Edinburgh and Glasgow among top UK destinations for tech start-ups

Edinburgh and Glasgow were among the top 10 UK cities in which to launch a technology start-up in the past two years, according to research carried out by software development company KLOC.

Using data from business information platform Crunchbase, KLOC looked at the number of start-ups launched across the UK since January 2020 and amalgamated information on the total funding they have received, the average salary they pay their software engineers and how their local university ranks for its computer science courses to award each region a combined score.

Manchester was found to be the most attractive tech incubator followed by Cambridge and then Edinburgh. Glasgow ranked seventh, directly behind Bristol and one place ahead of Altrincham. London was excluded from the analysis.

A spokesperson for KLOC said the study highlights “that there are plenty of vibrant tech start-up scenes outside London”.

“This is very encouraging for entrepreneurs as it demonstrates that there are plenty of options beyond the capital which can offer lower operational costs and still provide a talented workforce,” the spokesperson added.

Edinburgh has long been known for its thriving tech sector, with big-name businesses such as Skyscanner and FanDuel being incubated in the city. Despite launching new businesses in the US, FanDuel cofounders Nigel and Lesley Eccles have built the engineering teams for those firms – blockchain-enabled sports betting organisation BetDEX and relationship coaching app Relish, respectively – in Edinburgh due to the strong tech ecosystem they can tap into there.

The study found that the average salary paid to software engineers in both Glasgow and Edinburgh is just under £40,000, considerably higher than the UK average of just under £26,000.