City rankings
Fastest-growing cities for new businesses in Virginia
Hopewell grew fastest: 378 new businesses, up 159% from the 12 months before. Richmond had the most new businesses of any Virginia city in the 12 months through September 2026: 17,330, 12% of the state total.
Fastest-growing Virginia cities
| # | City | New businesses | Year before | Change |
|---|
| 1 | Hopewell | 378 | 146 | +159% |
| 2 | Emporia | 152 | 59 | +158% |
| 3 | Portsmouth | 1,509 | 627 | +141% |
| 4 | Petersburg | 866 | 362 | +139% |
| 5 | South Boston | 163 | 72 | +126% |
| 6 | Louisa | 209 | 93 | +125% |
| 7 | Hampton | 1,851 | 842 | +120% |
| 8 | Colonial Heights | 384 | 176 | +118% |
| 9 | Norfolk | 4,282 | 1,975 | +117% |
| 10 | Madison Heights | 156 | 74 | +111% |
| 11 | Wytheville | 137 | 65 | +111% |
| 12 | Galax | 145 | 70 | +107% |
| 13 | Luray | 149 | 72 | +107% |
| 14 | Vinton | 200 | 97 | +106% |
| 15 | Dumfries | 691 | 336 | +106% |
| 16 | Marion | 106 | 52 | +104% |
| 17 | Prince George | 119 | 59 | +102% |
| 18 | Newport News | 2,199 | 1,097 | +100% |
| 19 | Manassas Park | 262 | 132 | +98% |
| 20 | Richmond | 17,330 | 8,742 | +98% |
| 21 | Suffolk | 1,530 | 772 | +98% |
| 22 | South Hill | 103 | 52 | +98% |
| 23 | Henrico | 3,905 | 1,985 | +97% |
| 24 | Gordonsville | 119 | 61 | +95% |
| 25 | Martinsville | 278 | 143 | +94% |
New businesses formed in the 12 months through September 2026 against the 12 months before. Cities with at least 100 this year and 50 the year before.
Virginia cities with the most new businesses
| # | City | New businesses | Share of state | Change |
|---|
| 1 | Richmond | 17,330 | 12% | +98% |
| 2 | Virginia Beach | 7,607 | 5% | +89% |
| 3 | Alexandria | 6,192 | 4% | +78% |
| 4 | Norfolk | 4,282 | 3% | +117% |
| 5 | Arlington | 3,969 | 3% | +66% |
| 6 | Henrico | 3,905 | 3% | +97% |
| 7 | Chesapeake | 3,748 | 3% | +93% |
| 8 | Woodbridge | 3,443 | 2% | +86% |
| 9 | Fairfax | 3,181 | 2% | +67% |
| 10 | Fredericksburg | 3,047 | 2% | +88% |
| 11 | Manassas | 2,243 | 2% | +81% |
| 12 | Newport News | 2,199 | 2% | +100% |
| 13 | Ashburn | 2,144 | 2% | +66% |
| 14 | Roanoke | 2,025 | 1% | +75% |
| 15 | Falls Church | 1,971 | 1% | +71% |
| 16 | Hampton | 1,851 | 1% | +120% |
| 17 | Charlottesville | 1,825 | 1% | +40% |
| 18 | Midlothian | 1,746 | 1% | +64% |
| 19 | Glen Allen | 1,738 | 1% | +49% |
| 20 | Sterling | 1,706 | 1% | +88% |
| 21 | Leesburg | 1,614 | 1% | +64% |
| 22 | Vienna | 1,603 | 1% | +62% |
| 23 | Stafford | 1,577 | 1% | +77% |
| 24 | Herndon | 1,567 | 1% | +65% |
| 25 | Suffolk | 1,530 | 1% | +98% |
New businesses formed in the 12 months through September 2026.
Get a list of new Virginia businesses by city
See the exact count and price as you filter by county, city, ZIP, entity type and formation date. Download a CSV right away and get monthly refreshes. Verified businesses can pay 20% today and the rest over 6 months with Pay-in-6™, building business credit as they pay.
Common questions
Which Virginia city has the most new businesses?
Richmond had the most new businesses of any Virginia city in the 12 months through September 2026: 17,330, 12% of the state total.
Which Virginia city is growing fastest for new businesses?
Hopewell grew fastest: 378 new businesses, up 159% from the 12 months before. The ranking covers cities with at least 100 new businesses in the 12 months through September 2026 and 50 in the 12 months before.
Where do these numbers come from?
From Virginia's official business registry. ListRiver counts businesses by the formation date the state reports and the city of the business address on file.
Monthly Virginia new-business reports · All states ranked · Virginia businesses by county and city
Methodology
Counts are businesses registered with the state of Virginia whose formation (registration) date falls in the period shown and that appear on the state register in ListRiver's data. City is the business address on file, with spellings as the state records them. Businesses already dissolved are not counted, so the earlier 12 months are slightly understated and increases slightly overstated; the effect is similar across a state's cities, so the order is a fair comparison. More in the methodology.
Cite this page: ListRiver, “Fastest-growing cities for new businesses in Virginia”, https://listriver.com/reports/new-businesses/virginia/cities. Journalists and researchers are welcome to use these figures with a link.