Greater Tampa Bay tops the charts as one of the nation’s most thriving places for business.
Greater Tampa Bay consistently ranks as one of the best places to start, run or relocate a business. It is one of the fastest growing metropolitan areas, with multiple industry sectors experiencing significant growth in recent years.
There are numerous factors that make Hillsborough, Pinellas and Pasco counties so favorable for an array of businesses. Several highly-ranked colleges and universities supply a steady stream of young talent. Excellent leadership and local governments adopt pro-business policies and support smart development. Innovation districts, research centers, incubators and entrepreneurial networks keep industries on the cutting edge of their fields.
The relatively inexpensive living costs; attractive quality of life factors like world-class entertainment, beaches and cultural attractions; lack of personal income tax and variety of vibrant communities make GTB a very desirable place to live, and therefore easy for recruiting.
Connectivity is high no matter where a company or resident lives in the region. GTB has two top-ranked international airports, the closest deep-water port to the Panama Canal and multiple transportation routes including the Interstate 4 warehouse, distribution and logistics corridor.
In short, every element that a small business, Fortune 500 company and everything in between needs to thrive can be found here. GTB is not just a vacation destination, but also a vocation destination.
The St. Petersburg Area Economic Development Corporation defines five target industries as part of its Grow Smarter strategy:
- Data analytics
- Financial services
- Marine and life sciences
- Specialized manufacturing
- Creative arts and design
Top industry clusters in GTB:
- Aerospace, aviation and defence
- Financial and professional services
- Defense and security
- Distribution and logistics
- Information technology
- Life sciences and medical technology
- Manufacturing
Any business interested in exploring opportunities to start up or move to one of Greater Tampa Bay’s communities have plenty of help and support. Get connected with our partners:
Amplify Clearwater: amplifyclearwater.com
St. Petersburg Area Economic Development Corporation: stpeteedc.com
St. Petersburg Downtown Partnership: stpetepartnership.org
Tampa Downtown Partnership: tampasdowntown.com
Westshore Alliance: choosewestshore.com
North Tampa Chamber of Commerce: northtampabaychamber.com
South Tampa Chamber of Commerce: southtampachamber.org
Greater Brandon Chamber of Commerce: brandonchamber.com
Tampa Bay LGBT Chamber: tampabaylgbtchamber.org
Hispanic Chamber of Commerce of Tampa Bay: tampahispanicchamber.com
Florida & Metro Forecast “The Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater Metropolitan Statistical Area is expected to show high levels of growth in the economic indicators relative to the other MSAs studied. The Tampa MSA will contribute the second-highest level of Gross Metro Product in the state at $166,838.68. Average annual wage growth of 3.7% will give the MSA the fifth-highest annual wage in the state at $67,200. Personal income growth of 4.6%, ranking third in the state, will place the per capita income level at $49,700.”
— University of Central Florida Institute for Economic Forecasting 2021
Greater Tampa Bay Business Accolades
Emerging Tech Cities in the U.S.
No. 1 Tampa-St. Petersburg
— Forbes 2021
State Business Tax Climate Index
No. 4 Florida
— Tax Foundation 2021
Best States to Start a Business
No. 4 Florida
— WalletHub 2021
Best Tech Cities for IT Jobs
No. 19 Tampa
— CompTIA 2019
Best City for Opportunity Zone Investments
No. 4 — Tampa
— Cushman & Wakefield 2019
The Top U.S. Cities for Job Seekers in 2021
No. 6 — Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater
- Third-best metro area for job growth
- Fifth-lowest unemployment rate, at 4.2%
— MoneyGeek 2021
Best Places to Find a Job
No. 37 — Tampa
No. 55 — St. Petersburg
— WalletHub 2022
Inc.’s 5,000 Fastest-Growing Private Companies in America in 2021
No. 14; Solar Bear; Clearwater; energy
No. 95; PainTEQ; Tampa; health
No. 140; Peerfit; Tampa; health
No. 159; Zulay; Clearwater; retail
No. 201; Onicx; Tampa; real estate
No. 222; FASTer Way to Fat Loss; Largo; health
No. 255; Proforma Global Sourcing; Tampa; business products and services
In addition, there were 82 more GTB-based companies ranked 300 or below on the list of fastest-growing private companies in America.
Fortune 100 Fastest-Growing Companies
No. 59 Marinemax — Clearwater
No. 88 Superior Group of Companies — Seminole
Only three companies in Florida made the list out of 100 nationwide — and two of them are based in Pinellas County. The third, Miami-based company Lennar, ranked 96th.
Fastest-growing cities in the U.S.
Overall
No. 7 Town ’n Country
No. 36 Spring Hill
No. 65 Tampa
Large Cities with the Highest Growth
No. 9 Tampa
Mid-Sized Cities with the Highest Growth
No. 22 Spring Hill
No. 64 St. Petersburg
Small Cities with the Highest Growth
No. 3 Town ’n Country
No. 40 Largo
— WalletHub 2020
