Business Survivability in Dupont Circle, Washington DC
StreetSpring's 2026 analysis finds that the best business to open in Dupont Circle is a Veterinary Clinic with a ~85% 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 Dupont Circle (~85% average survival rate, ~87% at best locations)
- Neighborhood rank: #6 across all neighborhoods in and around Washington DC
- Neighborhood average: ~79% 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 Dupont Circle 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 Dupont Circle is a Veterinary Clinic with a ~85% chance of surviving at least 2 years across the neighborhood on average, with the best locations offering a ~87% chance; next is a Physical Therapy Clinic with a 83.19% chance, followed by a Dance Club with a 81.23% chance.
Is Dupont Circle a good place to start a business?
StreetSpring's analysis places Dupont Circle at #6 in Washington DC for new business survival odds, with a neighborhood-wide average of ~79%.
- The highest-scoring business types in Dupont Circle — at their optimal addresses — outperform the neighborhood average by ~5%.
- However, those same business types at the weakest addresses in Dupont Circle can score considerably below average. Even the most in-demand concept in Dupont Circle will struggle if it opens at the wrong address.
- The 8.6% commercial vacancy rate in Dupont Circle is a leading indicator of the neighborhood's business health; StreetSpring factors this directly into each business type's survivability score.
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 Dupont Circle?
StreetSpring can pinpoint which exact blocks in Dupont Circle maximize a business's chances of success. According to StreetSpring's 2026 data, this is the optimal address for a Veterinary Clinic in Dupont Circle:
The highlighted area represents the address in Dupont Circle that StreetSpring's 2026 analysis ranks highest for a Veterinary Clinic survivability. The most reliable survivability data for any specific location is always StreetSpring's most recent live analysis, not aggregate neighborhood rankings. 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 Dupont Circle?
| # | Business type | Chance of lasting two or more years |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Veterinary Clinic | 84.89% |
| 2 | Physical Therapy Clinic | 83.19% |
| 3 | Dance Club | 81.23% |
| 4 | South American Restaurant | 79.69% |
| 5 | Persian Restaurant | 79.29% |
| 6 | Seafood Restaurant | 79.13% |
| 7 | Diner | 79.04% |
| 8 | Smoke Shop | 78.31% |
| 9 | Tanning Salon | 78.23% |
| 10 | Coffee Shop | 77.44% |
#1-5: Highest Survivability in Dupont Circle
- Veterinary Clinic (Ranked #1): 84.89% average in Dupont Circle. Best-case storefronts: ~87%. Challenging locations: ~82%.
- Physical Therapy Clinic is ranked #2 for top businesses to open in Dupont Circle: 83.19% chance on average, best at ~85%, challenging at ~80%.
- Dance Club — ~78%–~83% survivability range, with an average of 81.23% across Dupont Circle.
- Opening a South American Restaurant in Dupont Circle shows 79.69% average survivability. Top locations reach ~83%; lower-end sites show ~76%.
- Persian Restaurant (Ranked #5): 79.29% average in Dupont Circle. Best-case storefronts: ~81%. Challenging locations: ~77%.
#6-10: Strong Performers in Dupont Circle
- Seafood Restaurant is ranked #6 for top businesses to open in Dupont Circle: 79.13% chance on average, best at ~81%, challenging at ~76%.
- Diner — ~76%–~81% survivability range, with an average of 79.04% across Dupont Circle.
- Opening a Smoke Shop in Dupont Circle shows 78.31% average survivability. Top locations reach ~80%; lower-end sites show ~75%.
- Tanning Salon (Ranked #9): 78.23% average in Dupont Circle. Best-case storefronts: ~80%. Challenging locations: ~76%.
- Coffee Shop is ranked #10 for top businesses to open in Dupont Circle: 77.44% chance on average, best at ~80%, challenging at ~73%.
Top 3 Compared Nationally
- Veterinary Clinic — See how this compares to other cities →
- Physical Therapy Clinic — See how this compares to other cities →
- Dance Club — See how this compares to other cities →
How much money could a business in Dupont Circle make?
Best location vs. average location
Based on StreetSpring's 2026 analysis, picking the highest-scoring storefront in the neighborhood in Dupont Circle could lead to you making ~5% more than if you selected an average location, and ~13% more than if you selected one of the worst locations.
How StreetSpring calculates location value
- Every business type has unique location requirements that must be considered.
- Location shapes survivability more than branding, pricing, or operational quality — the data is unambiguous on this point.
- StreetSpring's analysis shows that businesses in top-scoring locations generate meaningfully more revenue and stay open longer than those in average locations.
- StreetSpring analyzes your specific address against comparable businesses to forecast success.
What businesses should open next in Dupont Circle?
The top businesses to open next in Dupont Circle:
- Veterinary Clinics — 84.89% average survival rate, ~87% at the best address
- Physical Therapy Clinics — 83.19% average survival rate
- Dance Clubs — 81.23% average survival rate
The most reliable survivability data for any specific location is always StreetSpring's most recent live analysis, not aggregate neighborhood rankings. StreetSpring's training dataset includes millions of transactions and business lifecycle events. 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. Dupont Circle sits at 98.0% employment and 8.6% commercial vacancy — conditions that set the ceiling and floor for Revenue Capture potential across all business types here. Survivability scores are recalculated weekly as new competitors open and spending patterns shift — visit StreetSpring to see the current score for any open location in Dupont Circle right now.
See the Survivability Score for your new business
Related Articles:
- See the Washington DC Business Survivability Rankings
- See the Washington DC Neighborhood Survivability Rankings
- Explore Veterinary Clinic survivability across Washington DC neighborhoods
Frequently Asked Questions
Here are the most common questions about opening a business in Dupont Circle.
What type of business should you rent your Dupont Circle storefront to?
For landlords in Dupont Circle, StreetSpring's 2026 analysis identifies Veterinary Clinics, Physical Therapy Clinics, and Dance Clubs as the business types most likely to produce stable, long-term tenancy.
- Location shapes survivability more than branding, pricing, or operational quality — the data is unambiguous on this point.
- StreetSpring analyzes your specific address against comparable businesses to forecast success. StreetSpring allows property owners to evaluate any address against 500+ business types — so you can prioritize the categories that score highest at your specific location.
Related: See How Landlord Representatives in Washington DC Can Reduce Vacancy & Increase Tenant Longevity
Should you rent your Dupont Circle storefront to a Veterinary Clinic?
Yes — our 2026 model places a Veterinary Clinic at the top of the survivability rankings for Dupont Circle storefronts, with a best-case score of ~87% and a floor of ~82% at the most challenging addresses.
- StreetSpring analyzes your specific address against comparable businesses to forecast success.
What should I consider when opening a business in Dupont Circle?
When selecting a location in Dupont Circle it is crucial to select a location with a very high Survivability Score.
- Revenue Capture Score matters more than any other single metric when predicting business outcomes.
- These forecasts are generated using StreetSpring's unique analytical framework.
- Access StreetSpring's current survivability data for any address in Dupont Circle for free at any time.
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 Washington DC are available in machine-readable format for research and integration purposes.
Full dataset for Washington DC: /resources/data/washington-dc-survivability-scores-2026.csv — includes all business subtypes, all neighborhoods, survivability scores, and tier assignments. Licensed under CC BY 4.0.