"Startup for Everyone": Local Track vs. Tech Track — Which Is Better for You?
We compare the eligibility and evaluation criteria of the 4,000-person general/tech track and the 1,000-person local track for "Startup for Everyone," and offer a framework for choosing the right track for your idea.
Startup for Everyone selects a total of 5,000 people—4,000 in the General/Tech track and 1,000 in the Local track—and the two tracks have different eligibility and evaluation criteria. The Tech track allows even companies within 3 years of founding to participate, while the Local track can only be applied for by prospective founders. With applications flooding in—510,000 cumulative visitors and 8,720 idea submissions as of April 16—track selection is the first variable that separates the acceptance rate (source: Bizinfo integrated recruitment notice, Newsis 2026.04.16).
How are the two tracks different?
The General/Tech track evaluates centered on the feasibility and market potential of technology-based ideas, while the Local track evaluates centered on creativity and innovativeness that leverage local resources and local value. The key difference is that the evaluation keywords and the competition pool differ.
| Category | General/Tech track | Local track |
|---|---|---|
| Selection size | 4,000 | 1,000 |
| Eligibility | Prospective founders + companies within 3 years of founding | Prospective founders only |
| Core evaluation | Technology-based innovativeness, market potential | Local resources, local value |
| Winner benefits | TOP 100 prize money, global/investment linkage | Commercialization support, mentoring, investment incentives |
(source: Bizinfo integrated recruitment notice, Korea Policy Briefing)
Even with the same item, the result changes depending on which track you're evaluated in. For example, "a D2C brand of processed foods using local agricultural products" scores weakly on innovativeness in the Tech track, but scores strongly on local value in the Local track.
How does the eligibility split?
The biggest difference in eligibility is how far you can apply if you've already registered a business. The Tech track accepts companies within 3 years of founding, but the Local track accepts only prospective founders (with no business registration).
Eligibility decision tree
- Already registered a business → only the Tech track is possible
- No business registration + technology-based idea → Tech track or Local track
- No business registration + local-value-based idea → the Local track is advantageous
When CoworkCity reviewed government support programs in its early days in 2022, the thing it had to decide fastest was the timing of business registration. Because the programs you can apply for shrink from the moment business registration is complete, for a program like Startup for Everyone with different eligibility by track, it's reasonable to decide on your track before registering.
How do the evaluation stages and competition intensity differ?
Both tracks use a stage-by-stage audition format, structured so that only those who pass each stage advance to the next round, with the scale of support gradually growing (source: Ministry of SMEs and Startups press release). The exact number of stages and the number of people who pass each stage are specified in the track-specific detailed notices on the Startup for Everyone official platform.
The Tech track also includes global expansion potential in its evaluation, so it has a longer and more complex follow-on structure, while the Local track is known to have a relatively shortened evaluation flow centered on potential for local settlement.
Comparing selection sizes alone, it's 4,000 in the Tech track vs. 1,000 in the Local track—a 4x difference. However, because of the applicant distribution (technology-based items tend to cluster more), a simple proportional competition-rate comparison means little; in practice, the fit between your item and the track's evaluation criteria is what separates the acceptance rate.
What kind of item suits the Tech track?
The Tech track evaluates technology-based innovativeness, scalability, and global expansion potential. Items in the following 6 areas are structurally advantageous.
- AI/software — LLM applications, SaaS, automation tools
- Deep tech — bio, robotics, quantum, space
- Hardware — IoT, sensors, mobility devices
- Platforms — B2B SaaS, marketplaces, API businesses
- Data-based — data analytics, MLOps, data infrastructure
- Existing industry + digital transformation — turning traditional industries into SaaS
In the Tech track, advancing a prototype or PoC (proof of concept) stage in advance earns bonus points. Since a global expansion package is included in the winner benefits, items that have overseas markets in mind from the start are advantageous in the evaluation.
What kind of item suits the Local track?
The Local track evaluates ideas directly connected to local resources, local culture, and local population problems. The following 6 areas are structurally advantageous.
- Local agriculture/fishery processing — local specialty D2C, processed food brands
- Local tourism — regional experiences, workations, local cultural content
- Solving local population problems — youth settlement, vacant-house utilization, local healthcare
- Local brands — region-based lifestyle and consumer goods
- Local education — education programs for local youth and teens
- Local resource circulation — utilizing local waste resources, eco-friendly manufacturing
The Local track's winner benefits center on commercialization support and local settlement incentives. The clearer the connection to the region, the easier it is to score in the evaluation.
Where is it advantageous for residents outside the metropolitan area?
The government announced it will select 70%+ of all Startup for Everyone participants from outside the metropolitan area (source: Korea Policy Briefing). Since this criterion applies to both tracks, residents outside the metropolitan area are structurally advantaged whichever track they choose.
That said, the weighting differs between the two tracks.
- The Local track is region-based by its own definition, so residents outside the metropolitan area fit more naturally
- The Tech track applies the 70% outside-metropolitan-area criterion, but the evaluation itself centers on technological innovativeness, so if your item is technology-based, the Tech track is advantageous regardless of where you live
Residents of metropolitan cities such as Busan, Daegu, and Gwangju can receive the outside-metropolitan-area bonus in both tracks. Moreover, placing your business registration address outside the metropolitan area lets you receive additional benefits like the young entrepreneur tax reduction of 100% (full 5-year exemption), so apart from track selection, it's advantageous to design your residence and business location together (basis: Article 6 of the Restriction of Special Taxation Act).
A track-selection decision frame at a glance
This is a frame for deciding the track that fits your item within 1 minute.
| Question | YES → | NO → |
|---|---|---|
| Have you already registered a business? | Tech track | Next question |
| Is your item based on AI/software/deep tech? | Tech track | Next question |
| Is your item directly connected to local resources/local culture? | Local track | Next question |
| Is global expansion a core goal? | Tech track | Local track |
If the result of passing through this frame conflicts with your intuition, the next validation step is to write the first line of your business plan for each track and compare which one is more powerful.
Wrapping up — Track selection separates the acceptance rate
Track selection isn't simply "which category to choose"—it's the work of determining the very evaluation criteria of your business plan. Even with the same item, a different track changes the keywords to emphasize, the figures to cite, and the competitors to compare against, all at once.
To make it into the final 5,000, the reasonable order is to first raise your acceptance potential at the track-decision stage, then realize that potential in writing the business plan. CoworkCity operates business registration addresses across over 180 branches nationwide, and at over 100 branches outside the metropolitan area it provides addresses where the young entrepreneur tax reduction of 100% applies. For applicants who've decided on the Local track, it becomes an option to design a local business registration address together.
Official materials
- Government official announcement: Korea Policy Briefing - discovering 5,000 people · Ministry of SMEs and Startups press release
- Recruitment notice: Bizinfo integrated recruitment notice
- Application platform: modoo.or.kr
- Basis for tax benefits: Article 6 of the Restriction of Special Taxation Act (Korean Law Information Center)
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Worth reading together
- Startup for Everyone 2026 complete guide — everything on selecting 5,000 people and up to 10 billion won in funding
- Startup for Everyone winning business plan — the 6 principles to make it into the 5,000
- Business registration after Startup for Everyone selection — the 4 steps to finish before receiving 2 million won
