Atlanta tops the list of best cities to start a business in 2024

Atlanta – with low operating costs, a huge talent pool and dozens of Black entrepreneurs – was recognized this yr as the best city to start a business in the country.

A-Town took first place in the rating based on a study conducted by Home Bay. The company analyzed the 50 most populated U.S. metropolitan areas, bearing in mind multiple indicators corresponding to latest business applications, enterprise capital investments and job growth.

The latest confirmation follows later Atlanta metro area caught the best place to start your individual business in 2023 according to the skilled social networking site LinkedIn.

Jamie Seale, creator ofData for 2024: Which are the best cities to start a business?” he said BLACK ENTERPRISES emailed that “Atlanta has really improved as a city for entrepreneurs over the last two years.” She revealed that in the latest 2022 survey, Atlanta moved up from No. 5 in the rankings, behind No. 1 Las Vegas.

Seale maintained that her company’s study differs from LinkedIn’s report since it relies on many more indicators covering a longer period of time, potentially providing a more comprehensive and complete picture of the city’s business environment.

Home Bay’s top five startup cities mentioned were Atlanta, Georgia; Miami, Orlando, Tampa, all in Florida; and Austin, Texas. The five worst places were Providence, Rhode Island; Hartford, Conn.; Buffalo, New York; Milwaukee, Wisconsin; and Louisville, Kentucky.

As for Atlanta, Seale identified that the city was considered the best for several reasons, including:

• “Over the past five years, Atlanta has seen the second-highest number of new business applications at 28.5 per 1,000 residents, almost twice the rate of the average U.S. city (14.5). Such a large number of business applications signals that entrepreneurs are optimistic about the city’s business/economic prospects.”
• “Over the past year, jobs in Atlanta increased 2.5% compared to 1.7% nationwide, indicating strong business conditions.”
• “Atlanta is one of the best places to connect and learn, with 118 CEOs per 100,000 people, twice the national average.”
• “Atlanta offers a large talent pool, with 29.6% of residents holding a bachelor’s degree. Moreover, labor costs in Atlanta are low, with annual employee salaries of $64,107 compared to the national average of $70,443. Thanks to the low costs of running a business, entrepreneurs have more money to invest back into the company.”

When it comes to Black entrepreneurship, Seale pointed to some strong characteristics of the “Big Peach.”

Seale emphasized that Atlanta has more Black-owned businesses per capita than some other city. Men say Atlanta is a good spot for Black entrepreneurs to network, learn and collaborate with other business owners in the community.

For starters, Seale added that Atlanta has a strong HBCU culture, with six HBCUs – including Clark, Spelman and Morehouse – in the metro area. “This gives us a large talent pool of Black workers, which can help companies innovate and give them a competitive advantage in the long term.”

Additionally, Seale said there are several incubators, accelerators and funding opportunities in Atlanta geared toward specifically helping Black founders. He says they include Russell Innovation Center for Entrepreneurs AND Hawks’ ventures.

At the same time, business owners must be aware that starting a enterprise may include some challenges.

Seale said one of the obstacles to starting a business in Atlanta is the amount of paperwork required and in-person trips to government agencies. Unfortunately, she explained, navigating this complicated bureaucracy is inevitable due to city regulations.

“It is very important for entrepreneurs to grow to be acquainted with homeowners and know what specific licenses they may need to operate their business. Stay organized and keep a list of the forms, due dates and charges related to starting and running your business.