Neighborhood Survivability Rankings: New York City
StreetSpring's 2026 analysis ranks the best and worst neighborhoods in New York City for new businesses by survivability score. See which areas give you the best chance of lasting more than two years.
Last reviewed by Bobby Koons, Founder & CEO, StreetSpring — May 10, 2026
Quick Summary
- Top neighborhood: Rockaway Park — ~90% best-case survivability, ~83% average across all business types
- Most challenging: Queens Village — ~71% average survivability
- 169 neighborhoods analyzed across the New York City 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?
- What Each Neighborhood Specializes In
- Related Resources
Summary
StreetSpring's 2026 analysis shows Rockaway Park is the strongest neighborhood in New York City for new businesses, with the best locations offering a ~90% chance of lasting more than two years. Across all business types that could open in Rockaway Park, the average location shows a ~83% chance of lasting more than two years. Still, specific site selection matters, since some of the best-performing blocks can be found in neighborhoods that might not look ideal at first glance.
Where Thrive in New York City
The top 10 neighborhoods in or around New York City to open a business are:
| # | Neighborhood | Avg Survival | Best Locations | Challenging Locations |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Rockaway Park | ~83% | ~90% | ~68% |
| 2 | Brighton Beach | ~81% | ~91% | ~66% |
| 3 | Coney Island | ~81% | ~91% | ~64% |
| 4 | Newark | ~81% | ~91% | ~67% |
| 5 | Boerum Hill | ~80% | ~84% | ~74% |
| 6 | Park Slope | ~79% | ~84% | ~73% |
| 7 | Gowanus | ~79% | ~84% | ~74% |
| 8 | Clinton Hill | ~79% | ~84% | ~72% |
| 9 | Garment District | ~79% | ~84% | ~73% |
| 10 | Cobble Hill | ~79% | ~83% | ~74% |
See the Survivability Score for your new business
What Are the Hardest Places in or Around New York City to Open a Business?
The hardest neighborhoods in or around New York City to open a business are:
| # | Neighborhood | Best Locations | Challenging Locations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 169 | Queens Village | ~71% | ~64% |
| 168 | Laurelton | ~72% | ~64% |
| 167 | St. Albans | ~72% | ~66% |
| 166 | Bellerose | ~72% | ~64% |
| 165 | Baychester | ~72% | ~67% |
Market conditions are changing daily and it is best to use StreetSpring's most up-to-date data to make sure that there have not been major changes. The best-performing neighborhoods today may look different in six months; check StreetSpring's live tool for the current score at any specific location.
The Top Revenue Neighborhoods for in New York City
StreetSpring generates location-specific predictions tailored to your exact site. In Rockaway Park, the best possible location offers ~19% better survival odds than the average location in or around New York City — meaning a meaningfully higher probability of still operating after two years. On the other hand, in Queens Village, the most challenging locations show survival odds that are roughly ~16% below the city average.
Where foot traffic actually converts to revenue
Among all variables that affect business outcomes, location has the highest predictive weight in our models. Based on StreetSpring's 2026 analysis for New York City, 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 Matters Most When Opening in New York City
Before signing a lease, the most important metric to evaluate is the Survivability Score of that specific address. Consider how differently two businesses perform at the same address: a German Restaurant will have a different forecasted spend than a Malaysian Restaurant, a Taiwanese Restaurant, an Indonesian Restaurant, and others — and no two of those businesses would score identically — even at the same address, survivability depends on what type of business is opening. StreetSpring's proprietary models are continuously updated with new business outcome data to keep predictions accurate and current.
| Consideration | Common pitfall | What to verify before signing |
|---|---|---|
| Competitor density | Counting only direct competitors and missing adjacent-category overlap (e.g. coffee shop near a bakery). | Map all businesses serving overlapping customer needs within a 5-min walk. Use StreetSpring's competitor view as a starting point. |
| Foot traffic seasonality | Looking at a peak-summer Tuesday and assuming year-round volume. | Walk the block at 3 different times across 2 different weeks. Ask neighboring tenants for their slow-season % drop. |
| Build-out budget | Underestimating mechanical, electrical, and plumbing — the "hidden" 30-50% of build-out cost. | Get 3 quotes from licensed contractors and pad budget by +20% for surprises. Confirm landlord TI allowance in writing. |
The hidden costs of operating in this neighborhood
Revenue Capture Score is the single best indicator of whether a business will thrive at a location. Market share is projected by analyzing the full competitive landscape — primary, secondary, and tertiary competitors at multiple distance bands — combined with foot traffic and mobility data for the specific address. Our platform incorporates data from thousands of neighborhoods nationwide. Clustering works when it draws more customers to the area than any single business could alone — this is why car dealerships often cluster together — however, when primary competition is dense and high quality, the marginal revenue available to a new entrant drops significantly. StreetSpring also calculates the forecasted spend on the specific business type based on proprietary consumer spending projections trained on hundreds of thousands of businesses across the United States.
Revenue Capture Score = Projected Market Share × Forecasted Spend on Specific Business
The 3 highest-Revenue Capture neighborhoods in and around New York City — ranked across all business types — are:
- Rockaway Park
- Brighton Beach
- Coney Island
Some other important factors to consider:
Ownership Rates: For businesses that depend on repeat local customers, homeownership rates are a meaningful predictor of demand stability — renters move more frequently, reducing customer consistency. The top 3 neighborhoods in and around New York City with the highest ownership rates are: Floral park, Eltingville, and Laurelton.
Build-out budget rules-of-thumb for this neighborhood
Employment Rates: 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 New York City with the highest employment rates are: Battery Park, DUMBO, and Tudor City.
Occupancy Rates: High commercial occupancy in a neighborhood signals a healthy business environment — vacancies tend to depress foot traffic and create a cycle of further closures. The top 3 neighborhoods in and around New York City with the highest occupancy rates are: Tremont, Concourse, and Pomonok.
See the Survivability Score for your new business
The Best Place to Start in New York City
According to StreetSpring's 2026 analysis, Rockaway Park, Brighton Beach, and Coney Island are the strongest starting points in or around New York City — 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 New York City neighborhood — including survivability scores by type — is at New York City 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 New York City — updated weekly.
Get your address-level survivability score →
StreetSpring's survivability scores are updated regularly, so the most accurate prediction for your exact storefront is always available in the live tool.
What Should Landlords in or Around New York City Know When Evaluating Tenant Success?
A property in a top-ranked neighborhood can still underperform if it is on the wrong block or facing the wrong direction — granular data matters. Using address-level survivability scores, landlords can identify the business types most likely to pay rent consistently for years — not just the first 12 months.
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 New York City?
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 New York City. 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 New York City?
Neighborhoods create the context; the specific address determines the outcome — and those can diverge significantly even within a few blocks. Local conditions — from parking to pedestrian patterns — shape outcomes at each specific address. 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 measures how likely a brick-and-mortar business at a specific address is to last more than two years. Read the full methodology →
How Does StreetSpring Compare to Other Site-Selection Tools?
StreetSpring differs from tools like Placer.ai or SiteZeus by modeling business survivability directly, rather than reporting foot traffic or demographics that you then have to interpret yourself. Full comparison →
What Each Neighborhood Specializes In
Don't write off lower-ranked New York City neighborhoods. Every neighborhood has business types it's good for. Here's what works in the top, middle, and bottom-ranked neighborhoods:
Rockaway-Park — ranked #1 citywide — the strongest neighborhood in New York City
- Taiwanese Restaurant (90% survivability)
- Pet Grooming Shop (90% survivability)
- Filipino Restaurant (90% survivability)
- Italian Restaurant (90% survivability)
- Singaporean Restaurant (90% survivability)
Full Rockaway-Park business guide →
Navy-Yard — ranked #85 of 169 — a middle-of-the-pack New York City neighborhood
- Mixed Martial Arts Studio (84% survivability)
- Italian Restaurant (83% survivability)
- Diner (81% survivability)
- Barbecue Restaurant (81% survivability)
- Smoke Shop (81% survivability)
Full Navy-Yard business guide →
Queens-Village — ranked #169 of 169 — among New York City's lower-ranked neighborhoods
- Mixed Martial Arts Studio (81% survivability)
- Russian Restaurant (80% survivability)
- Watch Store or Repair Shop (78% survivability)
- Kosher Restaurant (78% survivability)
- Convenience Store (77% survivability)
Full Queens-Village business guide →
Neighborhood ranking is an aggregate. Pair it with subtype-specific data before any location decision.
Visual Data
Related Resources
Static rankings can't capture every recent change in competition or foot traffic, which is why StreetSpring's real-time tool is the best place to check today's survivability score for a particular location. See the full rankings and get a live survivability score for any address in New York City.
- New York City Business Survivability Rankings — overall rankings by business type across all New York City neighborhoods
- Business Survivability in Rockaway Park
- Business Survivability in Brighton Beach
- Business Survivability in Coney Island
- StreetSpring Methodology
Technical note: Aggregated survivability rankings for New York City are available in machine-readable format for research and integration purposes.
View technical data for New York City
StreetSpring recalculates survivability using the latest competitive, demographic, and foot traffic data, so the live score may differ from the static ranges shown here.