. Here is a list of our partners .

5 Best Business Plan Software in 2022

Many, or all, of the products featured on this page are from our advertising partners who compensate us when you take certain actions on our website or click to take an action on their website. However, this does not influence our evaluations. Our opinions are our own. Here is a list of our partners and here's how we make money .

When you’re starting a business, developing a strong business plan will be one of the first steps you take. Your business plan will cover everything from a detailed explanation of your products or services and pricing model to at least three years of financial projections—plus much more. Therefore, whether you’re not sure how to get started or you’re just looking to make the process easier, you may want to turn to business plan software for help.

In this guide, we'll break down five of the best business plan software options—discussing their pros, cons, features, pricing, and more—so you have all the information you need to decide which solution is right for your small business.

Looking for tools to help grow your business?

Tell us where you're at in your business journey, and we'll direct you to the experience that fits.

on NerdWallet's secure site

The 5 best business plan software options

The right business plan software will make the process of writing your business plan much simpler. Like many business software solutions, however, there are a number of different business plan software options out there—each of which has a unique set of features, user experience, and price.

This being said, if you're looking for a place to start your search for the best business plan software, you can explore the five top options below:

How much do you need?

with Fundera by NerdWallet

We’ll start with a brief questionnaire to better understand the unique needs of your business.

Once we uncover your personalized matches, our team will consult you on the process moving forward.

1. LivePlan

Best overall business plan software.

If you want template-rich, modern-feeling business plan software, then LivePlan may be the right pick for you. LivePlan excels with their user interface, which feels updated and slick, and also offers intuitive, easy-to-use features and options.

Their step-by-step instruction will help you kick things off from the beginning, and you can take advantage of their online learning center to continue to gain business skills.

Affordable plans, including pay-as-you-go option

No long-term contracts or cancellation fee; 60-day money-back guarantee

Modern, intuitive interface; cloud-based, can be used on Mac, PC, as well as tablets

Ability to create unlimited plans in one account; over 500 customizable templates

Variety of business resources including video tutorials, step-by-step instruction, and general customer support

Limited integration options

Challenging to enter your own financial modeling projections

Can be difficult to learn

Ability to create an unlimited number of business plans on one account

More than 500 business plan templates spanning various industries

Integration with Xero and QuickBooks Online

Real-time tracking of financial data with accounting integrations

Ability to export your business plan to Word or PDF

Expert advice and step-by-step instruction included

Performance dashboards for tracking against budgets and sales goals

Ability to create and export a one-page pitch executive summary

Annual plan: $15 per month, billed every 12 months

Six-month plan: $18 per month, billed every six months

Pay-as-you-go plan: $20 per month, billed once every month

2. GoSmallBiz

Best for multiple business management tools in one platform.

Next on our list of the best business plan software options is GoSmallBiz, which is much more than just a business plan software. With GoSmallBiz, you have access to business continuity planning software with features that cover creating a roadmap, working through business and legal forms, building a website, and more.

In this way, GoSmallBiz is great for startups or newer businesses looking to access multiple business management tools through one platform.

Unlimited business consultation and extensive library of online resources

Multiple business tools in one software

Website consultation analysis and business assessment

Industry-specific business plan templates with emphasis on financial projections and statements

Expensive monthly cost compared to alternatives

Limited business plan features

Entire business plan can only be exported to Microsoft Word

Outdated interface

Industry-specific business plan templates with step-by-step building wizard

Ability to create financial statements and projections

Free website hosting and website builder

Customer relationship manager with integration with MailChimp

Digital marketing dashboard with social media and Google Analytics integrations

HR document builder

Corporate minutes writer

Business documents library

Business courses library

Unlimited business consultation

$39 per month, no contracts, free cancellation

Best for simple, fast business plan creation.

If you're looking for free business plan software, Enloop will be one of your closest options—they offer an all-inclusive seven-day free trial, no credit card required. Additionally, unlike some of the other options on our list, Enloop is strictly dedicated to business plan creation, including automated text writing, financial forecast comparisons, and a real-time performance score that tracks your progress.

This being said, if you'd prefer the most straightforward, fast, and simple way to write your business plan, Enloop will be a platform worth considering.

Simple and straightforward software, solely dedicated to business plan creation

Seven-day free trial

Automatic text generation available to streamline the writing process

Affordable plans with annual discount option

Limited additional educational resources

Only one template option

No integration options

Ability to create three business plans with customizable text, images, tables, charts, and over 100 currency symbols and formats

Includes automatic text generation for each plan section that you can then customize

Automatically generated financial statements

Includes financial performance comparison analysis (using three ratios with Detailed plan and 16 with Performance plan)

Real-time performance score to track your progress

Ability to invite users to edit (two with Detailed plan, five with Performance plan)

Pass/fail report and certificate to help you identify issues with your plan

Free plan: Seven-day free trial with no credit card required

Detailed plan: $19.95 per month or $11 per month, paid annually

Performance plan: $39.95 per month, or $24 per month, paid annually

Best for startups looking to acquire funding or find investors.

Part of the Startups.com suite, Bizplan gets top marks for their user interface—it’s intuitive, easy to use, and modern. You’ll work with a step-by-step business plan builder to get exactly what you’d like from your business plan. It may remind you of a modern website builder, since it has drag-and-drop tools to build templates.

Moreover, for one subscription fee, you have access to all of the tools in the Startups.com network, including self-guided courses, how-to guides, masterclass videos, and more. All in all, with a direct connection to Fundable, Bizplan is a top business plan software option for startups looking to acquire funding and find investors.

Subscription gives you access to all Startups.com tools

Lifetime access subscription option

User-friendly drag-and-drop business plan builder

Excellent educational resources

Connection to Fundable great for businesses looking for capital

No free trial

No templates based on industry

No mobile access

Drag-and-drop templates for business plan building

Financial command center to track all business financials in one place

Unlimited account collaborators

Ability to share business plan online with investors

Online resources including self-guided courses, masterclass videos, how-to guides, mentorship access

Unlimited software use for Fundable, Launchrock, and Startups.com

Monthly plan: $29 per month

Annual plan: $20.75 per month, billed at $249 per year

Lifetime access: $349 one-time fee

5. PlanGuru

Best for financial planning and budgeting.

Finally, for some of the strongest financial features among business plan software options, including budgeting and forecasting, you might check out PlanGuru. Whereas the other solutions we've reviewed were first and foremost focused on writing a business plan, PlanGuru is dedicated to business financial planning —providing the tools you need to create budgets, financial forecasts, reports, and more.

Therefore, if you need a software solution that can streamline the financial piece of your business planning processes, PlanGuru will certainly have the most to offer.

Extensive financial tools and detailed forecasting, budgeting, and reporting capabilities

Substantial library of resources

Cloud-based and desktop options

14-day free trial and 30-day money-back guarantee

Expensive, especially for additional users

Only focuses on the financial aspect of business planning; no templates or tools for basic business plan writing

Difficult to use without prior financial knowledge

Cloud-based version of software, as well as locally installed Windows version (desktop version has a few more features)

Works with QuickBooks Online, Xero, and Excel

Budgeting and forecasting for up to 10 years

Over 20 standard forecasting methods

Formula builder to create custom methods

Ratios and KPIs

Dashboard and reporting tools

Help guides, video tutorials, knowledgebase, and live U.S.-based customer support

14-day free trial

$99 per month (additional users $29 per month)

$899 per year (additional users $299 per year)

What to look for in business plan software

Ultimately, it's up to you to decide, which, if any, of the best business plan software solutions on our list is right for your business.

So, if you're trying to figure out how to choose between the various options out there, it might be helpful to compare your top choices based on the following criteria:

Features: As we've seen different business plan software solutions offer different features. You'll want to look carefully at the feature list of any software and determine what features are most important for your business needs. Do you need an extensive library of templates with detailed customization? Would you prefer software that includes an online learning center for business skills? Are you looking for a solution that combines business plan writing with other tasks? It may be useful to list out your ideal feature set, so you can compare individual software plans to that list.

Price: Although you might be able to find some free business plan software options (or at the very least, free trials), in most cases, you'll need to pay a subscription fee to access the platform you choose. Therefore, you'll want to think about what your budget is for this business tool and what type of software is most cost-effective for your needs.

User experience: User experience can vary widely among different business plan software options. You’ll find some programs that are newer or have been recently updated. Others might have the kind of interfaces that felt new years ago but are now pretty out of date—and, subsequently, make them a little harder to use. The right user experience for your needs is genuinely a matter of opinion and comfort—nevertheless, it's worth testing thoroughly testing out a platform to ensure that it can truly work for you before investing in a monthly or annual subscription.

The bottom line

There's no doubt that properly crafting your business plan is important for the future growth and success of your small business. Luckily, the right business plan software should make the process much simpler.

This being said, whether you opt for one of the best business plan software options listed here, or another platform entirely, you'll want to take the time to compare multiple solutions and ensure you choose the one that's right for your business.

As we mentioned, it can be helpful to think about the features you're looking for, your budget, and your user-experience preferences ahead of time—that way, you'll have a set of criteria in mind as you explore different solutions.

Ultimately, perhaps the best thing you can do to find the right software is to actually test out the platforms themselves—either by using a free trial or a money-back guarantee.

This article originally appeared on JustBusiness, a subsidiary of NerdWallet.

On a similar note...

12 of the best 2022 planners to help you get organized before the new year

— Recommendations are independently chosen by Reviewed’s editors. Purchases you make through our links may earn us a commission.

A good planner can make or break your year. Maybe not literally, but there is just something so exciting about turning to a fresh new page each day or week that can inspire list-making, organization and motivation about what’s to come. It can help you feel like the best version of yourself.

That’s why we’ve put together this guide to 12 of the best 2022 planners to help you really nail the new year. These planners run the gamut from basic to boss, so we’re sure there’s something in this guide for everyone. Now go forth and plan!

Start off the New Year with deals and shopping advice delivered straight to your phone. Sign up for text message alerts from the experts at Reviewed.

1. Rifle Paper Co. Planner

Rifle Paper Co. planners are arguably the most beautiful ones you can buy. The canvas exterior comes in a range of the brand's iconic floral prints and have the year printed in gold foil. Inside, you'll find both weekly and monthly views, along with plenty of pages for note-taking. There are also separate sections for recording celebrations and reflecting on every month with "recap" pages.

Get the 12-Month Planner from Rifle Paper Co. for $36

2. Panda Planner Pro

The oversized, hardcover Panda Planner Pro is designed to help you find happiness through productivity. One of the company’s mantras is “get more done, feel better,” which is something that plays out in the planner’s inclusion of multiple daily breakdowns. Panda Planner even comes with eBooks on topics like “how to crush your goals,” and “a billionaire’s guide to productivity,” as well as a course on how to use your planner to optimize your time. As Panda Planner’s Amazon listing opines, “You are awesome. You might not feel that way all the time, but if you could just find a way to stay on top of your sh*t, everyone else would recognize how badass you really are.” 

Get the Panda Planner Pro from Amazon for $30.97

3. Field Notes 56-Week Planner

If you’ve been in a stationary store or coffee shop in the past five years, you’ve probably seen a Field Notes product. The company was created by two designers who felt like the world was lacking in simple, beautiful memo books. Thus, Field Notes’ vintage style was born, and rugged laptop bags and back pockets have never been the same. Field Notes’ planner isn’t full of bells and whistles, but it looks great, has a durable chipboard cover and is well thought-out. Amazon buyers call it “the best planner ever,” awarding it an average 4.8 stars. 

Get the Field Notes 56-Week Planner from Amazon for $16.95

4. Day Designer Daily Planner

Day Designer’s signature planners are for people who—as the name would suggest—are looking to really design their days. Available in muted pastel shades along with pretty prints, they’re packed with to-do lists and goal-setting worksheets, as well as gold foil sticker sheets, for when you think you deserve a little recognition. To help you maximize each day’s potential, the planner’s format is meant to ease the feeling of being overwhelmed and unable to finish tasks. We’ll take any help we can get. 

Get the 2022 Daily Planner from Day Designer for $59

5. Blue Sky Weekly and Monthly Planner

Blue Sky’s wire-bound planners are mainstays for a reason. At under $10, they’re affordable, as well as reliable. This planner is for calendar organization only, making it perfect for minimalists. It’s good enough for the more than 22,000 Amazon buyers who have given this planner an average 4.8 stars, saying it’s “well made,” has “room to write,” and helps users keep track of important dates. What more do you need, really? 

Get the Blue Sky 2022 Weekly and Monthly Planner from Amazon for $9.99

6. Anthropologie Self-Care Planner

Self-care is important. Ideally, you should schedule it into your day, but who remembers to do that (and who has time)? That’s what the this Anthropologie wellness planner intends to change in 2022. It helps you mindfully design your days, weeks, months and year, all while focusing on self-care and self-assessments and finding a balance between work and life. It seems to work, with one reviewer saying that the planner “organizes my brain and my life, and has been a big source of stress relief!”

Get the Self-Care Planner from Anthropologie for $40

7. Happy Planner

Regular planners got you feeling a little too micromanaged? Enter the Happy Planner . It's fully customizable—you can mix and match all different layouts and designs based on your preferences, your organization needs and what you want to accomplish in 2022. It's also undated so you can start (and stop) using it anytime. When one of our experts tested it, she loved how many options it has and says it's a more fun way to stay organized and productive.

Get the Happy Planner 6-Month Undated Planner from HSN for $20.30

8. Smart Planner Pro

Designed to help you reach your highest potential, the Smart Planner is all about list-making. Packed with monthly calendars, daily schedules, goal setting pages, weekly scoring tallies, to-do lists, notes sections, habit tracking and gratitude affirmations, it's more than just a place to record meetings and appointments. Amazon users seem to think it works, giving the planner an average 4.5 stars with over 5,000 reviews.

Take it from this user: “It's easier to create habits and focus on your strengths when you are forced to write them down. The act of actually writing positive things about yourself and reading them every time you open the planner can positively increase your mood and self-esteem.” 

Get the Smart Planner Pro from Amazon for $24.97

9. Moon Wisdom Planner

There are traditional planners out there—and we’ll get to those later in this list—but there are also incredibly specialized planners, like this Moon Wisdom Planner, which helps you track not only your daily tasks, but also major cosmic events, full and new moon dates and even your own cycle. You'll find “abundance planning and manifestation prompts,” as well as an “introductory guide to planets, elements and crystals.” It has more than 2,000 glowing reviews on Etsy for its unique pages and chic design.

Get the Moon Wisdom Planner from Etsy for $44

10. GoGirl Planner

Looking for some big girl boss energy in 2022? The GoGirl planner will help you define your vision and, as the company says “start turning your big dreams into reality.” Using goals and charts to celebrate positive habits, it incorporates gratitude and affirmation techniques into your everyday organization. It’s also compact enough to fit in a purse, and comes with a pen and a sheet of fun stickers, because who doesn’t love stickers? Amazon shoppers say the GoGirl planner is great for specific planning, like keeping track of your fitness routine, and note that the calendar is tiny but mighty.

Get the GoGirl Planner from Amazon for $22.99

11. Clever Fox Planner

Another planner to help you maximize productivity and hone your organization, the Clever Fox planner stands out because of its accessories. It comes with an illustrated user guide to help newbies navigate the planner’s flow, as well as a page of 150 colorful planner stickers. It’s also undated, meaning you can start your year February 1, April 12 or whenever you decide to finally get serious about using your planner. Amazon shoppers love how thoughtfully designed this planner is, writing, “This planner is exactly what I needed to get my life together and feel less overwhelmed.” As a bonus, the Clever Fox planner comes in 23 colors, so you can truly personalize your experience.

Get the Clever Fox Planner from Amazon for $24.99

12. Smythson The Wafer Diary

For those who feel like treating themselves this year, there’s Smythson’s leather-bound desk diary, also known as The Wafer. It’s not cheap, but just think of the joy you’ll get every single time you open up its premium leather cover to jot down an upcoming meeting or date on its pale blue pages. Smythson has been making stationary in the U.K. for over a decade, so it’s a brand that comes with history and expertise. This particular agenda also comes with a sleek gold pen.

Get the Smythson The Wafer 2022 Leather Diary from Smythson for $110

Make 2022 the year of good decisions. Start by signing up for our newsletter for twice-weekly tips, reviews and more from our experts.

The product experts at Reviewed have all your shopping needs covered. Follow Reviewed on Facebook , Twitter , Instagram , TikTok or Flipboard for the latest deals, product reviews and more.

Prices were accurate at the time this article was published but may change over time.

• Starting a Business
• Growing a Business
• Small Business Guide
• Business News
• Science & Technology
• Money & Finance
• For Subscribers
• Write for Entrepreneur
• Tips White Papers
• Entrepreneur Store
• United States
• Asia Pacific
• Middle East
• South Africa

Copyright © 2024 Entrepreneur Media, LLC All rights reserved. Entrepreneur® and its related marks are registered trademarks of Entrepreneur Media LLC

The Right Way to Build Your 2022 Business Plan As the last couple months of 2021 approach, it's time to start thinking about how to reach even greater heights next year.

By David Partain Edited by Ryan Droste Oct 22, 2021

Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

One thing that never changes is the fact that having a great plan for your organization is essential. Even after you open your doors, you'll continue to analyze, tweak and perfect that plan in order to improve operations. With the pandemic creating so much uncertainty, building a plan for 2022 may feel more difficult than in the past.

However, there's some good news. Sticking to a few key points will take some of the edge off.

1. Identify your assumptions and biases

Most business plans are built around at least a few assumptions. For example, you might assume that you have to follow a specific set of regulations or that you're the right person to run the organization. One thing I've learned in the investment world is that even though cycles repeat, nothing ever goes strictly to plan. What you assumed will happen can be very different from what actually happens.

Take a look at your assumptions from the previous year. What held up? What didn't? More importantly, why didn't they hold up? If you can answer that question, then you can avoid repeating the same mistakes. If you've never built a plan before, then try to identify the biases that could create problems. In either case, give yourself some breathing room and remember that life happens.

Related: How to Build Your 2021 Business Strategy in the Face of Uncertainty

2. Look at your results

Sometimes, your results are very different from expected. This is not necessarily because you did something right or wrong, but it can be because there are so many moving parts involved. Look at what you ended up with, and let those results give the business some direction. For example, if you find that people bought twice as much of a product as you thought they would — and market conditions and attitudes haven't changed — then it would make sense to invest more into that product for the upcoming year. Be discerning about what actually caused your results to know whether they're anomalies or real, long-term trends for the company. But don't start blind.

3. Create some projections

Projections tell people what you're committed to. For instance, you might say you're going to spend $500,000 on advertising or $1 million on Project A. That's very attractive to investors and shareholders who want to know that you know where you're going. In one of the companies that I started, these kinds of projections helped me find partners. If you're both honest and bold enough, your projections can mold your circumstances and influence the support you get.

Projections also acknowledge foreseen issues and anticipate circumstances to keep you prepared. To demonstrate this point, when I started a small business in the FinTech sector, I didn't project that I'd need more funding. I didn't look at what would happen if the stock market really took a dive. I just assumed that everything would work. When venture capitalists asked how it would work financially under different scenarios, I didn't really have an answer for them. When trouble hit, I had no plan for how to survive and the business went under. If I would have outlined what to do in different scenarios, then I might have been able to keep my doors open.

Always look at your best and worst-case scenarios, work with different people across departments, and create projections that paint a realistic picture of the company.

Related: How to Have Meaningful End-of-Year Vendor Meetings — Virtually

Business plans have to be somewhat fluid because both the market and the world change incredibly quickly. Be ready to respond and pivot. You can apply these same three points every time you need to create a plan for your organization. Just start early, define who you are, and make your commitments. The sooner you can clarify your identity and intentions, the faster great things can happen.

Entrepreneur Leadership Network® Contributor

CMO of FlexShares

Want to be an Entrepreneur Leadership Network contributor? Apply now to join.

Editor's Pick Red Arrow

• Exclusive: Kevin O'Leary Is Launching a New Agency With the Founder of Shazam — Here's Why He Says It's a Game Changer
• Lock Younger Generations Want to Retire By 60. Their Strategy Is a Win-Win for Everyone.
• These Are the AI Skills You Should Learn Right Now, According to the World's Youngest Self-Made Billionaire
• Lock I Worked at Google for 14 Years — Here's What I Had to Unlearn When I Started My Own Company
• Lock New Research Reveals How Much Money Most Side Hustles Make in 1 Month — and the Number Might Surprise You
• Celebrities Are Collaborating on Iconic Meals With Popular Fast-Food Chains — Did Your Favorite Make the Cut?

Most Popular Red Arrow

Jamie dimon says a mild recession is still on the table: 'there's a lot of uncertainty out there'.

Economists at JPMorgan Chase raised their odds of a recession in 2024 to 35% on Wednesday.

63 Small Business Ideas to Start in 2024

We put together a list of the best, most profitable small business ideas for entrepreneurs to pursue in 2024.

Meta Reportedly Wants Pay Top Actors Millions to Clone Their Voices for AI

How much is a voice worth?

Mark Cuban Reveals He Was Once an Avid Trump Supporter: 'I Didn't Think He Had a Chance'

The "Shark Tank" star spoke about his political preferences in an interview with Vivek Ramaswamy.

Credit Card Debt Is Rising — Here's How Much the Average American Owes

Average credit card debt is up 6% from last year. How does your debt compare to the rest of the country?

Sam Altman-Backed Humane Wanted to Be the Next Smartphone. Now It Has $1 Million Worth of Returned Ai Pins.

Where did the Ai Pin go wrong?

Successfully copied link

Privacy Settings

Etsy uses cookies and similar technologies to give you a better experience, enabling things like:

• basic site functions
• ensuring secure, safe transactions
• secure account login
• remembering account, browser, and regional preferences
• remembering privacy and security settings
• analysing site traffic and usage
• personalized search, content, and recommendations
• helping sellers understand their audience
• showing relevant, targeted ads on and off Etsy

Detailed information can be found in Etsy’s Cookies & Similar Technologies Policy and our Privacy Policy .

Required Cookies & Technologies

Some of the technologies we use are necessary for critical functions like security and site integrity, account authentication, security and privacy preferences, internal site usage and maintenance data, and to make the site work correctly for browsing and transactions.

Personalized Advertising

To enable personalized advertising (like interest-based ads), we may share your data with our marketing and advertising partners using cookies and other technologies. Those partners may have their own information they’ve collected about you. Turning off the personalized advertising setting won’t stop you from seeing Etsy ads, but it may make the ads you see less relevant or more repetitive.

Personalized advertising may be considered a “sale” or “sharing” of information under California and other state privacy laws, and you may have a right to opt out. Turning off personalized advertising allows you to exercise your right to opt out. Learn more in our Privacy Policy. , Help Center , and Cookies & Similar Technologies Policy .

Our House Rules

Get to know Etsy's legal terms and policies

• Privacy Policy
• Terms of Use
• Third parties

Sanctions Policy

Etsy provides a direct connection between buyers and sellers around the world. When you use Etsy’s services (we’ll refer to Etsy.com, Pattern by Etsy, our mobile apps, and other services as our “Services”), you are responsible for complying with this policy, regardless of your location.

This policy is a part of our Terms of Use . By using any of our Services, you agree to this policy and our Terms of Use.

As a global company based in the US with operations in other countries, Etsy must comply with economic sanctions and trade restrictions, including, but not limited to, those implemented by the Office of Foreign Assets Control ("OFAC") of the US Department of the Treasury. This means that Etsy or anyone using our Services cannot take part in transactions that involve designated people, places, or items that originate from certain places, as determined by agencies like OFAC, in addition to trade restrictions imposed by related laws and regulations.

This policy applies to anyone that uses our Services, regardless of their location. It is up to you to familiarize yourself with these restrictions.

For example, these restrictions generally prohibit, but are not limited to, transactions involving:

• Certain geographic areas, such as Crimea, Cuba, Iran, North Korea, Syria, Russia, Belarus, and the Donetsk People’s Republic (“DNR”) and Luhansk People’s Republic (“LNR”) regions of Ukraine, or any individual or entity operating or residing in those places;
• Individuals or entities identified on sanctions lists such as OFAC’s Specially Designated Nationals (“SDN”) List or Foreign Sanctions Evaders (“FSE”) List ;
• Nationals of Cuba, regardless of location, unless citizenship or permanent residency outside of Cuba has been established; and
• Items originating from areas including Cuba, North Korea, Iran, or Crimea, with the exception of informational materials such as publications, films, posters, phonograph records, photographs, tapes, compact disks, and certain artworks.
• Any goods, services, or technology from DNR and LNR with the exception of qualifying informational materials, and agricultural commodities such as food for humans, seeds for food crops, or fertilizers.
• The importation into the U.S. of the following products of Russian origin: fish, seafood, non-industrial diamonds, gold, and any other product as may be determined from time to time by the U.S. Secretary of Commerce.
• The exportation from the U.S., or by a U.S. person, of luxury goods, and other items as may be determined by the U.S. Secretary of Commerce, to any person located in Russia or Belarus. A list and description of ‘luxury goods’ can be found in Supplement No. 5 to Part 746 under the Federal Register.
• Items originating outside of the U.S. that are subject to the U.S. Tariff Act or related Acts concerning prohibiting the use of forced labor.

In order to protect our community and marketplace, Etsy takes steps to ensure compliance with sanctions programs. For example, Etsy prohibits members from using their accounts while in certain geographic locations. If we have reason to believe you are operating your account from a sanctioned location, such as any of the places listed above, or are otherwise in violation of any economic sanction or trade restriction, we may suspend or terminate your use of our Services. Members are generally not permitted to list, buy, or sell items that originate from sanctioned areas. This includes items that pre-date sanctions, since we have no way to verify when they were actually removed from the restricted location. Members are also generally not permitted to ship items to or from sanctioned areas. Etsy reserves the right to request that sellers provide additional information, disclose an item's country of origin in a listing, or take other steps to meet compliance obligations. It is important that members provide complete and accurate information regarding the origin of items on the Etsy marketplace to ensure compliance with sanctions programs. We may disable listings or cancel transactions that present a risk of violating this policy.

In addition to complying with OFAC and applicable local laws, Etsy members should be aware that other countries may have their own trade restrictions and that certain items may not be allowed for export or import under international laws. You should consult the laws of any jurisdiction when a transaction involves international parties.

Finally, Etsy members should be aware that third-party payment processors, such as PayPal, may independently monitor transactions for sanctions compliance and may block transactions as part of their own compliance programs. Etsy has no authority or control over the independent decision-making of these providers.

The economic sanctions and trade restrictions that apply to your use of the Services are subject to change, so members should check sanctions resources regularly. For legal advice, please consult a qualified professional.

Resources: US Department of the Treasury ; Bureau of Industry and Security at the US Department of Commerce ; US Department of State ; European Commission

Last updated on May 15, 2024

Business Plan Templates

Free Download

2 Essential Templates For Starting Your Business. Available as an interactive PDF or a Google Docs template.

With this business plan template, you'll be able to:

• Write a company description that sells your story
• Plan for the future: lay out goals and metrics for success
• Describe your product line in detail and plan for how to stand out from competitors
• Consider any legal formalities that require attention when starting your business
• Put together necessary financial projections to make a strong start
• Create your buyer persona and determine your product/marketing fit

Build A Business Plan That Works

Available as a one-page interactive PDF and a full template on both Google Docs and Microsoft Word!

Whether you’re starting a business or drafting a formalized document with  your current business goals, it’s important to clearly defi ne the scope of all aspects of the venture — from mission, to target customers, to fi nances, and beyond.

When just starting out, it can be tempting to think of a business plan as simply your company’s name and a description of your product or service. But in reality, planning a business involves thinking through a lot more details.

In this business plan template we’ll guide you through the steps of writing company and product descriptions, setting sales and marketing goals and plans, and thinking through legal and fi nancial logistics. We've included a  plain text, designed , and  completed example version of this template. 

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

How do you write a business plan.

A business plan is a formal written document that you can use to identify the purpose of your company, make important decisions about your future and help grow your company. HubSpot's free business plan templates provides guidance to establishing your company mission, customer research, competition, and a business strategy to profitability.

Why do I need to fill out the information requested?

We will always keep your personal information safe..

We ask for your information in exchange for a valuable resource in order to (a) improve your browsing experience by personalizing the HubSpot site to your needs; (b) send information to you that we think may be of interest to you by email or other means; (c) send you marketing communications that we think may be of value to you. You can read more about our privacy policy here .

Where can I get a free business plan template?

HubSpot's Free Business Plan Templates are the best way to create a professional, thorough business plan. The templates include instructions and everything you need to know about starting your company.

Is this really free?

Absolutely.

Just sharing some free knowledge that we hope you’ll find useful. Keep us in mind next time you have marketing questions!

What are the basic format of a business plan?

A business plan is a written document that outlines the company's goals, strategy and implementation. The format of the plan varies depending on the type of organization (e.g., for-profit or nonprofit) and size, but most plans share some common features such as an overview, executive summary, and financial information.

What is the best business plan template?

A great business plan template clearly defines the scope of the venture -- from mission, to target customers, to finances, and beyond. HubSpot's business plan template will guide you through the steps of writing company and product descriptions, setting sales and marketing goals and plans, and thinking through legal and financial logistics.

What is needed to start a business?

If you're thinking about starting a business, you'll need to do some research first. You can't just start a business without doing any market research. Market research will tell you if there's an opportunity to turn your idea into a successful business. After that, write your business plan so that you know how much money and time it will take for the project to succeed. Use HubSpot's free business plan template today!

Set yourself up for success with this business plan template

Download the free business plan template.

All fields are required.

Easily create great, effective landing pages for free

Biz Building Moms

Dream & achieve your money-making goals!

The Best Small Business Planner For Entrepreneurs in 2022

The best planner for entrepreneurs & small business owners [2022].

Running a personal or small business is hard and chaotic work! Your business is often run by just yourself or a small team of employees that handle everything – the purchasing and finances, event coordination, online sales, website design and maintenance, social media marketing, and more. A small business planner like the Busy Boss Planner can be essential to keeping yourself and your business on track.

Made just for entrepreneurs and small business owners, the spiral bound professional planner has everything you need to organize your marketing initiatives, purchasing, planning, agenda, and more.

As a business owner and blogger without a team of employees I wear a lot of hats. Everything that happens in my business flows through me – and while I love having ownership of every part of my work, it’s a lot to manage! I found early on that I was struggling to keep track of things and to organize my planning and thoughts. I love using spreadsheets and other digital resources, but I needed one central place to keep all of my planning and tracking organized so that I could later dump the data into spreadsheets without forgetting things as they happened.

To help me manage all of the details of running a business I developed the Busy Boss Business Planner, the ultimate planner for small business owners and entrepreneurs.

In this post I’m going to walk you through some of the details of the Busy Boss Planner and discuss how it can help you manage your business. Whether you’re searching for the best productivity planners to use as a self-employed contractor or planners for business owners, I think you’ll find the Busy Boss planner a helpful tool to keep your work organized and reduce your stress level!

The Busy Boss Business Planner Features

The Busy Boss professional planner features 12 months of undated weekly planner pages and monthly calendars to help you organize your business and commitments. Each month is labeled and includes a receipt pocket, purchasing template, advertising campaign tracking, social media/promotion planning pages, brainstorming sheets, and more.

Monthly goal checklists, goal progress tracking, important event reminders, and task checklists are also included in an overview for each month.

With my business I have a ton of different usernames and passwords that I can never seem to remember, even with my computer’s password saving option! Therefore, I’ve also included in the business planner notebook a login and password tracking page.

The planner also features an events and deadlines overview page to give you an easy glance at your year ahead and all of it’s important dates as you plan.

Below are all of the pages and features included in the Busy Boss Planner:

• 12 Monthly calendars (undated)
• 5 Weekly scheduling pages for each month (undated)
• A monthly list for purchases
• A monthly pocket for receipts
• Monthly pages for social media or promotion planning (with space for each day of the month)
• Monthly advertising or marketing campaign tracking
• Monthly notes and brainstorming pages
• Important event lists
• Goal checklists
• Task checklists
• Goal progress tracking
• A logins and password tracking template
• A yearly overview list for important events and deadlines

What are some of the best parts of the Busy Boss Planner?

• The vertical planner is undated so you can start using it at any point during the year and still get full use out of it until you reach the same starting month again next year!
• The approximately 5.5×7.5″ size is thick and robust with all of the Busy Boss business planner features but also fits great into a backpack, purse, or bag on the go.
• You can throw your receipts all in one place when you’re out and about and record your purchasing right away!
• You won’t have to think on the spot about what to post on your social media for the day
• You’ll be able to look back on advertising campaigns and see if they were worth the investment or not
• You won’t have to keep trying to remember all of your passwords and due dates or important events!
• You can keep yourself motivated with business goals by keeping checklists and tracking your progress
• The colorful but “no frills” design doesn’t pressure you to spend time decorating your planner, but still helps you to manage your business with style!

The Busy Boss 2022 spiral planner is the ultimate planner for entrepreneurs and small business owners. Get your business organized and start using one today!

Where can I purchase a Busy Boss Business Planner?

You can purchase a physical copy of the Busy Boss Planner to be delivered to your doorstep using this link to my mom blog shop .

If you’re looking for the best business planner for small business owners or entrepreneurs then where better to find one than from an entrepreneur and small business owner herself?

Bring order to your business and streamline your planning with a copy today.

Related Posts

Shopify vs. Etsy – Which One Is Better For Your Business?

Etsy Fees, Profit, & Price Calculator – Free Google Sheets Template!

My Work At Home Mom Schedule With 3 Kids Under 6

Leave a reply cancel reply.

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment.

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed .

Business Planners

Achieve your career goals.

All You Need to Plan for the Year Ahead

Annual and academic planners are the backbone of our Paperblanks collection – offering new and bestselling designs every year to help you get organized and stay on track. Our Business Planners include unique layouts designed specifically for career planning.

A new year offers a fresh start – the time to leave behind bad habits and stay true to your resolutions. Our 12-Month Business Planners are here to help you achieve all your professional goals in the upcoming business year.

By beginning the coming business year with actions and intentions in mind, you are sure to put your best foot forward.

Stay Motivated to Achieve Your Goals

We know that setting business goals isn’t the same as achieving them, so we’ve designed our Business Planners to help you stay on track all year long. In a 224-page ultra format, each one of these softcover Flexi planners contains:

• Annual, monthly and weekly objectives
• Motivational quotes and rewards
• Weekly breakdowns of goals, actions and results
• Dot-grid planning pages

Elastic Closure

Beginning with our 2025 planners, all softcover Flexi planners will include an elastic closure, which expands to fit your needs as you fill your planner over time.

Address Book Pages

At the back of every Flexi planner you will find an integrated address book section.

Back Cover Pouch

A no-fuss pocket inside the back cover can hold loose papers or important notes while you’re on the go.

Ribbon Markers

Every planner comes standard with two satin ribbon markers, meaning you can make plans for today while setting your sights on a future date as well.

Paper Quality

Inside every Paperblanks Business Planner is 80 gsm paper in an eye-pleasing cream colour.

Paper Sourcing

Considering the environmental impacts of doing business is important to us. That’s why all of our paper is derived from sustainable forest pulp, our binder boards are made with 100% recycled materials and we use paper that is FSC-certified in all of our books.

Paperblanks Newsletter

Paperblanks survey, {{question.question}}, email address, thank you for taking the time to complete our survey.

How to Write a Business Plan: Step-by-Step Guide + Examples

Noah Parsons

24 min. read

Updated July 29, 2024

Writing a business plan doesn’t have to be complicated. 

In this step-by-step guide, you’ll learn how to write a business plan that’s detailed enough to impress bankers and potential investors, while giving you the tools to start, run, and grow a successful business.

• The basics of business planning

If you’re reading this guide, then you already know why you need a business plan . 

You understand that planning helps you: 

• Raise money
• Grow strategically
• Keep your business on the right track 

As you start to write your plan, it’s useful to zoom out and remember what a business plan is .

At its core, a business plan is an overview of the products and services you sell, and the customers that you sell to. It explains your business strategy: how you’re going to build and grow your business, what your marketing strategy is, and who your competitors are.

Most business plans also include financial forecasts for the future. These set sales goals, budget for expenses, and predict profits and cash flow. 

A good business plan is much more than just a document that you write once and forget about. It’s also a guide that helps you outline and achieve your goals. 

After completing your plan, you can use it as a management tool to track your progress toward your goals. Updating and adjusting your forecasts and budgets as you go is one of the most important steps you can take to run a healthier, smarter business. 

We’ll dive into how to use your plan later in this article.

There are many different types of plans , but we’ll go over the most common type here, which includes everything you need for an investor-ready plan. However, if you’re just starting out and are looking for something simpler—I recommend starting with a one-page business plan . It’s faster and easier to create. 

It’s also the perfect place to start if you’re just figuring out your idea, or need a simple strategic plan to use inside your business.

Dig deeper : How to write a one-page business plan

Brought to you by

Create a professional business plan

Using ai and step-by-step instructions.

Secure funding

Validate ideas

Build a strategy

• What to include in your business plan

Executive summary

The executive summary is an overview of your business and your plans. It comes first in your plan and is ideally just one to two pages. Most people write it last because it’s a summary of the complete business plan.

Ideally, the executive summary can act as a stand-alone document that covers the highlights of your detailed plan. 

In fact, it’s common for investors to ask only for the executive summary when evaluating your business. If they like what they see in the executive summary, they’ll often follow up with a request for a complete plan, a pitch presentation , or more in-depth financial forecasts .

Your executive summary should include:

• A summary of the problem you are solving
• A description of your product or service
• An overview of your target market
• A brief description of your team
• A summary of your financials
• Your funding requirements (if you are raising money)

Dig Deeper: How to write an effective executive summary

Products and services description

This is where you describe exactly what you’re selling, and how it solves a problem for your target market. The best way to organize this part of your plan is to start by describing the problem that exists for your customers. After that, you can describe how you plan to solve that problem with your product or service. 

This is usually called a problem and solution statement .

To truly showcase the value of your products and services, you need to craft a compelling narrative around your offerings. How will your product or service transform your customers’ lives or jobs? A strong narrative will draw in your readers.

This is also the part of the business plan to discuss any competitive advantages you may have, like specific intellectual property or patents that protect your product. If you have any initial sales, contracts, or other evidence that your product or service is likely to sell, include that information as well. It will show that your idea has traction , which can help convince readers that your plan has a high chance of success.

Market analysis

Your target market is a description of the type of people that you plan to sell to. You might even have multiple target markets, depending on your business. 

A market analysis is the part of your plan where you bring together all of the information you know about your target market. Basically, it’s a thorough description of who your customers are and why they need what you’re selling. You’ll also include information about the growth of your market and your industry .

Try to be as specific as possible when you describe your market. 

Include information such as age, income level, and location—these are what’s called “demographics.” If you can, also describe your market’s interests and habits as they relate to your business—these are “psychographics.” 

Related: Target market examples

Essentially, you want to include any knowledge you have about your customers that is relevant to how your product or service is right for them. With a solid target market, it will be easier to create a sales and marketing plan that will reach your customers. That’s because you know who they are, what they like to do, and the best ways to reach them.

Next, provide any additional information you have about your market. 

What is the size of your market ? Is the market growing or shrinking? Ideally, you’ll want to demonstrate that your market is growing over time, and also explain how your business is positioned to take advantage of any expected changes in your industry.

Dig Deeper: Learn how to write a market analysis

Competitive analysis

Part of defining your business opportunity is determining what your competitive advantage is. To do this effectively, you need to know as much about your competitors as your target customers. 

Every business has some form of competition. If you don’t think you have competitors, then explore what alternatives there are in the market for your product or service. 

For example: In the early years of cars, their main competition was horses. For social media, the early competition was reading books, watching TV, and talking on the phone.

A good competitive analysis fully lays out the competitive landscape and then explains how your business is different. Maybe your products are better made, or cheaper, or your customer service is superior. Maybe your competitive advantage is your location – a wide variety of factors can ultimately give you an advantage.

Dig Deeper: How to write a competitive analysis for your business plan

Marketing and sales plan

The marketing and sales plan covers how you will position your product or service in the market, the marketing channels and messaging you will use, and your sales tactics. 

The best place to start with a marketing plan is with a positioning statement . 

This explains how your business fits into the overall market, and how you will explain the advantages of your product or service to customers. You’ll use the information from your competitive analysis to help you with your positioning. 

For example: You might position your company as the premium, most expensive but the highest quality option in the market. Or your positioning might focus on being locally owned and that shoppers support the local economy by buying your products.

Once you understand your positioning, you’ll bring this together with the information about your target market to create your marketing strategy . 

This is how you plan to communicate your message to potential customers. Depending on who your customers are and how they purchase products like yours, you might use many different strategies, from social media advertising to creating a podcast. Your marketing plan is all about how your customers discover who you are and why they should consider your products and services. 

While your marketing plan is about reaching your customers—your sales plan will describe the actual sales process once a customer has decided that they’re interested in what you have to offer. 

If your business requires salespeople and a long sales process, describe that in this section. If your customers can “self-serve” and just make purchases quickly on your website, describe that process. 

A good sales plan picks up where your marketing plan leaves off. The marketing plan brings customers in the door and the sales plan is how you close the deal.

Together, these specific plans paint a picture of how you will connect with your target audience, and how you will turn them into paying customers.

Dig deeper: What to include in your sales and marketing plan

Business operations

The operations section describes the necessary requirements for your business to run smoothly. It’s where you talk about how your business works and what day-to-day operations look like. 

Depending on how your business is structured, your operations plan may include elements of the business like:

• Supply chain management
• Manufacturing processes
• Equipment and technology
• Distribution

Some businesses distribute their products and reach their customers through large retailers like Amazon.com, Walmart, Target, and grocery store chains. 

These businesses should review how this part of their business works. The plan should discuss the logistics and costs of getting products onto store shelves and any potential hurdles the business may have to overcome.

If your business is much simpler than this, that’s OK. This section of your business plan can be either extremely short or more detailed, depending on the type of business you are building.

For businesses selling services, such as physical therapy or online software, you can use this section to describe the technology you’ll leverage, what goes into your service, and who you will partner with to deliver your services.

Dig Deeper: Learn how to write the operations chapter of your plan

Key milestones and metrics

Although it’s not required to complete your business plan, mapping out key business milestones and the metrics can be incredibly useful for measuring your success.

Good milestones clearly lay out the parameters of the task and set expectations for their execution. You’ll want to include:

• A description of each task
• The proposed due date
• Who is responsible for each task

If you have a budget, you can include projected costs to hit each milestone. You don’t need extensive project planning in this section—just list key milestones you want to hit and when you plan to hit them. This is your overall business roadmap. 

Possible milestones might be:

• Website launch date
• Store or office opening date
• First significant sales
• Break even date
• Business licenses and approvals

You should also discuss the key numbers you will track to determine your success. Some common metrics worth tracking include:

• Conversion rates
• Customer acquisition costs
• Profit per customer
• Repeat purchases

It’s perfectly fine to start with just a few metrics and grow the number you are tracking over time. You also may find that some metrics simply aren’t relevant to your business and can narrow down what you’re tracking.

Dig Deeper: How to use milestones in your business plan

Organization and management team

Investors don’t just look for great ideas—they want to find great teams. Use this chapter to describe your current team and who you need to hire . You should also provide a quick overview of your location and history if you’re already up and running.

Briefly highlight the relevant experiences of each key team member in the company. It’s important to make the case for why yours is the right team to turn an idea into a reality. 

Do they have the right industry experience and background? Have members of the team had entrepreneurial successes before? 

If you still need to hire key team members, that’s OK. Just note those gaps in this section.

Your company overview should also include a summary of your company’s current business structure . The most common business structures include:

• Sole proprietor
• Partnership

Be sure to provide an overview of how the business is owned as well. Does each business partner own an equal portion of the business? How is ownership divided? 

Potential lenders and investors will want to know the structure of the business before they will consider a loan or investment.

Dig Deeper: How to write about your company structure and team

Financial plan

Last, but certainly not least, is your financial plan chapter. 

Entrepreneurs often find this section the most daunting. But, business financials for most startups are less complicated than you think, and a business degree is certainly not required to build a solid financial forecast. 

A typical financial forecast in a business plan includes the following:

• Sales forecast : An estimate of the sales expected over a given period. You’ll break down your forecast into the key revenue streams that you expect to have.
• Expense budget : Your planned spending such as personnel costs , marketing expenses, and taxes.
• Profit & Loss : Brings together your sales and expenses and helps you calculate planned profits.
• Cash Flow : Shows how cash moves into and out of your business. It can predict how much cash you’ll have on hand at any given point in the future.
• Balance Sheet : A list of the assets, liabilities, and equity in your company. In short, it provides an overview of the financial health of your business. 

A strong business plan will include a description of assumptions about the future, and potential risks that could impact the financial plan. Including those will be especially important if you’re writing a business plan to pursue a loan or other investment.

Dig Deeper: How to create financial forecasts and budgets

This is the place for additional data, charts, or other information that supports your plan.

Including an appendix can significantly enhance the credibility of your plan by showing readers that you’ve thoroughly considered the details of your business idea, and are backing your ideas up with solid data.

Just remember that the information in the appendix is meant to be supplementary. Your business plan should stand on its own, even if the reader skips this section.

Dig Deeper : What to include in your business plan appendix

Optional: Business plan cover page

Adding a business plan cover page can make your plan, and by extension your business, seem more professional in the eyes of potential investors, lenders, and partners. It serves as the introduction to your document and provides necessary contact information for stakeholders to reference.

Your cover page should be simple and include:

• Company logo
• Business name
• Value proposition (optional)
• Business plan title
• Completion and/or update date
• Address and contact information
• Confidentiality statement

Just remember, the cover page is optional. If you decide to include it, keep it very simple and only spend a short amount of time putting it together.

Dig Deeper: How to create a business plan cover page

How to use AI to help write your business plan

Generative AI tools such as ChatGPT can speed up the business plan writing process and help you think through concepts like market segmentation and competition. These tools are especially useful for taking ideas that you provide and converting them into polished text for your business plan.

The best way to use AI for your business plan is to leverage it as a collaborator , not a replacement for human creative thinking and ingenuity. 

AI can come up with lots of ideas and act as a brainstorming partner. It’s up to you to filter through those ideas and figure out which ones are realistic enough to resonate with your customers. 

There are pros and cons of using AI to help with your business plan . So, spend some time understanding how it can be most helpful before just outsourcing the job to AI.

Learn more: 10 AI prompts you need to write a business plan

• Writing tips and strategies

To help streamline the business plan writing process, here are a few tips and key questions to answer to make sure you get the most out of your plan and avoid common mistakes .  

Determine why you are writing a business plan

Knowing why you are writing a business plan will determine your approach to your planning project. 

For example: If you are writing a business plan for yourself, or just to use inside your own business , you can probably skip the section about your team and organizational structure. 

If you’re raising money, you’ll want to spend more time explaining why you’re looking to raise the funds and exactly how you will use them.

Regardless of how you intend to use your business plan , think about why you are writing and what you’re trying to get out of the process before you begin.

Keep things concise

Probably the most important tip is to keep your business plan short and simple. There are no prizes for long business plans . The longer your plan is, the less likely people are to read it. 

So focus on trimming things down to the essentials your readers need to know. Skip the extended, wordy descriptions and instead focus on creating a plan that is easy to read —using bullets and short sentences whenever possible.

Have someone review your business plan

Writing a business plan in a vacuum is never a good idea. Sometimes it’s helpful to zoom out and check if your plan makes sense to someone else. You also want to make sure that it’s easy to read and understand.

Don’t wait until your plan is “done” to get a second look. Start sharing your plan early, and find out from readers what questions your plan leaves unanswered. This early review cycle will help you spot shortcomings in your plan and address them quickly, rather than finding out about them right before you present your plan to a lender or investor.

If you need a more detailed review, you may want to explore hiring a professional plan writer to thoroughly examine it.

Use a free business plan template and business plan examples to get started

Knowing what information to include in a business plan is sometimes not quite enough. If you’re struggling to get started or need additional guidance, it may be worth using a business plan template. 

There are plenty of great options available (we’ve rounded up our 8 favorites to streamline your search).

But, if you’re looking for a free downloadable business plan template , you can get one right now; download the template used by more than 1 million businesses. 

Or, if you just want to see what a completed business plan looks like, check out our library of over 550 free business plan examples . 

We even have a growing list of industry business planning guides with tips for what to focus on depending on your business type.

Common pitfalls and how to avoid them

It’s easy to make mistakes when you’re writing your business plan. Some entrepreneurs get sucked into the writing and research process, and don’t focus enough on actually getting their business started. 

Here are a few common mistakes and how to avoid them:

Not talking to your customers : This is one of the most common mistakes. It’s easy to assume that your product or service is something that people want. Before you invest too much in your business and too much in the planning process, make sure you talk to your prospective customers and have a good understanding of their needs.

• Overly optimistic sales and profit forecasts: By nature, entrepreneurs are optimistic about the future. But it’s good to temper that optimism a little when you’re planning, and make sure your forecasts are grounded in reality. 
• Spending too much time planning: Yes, planning is crucial. But you also need to get out and talk to customers, build prototypes of your product and figure out if there’s a market for your idea. Make sure to balance planning with building.
• Not revising the plan: Planning is useful, but nothing ever goes exactly as planned. As you learn more about what’s working and what’s not—revise your plan, your budgets, and your revenue forecast. Doing so will provide a more realistic picture of where your business is going, and what your financial needs will be moving forward.
• Not using the plan to manage your business: A good business plan is a management tool. Don’t just write it and put it on the shelf to collect dust – use it to track your progress and help you reach your goals.
• Presenting your business plan

The planning process forces you to think through every aspect of your business and answer questions that you may not have thought of. That’s the real benefit of writing a business plan – the knowledge you gain about your business that you may not have been able to discover otherwise.

With all of this knowledge, you’re well prepared to convert your business plan into a pitch presentation to present your ideas. 

A pitch presentation is a summary of your plan, just hitting the highlights and key points. It’s the best way to present your business plan to investors and team members.

Dig Deeper: Learn what key slides should be included in your pitch deck

Use your business plan to manage your business

One of the biggest benefits of planning is that it gives you a tool to manage your business better. With a revenue forecast, expense budget, and projected cash flow, you know your targets and where you are headed.

And yet, nothing ever goes exactly as planned – it’s the nature of business.

That’s where using your plan as a management tool comes in. The key to leveraging it for your business is to review it periodically and compare your forecasts and projections to your actual results.

Start by setting up a regular time to review the plan – a monthly review is a good starting point. During this review, answer questions like:

• Did you meet your sales goals?
• Is spending following your budget?
• Has anything gone differently than what you expected?

Now that you see whether you’re meeting your goals or are off track, you can make adjustments and set new targets. 

Maybe you’re exceeding your sales goals and should set new, more aggressive goals. In that case, maybe you should also explore more spending or hiring more employees. 

Or maybe expenses are rising faster than you projected. If that’s the case, you would need to look at where you can cut costs.

A plan, and a method for comparing your plan to your actual results , is the tool you need to steer your business toward success.

Learn More: How to run a regular plan review

How to write a business plan FAQ

What is a business plan?

A document that describes your business , the products and services you sell, and the customers that you sell to. It explains your business strategy, how you’re going to build and grow your business, what your marketing strategy is, and who your competitors are.

What are the benefits of a business plan?

A business plan helps you understand where you want to go with your business and what it will take to get there. It reduces your overall risk, helps you uncover your business’s potential, attracts investors, and identifies areas for growth.

Having a business plan ultimately makes you more confident as a business owner and more likely to succeed for a longer period of time.

What are the 7 steps of a business plan?

The seven steps to writing a business plan include:

• Write a brief executive summary
• Describe your products and services.
• Conduct market research and compile data into a cohesive market analysis.
• Describe your marketing and sales strategy.
• Outline your organizational structure and management team.
• Develop financial projections for sales, revenue, and cash flow.
• Add any additional documents to your appendix.

What are the 5 most common business plan mistakes?

There are plenty of mistakes that can be made when writing a business plan. However, these are the 5 most common that you should do your best to avoid:

• 1. Not taking the planning process seriously.
• Having unrealistic financial projections or incomplete financial information.
• Inconsistent information or simple mistakes.
• Failing to establish a sound business model.
• Not having a defined purpose for your business plan.

What questions should be answered in a business plan?

Writing a business plan is all about asking yourself questions about your business and being able to answer them through the planning process. You’ll likely be asking dozens and dozens of questions for each section of your plan.

However, these are the key questions you should ask and answer with your business plan:

• How will your business make money?
• Is there a need for your product or service?
• Who are your customers?
• How are you different from the competition?
• How will you reach your customers?
• How will you measure success?

How long should a business plan be?

The length of your business plan fully depends on what you intend to do with it. From the SBA and traditional lender point of view, a business plan needs to be whatever length necessary to fully explain your business. This means that you prove the viability of your business, show that you understand the market, and have a detailed strategy in place.

If you intend to use your business plan for internal management purposes, you don’t necessarily need a full 25-50 page business plan. Instead, you can start with a one-page plan to get all of the necessary information in place.

What are the different types of business plans?

While all business plans cover similar categories, the style and function fully depend on how you intend to use your plan. Here are a few common business plan types worth considering.

Traditional business plan: The tried-and-true traditional business plan is a formal document meant to be used when applying for funding or pitching to investors. This type of business plan follows the outline above and can be anywhere from 10-50 pages depending on the amount of detail included, the complexity of your business, and what you include in your appendix.

Business model canvas: The business model canvas is a one-page template designed to demystify the business planning process. It removes the need for a traditional, copy-heavy business plan, in favor of a single-page outline that can help you and outside parties better explore your business idea.

One-page business plan: This format is a simplified version of the traditional plan that focuses on the core aspects of your business. You’ll typically stick with bullet points and single sentences. It’s most useful for those exploring ideas, needing to validate their business model, or who need an internal plan to help them run and manage their business.

Lean Plan: The Lean Plan is less of a specific document type and more of a methodology. It takes the simplicity and styling of the one-page business plan and turns it into a process for you to continuously plan, test, review, refine, and take action based on performance. It’s faster, keeps your plan concise, and ensures that your plan is always up-to-date.

What’s the difference between a business plan and a strategic plan?

A business plan covers the “who” and “what” of your business. It explains what your business is doing right now and how it functions. The strategic plan explores long-term goals and explains “how” the business will get there. It encourages you to look more intently toward the future and how you will achieve your vision.

However, when approached correctly, your business plan can actually function as a strategic plan as well. If kept lean, you can define your business, outline strategic steps, and track ongoing operations all with a single plan.

Noah is the COO at Palo Alto Software, makers of the online business plan app LivePlan. He started his career at Yahoo! and then helped start the user review site Epinions.com. From there he started a software distribution business in the UK before coming to Palo Alto Software to run the marketing and product teams.

Table of Contents

• Use AI to help write your plan
• Common planning mistakes
• Manage with your business plan

Related Articles

3 Min. Read

What to Include in Your Business Plan Appendix

1 Min. Read

How to Calculate Return on Investment (ROI)

5 Min. Read

How To Write a Business Plan for a Life Coaching Business + Free Example

7 Min. Read

How to Write a Bakery Business Plan + Sample

The Bplans Newsletter

The Bplans Weekly

Subscribe now for weekly advice and free downloadable resources to help start and grow your business.

We care about your privacy. See our privacy policy .

The quickest way to turn a business idea into a business plan

Fill-in-the-blanks and automatic financials make it easy.

No thanks, I prefer writing 40-page documents.

Discover the world’s #1 plan building software

10 Best Planner Apps To Organize Work Better (2022)

Looking for the best planner apps to organize your schedule? This article compares the top apps for planning your day, week, month, or more.

But why do you need a planning app?

Juggling priorities, both on the personal and work front, can be tough.

Thankfully, today you have a number of software options to set a schedule and get work done. Plus, these applications are available for a variety of platforms — web, desktop, and mobile. 

How do you find the best scheduling and work management app?

That’s what this article is about. We look at the best apps for planning your work and life. Each app in this article serves specific planning needs. So by the end of this article, you’ll find one that meets your requirements.

Here’s what we’ll cover:

Ready to dive in? Let’s start.

What are the best planner apps in 2022?

1. toggl plan.

Toggl Plan is the overall best planner app for businesses and teams .

With Toggl Plan, you can plan and track your team’s schedule using simple drag-and-drop timelines. But if you prefer Kanban boards to manage your tasks, Toggl Plan has them too.

You can also set color-coded milestones on the Project timeline . Optionally, you can share important milestones across other plans. 

You’ll also be able to collaborate with your team by attaching files and checklists and adding comments to your tasks.

Best of all, managers can see their entire team’s plan in one place. This helps them identify scheduling bottlenecks and balance team workloads thus preventing overwork and burnout.

Key features

• Plan project or work schedules (including time off) using simple drag-and-drop timelines.
• Get a weekly, monthly, quarterly, or annual overview of the timeline
• Share a read-only view of Project timelines with external users
• Visualize your entire team’s schedule in one place to avoid overwork and burnout.
• Track tasks visually on Kanban task boards.
• Add color-coded milestones which are optionally visible across timelines.
• In-app and email notifications when something changes in your schedule.
• Integrates with Apple, Google, and Outlook calendars.

Online, iOS, and Android

Price plans

• Forever free plan for solo users
• Team plan at $9 per user per month: Comes with Team timelines and integration with Toggl Track for time tracking
• Business plan at $15 per user per month: Comes with SSO, guest users, and data export for reporting

Try Toggl Plan for free .

If you’re looking for a free task planner app with a calendar view , Trello should be number one on your list.

Everything in Trello revolves around its Kanban board. You can drag and drop a task across columns to change its status and trigger automation workflows.

You can attach files, labels, and checklists to tasks and collaborate with your teammates using comments. But that’s not all. Trello’s task functionality is easily extended to suit your workflows using add-ons (aka powerups).

One such add-on is the calendar view with which you can visualize your plans and scheduled tasks on a calendar.

• Plan and track tasks with simple to-do, in-progress, done, or a custom workflow
• Visualize task schedules on a calendar view
• Visualize tasks on timelines and maps (premium feature)
• Integrates with thousands of other productivity apps
• Automate task works with if/then logic

Online, Windows, iOS, and Android

Trello price plans

• Forever free plan with unlimited tasks and up to 10 task boards
• Standard plan : comes at $5 per user per month with custom task fields and guests on single boards.
• Premium plan : comes at $10 per user per month with dashboard, timeline, and workspace calendar views
• Enterprise plan : comes at $17.50 per user per month with multi-board guests, single sign-on, and unlimited workspaces

If you were to build a list of personal daily planner apps , Any.do would be at the top.

With Any.do, you can visualize your daily plans as a simple to-do list. You’ll see your to-do items segmented by when they are due — today, tomorrow, or someday later.

For each planned task, you can set reminders too.

A planner app isn’t complete without a calendar or a timeline view. Any.do comes with a simple calendar view with which you can filter tasks for a specific date.

In addition to to-do lists, you can also capture notes and file documents.

• Capture and organize to-do items into lists
• Set one-time, repeating, or location-based reminders for to-do items
• Visualize daily plans using the calendar widgets on your phone
• Add grocery items to automatically add them to relevant category lists
• Re-schedule tasks for the day or week with a single tap

iOS, and Android

Any.do price plans

• Forever free plan with unlimited to-do items and lists
• Premium plan : $5.99 per month with advanced reminders, recurring tasks, and customizable color themes

4. TickTick

TickTick is the most versatile work planning app for capturing tasks .

You can capture tasks using voice commands, by sending emails to TickTick as well as via Apple’s Siri app. While capturing tasks, TickTicks natural language processing automatically schedules tasks and creates reminders for a specific time or location.

• Capture tasks via email or voice input
• Organize tasks into lists and folders
• Prioritize and labels tasks
• Visualize tasks on a daily, weekly, or monthly calendar
• Pomodoro timer and white noise for distraction-free work (premium feature)
• Online, Linux, macOS, Windows, iOS, and Android
• Extensions for Chrome, Firefox, Gmail, and Outlook

Pricing options

• Free version : limited calendar functionality
• Premium version : $27.99 per year with full calendar features, progress tracker, Pomodoro timer, and white noise

Todoist is a work organizer and planning app for teams .

With Todoist, you can capture tasks for your personal and professional commitments. Once added, you can organize tasks into projects and subtasks.

You can also prioritize tasks, add projects as favorites for quick access, and set reminders for critical tasks.

Todoist also allows you to delegate tasks to your team and visualize everyone’s work on a Kanban board.

• Quickly capture and schedule tasks using natural language processing
• Organize tasks into projects and subtasks
• Share files and discuss tasks with your team
• See your team’s activity by project or team member
• Visualize the productivity of your team over time

Online, macOS, iOS, Android, and Windows

• Free forever : for 5 projects with up to 5 collaborators per project
• Pro plan : $4 per user per month for 300 projects, up to 25 collaborators per project, and reminders
• Business plan : $6 per user per month for 500 projects, 50 team members per project, and team billing 

Twobird turns your email inbox into a work planning tool .

It works with Google and Microsoft email apps including Gmail, Google Workspace, and Outlook. 

Twobird smartly categorizes your emails by priority. Plus, it sets reminders for emails that can be tackled later. In addition, you also get smart notifications to avoid distractions.

• Integrate with Google and Microsoft email
• Prioritize emails and set reminders automatically
• Get smart notifications for distraction-free work
• Unsubscribe from unwanted emails quickly
• Add notes to email conversations

Windows, Mac, iOS, and Android

Twobird is free to use for now and plans to offer premium plans in the future. 

7. Google Calendar

Google Calendar is one of the best online calendar apps out there. It provides one of the best overviews of your work, meetings, and daily agenda. 

Scheduling remote meetings with Google Calendar is a breeze. It automatically takes care of the participant’s time zones. Plus, with integrations for Zoom or Google Meet, you can hop into the meeting right from the notification.

• Create events with smart suggestions for titles, people, and places
• Automatically add events to calendars from flight or hotel booking emails in Gmail
• Day, week, and month views to visualize your schedule
• Free for personal use
• Google Workspace subscription for business at $6 per user per month

8. Things 3

If you’re looking for a daily planner app for iPhone or iPad, look no further.

Things 3 is an award-winning daily task planning app built specifically for iOS. It also works on desktop Mac devices.

To-do items in Things are organized into projects and areas. Areas represent each sphere in your life such as work, family, finance, etc.

• Organize to-do items into projects and areas
• Plan and visualize your daily and upcoming schedules
• Set reminders 
• Repeat tasks automatically on a set schedule
• Integrates with Apple calendar and shows your events alongside tasks
• Create to-do items via email

All iOS devices including Mac, iPhone, iPad, and iWatch

• iPhone and iWatch version : $9.99
• iPad version : $19.99
• Mac version : $49.99

9. Day by Day Organizer

Day by Day is one of the popular planning apps for Android devices.

It integrates Google Calendar and Google Tasks in one Android app. That way you get the best of both worlds — a powerful calendar with simple task management.  

Day by Day keeps your Calendar and Tasks in sync. You can see all your events and tasks in one simple list. Also, you can plan and track tasks for a specific day, week, or month.

• See events and tasks in one list
• Keep your Google Calendar and Google Tasks in sync
• Birthday reminder
• Capture tasks and events with voice input
• Agenda planner view
• Free version with Google Calendar and Tasks synchronization
• Premium version at $4.99 with recurring tasks, subtasks, and task priorities

10. Habitica

Habitica is one of the best daily routine planner apps that helps you form habits

It gamifies your daily routine and encourages you to form habits and become more productive. Every time you perform a routine task on time, you get in-game rewards as well as praise from the community.

Habitica is useful as a student planner app to form study habits. Or as a fitness planner to stay healthy with daily exercise habits.

Best features

• Track and manage habits, to-do lists, and daily goals
• Get in-game rewards as you check off your tasks and goals
• Battle with your online friends using these rewards to earn real-world rewards

Habitica pricing options

• Free version to track your goals and habits publicly
• Premium version at $9 per month + $3 per user per month for private group plans

What is the best planner app for your needs?

There are a lot of options when it comes to planning apps. You get apps for personal and professional use as well as individual and team use. 

So how do you choose the best planner for your needs? Think about it from these angles:

• Does the app meet your/your team’s needs?
• Does it make you more productive when planning your work?
• Do you like working with the app?
• Does it fit your budget?
• Can it integrate with your existing work management system?

These questions will help you decide on the best planning app for your needs.

Most online tools, including Toggl Plan, have a free trial or a forever free plan. Use this opportunity to try out the planning software, along with your team before you decide on the tool of your choice. 

FAQs about planning apps

A planner app is a work management tool that combines scheduling and task management. It captures, organizes, and schedules work tasks using a timeline or a calendar.

A planner helps you and your team get work done by bringing clarity, accountability, and transparency to work. In addition, planners like Toggl Plan help you avoid scheduling conflicts as well as prevent your team from getting overworked and burned out. In addition, here are nine planner ideas to organize your work

There are many types of planner apps depending on the end-users — personal and professional work planners, paper and digital planners, team project planners, etc. In addition, certain types of planners are designed for specific use cases. For example, financial planners, student planners, health and fitness planners, etc.

First, identify the work you need to get done in a specific period. For example, a month, a week, or a day. Second, schedule tasks and projects using a timeline or a calendar while avoiding scheduling conflicts with other work plans, team members, and time off. And third, ensure that everyone’s workload is reasonable.

Google does not have a daily planner app. However, you can combine Google Calendar and Google Tasks to plan your daily work items. In addition, you also get Google Keep which helps you organize your notes and to-do lists as well as get location-based reminders.

Jitesh is an SEO and content specialist. He manages content projects at Toggl and loves sharing actionable tips to deliver projects profitably.

Subscribe to On The Clock.

Insights into building businesses better, from hiring to profitability (and everything in between). New editions drop every two weeks.

You might also like...

Related to Productivity

7 Ways To Make Your Team Status Updates More Effective

10 Best Timeboxing Apps for 2024 [Full Comparison]

How To Make A Checklist In Excel In 5 Easy Steps

Take a peek at our most popular categories:

Home > Business > Business Startup

• 5 Best Business Plan Software and Tools in 2023 for Your Small Business

Data as of 3 /13/23 . Offers and availability may vary by location and are subject to change.

We are committed to sharing unbiased reviews. Some of the links on our site are from our partners who compensate us. Read our editorial guidelines and advertising disclosure .

A business plan can do a lot for your business. It can help you secure investors or other funding. It can give your company direction. It can keep your finances healthy. But, if we’re being honest, it can also be a pain to write.

Luckily, you don’t have to start from scratch or go it alone. Business plan software and services can help you craft a professional business plan, like our top choice LivePlan , which provides templates, guidance, and more.

You’ve got quite a few choices for business plan help, so we’re here to help you narrow things down. Let’s talk about the best business plan tools out there.

• LivePlan : Best overall
• BizPlanBuilder : Most user-friendly
• Wise Business Plans : Best professional service
• Business Sorter : Best for internal plans
• GoSmallBiz.com : Most extra features
• Honorable mentions

Business plan software 101

The takeaway, business plan software faq, compare the best business plan software.

By signing up I agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy .

LivePlan: Best overall business plan software

Data as of 3 /13/23 . Offers and availability may vary by location and are subject to change. *With annual billing

LivePlan has been our favorite business plan software for a while now, despite the stiff competition.

There’s a lot to like about LivePlan. It has pretty much all the features you could want from your business plan software. LivePlan gives you step-by-step instructions for writing your plan, helps you create financial reports, lets you compare your business’s actual financials to your plan’s goals, and much more. And if you ever need inspiration, it includes hundreds of sample business plans that can guide your writing.

LivePlan software pricing

But the best part? You get all that (and more) at a very competitive price. (You can choose from annual, six-month, or monthly billing.) While LivePlan isn’t quite the cheapest business plan builder out there, it’s not too far off either. And if comes with a 60-day money back guarantee. So there’s no risk in trying LivePlan out for yourself.

With a great balance of features and cost, LivePlan offers the best business plan solution for most businesses.

BizPlanBuilder: Most user-friendly

Need something easy to use? BizPlanBuilder fits the bill.

BizPlanBuilder doesn’t have a flashy, modern user interface―but it does have a very clear, intuitive one. You’ll be able to see your plan’s overall structure at a glance, so you can quickly navigate from your title page to your market trend section to that paragraph on your core values. And as you write, you’ll use a text editor that looks a whole lot like the word processing programs you’re already familiar with.

BizPlanBuilder software pricing

Data effective 3/13/23. At publishing time, amounts, rates, and requirements are current but are subject to change. Offers may not be available in all areas.

BizPlanBuilder also offers lots of helpful guidance for actually writing your plan. It gives you pre-written text, in which you just have to fill in relevant details. It offers explanations for what information you need to include in each section of your plan and way. It even gives you helpful tips from experts, so you’ll have all the information you need to plan like a pro.

So if you want planning software with almost no learning curve, you’ll like BizPlanBuilder.

Wise Business Plans: Best professional service

• Custom quote

Unlike all the other companies on this list, Wise Business Plans doesn’t offer software. Instead, it offers professional business plan writing services―meaning someone does all the hard work for you.

Now, you might think that sounds expensive―and you’re probably right (you have to request a custom quote for your plan). But there’s a lot to be said for expertise, and Wise Business Plans has plenty of that. Your business plan will get written by an experienced writer (with an MBA, no less). They’ll get information from you, do their own research, and then write your plan. You get one free revision, and you can always pay for more.  

Wise Business Plans service pricing

Your end result will be a polished, entirely original business plan. (You can even get printed copies.) And best of all, you won’t have to spend your precious time working on the plan yourself. Wise Business Plans takes care of all the hard parts, and makes your business look good while doing it. Sounds like a service worth paying for, right?

Put simply, if you want the most professional business plan possible, we recommend using Wise Business Plans’s writing service.

Business Sorter: Best for internal plans

Many businesses need plans to show to people outside the company (to get financing, for example). But what if you just need a plan for internal use? In that case, we suggest Business Sorter.

Business Sorter uses a unique card-based method to help you craft the perfect business plan. (You can watch a demo video to see how it works.) You’ll plan some of the usual things, like finances and marketing. But Business Sorter also lets you make plans for specific teams and team members. It also emphasizes more internal matters, like operations, that might get overlooked in a business plan for outsiders.

Business Sorter software pricing

After you’ve made your business plan, Business Sorter also helps you stay accountable to it. You can create tasks, give them deadlines, and assign them to team members―giving you basic project management tools to make sure your business plans become business actions. (Oh, and did we mention that Business Sorter has the lowest starting prices of any software on this list?)

It all adds up to a business plan software that works great for internal planning.

GoSmallBiz: Most extra features

Want to get way more than just business planning software? Then you probably want GoSmallBiz.

See, GoSmallBiz offers business plan software as part of its service―but it’s just one part of a much bigger whole. You also get everything from discounts on legal services to a website builder to a CRM (customer relationship manager) to business document templates. And more. In other words, you get just about everything you need to get your startup off the ground.

GoSmallBiz software pricing

Don’t worry though―you still get all the business planning help you need. GoSmallBiz gives you business plan templates, step-by-step instructions, and the ability to create financial projections. And if you get stuck, GoSmallBiz will put you in touch with experts who can offer advice.

If you want business planning and much, much more, give GoSmallBiz a try.

• PlanGuru : Best financial forecasting
• EnLoop : Cheapest tool for startups

We recommend the software above for most business planning needs. Some businesses, though, might be interested in these more specialized planning software.

Honorable mention software pricing

PlanGuru: Best financial forecasting features

PlanGuru is pretty pricey compared to our other picks, but you might find its forecasting features worth paying for. It has more forecasting methods than other software (over 20) plus it lets you forecast up to 10 years.

EnLoop: Cheapest tool for startups

EnLoop doesn’t have our favorite features or interface, but it does have really, really low pricing plus a seven-day free trial. It's the most affordable software for startup business planning and still provides all the essential features like financial analysis, team collaboration, charting, and more.

Data as of 3 /13/23 . Offers and availability may vary by location and are subject to change. * With annual billing

Several of our previous favorite planning software, including BusinessPlanPro and StratPad, seem to have gone out of business.

A business plan is a written, living document that tells the story of your business and what you plan to do with it. It serves as the source of truth for you—the business owner—as well as potential partners, employees, and investors, but it also serves as a roadmap of what you want your business to be.

Why you need a business plan

While some small-business owners don’t see the point of creating a formal business plan, it can have some concrete benefits for your business. For example, one 2016 study found that business owners with written plans are more successful than those that don’t. 1

Still too vague? Then let’s get specific.

If you ever seek business funding (from, say, banks, angel investors , or venture capitalists ), you’ll have to prove that your business deserves the money you want. A formal business plan―complete with financial data and projections―gives you a professional document you can use to make your case. (In fact, most potential investors will expect you to have a business plan ready.)

Even if you’re not seeking funding right now, a business plan can help your business. A formal plan can guide your business’s direction and decision making. It can keep your business accountable (by, for example, seeing if your business meets the financial projections you included). And a formal plan offers a great way to make sure your team stays on the same page.

What to include in your business plan

Not all business plans are created equal. To make a really useful business plan, you’ll want to include a number of elements:

• Basic information about your business
• Your products/services
• Market and industry analysis
• What makes your business competitive
• Strategies and upcoming plans
• Your team (and your team’s background)
• Current financial status
• Financial and market projections
• Executive summary

Of course, you can include more or fewer elements―whatever makes sense for your business. Just make sure your business plan is comprehensive (but not overwhelming).

How business plan software can help

With so many elements to include, business plan creation can take a while. Business plan software tries to speed things up.

Most business plan software will include prompts for each section. In some cases, you can just fill in your business’s specific information, and the software will write the text for you. In other cases, the software will give you specific guidance and examples, helping you write the text yourself.

Plus, business plan software can help you stay organized. You’ll usually get intuitive menus that let you quickly flip through sections. So rather than endlessly scrolling through a long document in a word processor, you can quickly find your way around your plan. Some software even lets you drag and drop sections to reorganize your plan.

Sounds way easier than just staring at a blank page and trying to start from scratch, right?

Choosing business plan software

To find the right business plan builder for your business, you’ll want to compare features. For example, would you rather write your own text, getting prompts and advice from your software? Or would you rather go with a fill-in-the-blank method?

Likewise, think about the elements you need. If your plan will have a heavy focus on finances, you’ll want to choose business plan software with robust financial projection features. If you care more about market and competitor analysis, look for software that can help with that research.

You may also want to find business plan software that integrates with your business accounting software . Some plan builders will import data from Xero, QuickBooks, etc. to quickly generate your financial data and projections.

And of course, you’ll want to compare prices. After all, you always want to end up with software that fits your business budget.

The right business plan software can make your life easier. With LivePlan ’s wide breadth of features and online learning tools, you can’t go wrong. Plus, BizPlanBuilder 's one-time pricing makes it easy to invest while Business Sorter has a low starting cost. And if you're business is looking to grow, GoSmallBiz and Wise Business Plans will scale with you.

But of course, different companies have different needs. So shop around until you find the software that’s best for you and your business.

Now that you've got a business plan, take a look at our checklist for starting a small business.  It can help you make sure you have everything else you need to get your startup off to a good start!

Related content

• 7 Steps to Build a Successful Project Management Sales Plan
• Best Project Management Software and Tools in 2023
• 4 Cost Management Techniques for Small Businesses

Creating a business plan can take anywhere from a couple hours to several weeks. Your timeline will depend on things like the elements you choose to include, whether you use software or hire a writing service, and how much research goes into your plan.

That said, much of the business plan software out there brags that it can help you create a fairly detailed plan in a few hours. So if you’re going the software route, that can help you set your expectations.

If you want to get the most out of your business plan, you should update it on a regular basis―at least annually. That way, you can continually refer to it to inform your company’s strategies and direction.  

At the very least, you should update your business plan before you start looking for a new round of funding (whether that’s with investors or lenders).

Thanks to business plan software, you can easily write your own business plan rather than pay someone to do it for you. And in most cases, software will cost you less than a professional business plan service.

There are some times you might want to go with a service though. If time is tight, you might find that it’s worth the cost of a service. Or if you’ve got big investor meetings on the horizon, you might want the expertise and polish that a professional service can offer.

Ultimately, you’ll have to decide for yourself whether business plan software or a business plan service will work better for your company.

Methodology

We ranked business plan software and tools based on features, pricing and plans, and connections to project management and other services. The value of each plan and service, along with what it offers, was a big consideration in our rankings, and we looked to see if what was offered was useful to small businesses or just extra. The final thing we looked at was the ease of use of the software to see if it's too complex for small businesses.

At Business.org, our research is meant to offer general product and service recommendations. We don't guarantee that our suggestions will work best for each individual or business, so consider your unique needs when choosing products and services.

Sources 1. Harvard Business Review, “ Research: Writing a Business Plan Makes Your Startup More Likely to Succeed .” Accessed March 13, 2023.

5202 W Douglas Corrigan Way Salt Lake City, UT 84116

Accounting & Payroll

Point of Sale

Payment Processing

Inventory Management

Human Resources

Other Services

Best Small Business Loans

Best Inventory Management Software

Best Small Business Accounting Software

Best Payroll Software

Best Mobile Credit Card Readers

Best POS Systems

Best Tax Software

Stay updated on the latest products and services anytime anywhere.

By signing up, you agree to our Terms of Use  and  Privacy Policy .

Disclaimer: The information featured in this article is based on our best estimates of pricing, package details, contract stipulations, and service available at the time of writing. All information is subject to change. Pricing will vary based on various factors, including, but not limited to, the customer’s location, package chosen, added features and equipment, the purchaser’s credit score, etc. For the most accurate information, please ask your customer service representative. Clarify all fees and contract details before signing a contract or finalizing your purchase.

Our mission is to help consumers make informed purchase decisions. While we strive to keep our reviews as unbiased as possible, we do receive affiliate compensation through some of our links. This can affect which services appear on our site and where we rank them. Our affiliate compensation allows us to maintain an ad-free website and provide a free service to our readers. For more information, please see our  Privacy Policy Page . |

© Business.org 2024 All Rights Reserved.

No products in the cart.: $ 0.00

[email protected]

Username or Email *

Email address *

A password will be sent to your email address.

Your personal data will be used to support your experience throughout this website, to manage access to your account, and for other purposes described in our privacy policy .

• Digital Planner
• 2022 Digital Planner

2022 Business Executive Digital Planner for ReMarkable

$ 159.99 Original price was: $159.99. $ 119.99 Current price is: $119.99.

Start your digital planning experience today with the 2022 Digital Planner

Product download includes the 2021 & 2022 Digital Planner 2022 Planner is a MONDAY START DATE – For SUNDAY START DATE ( CLICK HERE )

• Instant DOWNLOAD of the 2022 LANDSCAPE Planner ( MONDAY START DATE) 
• Instant DOWNLOAD of the 2022 PORTRAIT Planner ( MONDAY START DATE) 
• Instant DOWNLOAD of the 2021 Planner
• Works with  Goodnotes, Notibility, Noteshelf and more
• Works with Devices: iPad, ReMarkable 1 & 2, Windows, Apple and Android Annotation Apps

Includes all the new 2022 Planner Templates and daily dated pages. (Click on links for examples) Vision Board , Annual Keys , Goals , Projects , Notes , Meetings , Ideal Week , Daily Page , Weekly Review, Quarterly Review,   Month-at-View , Vertical Month-at-View ,

Purchase Delivery and Refund Policy

Includes all the new 2022 Planner Templates and daily dated pages.

If you could please help us understand how you learned about us.

Even though we offer walk-through videos and guided steps for installation support. We understand some achievers don’t want the hassle and would rather have professional support. You can schedule a time for our team to do a remote installation on your device.

Training sessions are conducted virtually over a zoom call. Branden will work with you to integrate the planning system into your planning workflow.

Description

• Reviews (3)

KEY2SUCCESS Releases 2022 Key2Success Digital Planner System

The Key2Success Digital Planner System is designed for those that want a notebook, a planner, a goal setter on their person wherever they go, and the 2022 version contains several new and improved features. The Key2Success Digital Planner designed for GoodNotes, Noteshelf, Notability, Zodo, ReMarkable 2 and any PDF Annotation App.

The 2022 Key2Success Planner comes in 4 Versions:

• Key2Success Personal
• Key2Success Personal Pro
• Key2Success Business
• Key2Success Business Executive

In 2022 the Key2Success Planning system expands long term planning goals, to help increase personal productivity. Planner start date is January 1, 2022.

“When developing the Key2Success Planning System, the goal was to have an all-in-one planner that took your long term vision for success and delivered daily key action steps that would enable you to reach those big ideas,” explained Branden Bodendorfer, creator.

To Learn More Visit: 2022 Digital Planner | OneNote | iPad Pro | Surface Pro (brandenbodendorfer.com)

Key2Success Planner Editions

I was reluctant to spent over 120€ For digital planner. The products work really good on the Remarkable 2. I use the planner and CRM as the note taking tool. Would recommend this product in Germany to all Remarkable 2 users

Add a review Cancel reply

You must be logged in to post a review.

Related Products

90 Minute Personalized DIG-IN Session

2023 OneNote Business Digital Planner

2022 Key2Success Digital Planner Sample Pack

2022 OneNote Business Executive Digital Planner

Wisconsin, USA

Chat Support

Mon – Fri : 6 AM – 4 PM CST

Email 24/7 

INFORMATION

• Refund Policy
• Privacy Policy
• Affiliate Program Sign-Up

18 Must-Have Best Planners for Entrepreneurs (2024)

This post contains affiliate links and I may receive a small commission (at no extra cost to you) if you sign up or purchase products or services mentioned. Read the full disclosure here.

Last Updated on June 21, 2024

Looking for the best planners for entrepreneurs to make your 2024 business year the most organized yet? This list is packed full of planners to fit any business owner’s busy lifestyle!

As a busy entrepreneur, you know it’s an absolute must to have proper planning tools. Having the right planner can make or break your productivity, so it’s important to choose the BEST planner that’s most tailored to your needs and lifestyle.

But there are SO many planners out there, so how can you know which one is best for you?! 

Don’t fret, I’ve compiled this list of the best planners for entrepreneurs in 2024 so you can sort through them all in one place! It’s a one-stop-shop over here!

I’m including the best daily planners, weekly planners, business planners for professionals, and productivity/goal setting planners for entrepreneurs! Of all the options, you’re sure to find the planner that’s the perfect fit.

Table of Contents

Top 3 Business Planner Picks

• 2024 Business Digital Planner Bundle – Best Work/Business Planner
• Clever Fox PRO Undated Planner – Best Weekly Planner
• 2024 Daily Simplified Planner – Best Daily Planner

This post is all about the best planners for entrepreneurs

Different types of planners for entrepreneurs.

The best planners for entrepreneurs can come in a few different formats. Are you a pen + paper type of person? Love having everything online in one place? Want something you can print yourself on the cheap? There’s a planner for that!

Whether you need help planning how to start a business or you’re a seasoned pro, you’ve gotta have a format that works for you.

Planner Types by Format

Format and convenience are everything when you think about your day-to-day routine with your planner. Do you hate having to grab your physical planner from another room? If so, digital might be your pick. Do you feel motivated by the feeling of pen and paper? Then you may not want to miss out on a beloved physical planner! 

• Physical planners – this is your traditional planner in paper format, typically with the pages bound together. These may come with pre-printed, pre-dated pages, or undated pages so that you fill in the dates and content yourself. 
• Digital planners – If you hate having to carry something around or dislike being unable to access your planner across devices, a digital planner is perfect for you. There are many apps that sync from your phone, to your tablet, to your laptop! This can be as simple as Google Calendar, or you can purchase curated digital planners that are essentially a traditional planner in digital format. 
• Printable planners – one type of planner you may not have thought about is a printable planner. These types of planners allow more room for your own decoration and are frequently found on Etsy. You can print the pages as many times as you like, too! 

Planner Types by Layout

Many planners may be a mix of more than one of these elements, but sometimes they specialize in one layout in particular. Think about your preferences and needs when it comes to the layout and focus of your planner!

• Daily planners – Daily planners can be as general as an overview of your daily plans, goals, and priorities, or they can get as specific as planning by the hour! Think about your preferences on those as you browse the daily planners for entrepreneurs in this post. If you’re a time blocker, you’ll want the hourly. But if that’s too intense, stick with a general daily overview!
• Weekly planners – If you like to take things week by week and plan all your days out in advance, you’ll want to opt for a planner that has a focused weekly format. I find that these are best during years where I anticipate having a lot of appointments. No one likes a dreadful doctor’s appointment creeping up on them day-of!
• Dedicated business planners – yes, standard daily and weekly planners may do the job, but they don’t include the more business-specific things we need to think about to stay on top of our business. As you get more serious about your business, you’ll certainly appreciate having a wide array of business templates in your planner!
• Goal setting planners – Many generic planners have some space for jotting down your goals, but they stop there. They pay no attention to all the systems that need to be in place in order to work toward the goal! That’s why finding a planner with a detailed goal-setting focus, where you can create an action plan and stay accountable, just makes sense!

Format and layout can make or break your schedule, so choose wisely when choosing among these best planners for entrepreneurs.

Want a quick, free, one-page daily planner you can print again and again? Make sure you grab my FREE printable productive day planner below! It’s perfect to use in a pinch before you decide on the perfect planner!

Top 18 best 2024 planners for busy entrepreneurs

Don’t forget about these life changing planners for entrepreneurs! Pin ’em to come back later!

Best Daily Planners for Entrepreneurs

1. the high performance undated planner.

Starting off this list of the best planners for entrepreneurs, we’ve got a half journal, half planner, full performance agenda!

Start this undated daily planner at any time. You get to work out your day schedule alongside morning + evening mindset journal prompts to keep you focused and aware of what each day brings.

And that’s only the tip of the iceberg. You also get daily goal boxes, weekly habit assessments, monthly project planning, and proprietary whole life balance sheets. Before you know it, you’ll be prioritizing your work/life schedule like a pro!

What’s inside:

• 2-in-1 planner with daily schedule + morning and evening journal prompts
• 60 days, undated, so you can start whenever it’s convenient for you
• Daily pages with morning mindset activities and evening review scorecard
• Weekly pages that allow you to assess your high performance habits
• Monthly Pages that help you strategically outline your long-term goals
• BONUS: you get a free online assessment to track your habits!

RELATED: Gifts for Female Business Owners: 20 Insanely Useful Things She’ll Love

2. Happy Planner Undated Wellness Planner

A very creative option, the Happy Planner has so many cute accessories, stickers, and embellishments perfect for the creative entrepreneur!

This planner is here to help you prioritize wellness in your busy entrepreneur life as you organize your year, reflect on your gratitudes, and practice mindfulness. Undated planners like this one are also perfect if you ever fall off track from your planning because you’ll never waste pages. You just fill in the dates as you go.

• Undated pages
• Unlabeled dividers with month stickers for your own labeling
• Space to write down ways you’re moving, nourishing yourself, staying motivated, and setting intentions.
• Wellness journal sections with reflections, impressions of the day, focuses, grateful moments, and the things you’re loving.

3. Simplified Planner 2024 Daily

What better way to simplify your life than to use a planner MADE for such a thing?! It’s designed minimally on purpose so that you can cut to the chase and get started planning your day the easy way. Pretty much feels the same as starting your day with a breath of fresh air!

• Space for schedule, to-do, notes and meals
• One day per page + shared weekend pages
• Full month views
• 4 notes pages in the front
• Hourly schedule from 6am to 9pm
• 4 pages of Simplified Prep-Work
• Monthly Simplicity Tips
• NEW colorful sticker sheet design
• Pocket inside the front cover

RELATED: New Month Journal Prompts for Goal Setting

4. Daily Planning Package (+ Clipboard + Pen!)

If you’re looking for the full package, this has all of your business planning needs covered! Not only do you get a detailed daily planner notepad, BUT you even get a companion weekly planner.

As if that wasn’t awesome enough… it also comes with a durable clipboard and pen! I don’t think I’ve ever seen a planner come with both a pen AND a clipboard, so this is truly a unique deal.

• 1-Year Daily Planner – 350 pages (50 tear-off pages x 7 days)
• 1-Year Weekly Planner – 50 pages (two-week break for rest!)
• Highly durable clipboard and pen, both made with vegan leather
• Undated and ready to be filled with your dreams, goals, and daily activities

RELATED: Journaling for Entrepreneurs: 40 Business Savvy Prompts

Best Weekly Planners for Entrepreneurs

5. erin condren weekly lifeplanner.

Extremely popular, the Erin Condren Weekly Planner is SO well-designed and ultra-customizable. Aims to keep you organized, reduce stress, and achieve your goals. With its many customization options, you can build the perfect planner that fits your style and schedule!

Also, the covers on these are insanely durable and built to last. I used this planner in high school and would 100% recommend it for any stage in your life, even as an adult. This is one of the best basic entrepreneur planners for 2024!

• Mini months
• Monthly quotes
• Monthly notes and productivity pages
• Dated monthly, weekly spreads
• Additional notes in the back
• Contacts page
• 4 planning sticker sheets
• 1 double-sided pocket folder
• 1 perpetual calendar
• Snap-in ruler

6. Clever Fox PRO Weekly Undated Planner

Straightforward, uncluttered, and easy to use is the Clever Fox PRO planner. I’ve had this planner for years and it never fails me! The weekly view includes everything I could ever want with daily priorities, weekly planning, goals, to-do lists, and habit tracking!

• Short and long term goal planning pages
• Productivity sections
• Undated so you don’t waste pages!
• Vision board pages
• Quarterly goals and mind map
• Monthly review sheets
• 50 dot grid pages in the back for notes

7. Ban.do Weekly Undated Planner

Okay, first things first…what business owner DOESN’T need the reminder on the front of this planner?! I am always having to remind myself that progress is more important than perfection. Anyway…

Ban.do’s planner is perfect for anyone who’s more flexible with their planning needs. They feature weekly note pages, to-do lists, and spaces for reflection. I like that you get the opportunity to think over what went well today and what could be better for tomorrow.

• Artsy cover design
• Concealed spiral
• Sticker page
• Pocket on the inside front cover
• 73 perforated weekly pages and 73 list pages
• Primary layout includes a weekly view on one page and a to-do list on the other

8. Leather 2024 Snap Planner

K, I’ll be honest, you’re going to spend a pretty penny on this planner–but that’s because of the durable full grain leather design (and if you’re on the go a lot, trust me, it’s well worth the money! Nothing worse than torn up planner corners when it’s only halfway through the year.)

This covers all your weekly, monthly, and yearly planning needs. And if you’re a list lover, you will loveee the lists and notes pages for extra checklists, projects, and reminders. This is one classy, high-end planner no doubt!

• 12 month dated calendar agenda
• Full grain durable leather
• 1-Year in Review spread and monthly goals pages for important dates, tasks, and other priorities
• Monthly calendar view and weekly agenda pages for your appointments, meetings, and to-dos
• Lists and Notes pages
• Gold foil stamping on front and back cover; covers made of black cardstock
• Can be personalized

What planners do CEOs use?

Best planners for business owners and entrepreneurs at work, 9. 2024 digital planner bundle for business owners.

This digital business planner has IT ALL! If you need an entrepreneur planner that covers your life and business from A-Z, you’ll want this. There are literally 1,000,000 digital planners in different variations to choose from (yup, you read that right, 1 MILLION!).

It’s highly customizable with 11 different weekly layouts, 8 different daily layouts, and business templates galore. It also helps promote work-life balance by including sections for wellness, fitness, and nutrition too!

Seriously, whatever your business needs are, whether you’re a small business owner or you’re growing like crazy, this will fit them!

• Many business templates like target audience, business goals, sales tracker, tax deductions, content analysis, and so much more
• Productivity, Wellness, Fitness, Nutrition & Finances sections
• Goals section linked to 8 goals pages
• Projects section linked to 8 project pages
• 50,000 stickers in Goodnotes + PNG format
• 500 cover designs

10. Ultimate Business Planner

Rather than a daily/weekly/monthly planner, this business planner takes on a slightly different approach. While it does offer daily and weekly planning and to-do lists, it also goes one step further by including sections for business branding, website building, and social media planning. One of the most comprehensive and best planners for entrepreneurs!

• Over 280 business planner printable pages
• Business planning pages
• Order forms and shipment logs
• Inventory logs
• Business finance planner
• Website building
• Blog planner
• Email planner
• Social media planner
• A year in review

11. Small Business Planner

Unlike the other two business planners and organizers from Etsy, this one is a physical planner! This offers weekly and monthly planning as well as business specifics like branding planning, social media goals, online stats, product idea pages, and more!

• Year At-A-Glance
• Quick Contacts for business-related contacts
• Branding and Demographic visioning
• Revenue chart for a quick look at your profits and expenses
• Recurring Payments tracker
• Social Media goals
• Online Stats tracking
• Events listing/stats and Supply List
• Product Price List
• Product idea pages

Best Productivity Planners for Entrepreneur Goal Setting

12. full focus planner.

This planner stands out because not only does it allow you to plan out your week (as any planner does), but it takes things a step further by helping you reflect on your week in terms of what worked and what didn’t. There is a lot of focusing on properly preparing you for the week ahead, instead of just going through the motions!

Another key feature is the “key projects” pages where you can map out all of your projects for the quarter. Very goal-oriented for sure!

• Designed with a structured achievement program
• Sections for weekly and quarterly previews
• Unique daily framework, separating your highest-leverage activities from your list of daily tasks
• Dedicated goal-setting and project planning sheets

RELATED: 65 Affirmations for Female Entrepreneurs

13. Cultivate What Matters PowerSheets Goal Planner 2024

This results-backed goal planner is organized into 90-day segments–the perfect amount of time to make progress!

This planner prides itself on intention-setting opportunities for choosing the right goals for this season in your life. It also gives you opportunities to revisit and refocus those goals throughout the year.

Before each 90-day window, you can hit the reset button by planning your best routines for the season ahead!

• Streamlined monthly and weekly planning, designed specifically to help you live more intentionally
• Dated weekly planning pages – Monday through Sunday
• Space for your to-do list, top priorities, habit tracking, and a small nudge to tend to what matters most!
• Segmented into 90-day windows with seasonal routine planning

14. BestSelf Journal Goal Setting Planner

This 13-week goal planner is backed by science and psychology, so you know you’ll see results in your productivity. Perfectly designed to better optimize your day, help you crush those goals, and overall live a more fulfilling life!

The Self Journal boasts overcoming “decision fatigue” and helps you focus on what matters most. It’s all about prioritizing your workload, building good habits, and making every day count! This is easily one of the best planners for entrepreneurs. It sets you up for true success.

• Enough pages to guide you through 13 weeks of meeting your goals
• Undated design
• Comprehensive goal-setting page
• Space for everyday bullet journaling
• Space for progress and mindfulness prompts
• Helps to develop daily goal setting and reflection practices through routine encouragement
• Gratitude and self-reflection sections
• Complete guidebook and calendar
• 13-week habit tracker for creating new healthy routines
• Provides space to journal and plan next steps to achieve your goals

15. GoGirl Planner PRO Vertical Hourly Planner

If you love time blocking, this is the planner for you! The GoGirl Planner is a weekly planner with time slots (6am – 9pm) to navigate your daily life the productive way. Also features goal planning pages for all your short and long term goals and helps you create a strategy for achieving those goals. The best perk is that it comes with budget planning pages so you can stay on top of your spending with a monthly financial analysis!

• Weekly planner with vertical time slots + monthly calendar
• Goal setting pages
• Habit tracking pages
• Budget planning sheets
• Comes with a pen holder and 280+ stickers
• Dot-grid pages at the back

16. Poketo Quarterly Goal Planner

Feeling stuck on identifying goals to set? Well, you’re in luck, because this planner has helpful prompts to get your goal ideas flowing!

This quarterly planner is undated and follows all the way through when it comes to goal setting, as you also get to plan the actions you’ll take each week that keep you on track to meet your goals! You get the perfect little game plan to hold yourself accountable for the quarter.

• Quarterly 3 month planner
• Goal setting pages that help you identify potential challenges and plans to celebrate your wins along the way
• Weekly plan that allows space to match your actions/habits to your goals
• Hourly daily layout with short journal prompts to reflect on your day

17. The Daily Grace Quarterly Planner

This quarterly devotional planner promotes spiritual guidance as you navigate your busy life. If you find it tough to manage your business and stay connected to God, this planner will serve as a powerful reminder to prioritize both, if this is your goal!

You’ll get to set quarterly, weekly, and daily goals alongside reflection questions to help you brainstorm those goals and be mindful of your spiritual habits. Includes gospel-centered affirmations to comfort and guide you. 

• Undated devotional planner
• Covers one quarter of the year/roughly 13 weeks
• Monthly spread that gears your attention toward what you wish to accomplish each month
• Weekly actions section with 5 smaller sections: meditate, journal, pray, plan, organize
• Start and end-of-quarter evaluations
• Spiritual disciplines explanation

18. The 12 Week Year Field Guide

This isn’t quite a planner so much as it is a study guide for helping you be efficient and productive. But nonetheless, it is a fantastic business tool you’ll want to have at your fingertips just for the expertise and tips alone!

This is applicable to business growth, career goals, and also just life in general!

Inside, you’ll learn how to…

• Create your own personal and business visions with step-by-step help
• Develop a rock solid 12 week plan for yourself
• Use the many exercises and templates to make your business life a little easier
• Determine a 12 week commitment system that can be applied to your business and life!

Choosing the Right Planner: What to Look For

Every business owner has different needs. When choosing that perfect planner for you out of this list of planners for entrepreneurs, there’s some key features you’ll want to consider before making a decision. Think about what is visually pleasing, what is practical, and what ticks all your boxes!

Dated vs. Undated

When looking at all the planners for entrepreneurs, do you want a planner that already has all the dates filled in for you? Or do you want to be able to pick up and leave off whenever?

Sometimes life gets chaotic and we miss a week or two in our planner. If that tends to happen to you, you may be better off with an undated planner so you don’t waste pages! But if the structure of a dated planner keeps you accountable, that may be your best bet!

The Sections Included

Maybe you want your planner to offer you more than just a calendar. You might want to track expenses, keep lists, track business ideas, brainstorm projects….the list goes on!

If you want a super comprehensive planner that has it all, it may be worth it to seek out a more specialized planner than your run-of-the-mill weekly or monthly planner.

Refillable/Insertable

Some planners allow you to pop in different inserts. This is awesome not only for the customizability, but it’s also far more sustainable, long-lasting, and eco-friendly! Rather than toss out planner after planner each year, you can keep a refillable planner alive forever.

Folders and Pockets

Does the planner feature folders and pockets throughout or in the back? You might not always need these, but they can come in handy for storing business cards, notes, and documents!

Size and Portability

As much as I love a big, large-print planner…sometimes it can get bulky and annoying to carry around.

Especially when it doesn’t fit in my bag! So size and the ability to carry the planner from place to place is definitely something to think about.

If a planner is only going to make your bag that much heavier, it might get old real quick. Think about what will fit in your work bag or backpack and buy accordingly!

Layout Preference

I used to NEED a planner with a vertical, hour-by-hour layout. Now that I use Google Calendar for that function, I like to have my paper planner in horizontal format, where I can just bullet point-list my daily tasks like a to-do list.

Think about what you prefer and what other systems you have in place! If you like to use a digital calendar in conjunction with a paper planner, get a paper planner that offers something your digital calendar doesn’t.

Pro tip: If you’re juggling a ton of tasks, struggling to keep your life organized, AND trying to stay on track with your goals …don’t try to manage your schedule by yourself!

You need to make sure you’re optimizing your time in the best way possible. But what even is “the best way possible”?

Well, you don’t need to waste time figuring that out when the Motion app can literally do it for you.

If you’re sick of feeling like there just aren’t enough hours in the day, Motion can fix that by:

• Automated scheduling that plans your day for you – this app knows exactly how to schedule your daily tasks FOR YOU, in a way that’s most productive for you and your lifestyle.
• Handling emergencies – Motion rearranges everything automatically so that urgent pop-up tasks don’t screw up your day…or your sanity!
• Being a game-changer for ADHD – anyone with ADHD knows the agony of identifying what to prioritize. Motion takes the guesswork out of time management, so you know exactly what to do next!

Motion is the game-changer your schedule has been begging for, so why not give it a shot and lighten your load?

Did these planners for entrepreneurs help you identify the best planner for you?

Whether you’re into goal setting, have a crazy chaotic work schedule, or just want a no-frills simple planner…this list has something for every entrepreneur! From artsy to minimalistic and everything in between, these planners for entrepreneurs offer a huge set of tools to organize your year and make it the best one yet.

Hopefully, your preferences have become a little clearer after weighing all the different variations planners can offer! Because we all know how good it feels to open a fresh new planner that has exactly what we want.

Happy planning!

Don’t forget your FREE productive day planner printable!

More Helpful Tools for Entrepreneurs

Gifts for Female Business Owners: 20 Insanely Useful Things She’ll Love

New Month Journal Prompts for Goal Setting

Journaling for Entrepreneurs: 40 Business Savvy Prompts

65 Affirmations for Female Entrepreneurs

LIKE THESE PLANNERS FOR ENTREPRENEURS? PIN THEM FOR LATER!

Founder & Content Strategist

Hey there! I'm Alexa, and I'm a self-care enthusiast and mental health advocate. At Ambitiously Alexa, I'm here to support women like you who are on a mission to achieve allll the things they're passionate about and make time for self care. I make this balance possible through journal prompts, positive affirmations, and self care ideas you'll love! Here's more about me, including my B.A in Psychology...

Similar Posts

60 Birthday Journal Prompts to Reflect On Your Year

This post contains affiliate links and I may receive a small commission (at no extra cost to you) if you sign up or purchase products or services mentioned. Read the…

7 Day Self Care Challenge: Start Self Care the Easy Way

Last Updated on December 1, 2023 If you can’t seem to get into a self care routine that sticks, this 7 day self care challenge is exactly what you’ve been…

103 Christmas Affirmations to Help You Through the Holidays

30 Fall Affirmations to Reflect and Realign Yourself

22 Rewarding Self Care Things To Do When Bored

Holiday Self Care Checklist: 12 Days of Caring For Yourself

Leave a reply cancel reply.

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment.

Copy short link

• Election 2024
• Entertainment
• Newsletters
• Photography
• AP Buyline Personal Finance
• AP Buyline Shopping
• Press Releases
• Israel-Hamas War
• Russia-Ukraine War
• Global elections
• Asia Pacific
• Latin America
• Middle East
• Delegate Tracker
• AP & Elections
• 2024 Paris Olympic Games
• Auto Racing
• Movie reviews
• Book reviews
• Financial Markets
• Business Highlights
• Financial wellness
• Artificial Intelligence
• Social Media

Chinese businesses hoping to expand in the US and bring jobs face uncertainty and suspicion

FILE - U.S. and Chinese flags are set up at the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse in Beijing, on July 8, 2023. Lured by the large U.S. market, Chinese businesses are coming to the U.S. with money, jobs and technology, only to find rising suspicion at a time of an intensifying U.S.-China rivalry that has spread into the business world. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein, Pool, File)

FILE - Gov. Gretchen Whitmer speaks during a news conference in Lansing, Mich., Jan. 25, 2022. Whitmer in 2022 welcomed a Chinese lithium-ion battery company’s plan to build a $2.36 billion factory and bring a couple of thousand of jobs to Big Rapids, Mich. But now the project by Gotion High-Tech is in the crosshairs of some U.S. lawmakers and local residents. Chinese businesses are coming to the U.S. are finding rising suspicion at a time of an intensifying U.S.-China rivalry that has spread into the business world. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya)

FILE - Rep. John Moolenaar, R-Mich., questions witnesses during a hearing on Capitol Hill, Feb. 28, 2023, in Washington. Moolenaar, chairman of the House Select Committee on China, is leading the charge against Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s plan to bring a Chinese lithium-ion battery company to Big Rapids, Mich. Chinese businesses are coming to the U.S. with money, jobs and technology, only to find rising suspicion at a time of an intensifying U.S.-China rivalry that has spread into the business world. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon, File)

• Copy Link copied

WASHINGTON (AP) — It was billed as the “biggest ever economic development project” in north Michigan when Gov. Gretchen Whitmer in 2022 welcomed a Chinese lithium-ion battery company’s plan to build a $2.36 billion factory and bring a couple thousand jobs to Big Rapids.

But now the project by Gotion High-Tech is in the crosshairs of some U.S. lawmakers and local residents.

Leading the charge is Republican Rep. John Moolenaar of Michigan, chairman of the House Select Committee on China, who accuses the Chinese company of having ties to forced labor and says he fears it could spy for Beijing and work to extend China’s influence in the U.S. heartland. Gotion rejects the accusations.

“I want to see this area have more jobs and investments, but we must not welcome companies that are controlled by people who see us as the enemy and we should not allow them to build here,” Moolenaar said at a recent roundtable discussion in Michigan.

Lured by the large U.S. market, Chinese businesses are coming to the United States with money, jobs and technology, only to find rising suspicion at a time of an intensifying U.S.-China rivalry that has spread into the business world.

U.S. wariness of China, coupled with Beijing’s desire to protect its technological competitiveness, threatens to rupture ties between the world’s two largest economies. That could hurt businesses, workers and consumers, which some warn could undermine the economic foundation that has helped stabilize relations.

“This is a lose-lose scenario for the two countries,” Zhiqun Zhu, professor of political science and international relations at Bucknell University, said in an email. “The main reason is U.S.-China rivalry, and the U.S. government prioritizes ‘national security’ over economic interests in dealing with China.”

Lizhi Liu, an assistant professor of business at Georgetown University, said the trend, along with the decline of U.S. investments in China, could hurt China-U.S. relations.

“Strong investment ties between the two nations are crucial not only for economic reasons but also for security, as intertwined economic interests reduce the likelihood of major conflicts or even war,” she said.

But U.S. lawmakers believe the stakes are high. Sen. Marco Rubio said at a July hearing that China is not only a military and diplomatic adversary for the U.S. but also a “technological, industrial and commercial” opponent.

“The technological and industrial high ground has always been a precursor of global power,” said Rubio, a Republican from Florida. He argued that U.S. foreign policy should take into account the country’s commercial, trade and technological interests.

The bipartisan House Select Committee on China has warned that widespread adoption in the US. of technologies developed by China could threaten long-term U.S. technological competitiveness.

U.S. public sentiment against Chinese investments began to build up during President Barack Obama’s administration, in a pushback against globalization, and were amplified after President Donald Trump came into office, said Yilang Feng, an assistant professor of business at University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, who studies economic nationalism and resistance to foreign direct investments in the U.S.

“The scale has increased, so has the intensity,” Feng said.

As President Joe Biden’s administration seeks to revive American manufacturing and boost U.S. technological capabilities, many politicians believe Chinese companies should be kept out.

“Can you imagine working for an American company working tirelessly to develop battery technology and then you find out that your tax dollars are being used to subsidize a competitor from China?” Moolenaar said as he campaigned against the Gotion project in his congressional district in a state that is critical in the presidential election.

Whitmer’s office has declined to comment on the project. The Michigan Economic Development Corporation told The Associated Press it has received “bipartisan support at all levels” to move forward with the project, which will create up to 2,350 jobs.

Danielle Emerson, spokesperson for MEDC, said the project is “critical to onshore the battery supply chain and create thousands of good-paying local jobs, which reduces our reliance on overseas disruptions and further protects our national security.”

Local residents of Green Charter Township, however, revolted against the project over its Chinese connections last year when they removed five officials who supported it in a recall election.

Also in Michigan, a partnership between Ford and CATL, another Chinese battery manufacturer, has been scaled back, following pushback over CATL’s potential connections to China’s ruling party.

In Worcester, Massachusetts, the Chinese biotech company WuXi Biologics paused construction of a large facility a few weeks after lawmakers introduced a bill that would, over data security concerns, ban U.S. entities receiving federal funds from doing business with a number of China-linked companies, WuXi Biologics included.

John Ling, who has helped South Carolina and Georgia attract Chinese businesses for nearly two decades, said geopolitics have been getting in the way in recent years. Chinese companies are less likely to consider South Carolina after the state senate last year approved a bill banning Chinese citizens from buying property, even though the bill has yet to clear the statehouse, Ling said.

Data by the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis show the total investments by China in the U.S. fell to just under $44 billion in 2023, from a high point of $63 billion in 2017, although first-year expenditures rose to $621 million in 2023, up from $531 million in 2022 but drastically down from the high of $27 billion in 2016. The figures include acquisitions, new business establishments and expansions.

Thilo Hanemann, a partner at the research provider Rhodium Group, said there’s been an upswing in new Chinese investments in the U.S. following a major decline, prompted by the end of disruptions during the COVID-19 pandemic and the need for Chinese companies to go overseas when margins at home are dwindling.

U.S. policymakers are worried that Chinese companies, beholden to the ruling Chinese Communist Party, could pose national security risks, he said, while Beijing is concerned that overseas investments could lead to Chinese technology leakage.

“Chinese companies are in between a rock and a hard place, dealing with both domestic governments in terms of not letting them go abroad and then the U.S. or host governments that have concerns,” Hanemann said.

Yet, Chinese investors may still find the U.S. market appealing “due to its high consumption levels and judicial independence,” said Liu of Georgetown University.

In 2022, Michigan beat out several other states in luring Gotion, according to the governor’s office. Keen to revive its manufacturing base, the state offered a package of incentives , including $175 million in grants and the approval of a new zone that could save the company $540 million. Local townships approved tax abatements for Gotion to build a factory to make components for electrical vehicle batteries.

In Green Charter Township, the new board dropped support for the project and rescinded an agreement that would extend water to the factory site, only to be rebuked by a U.S. district judge .

The future of the plant remains uncertain, as Moolenaar is rallying support for his bill that would prevent Gotion from receiving federal subsidies. He has accused the company of using forced labor, after congressional staff discovered links between the company and Xinjiang Production Construction Corps., a paramilitary group sanctioned by the U.S. Commerce Department for its involvement in China’s forced labor practice.

Chuck Thelen, vice president of manufacturing of Gotion North America, in recent town hall meetings called the forced labor accusations “categorically false and clearly intended to deceive.”

By allowing the Chinese company to build a plant in Michigan, it would help “onshore a technology that has been vastly leapfrogged” outside of the U.S., he said.

It doesn’t amount to “a Chinese invasion,” Thelen said. “This is a global approach, an energy solution.”

Press Releases

Intel reports second-quarter 2024 financial results; announces $10 billion cost reduction plan to increase efficiency and market competitiveness, related documents.

NEWS SUMMARY

• Second-quarter revenue of $12.8 billion, down 1% year over year (YoY).
• Second-quarter GAAP earnings (loss) per share (EPS) attributable to Intel was $(0.38); non-GAAP EPS attributable to Intel was $0.02.
• Forecasting third-quarter 2024 revenue of $12.5 billion to $13.5 billion; expecting third-quarter GAAP EPS attributable to Intel of $(0.24); non-GAAP EPS attributable to Intel of $(0.03).
• Implementing comprehensive reduction in spending, including a more than 15% headcount reduction, to resize and refocus.
• Suspending dividend starting in the fourth quarter of 2024. The company reiterates its long-term commitment to a competitive dividend as cash flows improve to sustainably higher levels.
• Achieved key milestones on Intel 18A with the 1.0 Process Design Kit (PDK) released and key power-on of first client and server products on Intel 18A, Panther Lake and Clearwater Forest.

SANTA CLARA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Intel Corporation today reported second-quarter 2024 financial results.

“Our Q2 financial performance was disappointing, even as we hit key product and process technology milestones. Second-half trends are more challenging than we previously expected, and we are leveraging our new operating model to take decisive actions that will improve operating and capital efficiencies while accelerating our IDM 2.0 transformation,” said Pat Gelsinger, Intel CEO. “These actions, combined with the launch of Intel 18A next year to regain process technology leadership, will strengthen our position in the market, improve our profitability and create shareholder value.”

“Second-quarter results were impacted by gross margin headwinds from the accelerated ramp of our AI PC product, higher than typical charges related to non-core businesses and the impact from unused capacity,” said David Zinsner, Intel CFO. “By implementing our spending reductions, we are taking proactive steps to improve our profits and strengthen our balance sheet. We expect these actions to meaningfully improve liquidity and reduce our debt balance while enabling us to make the right investments to drive long-term value for shareholders.”

Cost-Reduction Plan

As Intel nears the completion of rebuilding a sustainable engine of process technology leadership, it announced a series of initiatives to create a sustainable financial engine that accelerates profitable growth, enables further operational efficiency and agility, and creates capacity for ongoing strategic investment in technology and manufacturing leadership. These initiatives follow the establishment of separate financial reporting for Intel Products and Intel Foundry, which provides a "clean sheet" view of the business and has uncovered significant opportunities to drive meaningful operational and cost efficiencies. The actions include structural and operating realignment across the company, headcount reductions, and operating expense and capital expenditure reductions of more than $10 billion in 2025 compared to previous estimates. As a result of these actions, Intel aims to achieve clear line of sight toward a sustainable business model with the ongoing financial resources and liquidity needed to support the company’s long-term strategy.

The plan will enable the next phase of the company’s multiyear transformation strategy, and is focused on four key priorities:

• Reducing Operating Expenses: The company will streamline its operations and meaningfully cut spending and headcount, reducing non-GAAP R&D and marketing, general and administrative (MG&A) to approximately $20 billion in 2024 and approximately $17.5 billion in 2025, with further reductions expected in 2026. Intel expects to reduce headcount by greater than 15% with the majority completed by the end of 2024.
• Reducing Capital Expenditures: With the end of its historic five-nodes-in-four-years journey firmly in sight, Intel is now shifting its focus toward capital efficiency and investment levels aligned to market requirements. This will reduce gross capital expenditures* in 2024 by more than 20% from prior projections, bringing gross capital expenditures in 2024 to between $25 billion and $27 billion. Intel expects net capital spending* in 2024 of between $11 billion and $13 billion. In 2025, the company is targeting gross capital expenditures between $20 billion and $23 billion and net capital spending between $12 billion and $14 billion.
• Reducing Cost of Sales: The company expects to generate $1 billion in savings in non-variable cost of sales in 2025. Product mix will continue to be a headwind next year, contributing to modest YoY improvements to 2025's gross margin.
• Maintaining Core Investments to Execute Strategy: The company continues to advance its long-term innovation and path to leadership across process technology and products, and the increased efficiency from its actions is expected to further support its execution. In addition, Intel continues to sustain investments to build a resilient and sustainable semiconductor supply chain in the United States and around the world.

Intel is taking the added step of suspending the dividend starting in the fourth quarter, recognizing the importance of prioritizing liquidity to support the investments needed to execute its strategy. The company reiterates its long-term commitment to a competitive dividend as cash flows improve to sustainably higher levels.

Q2 2024 Financial Highlights

In the second quarter, the company generated $2.3 billion in cash from operations and paid dividends of $0.5 billion.

Business Unit Summary

Intel previously announced the implementation of an internal foundry operating model, which took effect in the first quarter of 2024 and created a foundry relationship between its Intel Products business (collectively CCG, DCAI and NEX) and its Intel Foundry business (including Foundry Technology Development, Foundry Manufacturing and Supply Chain, and Foundry Services (formerly IFS)). The foundry operating model is a key component of the company's strategy and is designed to reshape operational dynamics and drive greater transparency, accountability, and focus on costs and efficiency. The company also previously announced its intent to operate Altera ® as a standalone business beginning in the first quarter of 2024. Altera was previously included in DCAI's segment results. As a result of these changes, the company modified its segment reporting in the first quarter of 2024 to align to this new operating model. All prior-period segment data has been retrospectively adjusted to reflect the way the company internally receives information and manages and monitors its operating segment performance starting in fiscal year 2024. There are no changes to Intel’s consolidated financial statements for any prior periods.

Intel Products Highlights

• CCG: Intel continues to define and drive the AI PC category, shipping more than 15 million AI PCs since December 2023, far more than all of Intel's competitors combined, and on track to ship more than 40 million AI PCs by year-end. Lunar Lake, the company’s next-generation AI CPU, achieved production release in July 2024, ahead of schedule, with shipments starting in the third quarter. Lunar Lake will power over 80 new Copilot+ PCs across more than 20 OEMs.
• DCAI: More than 130 million Intel ® Xeon ® processors power data centers around the world today, and at Computex Intel introduced its next-generation Intel ® Xeon ® 6 processor with Efficient-cores (E-cores), code-named Sierra Forest, marking the company’s first Intel 3 server product architected for high-density, scale-out workloads. Intel expects Intel ® Xeon ® 6 processors with Performance-cores (P-cores), code-named Granite Rapids, to begin shipping in the third quarter of 2024. The Intel ® Gaudi ® 3 AI accelerator is also on track to launch in the third quarter and is expected to deliver roughly two-times the performance per dollar on both inference and training versus the leading competitor.
• NEX: Intel announced an array of AI-optimized scale-out Ethernet solutions, including the Intel AI network interface card and foundry chiplets that will launch next year. New infrastructure processing unit (IPU) adaptors for the enterprise are now broadly available and supported by Dell Technologies, Red Hat and others. IPUs will play an increasingly important role in Intel’s accelerator portfolio, which the company expects will help drive AI data center growth and profitability in 2025 and beyond. Additionally, Intel and others announced the creation of the Ultra Accelerator Link, a new industry standard dedicated to advancing high-speed, low-latency communication for scale-up AI systems communication in data centers.

Intel Foundry Highlights

• Intel is nearing the completion of its promised five-nodes-in-four-years strategy, with Intel 18A on track to be manufacturing-ready by the end of this year and production wafer start volumes in the first half of 2025. In July 2024, Intel released to foundry customers the 1.0 PDK for Intel 18A. The company’s first two Intel 18A products, Panther Lake for client — the first microprocessor to use RibbonFet, PowerVia and advanced packaging — and Clearwater Forest for servers, are on track to launch in 2025.
• Ansys, Cadence, Siemens, and Synopsys announced the availability of reference flows for Intel’s embedded multi-die interconnect bridge (EMIB) advanced packaging technology, which simplifies the design process and offers design flexibility. The companies also declared readiness for Intel 18A designs.
• During the quarter, Intel named industry veteran Kevin O'Buckley to lead Foundry Services. The company also recently appointed Dr. Naga Chandrasekaran to lead Intel Foundry Manufacturing and Supply Chain. Their leadership will support Intel’s continued development of the first systems foundry for the AI era.

Other Highlights

Intel announced its second Semiconductor Co-Investment Program (SCIP) agreement, the formation of a joint venture with Apollo related to Intel’s Fab 34 in Ireland. SCIP is an element of Intel’s Smart Capital strategy, a funding approach designed to create financial flexibility to accelerate the company’s strategy, including investing in its global manufacturing operations, while maintaining a strong balance sheet.

Q3 2024 Dividend

The company announced that its board of directors has declared a quarterly dividend of $0.125 per share on the company’s common stock, which will be payable Sept. 1, 2024, to shareholders of record as of Aug. 7, 2024.

As noted earlier, Intel is suspending the dividend starting in the fourth quarter.

Business Outlook

Intel's guidance for the third quarter of 2024 includes both GAAP and non-GAAP estimates as follows:

Reconciliations between GAAP and non-GAAP financial measures are included below. Actual results may differ materially from Intel’s business outlook as a result of, among other things, the factors described under “Forward-Looking Statements” below. The gross margin and EPS outlook are based on the mid-point of the revenue range.

Earnings Webcast

Intel will hold a public webcast at 2 p.m. PDT today to discuss the results for its second quarter of 2024. The live public webcast can be accessed on Intel's Investor Relations website at www.intc.com . The corresponding earnings presentation and webcast replay will also be available on the site.

Forward-Looking Statements

This release contains forward-looking statements that involve a number of risks and uncertainties. Words such as "accelerate", "achieve", "aim", "ambitions", "anticipate", "believe", "committed", "continue", "could", "designed", "estimate", "expect", "forecast", "future", "goals", "grow", "guidance", "intend", "likely", "may", "might", "milestones", "next generation", "objective", "on track", "opportunity", "outlook", "pending", "plan", "position", "possible", "potential", "predict", "progress", "ramp", "roadmap", "seek", "should", "strive", "targets", "to be", "upcoming", "will", "would", and variations of such words and similar expressions are intended to identify such forward-looking statements, which may include statements regarding:

• our business plans and strategy and anticipated benefits therefrom, including with respect to our IDM 2.0 strategy, Smart Capital strategy, partnerships with Apollo and Brookfield, internal foundry model, updated reporting structure, and AI strategy;
• projections of our future financial performance, including future revenue, gross margins, capital expenditures, and cash flows;
• projected costs and yield trends;
• future cash requirements, the availability, uses, sufficiency, and cost of capital resources, and sources of funding, including for future capital and R&D investments and for returns to stockholders, such as stock repurchases and dividends, and credit ratings expectations;
• future products, services, and technologies, and the expected goals, timeline, ramps, progress, availability, production, regulation, and benefits of such products, services, and technologies, including future process nodes and packaging technology, product roadmaps, schedules, future product architectures, expectations regarding process performance, per-watt parity, and metrics, and expectations regarding product and process leadership;
• investment plans and impacts of investment plans, including in the US and abroad;
• internal and external manufacturing plans, including future internal manufacturing volumes, manufacturing expansion plans and the financing therefor, and external foundry usage;
• future production capacity and product supply;
• supply expectations, including regarding constraints, limitations, pricing, and industry shortages;
• plans and goals related to Intel's foundry business, including with respect to anticipated customers, future manufacturing capacity and service, technology, and IP offerings;
• expected timing and impact of acquisitions, divestitures, and other significant transactions, including the sale of our NAND memory business;
• expected completion and impacts of restructuring activities and cost-saving or efficiency initiatives;
• future social and environmental performance goals, measures, strategies, and results;
• our anticipated growth, future market share, and trends in our businesses and operations;
• projected growth and trends in markets relevant to our businesses;
• anticipated trends and impacts related to industry component, substrate, and foundry capacity utilization, shortages, and constraints;
• expectations regarding government incentives;
• future technology trends and developments, such as AI;
• future macro environmental and economic conditions;
• geopolitical tensions and conflicts and their potential impact on our business;
• tax- and accounting-related expectations;
• expectations regarding our relationships with certain sanctioned parties; and
• other characterizations of future events or circumstances.

Such statements involve many risks and uncertainties that could cause our actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied, including those associated with:

• the high level of competition and rapid technological change in our industry;
• the significant long-term and inherently risky investments we are making in R&D and manufacturing facilities that may not realize a favorable return;
• the complexities and uncertainties in developing and implementing new semiconductor products and manufacturing process technologies;
• our ability to time and scale our capital investments appropriately and successfully secure favorable alternative financing arrangements and government grants;
• implementing new business strategies and investing in new businesses and technologies;
• changes in demand for our products;
• macroeconomic conditions and geopolitical tensions and conflicts, including geopolitical and trade tensions between the US and China, the impacts of Russia's war on Ukraine, tensions and conflict affecting Israel and the Middle East, and rising tensions between mainland China and Taiwan;
• the evolving market for products with AI capabilities;
• our complex global supply chain, including from disruptions, delays, trade tensions and conflicts, or shortages;
• product defects, errata and other product issues, particularly as we develop next-generation products and implement next-generation manufacturing process technologies;
• potential security vulnerabilities in our products;
• increasing and evolving cybersecurity threats and privacy risks;
• IP risks including related litigation and regulatory proceedings;
• the need to attract, retain, and motivate key talent;
• strategic transactions and investments;
• sales-related risks, including customer concentration and the use of distributors and other third parties;
• our significantly reduced return of capital in recent years;
• our debt obligations and our ability to access sources of capital;
• complex and evolving laws and regulations across many jurisdictions;
• fluctuations in currency exchange rates;
• changes in our effective tax rate;
• catastrophic events;
• environmental, health, safety, and product regulations;
• our initiatives and new legal requirements with respect to corporate responsibility matters; and
• other risks and uncertainties described in this release, our 2023 Form 10-K, and our other filings with the SEC.

Given these risks and uncertainties, readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on such forward-looking statements. Readers are urged to carefully review and consider the various disclosures made in this release and in other documents we file from time to time with the SEC that disclose risks and uncertainties that may affect our business.

Unless specifically indicated otherwise, the forward-looking statements in this release do not reflect the potential impact of any divestitures, mergers, acquisitions, or other business combinations that have not been completed as of the date of this filing. In addition, the forward-looking statements in this release are based on management's expectations as of the date of this release, unless an earlier date is specified, including expectations based on third-party information and projections that management believes to be reputable. We do not undertake, and expressly disclaim any duty, to update such statements, whether as a result of new information, new developments, or otherwise, except to the extent that disclosure may be required by law.

About Intel

Intel (Nasdaq: INTC) is an industry leader, creating world-changing technology that enables global progress and enriches lives. Inspired by Moore’s Law, we continuously work to advance the design and manufacturing of semiconductors to help address our customers’ greatest challenges. By embedding intelligence in the cloud, network, edge and every kind of computing device, we unleash the potential of data to transform business and society for the better. To learn more about Intel’s innovations, go to newsroom.intel.com and intel.com.

© Intel Corporation. Intel, the Intel logo, and other Intel marks are trademarks of Intel Corporation or its subsidiaries. Other names and brands may be claimed as the property of others.

For information about our operating segments, including the nature of segment revenues and expenses, and a reconciliation of our operating segment revenue and operating income (loss) to our consolidated results, refer to our Form 10-K filed on January 26, 2024, Form 8-K furnished on April 2, 2024 and 10-Q filed on August 1, 2024.

Intel Corporation Explanation of Non-GAAP Measures

In addition to disclosing financial results in accordance with US GAAP, this document contains references to the non-GAAP financial measures below. We believe these non-GAAP financial measures provide investors with useful supplemental information about our operating performance, enable comparison of financial trends and results between periods where certain items may vary independent of business performance, and allow for greater transparency with respect to key metrics used by management in operating our business and measuring our performance. Some of these non-GAAP financial measures are used in our performance-based RSUs and our cash bonus plans.

Our non-GAAP financial measures reflect adjustments based on one or more of the following items, as well as the related income tax effects. Income tax effects are calculated using a fixed long-term projected tax rate of 13% across all adjustments. We project this long-term non-GAAP tax rate on at least an annual basis using a five-year non-GAAP financial projection that excludes the income tax effects of each adjustment. The projected non-GAAP tax rate also considers factors such as our tax structure, our tax positions in various jurisdictions, and key legislation in significant jurisdictions where we operate. This long-term non-GAAP tax rate may be subject to change for a variety of reasons, including the rapidly evolving global tax environment, significant changes in our geographic earnings mix, or changes to our strategy or business operations. Management uses this non-GAAP tax rate in managing internal short- and long-term operating plans and in evaluating our performance; we believe this approach facilitates comparison of our operating results and provides useful evaluation of our current operating performance.

Our non-GAAP financial measures should not be considered a substitute for, or superior to, financial measures calculated in accordance with US GAAP, and the financial results calculated in accordance with US GAAP and reconciliations from these results should be carefully evaluated.

Intel Corporation Supplemental Reconciliations of GAAP Actuals to Non-GAAP Actuals

Set forth below are reconciliations of the non-GAAP financial measure to the most directly comparable US GAAP financial measure. These non-GAAP financial measures should not be considered a substitute for, or superior to, financial measures calculated in accordance with US GAAP, and the reconciliations from US GAAP to Non-GAAP actuals should be carefully evaluated. Please refer to "Explanation of Non-GAAP Measures" in this document for a detailed explanation of the adjustments made to the comparable US GAAP measures, the ways management uses the non-GAAP measures, and the reasons why management believes the non-GAAP measures provide useful information for investors.

Intel Corporation Supplemental Reconciliations of GAAP Outlook to Non-GAAP Outlook

Set forth below are reconciliations of the non-GAAP financial measure to the most directly comparable US GAAP financial measure. These non-GAAP financial measures should not be considered a substitute for, or superior to, financial measures calculated in accordance with US GAAP, and the financial outlook prepared in accordance with US GAAP and the reconciliations from this Business Outlook should be carefully evaluated. Please refer to "Explanation of Non-GAAP Measures" in this document for a detailed explanation of the adjustments made to the comparable US GAAP measures, the ways management uses the non-GAAP measures, and the reasons why management believes the non-GAAP measures provide useful information for investors.

Intel Corporation Supplemental Reconciliations of Other GAAP to Non-GAAP Forward-Looking Estimates

Set forth below are reconciliations of the non-GAAP financial measure to the most directly comparable US GAAP financial measure. These non-GAAP financial measures should not be considered a substitute for, or superior to, financial measures calculated in accordance with US GAAP, and the reconciliations should be carefully evaluated. Please refer to "Explanation of Non-GAAP Measures" in this document for a detailed explanation of the adjustments made to the comparable US GAAP measures, the ways management uses the non-GAAP measures, and the reasons why management believes the non-GAAP measures provide useful information for investors.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240801042170/en/

Kylie Altman Investor Relations 1-916-356-0320 [email protected] Penny Bruce Media Relations 1-408-893-0601 [email protected]

Source: Intel Corporation

Released Aug 1, 2024 • 4:01 PM EDT

• Email Alerts
• RSS News Feed

• Health Insurance
• Best Small Business Health Insurance Providers

Best Small Business Health Insurance Providers Of 2024

Updated: Jun 25, 2024, 8:57am

Kaiser Permanente and Blue Cross Blue Shield scored the best in our analysis of small business health insurance. We evaluated large insurance providers that offer ACA marketplace plans to find the best health insurance companies across the country.

Providing health insurance can help a small business attract—and keep—employees. One way small businesses can buy health coverage is through the Affordable Care Act (ACA) marketplace.

• Best Affordable Health Insurance
• Best Dental Insurance
• Best Disability Insurance
• Best Health Insurance
• Best Short-Term Health Insurance
• Best Vision Insurance

Summary: Best Health Insurance for Small Business Owners

How does small business health insurance work, types of health insurance companies for small businesses, how much does health insurance for small business cost, how to compare small business health insurance plans, how to get health insurance for a small business, methodology, other health insurance companies we rated, small business health insurance frequently asked questions (faqs), next up in health insurance.

How We Chose the Best Health Insurance For Small Business Owners

We analyzed state insurance department complaints, quality ratings, deductibles, breadth of health plans and metal tier offerings in the Affordable Care Act marketplace, sometimes called Obamacare, when comparing companies. Our editors are committed to bringing you unbiased ratings and information. Our editorial content is not influenced by advertisers. We use data-driven methodologies to evaluate insurance companies, so all companies are measured equally. You can read more about our editorial guidelines and the methodology for the ratings below.

• 259 health insurance plan costs crunched
• 84 coverage and quality data points analyzed
• 102 years of insurance experience on the editorial team

BEST QUALITY

Kaiser permanente.

Plans offered to small businesses

HMO, POS, PPO

Other coverage offered

Dental (in California) and vision

Provider network

More than 23,900 physicians in 39 hospitals and 622 medical facilities

We like Kaiser Permanente’s superior quality ratings, excellent average deductibles for silver plans and that it offers four different types of metal tiers on the ACA marketplace. That combination could make an excellent choice if you’re buying coverage for your small business.

• Operates an integrated health system, which means the medical providers and health plans work for the same company, which can reduce potential claims problems.
• Doesn’t charge businesses extra for offering multiple types of health plans.
• Excellent health insurance costs compared to other insurers analyzed.
• Kaiser Permanente has the best average ACA plan ratings of the insurers we reviewed.

More: Kaiser Permanente Health Insurance Review

• Only available in eight states and Washington, D.C.
• Finding a provider that accepts Kaiser Permanente may be a problem if members are in states that the company doesn’t serve.
• Consumer complaints to state insurance commissioners are higher than the industry average.
• Washington, D.C.

Best Provider Network

Blue Cross Blue Shield

EPO, HMO, POS, PPO

Dental, life, vision

Over 1.7 million healthcare providers

Blue Cross Blue Shield, which is made up of 33 independent insurers, has excellent quality ratings and lower-than-average silver plan deductibles. Another positive we like is the company’s large provider network and availability of Blue Cross coverage in all states.

• Large provider network means you should have an easier time finding a doctor if you’re traveling.
• Available nationwide.
• Offers all four metal tiers (bronze, silver, gold and platinum).
• Provides four types of health plans to small businesses (can vary by Blue Cross company).

More: Blue Cross Blue Shield Health Insurance Review

• Consumer complaints to state insurance commissioners are slightly above average compared to the rest of the industry.
• Higher ACA marketplace premiums than competitors analyzed.
• All 50 states and Washington, D.C.

Best for Breadth of Insurance Options

Unitedhealthcare.

Accident, critical illness, dental, fixed indemnity, hospitalization, life, vision

1.5 million healthcare providers and 7,000 hospitals and facilities.

UnitedHealthcare has better-than-average complaints to state insurance departments and excellent health plan quality ratings, which we think offers small businesses excellent coverage.

• Large provider network across the country.
• Good National Committee for Quality Assurance quality ratings with excellent numbers for prevention and treatment.
• Offers a wealth of other insurance options.

More: UnitedHealthcare Health Insurance Review

• Doesn’t provide as many metal tiers or types of health plans in the ACA marketplace compared to competitors.
• Health insurance premiums are higher than some competitors.
• Massachusetts
• Mississippi
• North Carolina

The Affordable Care Act defines a small business as a group of no more than 50 full-time employees (FTE), though some states may define it differently.

A small business owner can enroll in a group health insurance plan offered by a private insurance company and then provide their employees the opportunity to enroll in that plan. The employer generally pays part of their employees’ monthly premiums, while employees typically pay smaller premiums, as well as their deductibles, copays, coinsurance and services not covered by the plan.

Small business owners contract with health insurance companies and decide how many options to provide to employees.

Small business owners can buy health insurance for their employees through approved insurance companies with the Small Business Health Options Program (SHOP).

Employers may choose the types of benefit design, which influences whether an employee needs referrals to see specialists, can get out-of-network care and other factors. Three types of health insurance plans offered to small businesses are:

• EPO: Exclusive provider organization plans are often an affordable option. EPOs don’t usually require members to get primary care referrals to see specialists but they also often don’t cover out-of-network care.
• HMO: Health maintenance organization plans are generally much cheaper than other options, but they also have limitations not found in other plans. That includes needing primary care referrals to see specialists and not being covered for out-of-network care.
• POS: Point of service (POS) plans may allow you to get out-of-network care, but you generally need primary care referrals to see specialists and you must choose a primary care provider. These plans aren’t as common as the other types.
• PPO: Preferred provider organization plans are often the most expensive because they offer the most flexibility. That flexibility includes members not needing to get primary care referrals to see specialists and the ability to get out-of-network care.

Getting insurance through the SHOP Marketplace allows employers to offer health plans from multiple insurance companies and qualifies them for the Small Business Health Care Tax Credit, which can help with the cost of providing coverage.

Your business must meet these requirements to qualify for the SHOP tax credit:

• Fewer than 25 full-time equivalent (FTE) employees.
• Average employee salary is about $56,000 per year or less.
• Pay at least 50% of your full-time employees’ premium costs.
• Offer SHOP coverage to all full-time employees.

Small business owners can also work with a health insurance broker who conducts all plan research and comparisons to find the best plan for your business at no additional charge. Or they can buy directly from a health insurance company.

If you buy coverage through the ACA marketplace, plans are organized by “metal” tiers: bronze, silver, gold and platinum . The tiers differ by premiums and out-of-pocket costs. For instance, bronze and silver plans have low premiums but higher deductibles and coinsurance. Gold and platinum plans have high premiums but lower out-of-pocket costs.

Employers have flexibility in which type of plans they choose to offer their employees.

The average cost for small business owners is $612 per employee per month and $1,274 for family coverage per month, according to Kaiser Family Foundation’s 2023 Employer Health Benefits Survey.

The exact cost depends on multiple factors, including previous health insurance claims. For instance, a year of high employee healthcare costs could lead to higher health insurance rates set by the insurance company the next year.

Average Health Insurance Costs for Small Business

Featured Health Insurance Partners

Offers plans in all 50 states and Washington, D.C.

About 1.2 million

On Healthcare.com's Website

About 1.7 million

About 1.5 million

Choosing a small business health insurance plan requires you to act similar to a consumer buying an individual health insurance plan on the Affordable Care Act (ACA) marketplace.

Here’s what to look at when comparing small business health insurance plans.

• Benefit design: See what types of health plans a company offers, including EPO, HMO, POS and PPO. The benefit design dictates whether employees can get out-of-network care and need referrals to see specialists.
• Premiums: A health insurance premium is what members pay to have coverage. This usually gets deducted from paychecks. Employers pay most of the premiums, so businesses will need to figure out how much coverage will cost them and their employees.
• Out-of-pocket costs: Health insurance deductibles , coinsurance and out-of-pocket maximums play vital roles in how much members pay when they need healthcare services. Choosing a plan with high deductibles may cost businesses and employees for premiums, but it also puts more costs on employees when they need healthcare.
• Provider network: Health insurance companies contract with providers and medical facilities like hospitals. These contracts decide how much providers get paid and may set requirements for providers, such as requiring that they meet a minimum quality of care. A small network could result in employees needing to search for a doctor and lead to extra out-of-network costs.

EXPERT TIPS

How to Choose the Right Small Business Health Insurance

Les Masterson

Insurance Editor

Insurance Managing Editor

Michelle Megna

Insurance Lead Editor

Ashlee Valentine

Offer Multiple Plans If Possible

I believe that providing employees with multiple options can help with employee satisfaction. One employee may like the lower premiums in an HMO and not have a problem staying in-network, while another may prefer the flexibility of a PPO with the understanding that they will pay more in premiums. Giving them those options can help maintain your workforce.

Get Health Insurance Quotes from Multiple Insurers

Small employers aren’t all the same so don’t follow another company’s insurer or stay with your current company without checking other insurers. Instead, I would suggest getting quotes from multiple insurance companies for the same type of coverage so you can accurately compare them side-by-side.

Figure Out How Much You Can Afford

Part of buying health insurance as an employer is figuring out how much you can afford to spend on health insurance and how much employees may have to pay. I would suggest thinking about how much you want employees to spend on health insurance premiums and what coverage you need.

Work With an Insurance Broker

If you’re unsure about health insurance, talk to an insurance broker to help you with the process. I’ve found that HealthCare.gov offers a tool that lets you find available health insurance brokers in your area by entering your ZIP code.

Look Into Tax Credits

Small business owners may qualify for tax credits to help you pay for employee health insurance through a Small Business Health Options Program (SHOP) plan. I’ve seen some small businesses save as much as 50% of their premiums, but there are requirements to qualify.

You have several options when it comes to searching for the right plan options for your small business.

We analyzed 84 data points about coverage and quality for seven large health insurance companies to determine the best health insurance providers for small businesses owners. Our ratings are based on:

• Complaints made to state insurance departments (30% of score): We used complaint data from the National Association of Insurance Commissioners.
• Plan ratings from the National Committee for Quality Assurance (30% of score): The National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA) is an independent, nonprofit organization that accredits health plans and produces ratings based on specific metrics, including patient experience, prevention, treatment, overall rating of the health plan and rating of care.
• Average silver plan deductible (20% of score): The deductible is how much you have to pay for healthcare in a year before the health plan begins picking up a portion of the costs. Companies with health plans that had low deductibles got more points.
• Breadth of health plans (10% of score): Health insurance companies may offer up to four types of plan benefit designs (PPO, HMO, EPO and POS). Companies that offered more types of plans got more points.
• Metal tier offerings (10% of score): The ACA marketplace has four metal tier levels. We gave points to companies that offered more tier plan options.

Read more: How Forbes Advisor rates health insurance companies

Here are other health insurance companies we analyzed as part of our research.

Find The Best Health Insurance Companies Of 2024

Do small businesses have to provide health insurance.

Small business owners aren’t legally required to provide health insurance to their workers, but there are rules for those who do.

With that said, make sure you understand how your state defines a small business, as it will impact what you are required to provide, should you decide to offer health insurance to your employees.

What is a self-insured health plan?

An employer collects health insurance premiums in a self-insured health insurance plan and the business pays the claims rather than a health insurance company. Self-insured plans are more often an option for larger companies.

One potential benefit of self-insured plans is that businesses can save money if they collect more premiums than claims paid out. On the other hand, it could cause a problem if claims exceed premiums.

A self-insured health plan generally still requires that employers contract with a third party to enroll members, process claims and set up provider networks.

How much does group health insurance cost for small businesses?

The average annual cost of health insurance for small businesses is $8,722 annually per employee. Of that amount, employers pick up $7,349 on average and employees pay the rest, according to Kaiser Family Foundation’s 2023 Employer Health Benefits Survey.

Small businesses pay less for health maintenance organization (HMO) plans than other plans. Small companies spend $6,644 annually on average for HMO coverage per employee compared to $6,970 for a point of service (POS) plan and $7,729 for a preferred provider organization (PPO) plan, according to Kaiser Family Foundation.

The Kaiser Family Foundation added that small companies are more likely to pay all employee premiums than larger companies. The report said 30% of covered workers in small firms don’t pay premiums for single coverage for health insurance. That’s compared to just 6% in large companies.

How many employees does a small business have to have to provide health insurance?

Small businesses don’t have to offer health insurance , but employers with more than 50 full-time employees working at least 30 hours per week must offer coverage or face tax penalties.

Small businesses that provide coverage may benefit from tax credits.

Can business owners buy a plan on the marketplace?

Small businesses can buy health coverage for employees on the health insurance marketplace through the Small Health Options Program (SHOP). SHOP lets employers compare plans and the Small Business Health Care Tax Credit can help save money for businesses.

• How Much Does Health Insurance Cost?
• UnitedHealthcare Health Insurance Review

Get Forbes Advisor’s ratings of the best insurance companies and helpful information on how to find the best travel, auto, home, health, life, pet, and small business coverage for your needs.

Les Masterson is a deputy editor and insurance analyst at Forbes Advisor. He has been a journalist, reporter, editor and content creator for more than 25 years. He has covered insurance for a decade, including auto, home, life and health. Before covering insurance, Les was a news editor and reporter for Patch and Community Newspaper Company and also covered health care, mortgages, credit cards and personal loans for multiple websites.

Starbucks vs. the grind

Long lines. Plunging sales. Pissed-off employees. Can the world's largest chain of coffeehouses make coffee fun again?

You know that shaky, nauseated feeling you get when you've had too much coffee? That's how Starbucks itself is feeling these days. At peak hours, its ubiquitous cafés are overcrowded and slow . Garbled names written in Sharpie have been replaced by computer-printed stickers for online-ordering overachievers, who are allowed to jump the line. Employees — once among the happiest in America — are unionizing. There's new competition from Dutch Bros and boba tea. The company reported yesterday that US sales have dipped for the last two quarters, down 2% since April, and profits are off 7.5%. With more than 33,000 cafés, the world's largest coffee chain has turned into a total grind.

But now, Starbucks seems to have woken up and smelled the — well, you know. On July 2, the company announced a major revamp of the way its cafés are organized. Called the "Siren Craft System," it overhauls the workflow at some 10,000 of its coffeehouses in an effort to reduce inefficiency, speed up orders, and boost customer satisfaction. But unlike most plans dreamed up by fancy-pants consultants, Siren Craft doesn't try to solve the problem by cranking up the assembly line or flogging employees into a state of heightened productivity. Instead, it does something truly novel in American business: It attempts to actually fix what's wrong with pretty much every company that makes things for lots of people.

Every fast-food outlet, Starbucks cafés included, is a little factory. The order of operations is highly prescribed, a carefully choreographed system of specialization that's been timed down to the second. For Starbucks, the trick is to balance America's addiction to cheap and speedy service with the vibe of a European-style coffeeshop — creating a relaxed, enjoyable "third place" for people to hang out beyond their office and home. There's a reason Starbucks used to sell CDs of the inoffensively groovy music it played in its cafés. People, it understood, need a cozy place to doomscroll.

The order in which we were asked to build those drinks was no longer working

The Siren Craft System tries to get this recipe right. For starters, it changes the sequence in which baristas make drinks. That's because over the years, as Starbucks introduced more and more cold beverages — a Frozen Strawberry Açaí Lemonade Refresher, anyone? — it has gotten harder and harder to keep up with all the orders. "The build for the drinks themselves have gotten more complex and has more steps, so they take longer to make," says Michelle Eisen, a Starbucks barista and union organizer. "The order in which we were asked to build those drinks was no longer working."

The new system instructs baristas to push cold drinks down in the queue in favor of hot ones. That might seem surprising, given the popularity of the milkshake-like Frappuccino line and the fruity Refreshers. But the fact is, the cold drinks also take longer to make. Order one of each, and you'll end up holding a melting Frappuccino before they even start on your double espresso. The higher-grossing cold drinks take so long to make, in fact, that they're actually pretty low-margin. The highest-margin item on the menu, a person familiar with Starbucks operations tells me, is probably a plain old drip coffee.

Siren Craft also switches up the way baristas make coffee. They used to pull espresso shots first and steam milk second. But employees told management that the caffè was getting cold waiting for the latte . The new system reverses that order to get the ingredients into better sync.

Then there's the digital dashboard that tells baristas what to do next. Starbucks is about to expand who can place orders via its app, and it's expecting a huge influx. So it's reprogramming the dashboard to anticipate when a flood of orders is coming and warn supervisors, to help them figure out who needs to be doing what. That might seem like a minor change, but when you're operating at the scale of Starbucks, all the savings in seconds really add up.

Finally, in perhaps its biggest innovation, the new system is changing the role of each café's "peak play caller." During crunch times, these managers will be empowered to deviate from everyone's set assignments, like a coach calling a play from the sideline. They'll be able to move employees around, taking someone off the espresso machine, say, and putting them on a register. The idea is to improve efficiency and productivity by giving managers more flexibility to improvise, rather than by throwing more bodies at the problem. Which is a pretty profound departure from the stopwatch-driven, one-size-fits-all approach that corporate America has long applied to the factory floor.

What's most interesting about Siren Craft, though, is what it isn't . It's not a widgetized assembly line that doubles down on barista performance metrics. It doesn't force every customer to order via the app, or make hand-wavey gestures at AI or some other flashy approach to efficiency and productivity. That kind of thinking is what got the company into so much trouble in the first place — poring over spreadsheets rather than improving coffee pour-overs. Starbucks was always commodified, but it went so far in that direction that it started breaking the brand. From Boeing to Google to Wells Fargo , metrics-driven pushes for efficiency and productivity always jeopardize the quality of the product, alienate employees, and drive away loyal customers.

In a work-from-home world, it's hard to imagine Starbucks ever having the cachet and daily urgency it once did. Fewer people are looking for a warm drink on the way to the office or a post-lunch pick-me-up — and given rising prices, not many of us have the extra $5 to burn. But it's not impossible for the company to bounce back. A visit to a Starbucks could still be a semi-regular treat, if people can feel assured that their quick pop-in for a hot cup of joe won't turn into 25 minutes of queuing behind a bunch of kids eager for a frothy cold sugar blast.

Eisen knows the Siren Call System won't employ more baristas, as the union would like. But she's hopeful that it represents a step in the right direction. Long lines, after all, don't just frustrate customers. They also prevent employees from serving up coffee with a more human touch.

"There used to be an element of fun to being a Starbucks barista," Eisen says. "It was amazing to have the time to talk to customers and sample new products with them, and get to know what their tastes were. Anything we can do to bring that third-place atmosphere back into the stores would be nice to see."

Adam Rogers is a senior correspondent at Business Insider.

About Discourse Stories

Through our Discourse journalism, Business Insider seeks to explore and illuminate the day’s most fascinating issues and ideas. Our writers provide thought-provoking perspectives, informed by analysis, reporting, and expertise. Read more Discourse stories here .

Related stories

More from Retail

Most popular

• Main content

US nuclear plant unfit for quick resurrection, former lead engineer says

• Medium Text

• Constellation Energy Corp Follow
• Entergy Corp Follow
• Fremont Gold Ltd Follow

Sign up here.

Reporting by Timothy Gardner, Editing by Nick Zieminski

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles. , opens new tab

Thomson Reuters

Timothy reports on energy and environment policy and is based in Washington, D.C. His coverage ranges from the latest in nuclear power, to environment regulations, to U.S. sanctions and geopolitics. He has been a member of three teams in the past two years that have won Reuters best journalism of the year awards. As a cyclist he is happiest outside.

Global oil demand needs to rise faster to absorb OPEC+ hike

Global oil demand growth needs to accelerate in coming months or the market will struggle to absorb an increase in oil supply that OPEC+ is planning to make from October, according to data, analysts and industry sources.

Advertisement

Where Tim Walz Stands on the Issues

As governor of Minnesota, he has enacted policies to secure abortion protections, provide free meals for schoolchildren, allow recreational marijuana and set renewable energy goals.

• Share full article

By Maggie Astor

• Aug. 6, 2024

Gov. Tim Walz of Minnesota, the newly announced running mate to Vice President Kamala Harris, has worked with his state’s Democratic-controlled Legislature to enact an ambitious agenda of liberal policies: free college tuition for low-income students, free meals for schoolchildren, legal recreational marijuana and protections for transgender people.

“You don’t win elections to bank political capital,” Mr. Walz wrote last year about his approach to governing. “You win elections to burn political capital and improve lives.”

Republicans have slammed these policies as big-government liberalism and accused Mr. Walz of taking a hard left turn since he represented a politically divided district in Congress years ago.

Here is an overview of where Mr. Walz stands on some key issues.

Mr. Walz signed a bill last year that guaranteed Minnesotans a “fundamental right to make autonomous decisions” about reproductive health care on issues such as abortion, contraception and fertility treatments.

Abortion was already protected by a Minnesota Supreme Court decision, but the new law guarded against a future court reversing that precedent as the U.S. Supreme Court did with Roe v. Wade, and Mr. Walz said this year that he was also open to an amendment to the state’s Constitution that would codify abortion rights.

Another bill he signed legally shields patients, and their medical providers, if they receive an abortion in Minnesota after traveling from a state where abortion is banned.

We are having trouble retrieving the article content.

Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.

Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and  log into  your Times account, or  subscribe  for all of The Times.

Thank you for your patience while we verify access.

Already a subscriber?  Log in .

Want all of The Times?  Subscribe .