Baltimore, A Startup Alternative to NY & San Francisco

By Adrian Maties, Associate Editor

Would you like to have your own startup? I know I would. There’s nothing better than being the boss of a successful company. But which is the best place to launch a startup? If you’re thinking only about San Francisco or New York, you’re limiting yourself.

At least that’s what Entrepreneur believes. According to an article published earlier this month on the magazine’s website, places like Salt Lake City, Nashville, Kansas City or even Baltimore can provide you with the infrastructure and skilled work forces that can match more established locations, but at a fraction of the cost of living and with less stress.

Baltimore is number two on the list, following Salt Lake, but the numbers published in the article report that it beats Utah’s capital in all but one category: unemployment. Salt Lake’s unemployment rate is 3.5 percent, while Baltimore’s is 5.7 percent. In spite of this, Charm City has a larger population (2.7 million), a larger median household income ($68,455), a lower median home price ($223,100) as well as a larger percentage of college graduates (36 percent).

According to Entrepreneur, Baltimore is best for education. The city, which has the third-highest spending per pupil rate on an annual basis out of all the large U.S. school systems by enrollment, is home to Johns Hopkins University, named the best graduate school for studying education by the U.S. News & World Report. Baltimore regularly plays host to events to connect entrepreneurs with educators, and has now turned into a hub of education-focused companies, luring ed-tech startups such as Citelighter. Additionally, Baltimore teachers are described as entrepreneur-friendly, willing to test out new tech and ideas in classrooms.

What do you think? Will you pick Baltimore as the home of your new startup? Let us know in the comments below!