Tom Willis is an award-winning marketing leader and Co-founder of Lawpath. Tom’s journey journey includes steering several entrepreneurial projects and addressing the unique challenges faced by small businesses. As the Chief Marketing Officer at Lawpath, Tom has been pivotal in shaping the company’s marketing strategy and business growth.
The best cities to start a business in Tasmania in FY26, ranked by growth in new business registrations, are Southern Midlands, Sorell, Glenorchy, Launceston and West Tamar. Greater Hobart’s commuter belt and the Tamar Valley are doing most of the growing.
Picking where to base a business feels like a gut call, so most people default to wherever they already live. That leaves money on the table. Where a local economy is adding people, homes and infrastructure fastest is where new customers show up first, and the Lawpath New Business Index shows exactly where that is happening.
- Southern Midlands led Tasmania, with new registrations up 54.1%. They rose from 183 in FY25 to 282 in FY26 on the Lawpath New Business Index.
- Greater Hobart’s commuter belt dominates the top five. Southern Midlands, Sorell, Glenorchy and West Tamar all sit within an hour of Hobart or Launceston, and all four made the list.
- Tasmania’s registrations grew 33.6% in the last year alone. They climbed from about 6,366 in FY21 to 18,367 in FY26, a rise of 189% over five years.
- Volume and growth are different races. Glenorchy led the top five on sheer numbers with 1,943 new registrations, while Hobart recorded more at 2,563 but grew at a slower 30.4%.
- Most of these businesses are small. Across the top five, over half are non-employing sole operators, and construction or agriculture leads in four of the five areas.
How we ranked the top 5 cities to start a business in TAS
Two datasets sit behind this list. The first is the Lawpath New Business Index, which tracks new business registrations by postcode across Australia and rolls them up to local government areas. The second is the Australian Bureau of Statistics Counts of Australian Businesses, released in December 2025, which counts every operating business by industry, staff numbers and turnover.
We took every TAS local government area with at least 250 new registrations in FY26, then ranked them by year-on-year growth. The floor keeps the list to genuine cities and larger centres, rather than small shires that can post big percentages off a low base.
We then cross-checked each area against the ABS count of active businesses. One caveat worth naming: registrations are recorded against a business owner’s address postcode, while the ABS counts businesses by their main operating location. In fast-growing outer areas that can push annual registrations close to or above the ABS active count, so read the two figures as complementary rather than identical.
The 5 fastest-growing places to start a business in TAS (FY26)
| # | City / LGA | Region | New businesses FY26 | YoY growth | 5-yr growth | Active (ABS 2025) | Top industry |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Southern Midlands | Southern Midlands | 282 | +54.1% | +220% | 584 | Agriculture |
| 2 | Sorell | Southern Beaches | 406 | +43.5% | +266% | 1,107 | Construction |
| 3 | Glenorchy | Greater Hobart | 1,943 | +41.0% | +248% | 3,324 | Transport & warehousing |
| 4 | Launceston | Northern Tasmania | 847 | +40.7% | +276% | 6,104 | Construction |
| 5 | West Tamar | Tamar Valley | 328 | +36.7% | +138% | 1,770 | Construction |
Wherever you land on this list, getting started is quick. You can register an ABN in about a day, or register a company and have your ACN in minutes.
The 5 fastest-growing places to start a business in TAS, in detail
1. Southern Midlands: the Midland Highway corridor
Southern Midlands led Tasmania, with new registrations up 54.1% to 282. This rural council 30 to 60 minutes north of Hobart runs on the Midland Highway and the towns of Bagdad, Kempton, Oatlands and Campania, where subdivisions approved in recent years have kept construction crews busy through FY26. Commuters priced out of Hobart and Brighton are the main driver, with the area still built on a wool and viticulture economy that tourism is now adding to.
Southern Midlands Council is finalising a 30-year Bagdad-Mangalore Structure Plan to guide housing, roads and township growth in its fastest-growing valley, alongside continued subdivision approvals at Kempton and Oatlands. For a new business, that means trades, agriculture services and small-format retail all have room to grow as the population base thickens along the highway.
2. Sorell: Tasmania’s fastest-growing council for two decades running
Sorell grew 43.5% to 406 new registrations. Twenty-five kilometres from Hobart on the Eastern Shore, it has recorded the highest rate of population growth of any Tasmanian council between 2001 and 2023, and council expects that trend to continue. Most of the available residentially zoned land in the township has already been built out, which is now pushing growth into new release areas.
Sorell Council has confirmed the Sorell East Growth Area, a 160-hectare site south of the Arthur Highway approved to deliver up to 2,000 new homes and a population increase of 3,200 to 4,500 people through to 2034, backed by a new K-12 school and community precinct. Construction, retail fit-out and household services are the clearest openings as the growth area comes online.
3. Glenorchy: the Technopark city rebuilding its centre
Glenorchy grew 41.0% to 1,943 new registrations, the largest volume in the top five. Once Tasmania’s manufacturing heartland, Glenorchy has diversified into professional services, arts and tourism, helped by its location next to MONA. Around $1.5 billion in development is on the books across the municipality, including the Wilkinsons Point precinct and the Hobart Showgrounds redevelopment.
Council’s Greater Glenorchy plan is rebuilding the civic heart of Glenorchy CBD with small business activation grants, while the Tasmanian Technopark continues to anchor engineering, technology and science-based firms 15 minutes from the Hobart CBD. Manufacturing, logistics, professional services and hospitality all have an established base to plug into here.
4. Launceston: the university city remaking its centre
Launceston grew 40.7% to 847 new registrations. Northern Tasmania’s commercial hub is in the middle of the $536 million Launceston City Deal, the state’s first agreement of its kind, and the University of Tasmania’s $304 million relocation of its main campus to Inveresk in the inner city, expected to bring 10,000 students to the precinct by 2032.
The Tasmanian Government’s new Northern Economic Plan adds the $120 million Launceston Heart Centre, upgrades to UTAS Stadium and a Launceston Convention Centre to the pipeline, on top of $84 million already committed to Tamar Valley highway upgrades. Health, education, hospitality and construction all sit close to this level of public investment.
5. West Tamar: Legana’s 20-year growth plan
West Tamar grew 36.7% to 328 new registrations. Centred on Legana and Riverside, just across the river from Launceston, the council has been named one of Tasmania’s fastest-growing areas for several years and expects its population to grow by up to 7,300 people by 2046, requiring 130 to 160 new homes a year.
Council has adopted the West Tamar Growth Strategy and a new Legana Town Centre and Township Structure Plan, opening up expansion areas for retail, commercial space and up to 1,000 new homes at Bulman’s Brook. Construction, health services and hospitality are the practical entry points as Legana’s town centre expands.
Notable mentions: big volume, steadier growth
Growth rate rewards the fast movers, but volume matters too. These three areas record the most new businesses in Tasmania by a wide margin. They grew more slowly than the top five, yet each remains one of the largest markets in the state to launch into.
Hobart
Hobart recorded the most new registrations in the state, 2,563, but grew a more modest 30.4%. The capital is in the early stages of the $1.13 billion Macquarie Point Stadium, cleared by parliament in late 2025 as the condition of the Tasmania Devils entering the AFL in 2028, alongside the council’s own City Economy Strategy to grow the CBD. Scale, not growth rate, is the draw.
Clarence
Clarence had 1,903 new registrations, up 33.8%. Hobart’s Eastern Shore economic gateway sits beside Hobart International Airport and is home to Eastlands, the largest shopping centre in Tasmania, with a resident population near 63,000 and its own 2025-2035 Strategic Plan targeting housing growth at Cambridge and Lindisfarne. A deep, established market rather than a frontier.
Burnie
Burnie logged 849 new registrations, up 36.1%. Tasmania’s largest general cargo port on the North West Coast is midway through the $145 million Burnie Export Gateway redevelopment, expanding capacity for minerals, forestry and container exports, and was chosen as the site for one of Australia’s first large-scale e-fuels facilities. Freight, logistics and trade services back a working port economy.
Why TAS is a strong state for new businesses
Tasmania added more new businesses in FY26 than in any prior year on record. Registrations rose 33.6%, and over five years they have nearly tripled, up 189% since FY21. It is the smallest state economy in the country, but among the fastest-growing on this measure.
Two forces sit underneath that. The first is people. Tasmania’s Population Growth Strategy has driven the fastest sustained population growth the state has recorded in decades, reaching its 2030 population target eight years early, with growth concentrated in and around Hobart and Launceston.
The second is Greater Hobart’s commuter ring. The Tasmanian Government’s Greater Hobart Plan is coordinating land release and infrastructure across Clarence, Glenorchy, Hobart and Kingborough, while Sorell, Southern Midlands and West Tamar absorb the overflow of buyers priced out of the capital and Launceston.
What the index shows about where new businesses are going
Because the index tracks registrations as they happen, it surfaces a pattern worth knowing before you pick a spot. Growth is spreading out from the capitals, not concentrating in them. Hobart still records the most registrations in absolute terms, but it grew 30.4% while its commuter belt in Sorell, Southern Midlands and West Tamar grew closer to 40% to 55%.
The fast movers share a profile: available land, new housing releases and proximity to a capital. That is why construction or agriculture tops the business count in four of the five areas, and why the ring around Hobart and Launceston has outpaced the cities themselves. If you want an early read on the next wave of local demand, watch where councils are releasing new residential land.
How to actually start your business once you have picked a place
Choosing the location is the strategic bit. Setting up is the admin bit, and it is quicker than most people expect.
Start with your structure. Most people begin as a sole trader for its simplicity, then move to a company once income or risk grows. Our guide on sole trader versus company walks through the trade-offs. The short version: a company caps your personal liability but adds reporting.
From there the steps are straightforward. Get an ABN, then register a business name if you are trading under anything other than your own name. If you are setting up a company, you can register a company online and receive your ACN in minutes, with the ASIC registration fee sitting at $636 for FY26. You will also need to register for GST once your turnover reaches $75,000. It does not usually matter which state you register a company in, because a company operates nationally, a point we cover in choosing where to register.
If you would rather have a person check your setup, you can hire a lawyer for a quick consult before you commit.
Frequently asked questions
What is the best city to start a business in Tasmania in FY26?
On growth in new registrations, Southern Midlands led Tasmania at 54.1% year on year, followed by Sorell at 43.5% and Glenorchy at 41.0%. The best city for you depends on your industry and customers, but Greater Hobart’s commuter belt dominates the top five.
Why is Sorell growing so fast?
Sorell has recorded the highest rate of population growth of any Tasmanian council for two decades. It sits 25 kilometres from Hobart, offers relative affordability, and has just opened the 160-hectare Sorell East Growth Area for up to 2,000 new homes.
Which Tasmanian area has the most new businesses?
By sheer volume, Hobart leads with 2,563 new registrations in FY26, followed by Clarence and Burnie. Within the top five by growth, Glenorchy had the most at 1,943.
How much does it cost to register a company in Tasmania?
The ASIC fee to register a proprietary company is $636 from 1 July 2026. Service providers add their own fee on top. Registering a business name is cheaper, at $47 for one year or $108 for three years through ASIC.
Do I need to register my company in the state where I operate?
No. A company registered with ASIC operates Australia-wide, so the state you register in does not restrict where you trade. What matters more is where your customers, premises and staff are located.
What industries are growing fastest in these areas?
Construction leads the business count in three of the five areas, reflecting housing and infrastructure investment around Hobart and Launceston. Agriculture leads in Southern Midlands, and health, hospitality and logistics are also expanding across the commuter ring.
Is it better to start a business in regional Tasmania or Hobart?
Both work, for different reasons. Regional councils like Sorell, Southern Midlands and West Tamar offer cheaper premises and fast-growing local demand. Hobart and Launceston offer larger customer bases and major projects like the Macquarie Point Stadium and Launceston City Deal. Three of the top five sit outside the capitals.
Are most new businesses in Tasmania small?
Yes. Across the top five areas, more than half of businesses have no employees, and only a small share turn over more than $2 million a year. Starting small is the norm, not the exception.
Where to from here
You do not need to pick the perfect city to succeed, and no ranking replaces knowing your own customers. What the FY26 data gives you is a head start: a clear view of where people, homes and money are moving in TAS, so you can plant your business in front of the demand instead of chasing it.
When you are ready to make it official, register your company with Lawpath and get your ACN in minutes.
