The latest annual edition of best cities to do business in Brazil includes eight in Ceará among the top 100. The capital, Fortaleza, appears in four categories in the listings, including education and real estate, while Maracanaú ranks as the fourth-best city for industry in Brazil.
Best cities to do business in Brazil
The latest Urban Systems rankings of the top cities in Brazil for business look at 319 municipalities with over 100,000 inhabitants and rank them according to business categories. They include industry, services, agribusiness, education and real estate.
The top 100 cities offer the best general conditions of supply and demand and infrastructure.
This year’s data includes updated population statistics from the 2022 census. As a result, many cities were excluded from the survey because their population had fallen below 100,000. Others, such as Rio de Janeiro and Porto Alegre, dropped in the rankings because of their loss of inhabitants.
Sao Paulo reigns supreme
In the 2024 edition, Brazil’s financial capital stands out as the best city to do business in Brazil. Sao Paulo heads four categories this year, compared to two in 2023. In 2024, it's top for education, commerce, services and real estate.
In the property sector, Urban Systems highlights Sao Paulo's buoyant commercial real estate market, with its office sector enjoying low vacancy rates. The high office occupation contrasts with many global cities, currently struggling to attract companies back into central business districts.
Rankings for Ceará cities
As a result of the updated population data, eight cities in Ceará feature in the rankings this year. The best in the state to do business in Brazil are Fortaleza, Caucaia, Crato, Itapipoca, Juazeiro do Norte, Maracanaú, Maranguape and Sobral.
Fortaleza top of the table
Unsurprisingly, the capital of Ceará appears the most in the ranking. Fortaleza features in four categories, including education and real estate.
In education, it ranks tenth best in the country; in real estate, Fortaleza sits in eighth position. Juazeiro do Norte also appears among the 100 best cities to do business in Brazil in the property category.
Maracanaú fourth best for industry
The highest-ranking city in Ceará in any category is Maracanaú. This municipality, located south of Fortaleza, takes fourth position in industry. This category looks at medium to high employment roles in the sector, average salaries, industrial exports and the distance from infrastructure such as airports and ports.
Ceará top in the world for energy
Ceará also shines in the Bright Cities list of best in the world for smart technology. This list compares over 36,000 cities globally and ranks them according to categories such as renewable energies and smart systems.
In the energy category, Ceará dominates the top ten, with eight locations in the state occupying positions, including Potengi at number one. This dominance reflects the huge investment in renewables in Ceará, a sector with enormous potential, particularly in the field of green hydrogen.
(Source: Urban Systems, Bright Cities)
