StartupBlink

2083 Top startups in Chicago for July 2026

We rank QuillBot, Chowbus and Kin Insurance in Chicago along with 2080 other startups based on an algorithm that scores startups based on total investment, employee count, and quarterly website traffic. Chicago startup ecosystem ranks #17 globally and #7 in United States.

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Accelerators

Top Unicorn Startups in Chicago for 2026

Twelve startups have achieved unicorn status by exceeding USD 1 billion in valuation. Collectively, the top three unicorns in Chicago have raised more than USD 9.22B.
1st
Avant logo
AvantSB Score: 665

AvidXchange, Inc. empowers users to speed up approvals, cut processing costs, and go paperless with enhanced visibility and control over spending. Experience a new level of efficiency and transparency with AvidXchange's innovative solutions.

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Website
www.avant.com
Employee range
501 – 1,000
Web Traffic (Monthly)
Funding amount
$654M
National Rank(United States)
Regional Rank(North America)
Global Rank(Worldwide)
2nd
G2 logo
G2SB Score: 652

G2 is a platform to share business software reviews in real-time. It leverages more than 1.3 million user reviews to drive better purchasing decisions. G2 is used by business professionals, buyers, investors, and analysts to select the best software and services based on peer reviews and synthesized social data. The company was founded in 2012 and is based out of Chicago, Illinois.

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Website
www.g2.com
Employee range
501 – 1,000
Web Traffic (Monthly)
Funding amount
$257.6M
National Rank(United States)
Regional Rank(North America)
Global Rank(Worldwide)
3rd
ShipBob logo
ShipBobSB Score: 627

ShipBob is a tech company that helps online brands with order fulfillment. They make it easy for direct-to-consumer businesses to ship products to their customers quickly and efficiently.

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Website
www.shipbob.com
Employee range
1,001 – 5,000
Web Traffic (Monthly)
Funding amount
$330.5M
National Rank(United States)
Regional Rank(North America)
Global Rank(Worldwide)

Total amount:12

Best Startups in Chicago for 2026

1st
QuillBot logo
QuillBotSB Score: 645

QuillBot is an AI writing collaborator that rewrites full paragraphs and refines content. The company’s mission is to make writing painless. QuillBot is driven by sophisticated AI paraphrasing technology that uses natural language understanding (NLU) to automatically reconstruct the user’s content to improve the clarity of the intended message. More than a million people around the world use QuillBot to improve their writing and deliver a more compelling message.

View Full Page
Website
www.quillbot.com
Employee range
101 – 250
Web Traffic (Monthly)
Funding amount
$4.2M
National Rank(United States)
Regional Rank(North America)
Global Rank(Worldwide)
2nd
Chowbus logo
ChowbusSB Score: 624

Chowbus, a leading restaurant technology company based in the U.S, offers an innovative all-in-one cloud-based restaurant point of sale system designed to streamline operations and boost revenue for restaurants. Operating on a user-friendly SaaS model, we ensure continuous software upgrades and the inclusion of the latest features at a reasonable subscription fee. Our commitment is to support restaurants that are eager to leverage cutting-edge technology to enhance their performance and increase profits. Choose Chowbus for a reliable, advanced restaurant POS system that evolves with your business needs

View Full Page
Website
www.chowbus.com
Employee range
251 – 500
Web Traffic (Monthly)
Funding amount
$209.6M
National Rank(United States)
Regional Rank(North America)
Global Rank(Worldwide)
3rd
Kin Insurance logo
Kin InsuranceSB Score: 605

Kin Insurance revolutionizes home insurance with innovative insure-tech solutions. Their mission is to simplify the insurance process and provide homeowners with better coverage options.

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Website
www.kin.com
Employee range
501 – 1,000
Web Traffic (Monthly)
Funding amount
$328.2M
National Rank(United States)
Regional Rank(North America)
Global Rank(Worldwide)
4th
SpotHero logo
SpotHeroSB Score: 600

SpotHero is the leading & only independent consumer marketplace for parking in North America.

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Website
www.spothero.com
Employee range
101 – 250
Web Traffic (Monthly)
Funding amount
$117.6M
National Rank(United States)
Regional Rank(North America)
Global Rank(Worldwide)
5th
Hallow logo
HallowSB Score: 598

Hallow is a Catholic prayer and meditation app that hopes to help folks grow closer to God. It helps in finding peace, deepen the relationship with God, and sleeping soundly every night. It was founded in 2018 and is based in Chicago, Illinois.

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Website
www.hallow.com
Employee range
101 – 250
Web Traffic (Monthly)
Funding amount
$105M
National Rank(United States)
Regional Rank(North America)
Global Rank(Worldwide)
6th
dscout logo
dscoutSB Score: 582

Dscout is a remote experience research technology platform that provides organizations with the technology tools and services to select participants, field a multitude of moderated and unmoderated methodologies, accelerate analysis, and create impactful, media-rich research deliverables. Its customers use its innovative web-based analysis platform to derive tremendous customer insight—and tell customers’ stories using videos, photos, and quantitative data. Headquartered in Chicago, Dscout serves global users in social media, technology, consulting, advertising, financial services, consumer products, and healthcare industries.

View Full Page
Website
www.dscout.com
Employee range
101 – 250
Web Traffic (Monthly)
Funding amount
$81M
National Rank(United States)
Regional Rank(North America)
Global Rank(Worldwide)
7th
Raise logo
RaiseSB Score: 579

Raise is a digital prepaid and retail payment platform where consumers save money on every purchase at over 4,000 brands and earn rewards with Raise Pay. As a digital partner to more than 600+ national brands, Raise offers an innovative way for retailers to increase brand loyalty, engagement, and retention by adding value for their core consumers. Raise has saved its millions of members more than $200 million and received $147 million in funding from leading investors including Accel, PayPal, Bessemer Venture Partners, and New Enterprise Associates. Raise is available on both iOS and Android or at raise.com

View Full Page
Website
www.raise.com
Employee range
101 – 250
Web Traffic (Monthly)
Funding amount
$210.2M
National Rank(United States)
Regional Rank(North America)
Global Rank(Worldwide)
8th
Built In logo
Built InSB Score: 571

Startup X connects tech companies and startups through its network of online communities on Built In. Discover new opportunities, share insights, and connect with like-minded professionals in the industry. Join a vibrant community of innovators and stay ahead of the tech game with Startup X.

View Full Page
Website
builtin.com
Employee range
101 – 250
Web Traffic (Monthly)
Funding amount
$29.9M
National Rank(United States)
Regional Rank(North America)
Global Rank(Worldwide)
9th
WyzAnt logo
WyzAntSB Score: 563

WyzAnt is an online marketplace where students and parents can find qualified, local in-person and online tutors in more than 250 different subjects. Visitors can browse WyzAnt's network of 75,000+ available tutors at no cost and compare tutors' experience, qualifications, personality and teaching style, background checks and more to ensure they find the perfect fit. With WyzAnt's 100% Good Fit Guarantee, students can start lessons knowing they will only be charged if they are 100% satisfied with the tutor they have chosen. Tutors on WyzAnt are individually screened and required to pass proficiency exams in the subjects they wish to teach. Tutors offer personalized instruction to students and professionals of all ages in subjects ranging form academics and test preparation, to language and computer training, to music and art lessons, as well as sports and recreation lessons.

View Full Page
Website
www.wyzant.com
Employee range
101 – 250
Web Traffic (Monthly)
Funding amount
$21.5M
National Rank(United States)
Regional Rank(North America)
Global Rank(Worldwide)
10th
NOCD logo
NOCDSB Score: 562

NOCD is an online OCD therapy platform that helps people with OCD get better and then stay better. With NOCD, users can have face-to-face video therapy sessions with licensed therapists that specialize in OCD, as well as get 24/7 support between sessions from self-help tools and peer communities.

View Full Page
Website
www.treatmyocd.com
Employee range
101 – 250
Web Traffic (Monthly)
Funding amount
$84M
National Rank(United States)
Regional Rank(North America)
Global Rank(Worldwide)
11th
yello logo
yelloSB Score: 560

Yello's top-tier talent acquisition software helps Fortune 500 companies and high-growth businesses attract and engage top talent.

View Full Page
Website
yello.co
Employee range
101 – 250
Web Traffic (Monthly)
Funding amount
$89.4M
National Rank(United States)
Regional Rank(North America)
Global Rank(Worldwide)

Total amount:1240

Most Funded Startups in Chicago for 2026

The top three most funded startups in Chicago have raised total funding of more than USD 1.24B. Nature’s Fynd has 0.04% more funding than Pathos.
1st
Nature’s Fynd logo
Nature’s FyndSB Score: 469

Nature’s Fynd is a food company producing a protein from a microbe discovered in the geothermal springs. The company's mission is to create foods that both nourish people and the planet. Its revolutionary fermentation technology grows protein using a fraction of the land and water resources required by traditional agriculture. Nature’s Fynd was founded in 2012 and is headquartered in Chicago, Illinois.

View Full Page
Website
www.naturesfynd.com
Employee range
101 – 250
Web Traffic (Monthly)
Funding amount
$464.6M
National Rank(United States)
Regional Rank(North America)
Global Rank(Worldwide)
2nd
Pathos logo
PathosSB Score: 411

Pathos is at the forefront of a novel approach to AI-driven drug development. This approach harnesses multimodal data, cutting-edge Artificial Intelligence, and profound clinical understanding to expedite the introduction of new therapies for patients. With an emphasis on Artificial Intelligence, clinical development, and implementation, Pathos is dedicated to enhancing patient outcomes by speeding up the transition from molecule to medicine.

View Full Page
Website
pathos.com
Employee range
11 – 50
Web Traffic (Monthly)
Funding amount
$447M
National Rank(United States)
Regional Rank(North America)
Global Rank(Worldwide)
3rd
Kin Insurance logo
Kin InsuranceSB Score: 605

Kin Insurance revolutionizes home insurance with innovative insure-tech solutions. Their mission is to simplify the insurance process and provide homeowners with better coverage options.

View Full Page
Website
www.kin.com
Employee range
501 – 1,000
Web Traffic (Monthly)
Funding amount
$328.2M
National Rank(United States)
Regional Rank(North America)
Global Rank(Worldwide)

Total amount:1240

Top Hiring Startups in Chicago by Employee Number

The top three hiring startups in Chicago have an median employee size that is between [10001+]
1st
Motorola logo
MotorolaSB Score: 389

Motorola Solutions, Inc. (NYSE: MSI) is a data communications and telecommunications equipment provider that succeeded Motorola Inc. following the spin-off of the mobile phones division into Motorola Mobility Holdings, Inc.

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Website
www.motorolasolutions.com
Employee range
10,001+
Web Traffic (Monthly)
Funding amount
National Rank(United States)
Regional Rank(North America)
Global Rank(Worldwide)
2nd
R1 RCM logo
R1 RCMSB Score: 372

R1 RCM serves as a revenue cycle management partner for hospitals and healthcare systems regardless of the payment models, patient engagement strategies, or settings of care. The company uses a proven operating model based on the R1 Performance StackSM designed to fit seamlessly into any healthcare organization’s infrastructure and to enhance the patient experience, improve provider economics, and provide revenue predictability. R1 RCM was founded on 2003 and is based in Chicago, Illinois.

View Full Page
Website
www.r1rcm.com/delivery.html
Employee range
10,001+
Web Traffic (Monthly)
Funding amount
National Rank(United States)
Regional Rank(North America)
Global Rank(Worldwide)
3rd
Modest, Inc. logo
Modest, Inc.SB Score: 229

Modest links retailers with mobile shoppers, helping them find the products they desire.

View Full Page
Website
modest.com
Employee range
10,001+
Web Traffic (Monthly)
Funding amount
National Rank(United States)
Regional Rank(North America)
Global Rank(Worldwide)
4th
HERE Technologies Chicago logo

HERE, the Open Location Platform company, enables people, enterprises and cities to harness the power of location. By making sense of the world through the lens of location we empower our customers to achieve better outcomes – from helping a city manage its infrastructure or an enterprise optimize its assets to guiding drivers to their destination safely. To learn more about HERE, including our new generation of cloud-based location platform services.

View Full Page
Website
www.here.com
Employee range
5,001 – 10,000
Web Traffic (Monthly)
Funding amount
National Rank(United States)
Regional Rank(North America)
Global Rank(Worldwide)

Total amount:2083

Explore More Top Startups

Explore the Startup Ecosystem of Chicago

National Rank

(United States)

7th

1

Regional Rank

(North America)

7th

1

Global Rank

(WorldWide)

17th

2

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Top Cities for Startups in United States - Ranked by StartupBlink

StartupBlink ranks the startup ecosystems of more than 100 countries and 1,000 cities. Download our latest Global Startup Ecosystem Report.
2026 National Rank CityGlobal RankTotal Score & National ShareAnnual Growth

Access subscores for 1000 cities and 100 countries

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