Startup Guide Amsterdam
4 min read
msterdam has become a hub for creative and tech-savvy types from all over the world. Looking for a place to work? Well, you’ve come to the right place.
Amsterdam is known for its quaint canals, bicycle-friendly roads and unmissable coffee culture, but this isn’t all the city has to offer. Amidst the flurry of tourists, expats and locals are a number of startups that call the city home. Here, we take a look at the top ten places for these businesses to get work done.
Need more info? You can find these spaces in our Startup Guide Amsterdam book, which were voted on by the local community.
📍Overhoeksplein 2, 1031 KS Amsterdam
Located in the north of Amsterdam, just across the river from the city’s Central Station, A Lab is a coworking space designed for creative experiments and collaboration on projects involving creativity, technical innovation and social relevance. Housed in the former Shell R&D Lab, A Lab maintains an industrial, yet cozy, aesthetic and is a space where everyone can feel at home.
📍Johan Huizingalaan 763a, 1066 VH Amsterdam
In 2014, three cofounders came together with the mutual desire to create a space for startups to kickstart their businesses. Today, their idea has blossomed into B. Amsterdam, which sprawls across four separate buildings: B.1, B.2, B.3 and B. Smart City Hub. Each building has a familiar industrial-style interior, graced by ample plants, low-hanging lights and warm wooden furniture and is kitted out with a mixture of office space, coworking space and flex desks.
Startups seeking luxury facilities should check out B.1. This space has a rooftop restaurant, cinema, coffee lounge and gym.
📍Fred. Roeskestraat 115, 1076 EE Amsterdam
Founded in 2015 by two Swedish entrepreneurs, Epicenter Amsterdam houses a growing cohort of digital companies and corporates. Here, the focus is all about community. Epicenter runs a number of events for members each month, including founder stories, masterclasses and workshops.
📍Linnaeusstraat 2C, 1092 CK Amsterdam
Codesigned by the local community, Impact Hub Amsterdam is a collaborative space with a social plaza, events rooms, workshops, talks and acceleration programs. Its open-plan setting and easy-going vibe provide the perfect backdrop for startups seeking to kickstart their ideas.
Since 2008, Impact Hub has helped more than 1000 entrepreneurs start and scale their impact businesses.
📍Nieuwezijds Voorburgwal 162, 1012 SJ, Amsterdam
Located smack in the middle of Amsterdam, Mindspace Dam, the company’s flagship space, plays host to an array of entrepreneurs, startups and businesses of all sizes. Inside, coworkers will find vibrant furniture, eclectic art and a palpably positive vibe.
The aptly-named space reflects the overarching mission of the coworking company: to help residents free up their mental space to make room for creativity.
📍Spuistraat 139F, 1012 SV Amsterdam
Step into rent24 and it’ll feel like you’re entering a living room. In addition to its comfy furnishings and homey vibe, rent24 has electric pink couches and contemporary wall art by media artist Damir Mumbasic.
Its premier spot in the Magna Plaza shopping mall has attracted an array of food and retail businesses through its doors. As such, rent24 has recently opened a food hall in the mall, where members can receive exclusive discounts and socialize together.
📍Herengracht 420, 1017 BZ Amsterdam
StartDock Amsterdam has made a promise to itself and its community: “We only create coworking spaces with historic character,” says Stephan van Eken, cofounder of StartDock.
Located in the Herengracht district in a UNESCO-protected building, the space has unbeatable canalside views. It also has easy access to Amsterdam’s premier shopping and transport hubs and is only a seven-minute walk from Leidseplein square. In addition to its standard coworking facilities, StartDock has a games room and garden space where events from business brunches to barbecues take place every month.
📍Science Park 608, 1098 XH Amsterdam
The Startup Village first opened its doors in 2016 in Amsterdam’s Science Park, which is home to the largest concentration of “beta science” (STEM) organizations in Europe. Startup Village is part of the ACE (Amsterdam Center for Entrepreneurship) Incubator, which supports innovation in the realms of science and tech.
The bustling campus-style space currently hosts about 40 companies, that focus on the sectors of digital technology, life sciences and sustainability. For startups seeking to rub shoulders with some of the finest scientific minds Amsterdam has to offer, the Startup Village is the place to be.
📍Singel 542, 1017 AZ Amsterdam
TQ was founded by the same team behind TNW Conference, the twice-yearly event of the
renowned technology website The Next Web. The aim was to connect talented individuals with startups and become a place for what Managing Director Sophie Op den Kamp calls “serendipitous encounters.”
TQ is housed in a light and airy canal-side building and is designed to encourage people to meet one another. As well as offering coworking space, a well-stocked bar and an all-important coffee machine, TQ Amsterdam provides indoor bicycle parking, BBQs, yoga, massages and haircuts.
📍Wibautstraat 150, 1091 GR Amsterdam
Volkshotel started out life as a newspaper building which was transformed by squatters into a bohemian hub for artists, DJs and photographers.
Situated in East Amsterdam, the beatnik hub can be found just a one-minute walk away from Wibautstraat metro station. Guests can work at the Volkshotel for free, where they can hang in work studios graced by plants and carmine industrial lighting. Not only that, but Volkshotel’s open mic nights, DJ sets and drawing sessions, with food and drink served until late, create an environment where anyone can hang out.
Just so you’re aware of how we selected these spaces in Amsterdam, we sorted through hundreds of nominations from the community before a local advisory board helped us curate the final list.
