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Pulling in capital, talent and corporations at a historic clip, Florida is no longer just competing with rival states — it’s competing with global economies.
New data from the Florida Chamber of Commerce shows the Sunshine State’s $1.8 trillion economy has climbed to No. 14 globally, according to the Florida Chamber Foundation. The Chamber says the ranking demonstrates the state’s emphasis on lower taxes, streamlined regulations and free enterprise.
“The best way to help America move forward is to have Florida lead the country forward when it comes to free enterprise and freedom,” Florida Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Mark Wilson told Fox News Digital. “If we would follow Florida’s lead, everyone wins.”
Last week, the Chamber announced Florida had climbed to No. 14 among the world’s largest economies by gross domestic product (GDP). The state’s economy reached $1.8 trillion after growing 6.3% over the past year, surpassing Australia and Mexico, according to the Chamber. Florida now ranks behind South Korea at No. 13 and would need roughly 2% additional growth to surpass it and about 21% more growth to overtake Canada, which ranks No. 10.
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“We’re trying to grow the private sector and shrink the government sector,” Wilson explained. “I mentioned the ‘death spiral,’ when you look at New York, when you look at Illinois, New Jersey, Minnesota, California, they keep increasing taxes. They keep increasing government regulations, and they keep forcing people to leave their states or incentivizing people to leave their states… so it only increases our resolve.”
Florida’s daily population migration has normalized from its post-pandemic peak down to about 500 to 600 people a day, yet the wealth migration stayed solid at over $4 million every single hour. That metric has remained strong, Wilson said, as “places like New York and California are losing population, they’re losing wealth, they’re losing businesses and places like Florida are gaining [them].”
While tourism, agriculture and construction remain foundational industries, Chamber data shows Florida ranking No. 1 nationally for new business startups and manufacturing job growth. Wilson also highlighted growth in aerospace, defense, fintech, healthcare, logistics and Central Florida’s $11.6 billion modeling-and-simulation industry.
“The secret sauce for us in Florida is this has been part of a 20-year plan,” the CEO said. “From the governor to the legislature, to nearly all of us in the business community, we’ve been on an ultra-focused pathway here of doing the right things from a policy standpoint so that we can grow Florida the right way. So people can work, people can live the American dream and we can show the rest of the country and the world how to do it.”
Wilson argued that running the state like a business with low debt protects local enterprises from national economic turmoil and Washington’s debt crisis, with the Chamber reporting that Florida has the nation’s lowest state debt per capita at less than $1,000 per resident. By comparison, New York carries more than $6,500 in state debt per resident.
However, a recent Bloomberg analysis found that U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis data indicates the combined cost of living in the Miami, Fort Lauderdale and Palm Beach region — dubbed the “Gold Coast” — is roughly 5% higher than in the New York metropolitan area and its surrounding suburbs.
“We’re taking a deep dive into that [report], that actually doesn’t compare New York to Florida, it compares Miami to New York City,” Wilson responded. “And what we’re looking at is not just the cost of living, but there are things like crime. Miami is now one of the safest places in America… It’s safe to walk the streets at night. Sometimes there’s no price tag you can put on some of these amenities Florida has.”
“Our country’s now at a fork in the road where some of these death spiral states like New York have adopted socialistic policies, which, of course, never work. They take away freedom and they increase taxes and regulations.”
“The leadership in the Miami area, I’ve spoken to them and we’re in partnership that over the next several years, we’re going to continue to do things like an improve an already awesome education system, and make sure that we have the affordable workforce housing solutions so that more and more people can live the American dream right here in Florida,” he continued.
Wilson also discussed high-profile billionaires and major corporations relocating to the Sunshine State, responding to critics who argue the influx has driven up housing costs and inflation for working-class families.
“They’re looking for places where they’re welcomed,” he said. “What’s interesting is a lot of billionaires are relocating to Florida, but they’re also investing in Florida businesses… There’s no question that when a lot of wealth moves into an area, it can increase the cost of living in an area. There’s no question that that’s true… But it also brings with it an overwhelming value proposition of more wealth, more jobs, more businesses.”
“I would hate to be New York, Illinois or California where the billionaires are leaving, the millionaires are leaving, the middle class is leaving. And there’s no one left to pay the taxes.”
Wilson and the Chamber are confident Florida can reach the world’s top 10 economies by the end of the decade. The Florida 2030 Blueprint outlines a 10-year strategic plan targeting fiscal, workforce and civic goals, with a focus on life sciences, defense, ag-tech, commercial space, logistics and cybersecurity.
“It’s like a military operation where we have all the branches, from education to infrastructure, to taxes, to regulation, to litigation — we all realize that we have a country to save,” the Chamber CEO said. “If we’re better than other states in certain metrics, then those states can up their game. If some states have found some things that Florida can learn from, then we’ll learn from them, and that’s gonna make America better.”
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