Regions of Netherlands (NUTS 2) by active enterprises, 2023

Zuid-Holland had the highest active enterprises of 12 regions in 2023, at 505,170. Zeeland had the lowest, at 42,349. The median was 119,224 and the figure for the Netherlands was 2.3 million. Source: Eurostat, European Commission.

Highest505,170Zuid-Holland

Lowest42,349Zeeland

Median119,22412 regions

Netherlands2,303,028History

All regions, 2023

count. Source: Eurostat, Business demography by size class and NUTS 3 region, industry, construction and market services, all size classes, enterprises, number (bd_size_r). Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Full ranking

Rank	Regions	2023 count	Change on 2022
1	Zuid-Holland	505,170	+5.9%
2	Noord-Holland	482,952	+4.4%
3	Noord-Brabant	329,053	+3.8%
4	Gelderland	257,706	+4.1%
5	Utrecht	200,842	+4.4%
6	Overijssel	123,785	+4.2%
7	Limburg (NL)	114,662	+3.3%
8	Friesland (NL)	73,162	+3.8%
9	Groningen	61,194	+3.9%
10	Flevoland	56,001	+6.4%
11	Drenthe	50,934	+2.9%
12	Zeeland	42,349	+3.9%

Other periods

2023
2022

About this ranking

Enterprises that had turnover or employment at any time during the year, with or without employees.

Counts enterprises, which can run several local units, under the harmonised Eurostat and OECD business demography rules. Not the same as active_companies (the INE business register count for Spain) or employer_firms (US firms with employees). For the UK it counts every enterprise active at some point in the year, so it differs from registered_enterprises_total (UK Business Counts), a snapshot of the register in March.

Every value in the ranking comes from the same publisher and the same period, so the regions are compared on one definition. Equal values share a rank.

How to cite

Eurostat. Business demography by size class and NUTS 3 region, industry, construction and market services, all size classes, enterprises, number (bd_size_r). https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/bd_size_r/default/table. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Citation styles

The publisher is the author. Invokely is named only as the place the figures were read, where a style asks for it.

APA 7

Eurostat, European Commission. (2026). Business demography by size class and NUTS 3 region, industry, construction and market services, all size classes, enterprises, number (bd_size_r) (Regions of Netherlands (NUTS 2) by active enterprises, 2023) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/bd_size_r/default/table

MLA 9

Business demography by size class and NUTS 3 region, industry, construction and market services, all size classes, enterprises, number (bd_size_r), Regions of Netherlands (NUTS 2) by active enterprises, 2023. Eurostat, European Commission, 13 Mar. 2026, https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/bd_size_r/default/table. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/active-enterprises/netherlands-regions. Accessed 12 Oct. 2026.

Chicago (author-date)

Eurostat, European Commission. 2026. Business demography by size class and NUTS 3 region, industry, construction and market services, all size classes, enterprises, number (bd_size_r). Regions of Netherlands (NUTS 2) by active enterprises, 2023. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/bd_size_r/default/table. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/active-enterprises/netherlands-regions.

Harvard

Eurostat, European Commission (2026) Business demography by size class and NUTS 3 region, industry, construction and market services, all size classes, enterprises, number (bd_size_r), Regions of Netherlands (NUTS 2) by active enterprises, 2023 [Dataset]. Available at: https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/bd_size_r/default/table, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/active-enterprises/netherlands-regions (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX

@misc{eurostat_regions_of_netherlands_nuts_2023,
  author = {{Eurostat, European Commission}},
  title = {{Business demography by size class and NUTS 3 region, industry, construction and market services, all size classes, enterprises, number (bd\_size\_r): Regions of Netherlands (NUTS 2) by active enterprises, 2023}},
  year = {2026},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/bd_size_r/default/table},
  urldate = {2026-10-12},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/active-enterprises/netherlands-regions. Publisher attribution: Eurostat. Business demography by size class and NUTS 3 region, industry, construction and market services, all size classes, enterprises, number (bd\_size\_r). https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/bd\_size\_r/default/table. Retrieved 2026-10-12.},
}

RIS

TY  - DATA
AU  - Eurostat, European Commission
TI  - Business demography by size class and NUTS 3 region, industry, construction and market services, all size classes, enterprises, number (bd_size_r): Regions of Netherlands (NUTS 2) by active enterprises, 2023
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/03/13
PB  - Eurostat, European Commission
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/bd_size_r/default/table
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/active-enterprises/netherlands-regions
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/active-enterprises/netherlands-regions.
N1  - Publisher attribution: Eurostat. Business demography by size class and NUTS 3 region, industry, construction and market services, all size classes, enterprises, number (bd_size_r). https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/bd_size_r/default/table. Retrieved 2026-10-12.
ER  -

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Questions

Which region has the highest active enterprises?

Zuid-Holland, with 505,170 in 2023, according to Eurostat, European Commission.

Which region has the lowest active enterprises?

Zeeland, with 42,349 in 2023.

Where does this ranking come from?

Every value comes from one source and one period, so the places are comparable: Eurostat, European Commission, Business demography by size class and NUTS 3 region, industry, construction and market services, all size classes, enterprises, number (bd_size_r). Retrieved 2026-10-12.