My cofounder and I can live anywhere. Where in the US should we start our company?

ChatGPT

If you and your cofounder can live anywhere, I would not automatically pick the “best startup city.” The right choice depends on what kind of company you’re building, how much capital you need, and whether your bottleneck is talent, customers, investors, or runway.

For a typical venture-backed startup, my shortlist would be:

5

My top picks

1. Austin, TX — best overall founder compromise

Pick this if: you’re building software, AI, SaaS, fintech, developer tools, or a consumer startup.

Why:

Strong founder culture and lots of tech talent

Easier to recruit than smaller cities

Lower costs than the Bay Area

Good quality of life for two founders trying to survive 2–3 years

No Texas state income tax

Austin remains one of the strongest growth/startup hubs in the U.S., though housing costs and competition have risen compared with its earlier “cheap alternative” reputation.

Southern Living

+1

Downside: It is no longer a hidden gem. Good engineers are expensive, and the ecosystem is smaller than SF/NY.

My rating: 9/10

2. San Francisco Bay Area — highest upside

Pick this if: you are building something where access to elite investors, researchers, or early adopters matters.

Why:

Still the deepest startup ecosystem in the world

Fastest access to venture capital

Dense concentration of ambitious technical founders

Best place for AI, infrastructure, biotech, deep tech

The Bay Area continues to dominate venture funding and startup ecosystem rankings.

GeekWire

+1

Downside:…

Trimmed here; the full answer is in the viewer.

Named: Austin, San Francisco Bay Area, Raleigh-Durham, New York City, Miami, Boston, Pittsburgh, Columbus, Salt Lake City, Atlanta, Denver

Sources cited: southernliving.com, geekwire.com, footholdamerica.com, gmac.com, businessinsider.com

Claude

Location really depends on what you're building and what matters most to you two.

Thought for 4s

Weighing factors behind choosing a startup location.

Thought for 4s

Location really depends on what you're building and what matters most to you two. A biotech startup wants Boston/Cambridge; a fintech company might want NYC or Miami; a hardware startup might want the Bay Area for supply chain and talent. Let me get a sense of your situation.

Named: Boston, New York City, Miami, San Francisco Bay Area

Sources cited: none, answered from memory

Gemini

Choosing where to launch your startup depends primarily on whether your priority is immediate investor access, state tax efficiency, or specialized talent pools.

Hub Dominant Sectors State Income Tax Cost & Runway Advantage Key Ecosystem Metric

San Francisco Bay Area Frontier AI, AI Infra, Deep Tech Up to 13.3% Lowest (Highest rent & burn rate) #1 global ecosystem; ~$126B VC raised in 2025

New York City Fintech, Enterprise Software, Media, AI Up to 10.9% Low #2 global ecosystem; ~$19.1B VC raised in 2025

Austin B2B SaaS, Hardware, Robotics, Defense Tech 0% Highest ~65% lower cost of living than SF; +25.6% growth

Miami Fintech, Crypto, LatAm Cross-Border, Consumer 0% Moderate–High +41.8% annual ecosystem growth

Boston Area Biotech, Life Sciences, Robotics, Deep Tech Up to 9% Moderate #5 global ecosystem; powered by Harvard/MIT pipeline

San Francisco Bay Area: Maximum Capital & AI Density

San Francisco remains the top-ranked global startup hub, driven heavily by capturing well over half of all global AI venture funding Startup Urban.

Provides the highest concentration of tier-one VC firms, technical co-founders, and senior AI research talent Startup Urban.

Main drawback: High state taxes (13.3%) and median 1-bedroom rents exceeding $3,000 significantly shorten initial runway.

Austin: Long Runway & High Ecosystem Growth

Austin features 0% state income tax and offers a cost of living ~65% lower than San Francisco.

It recorded 25.6% ecosystem growth, making it the…

Trimmed here; the full answer is in the viewer.

Named: San Francisco Bay Area, New York City, Austin, Miami, Boston

Sources cited: startupurban.com, startupblink.com, openvc.app

Perplexity

Start where your customers, talent, and fundraising path are most accessible—not where taxes look best on paper. With no details on your company yet, the strongest default is New York City for fintech, enterprise software, media, and sales-led businesses; the San Francisco Bay Area for venture-backed AI/deep-tech/software; or Austin for a lower-cost generalist startup base. Your choice should also be a place where both founders will genuinely stay productive and happy for several years.

A practical default

If you’re building… Best starting location Why it fits Main trade-off

AI, developer tools, infrastructure, frontier software, VC-scale SaaS San Francisco Bay Area Exceptional density of founders, experienced startup hires, design partners, investors, and frequent industry events High housing and operating costs; intense competition for talent

Fintech, financial infrastructure, enterprise sales, adtech, media New York City Proximity to banks, funds, large customers, enterprise buyers, and strong technical/business talent Expensive and demanding pace

Biotech, robotics, health tech, scientific commercialization Boston/Cambridge Concentration of universities, research institutions, technical talent, hospitals, and specialized capital Costly; best if your company has a genuine research or regulated-industry edge

Defense, cybersecurity, govtech, public-sector software Washington, DC / Northern Virginia Dense federal customer base, contractors, policy expertise, and security…

Trimmed here; the full answer is in the viewer.

Named: New York City, San Francisco Bay Area, Austin, Boston, Washington, D.C., Chicago, Nashville, Atlanta, Los Angeles

Sources cited: technical.ly, uscis.gov