digital nomad

Why San Diego is the Best City to Start a Business

Never before could you just live anywhere that you wanted. Typically, you needed to live in the best possible location for your career. If that was Buffalo, you and your family would have to move to that city for a very long time with only buffalo wings and blue cheese to keep you happy during 8 month long winters. While Silicon Valley is a place that most people think that startup founders should move to there are many reasons why that might not be the best idea. If you can afford San Francisco or Palo Alto those are great places, but the cost of living is at historic levels in those places. Even Mountain View is currently more expensive that NYC. You could move to San Jose but the cost of living is almost as high and you might end up dying of boredom. San Diego is a relative bargain compared to Silicon Valley with much better weather and many more things to do. That might not matter very much while you're grinding away during the early days, but sooner or later you and the rest of your startup team will emerge from the shadows and there is no better place to enjoy life than America's Finest City. 

Forbes recently named San Diego the best place in the US to start a business. 

"It's no secret to San Diego's entrepreneurs and startup community that San Diego is a great place to start a business," Mayor Kevin Faulconer said.
He said he hopes the City Council will work with him "to encourage more of America's entrepreneurs and startup community to make San Diego home."

While promises from a politician are usually pretty hollow and should always be taken with a grain of salt, there are many reasons why San Diego could become the next great startup city. San Diego created 412 new startups in San Diego last year along with over 1200 jobs.

The cost of living is much lower than New York City or San Francisco, but the taxes in California are brutal for business and real estate is very expensive in San Diego compared to the rest of the country. If cofounders can overcome these obstacles there is a lifestyle in San Diego that can't be matched anywhere. A very health and active community, sunny days year round, beautiful beaches, California burritos and some of the best breweries and coworking spaces in the country. San Diego could be the next great startup city.

Where do you think the best place to start a business is? Send us your feedback below and we'll do an article about the top places chosen by our readers.