CommercialCafe Ranks 20 Best Southern Areas for Tech Development

The New South has arrived: one bustling to foster innovation and advanced technology around some surprising hubs.

“The trend is evident in the recent relocations of major tech companies to tech powerhouses along the Sun Belt,” a recent analysis by CommercialCafe concluded. It evaluated the top 20 Southern tech hubs by several metrics, including the local ratio of tech to non-tech businesses, tech employment, the number of patents granted, as well as unemployment rates and educational attainment.

Top ranking went to the Washington, DC, metro area, with a strong performance on several metrics. According to the report, it earned “maximum points for its concentration of tech businesses and tech jobs.” It also benefits from a highly educated population that encourages innovation and growth, as shown by the 5,826 patents granted between 2018 and 2022.

Washington also had the highest ratio of tech to other employment opportunities: 89 tech openings for every 1,000 jobs. And at around $111,000 a year, median salaries for its 300,000 tech workers were the second highest in the region. In addition, 82 of every 1,000 companies in the metro area are in the tech space.

According to the report, “the capital’s success is due to its diverse and robust tech ecosystem, including government agencies, start-ups, research institutions, cybersecurity experts and consulting firms,” with frequent collaboration between these organizations.

The second-highest score went to Austin, whose tech sector grew 17% between 2017 to 2021, benefiting in part from the presence of tech giants such as Tesla and Oracle. For every 1,000 companies in the metro, 47.6 were tech firms — the second-highest concentration in the South — and 73 of every 1,000 jobs were tech jobs. Tech employment grew 30% in the period, and median earnings were around $101,800.

Somewhat surprisingly, the third-highest ranked tech metro in the South was Huntsville, AL — “the top-scoring metro in terms of quality of life, offering tech workers a strong job market and affordable living costs.”

Indeed, 77 out of every 1,000 jobs here are in the tech sector, and so are 44 out of every 1,000 companies. Median pay is $102,545. Huntsville has played a significant role in the U.S. space program and hosts Cummings Research Park — the second-largest research park in the U.S, and the fourth-largest in the world, according to the report.

Raleigh, NC came in fourth place, boosted by its outstanding universities and the Research Triangle Park. For every 1,000 jobs, 77 were in tech, growing at 18%, and yielding a median income of $100,267. The metro also earned high scores for quality of life.

Fifth place went to Baltimore, due to its “consistently performing well across most metrics, rather than excelling in one or two areas.” With 45 of every 1,000 companies in the tech space, tech workers earned a median salary of $104,000.

Other metros demonstrated their commitment to growing their tech sectors. Salisbury, MD, with a metro population of just 374,000 led the field with a 57% increase in tech firm density between 2017 and 2021. It also reported $112,000 in median tech income — the highest in the South.

“The surge in tech employment reflects a broader trend observed in smaller metros and college towns, where tech jobs have become more concentrated,” the report stated.

Agri-tech and healthcare tech startups helped Fayetteville, AR, secure second place for its growing number of tech firms (up 18%). Austin’s 17% tech company growth rate put it in third place, followed by Dallas-Fort Worth (13%), and Tampa-St. Petersburg (12%).

Other cities where the concentration of tech companies is growing include Baltimore, Huntsville, and Durham-Chapel Hill, NC — where state incentives like the Research Triangle Park Job Development Investment Grant and One North Carolina fund have spurred investment.

Among metros with fast-growing tech jobs, Savannah, GA took the cake. It saw a 217% increase in five years, helped by cash grants to companies for jobs created, as well as an aeronautics tech startup scene. It was followed by Huntsville (up 53%); Austin (40%); Fayetteville, AR (39%); and Tampa-St. Petersburg (33%).

The cities with the greatest increase in median salaries were led by Johnson City, TN where they rose 200%. Other median tech salary leaders were Salisbury (up 81%), Savannah (71%), Austin (30%), and Fayetteville (26%).

Ranked by the all-important issue of patents, Houston took the crown in the South, with more than 9,000 patents awarded between 2017 and 2021 to just 473 organizations. Washington, DC saw 5,826 patents granted between 2018 and 2022 submitted by 864 organizations. Dallas-Fort Worth received 6,372 patents for 700 organizations, followed closely by Austin. “Innovation also thrived in Atlanta, where the metro area closely followed with more than 6,000 tech patents as well as nearly 500 contributing organizations,” the report noted.

However, for researchers and companies seeking quality of life, the city to investigate may be Huntsville, with a low unemployment rate and affordable cost of living. Other possibilities include Durham-Chapel Hill; Charlottesville, VA; Raleigh; and Fayetteville, AR.