NestPick provides Airbnb-like functionality for international students looking for medium- and long-term accommodations. Their top six picks are based on their experience in various cities plus research into the political, cultural, and economic factors affecting the local startup scenes. Let’s take a look at the top 6 European cities for startups:
1. Berlin, Germany
Population: 3.5 million On AngelList: 848 Berlin startups, 5,392 Berlin angel investors Berlin Startup Success stories: SoundCloud, Wooga, Zalando A McKinsey report quoted by NestPick estimates that Berlin startups will create over 100,000 jobs by 2020.
2. Budapest, Hungary
Population: 1.73 million On AngelList: 168 Budapest startups, 4,646 Budapest angel investors Success stories: Prezi, Ustream, LogMeIn “The majority of young Hungarians have a high educational level, the Internet is exceptionally fast all throughout the city, and there are initiatives that offer venture capital from the European Investment Fund to finance innovative startups,” says NestPick.
3. London, UK
Population: 8.31 million On AngelList: 4,112 London startups, 7,143 London angel investors London Startup Success stories: Mind Candy, Hailo, Shazam The UK government has invested £50 million to help the London startup scene thrive (and compete with its rival, Berlin).
4. Barcelona, Spain
Population: 1.62 million On AngelList: 404 Barcelona startups, 4,985 Barcelona angel investors Barcelona Startup Success stories: Catchoon, Social & Beyond, Omnidrone (via Wired) “The Spanish government improved entrepreneurial conditions in terms of tax breaks and funding programs, and will stick to those adjustments in the following years [after the economic crisis],” says NestPick.
5. Amsterdam, Netherlands
Population: 780,000 On AngelList: 500 Amsterdam startups, 4,935 Amsterdam angel investors Amsterdam Startup Success stories: Human, The Clockroom, Ace & Tate (via Wired) According to NestPick, Amsterdam is ranked as the most creative global city and has an entrepreneurship rate that’s 6% higher than the European average.
6. Tallinn, Estonia
Population: 400,000 On AngelList: 151 Tallinn startups, 4,674 Tallinn angel investors Estonia Startup Success stories: GrabCad, Erply, Pipedrive (via Wired) The Wall Street Journal says that “Estonia is the 132nd smallest country in the world by land mass yet it produces more startups per head of population than any other country in Europe.” Images courtesy of Wikimedia Commons
