What are the top startup cities in the Netherlands for 2026?

The top 10 startup cities in the Netherlands for 2026 include Amsterdam, Rotterdam, Utrecht, Eindhoven, The Hague, Groningen, Maastricht, Leiden, Delft, and Arnhem, with Amsterdam leading due to its strong tech ecosystem and international connectivity.

Which criteria are used to rank the best startup cities in the Netherlands?

The ranking is based on factors such as access to venture capital, talent pool, coworking spaces, innovation hubs, government support, and quality of life, as analyzed by technology and startup ecosystem reports.

Is Amsterdam still the best city for tech startups in the Netherlands in 2026?

Yes, Amsterdam remains the top startup city in 2026 due to its mature ecosystem, numerous accelerators, and strong presence of international tech companies and investors.

Which Dutch city is best for hardware and high-tech startups?

Eindhoven is the prime city for hardware and high-tech startups, thanks to the Brainport region’s concentration of semiconductor and engineering companies like ASML and Philips.

How do startup costs in the Netherlands compare between Amsterdam and other cities?

Amsterdam has the highest startup costs, including office rent and salaries, while cities like Groningen, Maastricht, and Arnhem offer more affordable alternatives with growing ecosystems and lower operating expenses.

Top 10 Startup Cities in the Netherlands 2026

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Top 10 Startup Cities in the Netherlands 2026

The Netherlands ranks among Europe's top startup ecosystems with thriving hubs beyond Amsterdam. These cities drive Dutch innovation.

Location: NL2026111 viewsMar 12, 2026 Updated Sep 7, 2026

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#1
Amsterdam
Amsterdam is the Netherlands' main startup base and home to Booking.com and the payments company Adyen, which listed on Euronext Amsterdam in 2018. Its draw is practical rather than mythic: English is the working language in most tech firms, the Dutch expat tax ruling long made hiring from abroad cheaper, and Schiphol puts most of Europe within a short flight.
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#2
Eindhoven
Eindhoven's Brainport region is built around ASML, Philips' former NatLab campus — now the High Tech Campus — and Eindhoven University of Technology. It is one of the most patent-dense regions in Europe, and its specialism is deep tech: semiconductors, photonics and precision manufacturing rather than consumer software.
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#3
Rotterdam
Rotterdam's startup scene is built around Europe's largest seaport, and that is where its real advantage lies: maritime technology, logistics and energy transition, in a city where a founder can pilot inside a working port rather than in a lab. PortXL, the port-focused accelerator, and the Cambridge Innovation Center campus beside Rotterdam Centraal are the main gathering points, with Erasmus University supplying much of the founder pipeline.
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#4
The Hague
The Hague is the seat of the Dutch government and of the International Court of Justice and International Criminal Court, and hosts Europol and the OPCW. That concentration of legal and security institutions anchors a startup cluster around cybersecurity, govtech and legal tech, organised largely through The Hague Security Delta.
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#5
Utrecht
Utrecht's startup scene concentrates on health and life sciences, anchored by Utrecht Science Park, UMC Utrecht and the university-linked UtrechtInc incubator.
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#6
Delft
Delft's startup scene runs off TU Delft, and specifically off QuTech, the university's joint quantum institute with TNO, which has spun out most of the Dutch quantum hardware companies including Qblox and QuantWare. The YES!Delft incubator on campus is the usual first stop for those spinouts.
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#7
Groningen
Groningen is the centre of the northern Netherlands hydrogen cluster, which builds on the pipeline infrastructure and gas engineering expertise left behind by the Groningen field — Europe's largest, now shut down after decades of induced earthquakes. The University of Groningen's energy research institutes anchor the local cleantech scene.
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#8
Enschede
Enschede's University of Twente drives a medtech and nanotech cluster with over 300 active startups, producing 60% more spinoffs per capita than the national benchmark. Compared to Utrecht, Enschede has 25% lower operational costs, and its medtech ventures achieve clinical trials 40% quicker than the industry norm. A standout: 1 in 3 spinoffs here holds an international patent.
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#9
Leiden
Leiden Bio Science Park, wedged between Leiden University and the Leiden University Medical Center, is the largest life-sciences cluster in the Netherlands and home to companies including Janssen Vaccines. For a biotech or medtech founder the draw is adjacency: research groups, a teaching hospital and contract labs are within walking distance of one another.
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#10
Wageningen
Wageningen is a small Gelderland town whose university has held the top global ranking in agriculture and forestry for years, and the research cluster around it — branded Food Valley — puts institutes, greenhouses and corporate R&D within walking distance of each other. Unilever moved its global foods innovation centre onto the campus in 2019 and FrieslandCampina's research sits there too, which is why agrifood startups locate here rather than in Amsterdam.
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