Skip to main content

Berlin remains in top 2 most attractive startup hubs in Europe

5. July 2023 - Asking European founders to pick up to 3 cities, where they would start their company if they could choose freely from all cities in Europe, these are the most popular hubs. Since 2016 the Startup Heatmap Europe Survey is tracking the attractiveness of cities for tech founders. London and Berlin have ever since led the ranking, with both 34% of founders choosing them as a potential next destination. In the last two years, Berlin could seize the first place and was recognized as Europe's favorite and most popular location for new businesses. This year, London prevails with a marginal scoring difference (34.93%) and Berlin ranks second in the overall competition (34.04%). Nevertheless, the German Capital remains in the top 2 most attractive startup hubs in Europe and is with a sizeable margin ahead of Barcelona and Amsterdam (both 17%). Paris and Lisbon follow with 12% and Munich (10%) is ahead of Tallinn (9.4%).

Dr. Stefan Franzke, CEO of Berlin Partner: "When Berlin passed London two years ago, I said that the sporting competition for the first place in the professional league was part of it. And this year, first place again goes very narrowly to London. Even though we had to relinquish the overall lead, we are pleased that we are still so far ahead in terms of popularity among founders. We offer one of the best startup ecosystems in Europe, along with a dense network of support services, and that is very much appreciated. The internationality of the city is also attractive to incoming talents. And next year, we want to be ahead again."

Besides the attractiveness, the report also indicates how the listed European cities perform in growing, accelerating, and scaling startups. According to various indicators such as the proportion of international participants in accelerators, the number of Kickstarter campaigns, seed investments, or investment purchasing power etc., Berlin excels in supporting startups at the early stage and scaling up young companies with its top 3 positions in these sub-rankings.  

Generally speaking, 71.3% of European founders are optimistic about future developments, around a 4% decline compared to 2021 due to the Russian invasion in Ukraine. If European founders could choose freely, 66% would start again in Europe, as the Startup Heatmap Report 2023 shows. This is an increase from the previous edition as the number stood at 58%. Preferences for Europe are highest in Western Europe, where 79% of founders opt for Europe (Germany, France, Switzerland, Austria).

TeilenShare

Weitere
Informationen
Further
Information

FIBE 2025

09.04.2025
From 9 to 10 April 2025, the FIBE Festival will once again demonstrate Berlin’s strength as a leading FinTech location

Read more

How circular are Berlin companies?

08.04.2025
In an interview: Robin Bruck, Manager Climate Protection and Circular Economy at Berlin Partner

Read more

Women in Aerospace

03.04.2025
Empowering all Women, in Space and on Earth: This is the motto of the women’s network of the aerospace industry.

Read more

Berlin is knorke: Next generation battery cells

31.03.2025
For a sustainable future: new battery technologies from Berlin

Read more

Europe’s largest makerspace

21.03.2025
MotionLab.Berlin is the new operator of Europe’s largest makerspace, which is being built on the ringberlin model campus in Mariendorf.

Read more

Startup Pitch 2025

20.03.2025
20 selected startups presented their business ideas to high-calibre investors in the Rotes Rathaus.

Read more