Blacktown, Canterbury-Bankstown and the Hawkesbury are emerging as Sydney’s top entrepreneurial hotspots as business growth shifts west.

Business NSW analysis reveals that within 15 years, Western Sydney is on track to overtake the east for the number of businesses employing people.

Blacktown is the standout performer, with its business community growing almost twice as fast as its population. Between 2017 and 2025, the number of businesses with employees jumped 48%, compared with 26% population growth, lifting business density from 24.7 to 29 businesses per 1000 people.

Business NSW President Joseph Carrozzi AM said business density was growing faster than population across much of Western Sydney, while Eastern Sydney’s was slower and more closely aligned with population growth.

“Western Sydney has spent years being talked about as Sydney’s growth corridor. Increasingly, it is becoming our business boom town.

“The entrepreneurs starting businesses here are not just working for themselves; they are building companies that go on to employ local people and support local communities.”

Business NSW CEO Daniel Hunter said NSW needed to focus on turning more entrepreneurs into employers.

“The goal shouldn’t just be more businesses. It should be more businesses that grow, employ people and create lasting economic opportunities. If we want more of that, we need to remove the barriers that make it harder for businesses to scale.”

The top 10 local government areas, ranked by percentage increase in businesses with employees between 2017 to 2025, adjusted for population, are:

1. Blacktown: 29.0 businesses per 1000 people (+17.8%)
2. Canterbury-Bankstown: 40.6 (+13.5%)
3. Hawkesbury: 55.1 (+13.2%)
4. Fairfield: 39.6 (+13.1%)
5. Bayside: 38.1 (+12.7%)
6. Randwick: 34.9 (+11.1%)
7. Canada Bay: 48.0 (+10.5%)
8. Hunters Hill: 50.2 (+10.2%)
9. Cumberland: 39.0 (+9.9%)
10. Liverpool: 35.2 (+9.5%)

The bottom 10 are:

1. Sutherland Shire: 42.5 businesses per 1,000 people (+3.6%)
2. Georges River: 39.0 (+2.0%)
3. Hornsby: 37.6 (+1.6%)
4. Lane Cove: 44.0 (+0.3%)
5. The Hills Shire: 51.2 (-0.5%)
6. Ku-ring-gai: 42.6 (-0.6%)
7. North Sydney: 81.0 (-0.6%)
8. Strathfield: 51.9 (-2.6%)
9. Mosman: 45.6 (-2.8%)
10. Burwood: 43.6 (-9.0%)

About Business NSW

Formerly the NSW Business Chamber, Business NSW is the peak policy and advocacy body which has been representing businesses in NSW since 1826. We represent almost 50,000 businesses.