Twenty years ago, almost all tech companies started up in or around Silicon Valley. Today, technology entrepreneurship is a global phenomenon, with startup ecosystems sprouting all over the world, built around robust financing mechanisms, and bulletproof infrastructure.
An infographic from Tower Gate Insurance reveals the top eight start-up cities around the world in alphabetical order, based on metrics, including the number of registered companies, co-working spaces, incentives and initiatives encouraging entrepreneurship, notable industry events.
These stats, pegged against the cost of office space, estimated office rent and corporate tax rates, reveal the most fertile ground for businesses to grow.
Amsterdam
Home of: WeTransfer, 3D Hubs, TravelBird, Peerby
The city is relatively inexpensive, with office rent totalling £42,500 per year on average.
Berlin
Home of: Hello Fresh, Sound Cloud, Delivery Hero, Wooga
Its central location in Europe makes Berlin ideal for pan-European start-ups looking to further their reach.
London
Home of: Zoopla, Asos, CityMapper, TransferWise
You can’t have a global list without Europe’s key start-up city in the picture. London is home to a plethora of exciting tech start-ups that have gone on to become global phenomena. Average office rent per year is astronomical, however, which may explain why the city has over a hundred co-working spaces for early-stage start-ups.
New York
Home of: BuzzFeed, Tumblr, Vice, Etsy
The Big Apple is clearly the most expensive city to start-up in, with rent and corporate tax potentially eating into a fledgling start-up’s first year of profits.
The city is still extremely robust as a business ecosystem, with more than 15,718 registered start-up companies under its belt.
San Francisco Bay Area
Home of: Twitter, Apple, Facebook, Google
Silicon Valley has been the indomitable start-up kingmaker of the world since the ’70s, and tops the list by a landslide in numbers alone, with 25,540 registered start-ups.
Singapore
Home of: MoneySmart, Roomorama, TradeGecko, 99.co
Asia Pacific’s reigning champion, Singapore, has been churning out top-quality start-ups year on year, bolstered by government initiatives for entrepreneurs to take risks.
Sydney
Home of: DesignCrowd, Canva, WipeHero, Ninja Blocks
Sydney is one to watch in this list, with over 40 co-working spaces and relatively inexpensive start-up costs.
Vancouver
Home of: Hootsuite, PlentyOfFish, RainMaker, Fitplan
Canada’s start-up haven, Vancouver, may be the next port-of-call for businesses looking to break into the North American market. The city is not as saturated as American start-up hubs, but is just as accessible and connected.
Which other cities would you like to see on this list?