About ShopStart
ShopStart is one calm page with the tools and official resources it takes to run a small business in the United States, so you spend less time searching and more time working.
Linda Morales is a small-business advisor in Phoenix, Arizona. She spent years as a counselor at a Small Business Development Center helping owners register, bank, hire and sell, and now curates ShopStart.
In counseling sessions, Linda noticed the same pattern again and again: owners were rarely stuck on the big decisions. They were stuck on finding the right official page, such as where to get an EIN without paying a middleman, which agency handles a payroll question, or which of five similar apps fits a two-person shop. ShopStart is the list she used to hand out on paper, turned into a start page you can pin and rearrange.
What ShopStart covers
16 categories and 337 links, chosen for the jobs a small-business owner, freelancer or online seller actually does: getting paid, bookkeeping, payroll, taxes, forming the business, selling, marketing, shipping, and finding free help. 54 of the links go to official .gov sites. ShopStart is deliberately not a general web directory; there are no news, entertainment or shopping portals here.
How we choose links
- Official destinations only. Every tile links to the provider's own website or the government agency's page, never a review site, reseller or redirect.
- Widely used or genuinely useful. We include tools that many US small businesses rely on, plus smaller or open-source options when they fill a real gap (for example a free alternative).
- Government first for government tasks. When an official free option exists, such as applying for an EIN or filing 1099s, we list it ahead of paid services.
- Our own words. Each description is written by ShopStart to explain what the tool is for. We do not copy marketing copy, invent ratings or show user counts.
How links are checked
Before each update, an automated script requests every link, follows redirects and records the response and the date. Links that no longer work are removed until we find the right replacement. The last full check finished on November 1, 2026. If you spot a broken or outdated link, please let us know.
Independence
No company pays to be listed or to be placed higher, and ShopStart uses no affiliate links. Outbound links are marked nofollow because this is a directory, not an endorsement. Brand names and trademarks belong to their owners; ShopStart is not affiliated with any of the services or agencies listed. Nothing on this site is legal, tax or financial advice; for decisions about your business, talk to a qualified professional or a free SBA resource partner.
Privacy in one sentence
ShopStart has no accounts, no advertising and no third-party trackers, and your pinned board never leaves your browser. Details are in the privacy policy.