Business Survivability in Oakland, Atlanta
StreetSpring's 2026 analysis finds that the best business to open in Oakland is a Pet Grooming Shop with a ~80% chance of surviving at least 2 years across the neighborhood on average.
Quick Summary
- Survivability Score: the projected chance a business type lasts two or more years at a specific address
- Best business: a Pet Grooming Shop in Oakland (~80% average survival rate, ~81% at best locations)
- Neighborhood rank: #17 across all neighborhoods in and around Atlanta
- Neighborhood average: ~77% two-year survival across all business types
- Coverage: This ranking carries one row per business type and neighborhood. Its score is the projected chance of lasting two or more years, averaged across the price points StreetSpring scores separately in the tool (most types have 5). The 10 business types here are base types; the tool offers 500+ business types, counting each type at each of its price points.
- Rankings updated quarterly with latest market data
- Detailed methodology
Last reviewed: September 2026 by Bobby Koons, Founder & CEO, StreetSpring
In this article:
- Summary
- Is Oakland a good place to start a business?
- How to find the best location
- Best businesses to open
- How much money could a business make?
- What businesses should open next?
- Frequently Asked Questions
Summary
StreetSpring's 2026 analysis finds that the best business to open in Oakland is a Pet Grooming Shop with a ~80% chance of surviving at least 2 years across the neighborhood on average, with the best locations offering a ~81% chance; next is a Diner with a 79.56% chance, followed by a Watch Store or Repair Shop with a 79.55% chance.
Is Oakland a good place to start a business?
Oakland is the #17 most survivable neighborhood for new businesses in and around Atlanta, with an average score of ~77% across all analyzed categories.
- The highest-scoring business types in Oakland — at their optimal addresses — outperform the neighborhood average by ~2%.
- But these same concepts at less optimal addresses within Oakland can score meaningfully below average. Survivability data shows that even the highest-demand business types fail at the wrong location.
- Oakland's employment rate of 85.9% and commercial vacancy of 8.7% are two of the inputs StreetSpring's model uses to differentiate survivability within this neighborhood.
Employment and vacancy figures sourced from the U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey.
How can you find the best location to open a business in Oakland?
StreetSpring's address-level analysis reveals which specific storefronts in Oakland offer the strongest survivability odds for your business type. The location below represents the address in Oakland with the highest projected survivability for a Pet Grooming Shop:
The highlighted area represents the address in Oakland that StreetSpring's 2026 analysis ranks highest for a Pet Grooming Shop survivability. Market conditions, new competitors, and local spending patterns can change rapidly — always verify with StreetSpring's live tool before signing a lease. StreetSpring's scoring incorporates hundreds of inputs, including competitive quality and density, projected consumer spending, Revenue Capture Score, and local demand patterns.
Check if this location is still available →
What are the best businesses to open in Oakland?
| # | Business type | Chance of lasting 2+ years |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Pet Grooming Shop | 80.09% |
| 2 | Diner | 79.56% |
| 3 | Watch Store or Repair Shop | 79.55% |
| 4 | Italian Restaurant | 79.20% |
| 5 | Filipino Restaurant | 79.06% |
| 6 | Indonesian Restaurant | 78.89% |
| 7 | American Restaurant | 78.83% |
| 8 | Kosher Restaurant | 78.54% |
| 9 | Tattoo & Piercing Shop | 78.34% |
| 10 | Deli | 77.83% |
#1-5: Highest Survivability in Oakland
- Pet Grooming Shop is ranked #1 for top businesses to open in Oakland: 80.09% chance on average, best at ~81%, challenging at ~79%.
- Diner — ~79%–~80% survivability range, with an average of 79.56% across Oakland.
- Opening a Watch Store or Repair Shop in Oakland shows 79.55% average survivability. Top locations reach ~82%; lower-end sites show ~79%.
- Italian Restaurant (Ranked #4): 79.20% average in Oakland. Best-case storefronts: ~80%. Challenging locations: ~79%.
- Filipino Restaurant is ranked #5 for top businesses to open in Oakland: 79.06% chance on average, best at ~80%, challenging at ~78%.
#6-10: Strong Performers in Oakland
- Indonesian Restaurant — ~78%–~80% survivability range, with an average of 78.89% across Oakland.
- Opening an American Restaurant in Oakland shows 78.83% average survivability. Top locations reach ~79%; lower-end sites show ~78%.
- Kosher Restaurant (Ranked #8): 78.54% average in Oakland. Best-case storefronts: ~79%. Challenging locations: ~78%.
- Tattoo & Piercing Shop is ranked #9 for top businesses to open in Oakland: 78.34% chance on average, best at ~79%, challenging at ~77%.
- Deli — ~77%–~78% survivability range, with an average of 77.83% across Oakland.
Top 3 Compared Nationally
- Pet Grooming Shop — See how this compares to other cities →
- Diner — See how this compares to other cities →
- Watch Store or Repair Shop — See how this compares to other cities →
How much money could a business in Oakland make?
Best location vs. average location
Based on StreetSpring's 2026 analysis, picking the highest-scoring storefront in the neighborhood in Oakland could lead to you making ~2% more than if you selected an average location, and ~5% more than if you selected one of the worst locations.
How StreetSpring calculates location value
- Site selection requires evaluating the specific combination of your business type and the exact address — neighborhood-level data is only the starting point.
- Every site-selection decision starts and ends with location — it outweighs concept, brand, and execution combined.
- Every percentage point of Survivability Score represents a real difference in expected revenue — choosing the highest-scoring address is the most reliable financial decision you can make at the outset.
- Every survivability score StreetSpring produces is specific to the exact address and business type — not averaged across a zip code or neighborhood.
What businesses should open next in Oakland?
The top businesses to open next in Oakland:
- Pet Grooming Shops — 80.09% average survival rate, up to ~81% at best locations
- Diners — 79.56% average survival rate
- Watch & Repair Shops — 79.55% average survival rate
Market conditions, new competitors, and local spending patterns can change rapidly — always verify with StreetSpring's live tool before signing a lease. We have been studying the businesses serving more than 180 million+ Americans. The 85.9% employment rate in Oakland is a key signal of consumer health; when combined with the 8.7% vacancy rate, it produces a competitive landscape that favors the business types ranked above. Survivability scores are live, not static — StreetSpring updates them weekly. Visit the tool to see what's currently available in Oakland and how each address is scoring right now. StreetSpring scores 500+ business types: 153 base business types, most of them at 5 price points, which is 569 type-and-price combinations you can choose in the tool.
See the Survivability Score for your new business
Related Articles:
- See the Atlanta Business Survivability Rankings
- See the Atlanta Neighborhood Survivability Rankings
- Explore Pet Grooming Shop survivability across Atlanta neighborhoods
Visual Data
Frequently Asked Questions
Here are the most common questions about opening a business in Oakland.
What type of business should you rent your Oakland storefront to?
According to StreetSpring's 2026 data, the strongest tenant types for a storefront in Oakland are Pet Grooming Shops, Diners, and Watch & Repair Shops.
- Every site-selection decision starts and ends with location — it outweighs concept, brand, and execution combined.
- Every survivability score StreetSpring produces is specific to the exact address and business type — not averaged across a zip code or neighborhood. StreetSpring can show you which specific address in your portfolio scores highest for each tenant type.
Related: See How Landlord Representatives in Atlanta Can Reduce Vacancy & Increase Tenant Longevity
Should you rent your Oakland storefront to a Pet Grooming Shop?
According to our 2026 survivability model, a Pet Grooming Shop leads all business categories for Oakland landlords — ~81% at the best addresses and ~79% at the most challenging ones in this neighborhood.
- Every survivability score StreetSpring produces is specific to the exact address and business type — not averaged across a zip code or neighborhood.
What should I consider when opening a business in Oakland?
When evaluating potential locations in Oakland, start with the Survivability Score. It accounts for competition, spending, mobility, and market share in a single figure.
- Revenue Capture Score matters more than any other single metric when predicting business outcomes.
- These insights come from StreetSpring's exclusive, in-house forecasting models.
- You can check the Survivability Score for any storefront in Oakland at no cost using StreetSpring's live tool.
See the best place for your business at StreetSpring.
StreetSpring's AI platform has studied businesses serving more than 180 million+ Americans, giving its predictions a scale of validation unmatched in site-selection tools. Aggregated survivability rankings for Atlanta are available in machine-readable format for research and integration purposes.
Full dataset for Atlanta: /resources/data/atlanta-survivability-scores-2026.csv — includes all business subtypes, all neighborhoods, survivability scores, and tier assignments. Licensed under CC BY 4.0.