NEW ORLEANS – New Orleans outpaces the nation in entrepreneurship by a healthy margin according to new data from “The New Orleans Index at Twenty: Measuring Greater New Orleans’ Progress Toward Resilience” published by The Data Center on Aug. 5. The report highlights the region as an enduring engine of innovation.
In the past year, 592 out of every 100,000 adults launched a business, a rate 34% above the national average and 29% higher than the average across the 49 other largest U.S. metropolitan areas including cities like New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, and Dallas. The findings come from The Data Center, a New Orleans–based research organization that tracks the region’s economic and demographic trends.
The "Index at Twenty" tracks more than 20 indicators of resilience organized into four categories: housing and infrastructure, economy and workforce, wealth, and people. These measures paint a picture of a region that has made tremendous progress while continuing to face all-too-familiar structural challenges that shape its economic future.
Economy and Workforce
In the “economy and workforce” category, the Data Center report shows that educational attainment in metro New Orleans has climbed steadily. Thirty-five percent of adults now hold a bachelor’s degree and 63% have some college education, roughly matching the national average.
However, the region still falls short of other large metropolitan areas, where 40% hold a bachelor’s degree and 67% have some college.
Digital Connectivity
Having access to the internet is critical to supporting inclusive participation in the innovation economy.
Internet access has expanded across metro New Orleans, but the region still trails other large metros. About 93.6% of households are now connected, compared with 95.9% across the nation’s 50 largest metropolitan areas. While the percentage difference sounds insignificant, it translates to roughly 10,000 to 12,000 more households without internet access than the large-metro average.
Wealth
In its “wealth” section, the Data Center report highlights persistent racial disparities.
White households in metro New Orleans hold roughly ten times the median wealth of Black households and more than six times that of Hispanic households. The Data Center frames this as a major barrier to equitable growth and long-term community stability.
Even so, the city’s entrepreneurial drive has remained remarkably strong across all communities. Many local leaders view this resilience as one of the region’s defining characteristics — a reflection of how residents have continued to innovate and rebuild in the face of structural challenges.
After Hurricane Katrina, rebuilding efforts required residents to become innovators and problem solvers, often starting from scratch with homes, businesses, and neighborhoods. Two decades later, that spirit has endured, and the startup rate has remained consistently high.
“This tells me something shifted permanently in the culture here,” said Mickal Adler, managing partner at Boot64, a New Orleans–based venture capital firm. He said that starting something new isn’t seen as unusual in the region. It’s just what people do.
Venture Capital
Earlier this year, The Data Center reported that New Orleans ranks sixth nationally for venture capital growth. Combined with its leading rate of new business formation, the region is emerging as one of the country’s most dynamic entrepreneurial ecosystems.
“This is the combination that matters: high formation rates and growing capital,” Adler added. “That means more companies getting funded and more opportunities to achieve big outcomes. Our deal flow is accelerating month over month.”
Despite ongoing inequities, investment activity continues to strengthen, signaling growing confidence in the city’s innovation economy.
Louisiana Natives
The Data Center report also notes that 71% of residents in metro New Orleans are native to Louisiana, a sign of strong place attachment that researchers identify as a core element of resilience capacity.
For investors, the numbers highlight a market ripe with potential. For founders, they point to a community where entrepreneurship is not an exception but a way of life.
