The Startup Ecosystem of Istanbul

Istanbul boasts 360 startups in our sample database which represents about 73% of Turkey’s sampled startups. Istanbul is the highest-ranked startup ecosystem in Turkey.

CITY RANKING

In 2022, the startup scene of Istanbul shows much promise after advancing in the Global Ecosystem Index by 3 spots.

National Ranking

1st
0
In Turkey

Regional Ranking

3rd
+
1
In Eastern Europe

Global Ranking

66th
+
3
Worldwide

In Partnership with

Istanbul Ecosystem Partner logo
Free Dashboard
Pro Dashboard

ECOSYSTEM

Browse the startup ecosystem database of Istanbul

Download the Global Startup Ecosystem Index 

Understand our ranking methodology and get the latest insights on the startup ecosystems of 100 countries and 1000 cities around the world!

Download

Ecosystem

The Startup Ecosystem in Istanbul

Our startup ecosystem map for Istanbul includes a sample of 360 tech companies. We have identified as unicorns 3 startups that have passed the USD 1 billion valuations. Contributing to the vitality of this startup ecosystem are the 1 pantheon member entity. Get the Pro account for unrestricted insights on this ecosystem.

Global Rank

Istanbul is ranked within the top 100 startup ecosystems globally.

Top Industries

Istanbul’s startups excel particularly in Social & Leisure where it ranks 26 and in Ecommerce & Retail, and Education. Find out more

Top Cities for Startups in Turkey - Ranked by StartupBlink
StartupBlink ranks the startup ecosystems of 100 countries and 1,000 cities. Download our latest Global Startup Ecosystem Report.
Rows:
2022 National Rank & Change ▲
2022 National Rank & Change City
search leaderboards icon
Global Rank & ChangeTotal ScoreQuantity ScoreQuality ScoreBusiness Score
1st
0
66th
+
3
9.908
2.67
4.89
2.35
2nd
0
280th
-
70
2.394
0.48
0.24
1.68
3rd
0
409th
-
25
1.153
0.26
0.09
0.81
4th
0
817th
-
168
0.257
0.06
0.02
0.18
Page out of 1

Startups

Notable Startups in Istanbul
Vivense Home & Living startup icon
Vivense Home & Living
VavaCars startup icon
VavaCars
Modanisa startup icon
Modanisa

Startups

Successful Social & Leisure startups in Istanbul
Joygame startup icon
Joygame
otelz.com startup icon
otelz.com
iyisahne startup icon
iyisahne

Startups

Startups Ranking by Industry

Social & Leisure icon
Social & Leisure
#26 worldwide

On our map, you can explore a total of 115 startups for Social & Leisure.

Ecommerce & Retail icon
Ecommerce & Retail
#31 worldwide

In Eastern Europe, Istanbul's Ecommerce & Retail is in top 31. Istanbul has a concentration of about 0% of the country's total Ecommerce & Retail startups that are represented on our map.

Education icon
Education
#54 worldwide

Education is ranked 54th in the world. Our database contains 49 startups for this industry.

Explore More

ECOSYSTEM

Why should you join Istanbul's Startup Ecosystem?

Overview

Within Istanbul there is an increased attraction for entrepreneurs to set up their startups in industries such as Social & Leisure, Ecommerce & Retail, Education. These three industries represent about 61% of the startups represented on the Startup Ecosystem Map of Istanbul.

1st

National Rank

3rd

Regional Rank

Overview

Istanbul is Turkey's 1st best startup ecosystem and is ranked 3rd in Eastern Europe. With a population of undefined, Istanbul is ranked th in the world. The city boasts some notable startup success stories including Vivense Home & Living and its startup ecosystem infrastructure is strengthened by organizations such as Getir and Kolektif House.

ECOSYSTEM
Startup Infrastructure in Istanbul
With a large variety of initiatives, Istanbul's startup ecosystem stands out from other cities in Eastern Europe. Istanbul offers a number of funding opportunities for entrepreneurs and startups. Below is a list of Istanbul's most prominent support initiatives:

Accelerators

KWORKS Koc University Entrepreneurship Research Center startup icon

KWORKS Koc University Entrepreneurship Research Center

Innogate startup icon

Innogate

Startupbootcamp Istanbul startup icon

Startupbootcamp Istanbul

Coworking Spaces

Kolektif House startup icon

Kolektif House

Impact Hub Istanbul startup icon

Impact Hub Istanbul

Organizations

IdeaCube startup icon

IdeaCube

animadverto LLC startup icon

animadverto LLC

Stage-co startup icon

Stage-co

Featured Ecosystem Portals

Go to portal
Go to portal

Work with us

If you are a startup ecosystem developer in Istanbul, you can grow your startup economy by becoming a partner.

Find out more

BLOG

Recent Posts

Tue Mar 14 2023

EP 33: Do Small Countries Have an Edge in Building a startup Ecosystem?

Do small countries have an edge in building a startup ecosystem? In this episode, the StartupBlink team and Eli David discuss the unique advantages of small countries for building a thriving ecosystem. In StartupBlink’s Global Startup Ecosystem Index 2022, 9 out of the top 20 highest-ranked countries had a population of less than 10 million, […]

Wed Mar 08 2023

How can collaborating with StartupBlink as an ecosystem partner help your ecosystem and organization?

Collaborating with StartupBlink as a data partner can bring a range of benefits to your organization and ecosystem. As the most comprehensive startup ecosystem map and research center, we publish the Global Startup Ecosystem Index Report (GSEI) annually, ranking the top 1,000 cities and 100 countries worldwide.  StartupBlink’s GSEI is based on an elaborate algorithm […]

Tue Feb 28 2023

The Top 30 Countries by Absolute Power in 2022

What is Absolute Power? Generally, StartupBlink’s GSEI scoring algorithm calibrates the countries’ total score to their population size to check the startup outputs of countries per capita.   The “Absolute Power” algorithm ignores the size of the population and looks at the absolute amount of startup output per country to compare their dominance regardless of population […]