Czechia has 4 cities in the top 1000 and is one of Eastern Europe’s best countries for setting up a startup.
Czechia’s startup scene saw an increase in 2024 and jumped 3 spots from the previous year, outranking Iceland.
The relatively low cost of living in Czechia compared to other European countries, along with low tax rates and a central location in Europe, are major contributors to its potential growth and status as an attractive location for foreign entrepreneurs. Leveraging these advantages, Rohlik, an e-grocery app, is the first unicorn in the country, showcasing Czechia’s potential to produce scalable, high quality startups. It is also worth noting that high-tech industries and the gaming sector are already developed in the country, evidenced by several promising startups such as Madfinger Games and Geewa.
The Czech government, along with organizations like CzechInvest, are focused on developing the national startup ecosystem in a number of ways. Most notably, the government offers a Startup Visa for foreign entrepreneurs establishing new enterprises in Czechia. Additionally, Czechia is among the countries that offer a digital nomad visa. Such initiatives promise to enrich the talent pool available to Czech startups.
Another public sector initiative is to launch a fund of funds (in collaboration with the European Investment Fund) targeting early-stage Czech start-ups and spin-offs developing digital technologies. Moreover, the Czech government has announced a strategy to prioritize investment in innovative areas with a dedicated goal of becoming an innovation leader within ten years. In order to turn this into reality, the government is planning to increase public spending, conduct policy evaluations, and improve the IP regime. Private sector actors such as JIC also support entrepreneurs throughout the entire business lifecycle, from conception to maturity, by offering a range of services and resources.
Czechia’s capabilities are already visible from the comparatively high number of innovation activities among local businesses. Deeper investment in the local innovation ecosystem, like the aforementioned fund of funds, will help Czechia strengthen its technology-based service and knowledge economy. Czechia’s prosperous economy and highly educated skilled workforce are two factors that create an enabling environment for innovative ideas to come to life.
All in all, it is evident that with plentiful investment from domestic and international sources, as well as the government’s vision for innovation, Czechia is fertile ground for entrepreneurs targeting the European market. Furthermore, the support for Czechia startups is evident through initiatives such as the Czechia startup funding, Czechia startup support, Czechia startup resources, and Czechia startup investment, all contributing to the growth of the Czechia startup ecosystem development.
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The health check tables allow you to look at the performance Czechia has in each of the parameters that are part of StartupBlink's ranking algorithm. There are five tables, corresponding to the three subscores, the subscore analysis and industry ana...
Startup Funding in Czechia 2017 - 2024
From 2022 to 2023, startup funding in Czechia has decreased by 52.89%. During this period, the number of deals in Czechia has decreased by 32.2%. Since 2017, total startup funding in Czechia exceeded US$ $2.62B.
Average Funding in 2023
$3.41M
Funding in 2023
$272.66M
Deals in 2023
80
USD
Amount of Funding (USD)
Number of Deals
Czechia is ranked within the top 40 startup ecosystems globally.
Czechia’s startup scene is best represented in Software & Data, Ecommerce & Retail, and in Healthtech.
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Startup Ecosystem of Czechia | Startupblink