Neighborhood Survivability Rankings: Denver
StreetSpring's 2026 analysis ranks the best and worst neighborhoods in Denver for new businesses by survivability score. See which areas give you the best chance of lasting more than two years.
Last reviewed: March 2026 by Bobby Koons, Founder & CEO, StreetSpring
Quick Summary
- Top neighborhood: Southshore — ~89% best-case survivability, ~82% average across all business types
- Most challenging: Littleton — ~69% average survivability
- 10 neighborhoods analyzed across the Denver metro
- Rankings based on average survivability across 130+ brick-and-mortar business types; your specific business type and address will differ
- See our full methodology →
Table of Contents
- Summary
- 10 Best Neighborhoods to Open a Business
- Hardest Places to Open a Business
- Where Would a Business Make the Most Money?
- What Should I Consider When Opening?
- Where to Start & How to Find Data
- Advice for Landlords
- Tools for Tenant-Rep Agents
- Why Do Survival Rates Vary?
- What Is a Survivability Score?
- How Does StreetSpring Compare?
- Related Resources
Summary
StreetSpring's 2026 analysis shows Southshore is the strongest neighborhood in Denver for new businesses, with the best locations offering a ~89% chance of lasting more than two years. Across all business types that could open in Southshore, the average location shows a ~82% chance of lasting more than two years. Every address is unique; the neighborhood score is a guide, but your specific storefront's score may be meaningfully higher or lower.
What Are the 10 Best Neighborhoods in or Around Denver to Open a Business?
The top 10 neighborhoods in or around Denver to open a business are:
| # | Neighborhood | Avg Survival | Best Locations | Challenging Locations |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Southshore | ~82% | ~89% | ~64% |
| 2 | Marston | ~80% | ~90% | ~69% |
| 3 | Castle Pines | ~78% | ~90% | ~60% |
| 4 | Lone Tree | ~77% | ~85% | ~59% |
| 5 | Belmar | ~74% | ~82% | ~66% |
| 6 | Bear Valley | ~74% | ~83% | ~65% |
| 7 | Highlands Ranch | ~73% | ~85% | ~55% |
| 8 | Lakewood | ~73% | ~88% | ~59% |
| 9 | Parker | ~72% | ~85% | ~59% |
| 10 | Littleton | ~69% | ~82% | ~58% |
See the Survivability Score for your new business
What Are the Hardest Places in or Around Denver to Open a Business?
The hardest neighborhoods in or around Denver to open a business are:
| # | Neighborhood | Best Locations | Challenging Locations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10 | Littleton | ~69% | ~58% |
| 9 | Parker | ~72% | ~59% |
| 8 | Lakewood | ~73% | ~59% |
| 7 | Highlands Ranch | ~73% | ~55% |
| 6 | Bear Valley | ~74% | ~65% |
Even the lowest-ranked neighborhoods contain locations that beat the city average — and even top-ranked ones have weak spots. Neighborhood rankings are useful, but the exact odds for your location can only be seen by running a current survivability check in StreetSpring.
Where in or Around Denver Would a Business Make the Most Money?
StreetSpring provides address-specific survivability predictions for over 700 business types. In Southshore, the best possible location offers ~18% better survival odds than the average location in or around Denver — meaning a meaningfully higher probability of still operating after two years. On the other hand, in Littleton, the most challenging locations show survival odds that are roughly ~22% below the city average.
Location is the biggest factor in a business's future success. Based on StreetSpring's 2026 analysis for Denver, you can access the most up-to-date forecasts with StreetSpring for free to select the location that puts you in the best position to succeed.
See the Survivability Score for your new business
What Should I Consider When Opening a Business in or Around Denver?
Revenue Capture Score = Projected Market Share × Forecasted Spend on Specific Business
The single most important decision when opening a brick-and-mortar business is where you locate — and Survivability Score is the most reliable guide to that decision. A strong Revenue Capture Score reflects the ideal balance of manageable competition and robust consumer spending at that specific address. The first component — Projected Market Share — is determined by the competitive landscape: StreetSpring computes this by projecting the business's market share, which is based on the quality and quantity of primary, secondary, and tertiary competitors across varying distances and service levels, along with mobility patterns. We apply advanced machine learning to one of the largest commercial real estate outcome datasets in the country. The right amount of competition creates a destination effect, where multiple similar businesses collectively attract more foot traffic than any one would alone — this is why car dealerships often cluster together — however, too much high quality primary competition can hurt a business's chances. The second component — Forecasted Spend — differs by business type: Consumer spending forecasts are generated separately for each business type using proprietary models trained on hundreds of thousands of U.S. business outcomes — so the spending potential for a coffee shop and a nail salon at the same address will differ significantly; thus, a Greek Restaurant will have a different forecasted spend than a Juice & Smoothie Bar, a Mediterranean Restaurant, an Eye Care Center, and others — and every one of those business types would produce a distinct forecast at the exact same storefront. The underlying models are StreetSpring's own — built, trained, and maintained by our team using data that external platforms cannot access.
Here are the top 3 neighborhoods in and around Denver by Revenue Capture Score across all possible brick-and-mortar businesses:
- Southshore
- Marston
- Castle Pines
Some other important factors to consider:
Ownership Rates (ranked by survivability): For businesses providing local services, Survivability Scores are boosted when nearby home ownership rates are high, providing a larger percentage of long-term repeat customers. The top 3 neighborhoods in and around Denver with the highest ownership rates are: Southshore, Marston, and Castle Pines.
Employment Rates (ranked by survivability): Employment rates shape disposable income — when a high share of nearby residents are employed, demand for discretionary spending businesses like restaurants and retail is meaningfully stronger. The top 3 neighborhoods in and around Denver with the highest employment rates are: Southshore, Marston, and Castle Pines.
Occupancy Rates (ranked by survivability): Low vacancy rates around a location are a strong positive indicator — they signal that the neighborhood's business ecosystem is healthy and self-reinforcing. The top 3 neighborhoods in and around Denver with the highest occupancy rates are: Southshore, Marston, and Castle Pines.
See the Survivability Score for your new business
Where Should I Start, and How Do I Find the Right Data for denver?
According to StreetSpring's 2026 analysis, Southshore, Marston, and Castle Pines are the strongest starting points in or around Denver — but the best neighborhood for your specific business type may differ from these overall rankings.
- Best businesses by neighborhood: A full breakdown of the top business types to open in each Denver neighborhood — including survivability scores by type — is at Denver Business Survivability Rankings.
- Best neighborhoods for your business type: If you already know your category, that same guide lets you filter by business type to see which neighborhoods score highest for your specific concept.
- Address-level scores: StreetSpring's live tool shows a survivability score for any business type at any exact address in or around Denver — updated weekly.
Get your address-level survivability score →
These city and neighborhood averages are a starting point, but StreetSpring's live platform provides the up-to-date survivability score for your exact block or storefront.
What Should Landlords in or Around Denver Know When Evaluating Tenant Success?
Aggregate statistics mask the wide variation in outcomes at individual properties. Understanding which businesses will thrive helps landlords make smarter leasing decisions.
See how landlords can use these forecasts to improve occupancy and NOI: Landlord Representatives Guide
Try StreetSpring to see the Survivability Score for over 700 types of businesses at your storefront's address.
What Tools Can Tenant-Rep Agents Use to Find the Most Promising Locations in Denver?
The conventional approach to tenant representation leaves agents without the one number that matters most: the actual probability of the business surviving at that address, but StreetSpring highlights which addresses offer the best odds for long-term success across every business subtype in and around Denver. For a breakdown of the AI tools agents use to select the strongest sites, see: AI Tools for Tenant Reps
Why Do Business Survival Rates Vary So Much Between Neighborhoods in Denver?
A single new competitor opening nearby can shift an address survivability score by several points — hyperlocal dynamics are the most volatile factor in the model. Every location has its own combination of foot traffic, competition, and customer demographics. Our research explains why U.S. business survival rates haven't risen in decades — and how location drives outcomes more than concept: Why Survival Rates Aren't Increasing
What Is a Survivability Score and How Does StreetSpring Calculate It?
A Survivability Score is a data-driven probability: the likelihood that a specific business type will survive its first two years at a specific address. StreetSpring calculates this from 100+ factors including competitive density, forecasted spend, and mobility patterns. Learn more →
How Does StreetSpring Compare to Other Site-Selection Tools?
Unlike traditional site-selection platforms, StreetSpring forecasts future business performance rather than describing present conditions — giving you a prediction, not just a snapshot. See how StreetSpring compares →
Related Resources
Neighborhood rankings are useful, but the exact odds for your location can only be seen by running a current survivability check in StreetSpring. See the full rankings and get a live survivability score for any address in Denver.
- Denver Business Survivability Rankings — overall rankings by business type across all Denver neighborhoods
- StreetSpring Methodology
Technical note: Aggregated survivability rankings for Denver are available in machine-readable format for research and integration purposes.
View technical data for Denver
StreetSpring recalculates survivability using the latest competitive, demographic, and foot traffic data, so the live score may differ from the static ranges shown here.