Business Survivability in University City, Philadelphia
StreetSpring's 2026 analysis finds that the best business to open in University City is a Veterinary Clinic with a ~84% 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 Veterinary Clinic in University City (~84% average survival rate, ~87% at best locations)
- Neighborhood rank: #63 across all neighborhoods in and around Philadelphia
- 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 Robert Koons, Founder & CEO, StreetSpring
In this article:
- Summary
- Is University City 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 University City is a Veterinary Clinic with a ~84% chance of surviving at least 2 years across the neighborhood on average, with the best locations offering a ~87% chance; next is a Chicken Shop with a 79.74% chance, followed by a Mexican Restaurant with a 78.83% chance.
Is University City a good place to start a business?
Across all neighborhoods in and around Philadelphia, StreetSpring's data places University City at #63 with a ~77% average Survivability Score.
- The survivability gap between the best and average addresses in University City reaches ~8% for the strongest-performing business categories.
- But at poorly chosen addresses within University City, even the top-ranked business types can fall well below the neighborhood average. Location selection remains critical — a promising concept at the wrong spot still carries significant risk.
- The 85.7% employment rate in University City supports consumer spending, while a 21.0% vacancy rate reflects available storefronts — both of which shape the survivability landscape for any new business here.
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 University City?
Using StreetSpring, you can identify the exact address in University City that gives your specific business concept the highest survivability score. Of all available storefronts analyzed in University City, StreetSpring ranks this area highest for a Veterinary Clinic in 2026:
Based on StreetSpring's 2026 analysis of hundreds of location-specific factors, this area offers the highest projected survivability for a Veterinary Clinic in University City. These figures represent averages across a neighborhood; your specific address may score meaningfully higher or lower depending on block-level competitive conditions. Factors evaluated include competition at every distance band, consumer spending forecasts, mobility patterns, and market share projections.
Check if this location is still available →
What are the best businesses to open in University City?
| # | Business type | Chance of lasting two or more years |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Veterinary Clinic | 84.26% |
| 2 | Chicken Shop | 79.74% |
| 3 | Mexican Restaurant | 78.83% |
| 4 | American Restaurant | 78.80% |
| 5 | Grocery Store | 78.19% |
| 6 | Liquor Store | 77.85% |
| 7 | Coffee Shop | 76.91% |
| 8 | Smoke Shop | 76.48% |
| 9 | Gym | 76.46% |
| 10 | Pet Grooming Shop | 75.87% |
#1-5: Highest Survivability in University City
- Veterinary Clinic — ~81%–~87% survivability range, with an average of 84.26% across University City.
- Opening a Chicken Shop in University City shows 79.74% average survivability. Top locations reach ~83%; lower-end sites show ~76%.
- Mexican Restaurant (Ranked #3): 78.83% average in University City. Best-case storefronts: ~82%. Challenging locations: ~75%.
- American Restaurant is ranked #4 for top businesses to open in University City: 78.80% chance on average, best at ~82%, challenging at ~76%.
- Grocery Store — ~74%–~82% survivability range, with an average of 78.19% across University City.
#6-10: Strong Performers in University City
- Opening a Liquor Store in University City shows 77.85% average survivability. Top locations reach ~82%; lower-end sites show ~74%.
- Coffee Shop (Ranked #7): 76.91% average in University City. Best-case storefronts: ~82%. Challenging locations: ~73%.
- Smoke Shop is ranked #8 for top businesses to open in University City: 76.48% chance on average, best at ~79%, challenging at ~72%.
- Gym — ~69%–~80% survivability range, with an average of 76.46% across University City.
- Opening a Pet Grooming Shop in University City shows 75.87% average survivability. Top locations reach ~80%; lower-end sites show ~72%.
Top 3 Compared Nationally
- Veterinary Clinic — See how this compares to other cities →
- Chicken Shop — See how this compares to other cities →
- Mexican Restaurant — See how this compares to other cities →
How much money could a business in University City make?
Best location vs. average location
Based on StreetSpring's 2026 analysis, selecting one of the best locations for your business in University City could lead to you making ~8% more than if you selected an average location, and ~21% more than if you selected one of the worst locations.
How StreetSpring calculates location value
- StreetSpring calculates survivability for each business type separately at each address — so the best location for your concept may differ from the neighborhood's overall top-ranked site.
- Among all variables that affect business outcomes, location has the highest predictive weight in our models.
- Businesses in high-scoring locations consistently outperform those in average or low-scoring sites.
- StreetSpring gives you a precise survivability probability for any specific address and business type combination, not a generalized estimate.
What businesses should open next in University City?
The top businesses to open next in University City:
- Veterinary Clinics — 84.26% average survival rate, ~87% at the best address
- Chicken Shops — 79.74% average survival rate
- Mexican Restaurants — 78.83% average survival rate
These figures represent averages across a neighborhood; your specific address may score meaningfully higher or lower depending on block-level competitive conditions. Every prediction draws on a dataset of millions of business openings, closures, and lifecycle events across the U.S. 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. The survivability rankings for University City are grounded in real economic conditions: 85.7% employment and 21.0% vacancy are among the key inputs that separate high-scoring locations from low-scoring ones here. Survivability scores are live, not static — StreetSpring updates them weekly. Visit the tool to see what's currently available in University City and how each address is scoring right now.
See the Survivability Score for your new business
Related Articles:
- See the Philadelphia Business Survivability Rankings
- See the Philadelphia Neighborhood Survivability Rankings
- Explore Veterinary Clinic survivability across Philadelphia neighborhoods
Frequently Asked Questions
Here are the most common questions about opening a business in University City.
What type of business should you rent your University City storefront to?
Based on 2026 survivability scores across all business types in University City, the top three tenant categories for landlords are Veterinary Clinics, Chicken Shops, and Mexican Restaurants.
- Among all variables that affect business outcomes, location has the highest predictive weight in our models.
- StreetSpring gives you a precise survivability probability for any specific address and business type combination, not a generalized estimate. Run your specific address through StreetSpring to see which tenant categories give you the best odds of stable, long-term occupancy.
Related: See How Landlord Representatives in Philadelphia Can Reduce Vacancy & Increase Tenant Longevity
Should you rent your University City storefront to a Veterinary Clinic?
Based on StreetSpring's 2026 analysis, a Veterinary Clinic ranks as the top tenant type for your University City storefront — best-case locations show a ~87% survival rate, while the most challenging addresses drop to ~81%.
- StreetSpring gives you a precise survivability probability for any specific address and business type combination, not a generalized estimate.
What should I consider when opening a business in University City?
StreetSpring's Survivability Score for your University City address is the clearest forward-looking indicator of whether your business will be operating two years from now — make it the first number you check.
- The most important driver of a high Survivability Score is the Revenue Capture Score for the business at the location it selects.
- These forecasts are generated using StreetSpring's unique analytical framework.
- The most current survivability data for University City is free to access on StreetSpring — no account required to check your specific address.
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 Philadelphia are available in machine-readable format for research and integration purposes.
Full dataset for Philadelphia: /resources/data/philadelphia-survivability-scores-2026.csv — includes all business subtypes, all neighborhoods, survivability scores, and tier assignments. Licensed under CC BY 4.0.