Singapore leaps to 4th in global startup rankings

It ranks first globally in Startup Community Activity.

Singapore ranked 4th globally in the Global Startup Ecosystem Index 2026, according to StartupBlink, leading Asia Pacific as the only economy in the global top five and nearly doubling second-place Australia's regional score.

The city-state recorded an annual ecosystem growth of 24.4%, the highest amongst the top 10 and above both the global average of 17.5% and the Asia-Pacific average of 21.2%, with six of the region's top 10 economies growing by more than 20%.

Its ecosystem is valued at $376.8b (US$292.1b), home to 19 unicorns, and it ranks 2nd of 125 countries in the Innovators Business Environment Index.

By category, Singapore ranks 1st globally in Startup Community Activity, 2nd in Fintech behind only the United States, 2nd in Ecommerce & Retail, 3rd in Ecosystem Brand Value, 3rd in Ecosystem Visibility, and 1st in Asia-Pacific for Startup Ecosystem overall.

It also entered the global top 10 for cities for the first time, rising two places to 10th with 26.7% growth, the highest amongst all top-10 cities, reaching a score of 78.854.

The report points to government backing behind the momentum, including Singapore's $37b Research, Innovation and Enterprise (RIE) 2030 plan, representing about 1% of gross domestic product over five years and targeting artificial intelligence, advanced manufacturing, quantum, health and biomedical sciences, and green technologies.

The Startup SG Equity scheme also received a $1 billion top-up to support deep tech startups beyond early-stage funding.

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