North Central

Unique features, rankings and statistics

The youthful beating heart of the 13-county North Central region is Gainesville, its thriving urban center and home to the world famous University of Florida (UF).

Ranked in 2025 by U.S. News and World Report as the 7th best public university and 30th best higher education institutions among all public and private universities, UF's economic, academic, cultural and life sciences impact within the immediate region is profound.

Despite UF's huge presence, the North Central region is also known for its abundant natural features that include scenic rivers, natural springs, prairielands, numerous state parks and ecosystems.

Among the latter is the Devil's Millhopper Geological State Park in Alachua County that contains a 120-foot-deep, 500-foot-wide sinkhole that creates its own miniature rainforest ecosystem.

And there's the Paynes Prairie Preserve State Park, where wild bison and horses are protected and roam freely.

Bracketing Gainesville are Lake City to the north and Ocala to the south — known for its beautiful horse farms and rolling hills.

Often referred to as the Horse Capital of the World, Marion County is home to more horses and horse farms than any other county in the U.S. and is a historic and significant hub for thoroughbred breeding and training.

The World Equestrian Center in Ocala is a state-of-the-art facility that hosts premier international equestrian events.

To the north, Columbia County and its largest city, Lake City, occupy an area of the North Central region known for its natural beauty which includes the Ocala National Forest — the southernmost national forest in the continental U.S. The region also features the world-famous glass bottom boats and crystal-clear waters of Silver Springs State Park and nearby Rainbow Springs State Park.

Originally called Alligator, Lake City wisely changed its name in the late 19th century to promote the many natural lakes that surround it.

Lake City also has a thriving arts and culture scene, with several galleries and theaters throughout the town.

To the west of the North Central region lie the Big Bend counties of Taylor, Dixie and Levy.

Taylor County holds the distinction of having Florida’s longest undeveloped coastline — stretching 60 miles along the Gulf of Mexico. It’s also known as the state’s Tree Capital for its vast timber farms and forestry operations.

Levy County is home to the Manatee Springs State Park, a refuge and prime viewing spot for manatees. It also is known for Cedar Key, the coastal fishing village and one of the state's most emblematic and atmospheric Old Florida communities.

Economic growth

Key indicators of economic and job growth in Alachua County include steady increases in employment and a thriving life sciences sector, supported by the massive contributions from University of Florida. With more than 61,000 students and roughly 32,000 employees, the university accounts for nearly half of the Gainesville metro area's overall job market.

Alachua County's biotech industry has been a major economic engine. A notable example is Beacon Therapeutics, which is investing $120 million in the city of Alachua for research into preventing blindness.

What's more, the University of Florida's business incubator, UF Innovate, continues to bolster the local life sciences sector by supporting the growth of new companies. This program helps drive innovation and advance new technologies across the entire state.

In addition to the life sciences and research sectors, Alachua's strongest growth sectors include educational services, health care and social assistance, and lodging and food services.

Tourism, centered around Gainesville, also has a major impact, contributing more than $1 billion annually to the region's economy in 2025.

In addition to its nationally recognized equestrian industry, Marion County has a diverse and growing logistics and distribution sector, a strong manufacturing base, and a significant health care industry. Marion county also is known as a logistics hub and for the large number of small businesses centered around Ocala, its largest city.

Capping the northern end of the North Central Region's economy is Columbia County and Lake City, home to the North Florida Mega Industrial Park.

This 2,622-acre site is designed to attract manufacturing, distribution and logistics companies due to its strategic location near the intersection of I-10 and I-75 and its proximity to rail access. The industrial park has already attracted significant private capital investment and tenants, such as AgroLiquid's new fertilizer production facility

The region also is benefiting from recent investment in infrastructure development that has led to increased job opportunities and industry diversification.

Elsewhere in the North Central region, Union County has experienced strong economic growth over the past two years, with its gross domestic product growing by a robust 12.9% and total employment growing 2.6% in 2024 but slowing in 2025 with an economy that remains heavily dependent on agriculture and correctional institutions.

And Taylor County, anchoring the Big Bend region, is rebounding from the economic blow in 2023 when Georgia-Pacific closed its Foley Mill in Perry, resulting in the loss of some 500 jobs and the county's largest single employer.

Efforts to sell, or repurpose, the facility are ongoing.

Top industries

Alachua County and Gainesville are home to Florida's largest biotech cluster. Major players include AstraZeneca, Johnson & Johnson and Merck, as well as a strong presence of smaller and emerging companies supported by the University of Florida.

Other prominent companies in North Central Florida include medical implant specialist Exactech and a variety of innovative startups such as Applied Genetic Technologies and iOncologi.

Gainesville is also the epicenter of the region's major health care providers, which include UF Health Shands Hospital, widely recognized as the top hospital in Florida and among the nation's best health care facilities.

HCA Florida North Florida Hospital also contributes to the region's strong health care infrastructure.

Tech standouts include Optym, a transportation software development company, and COAST Systems, which provides technology solutions for mold asset management.

Also on the rise are Infotech, a software company, and Shadow Health, which offers software for advertising and custom development, and SharpSpring, a sales and marketing automation provider.

While Alachua and Gainesville constitute the region's largest cluster of IT, health care and life sciences companies, its sister city to the south, Ocala is home to a strong aerospace sector led by Lockheed Martin and food products industry standouts Frito-Lay and Kellanova.

On the manufacturing side, window manufacturer Pella is a major job producer in Ocala.

Columbia County and Lake City boast a relatively small but growing tech sector, led by companies such as ASG Technologies, a software and IT services company; Accusoft, a software developer; Citrix, which specializes in digital workspace solutions; and FIS, a financial technology firm offering integrated banking and payment management services.

Access to Capital

Gainesville's access to venture and investment capital is largely through the University of Florida.

UF Innovate Ventures is a program that provides startups with funding from a

$1 million venture fund. It also develops entrepreneurial talent and connects companies with potential investors.

Access to early-stage capital in Gainesville is strengthened by the Emergent Growth Fund, a member-managed angel investment group established in 2003. The fund focuses on innovative, high-growth startups — many emerging from the region's strong research community — providing critical seed and early-stage financing to help scale and commercialize new technologies.

Ocala's investment landscape is strong for certain sectors, but less robust for high-tech startups compared to Gainesville.

Ocala's strong real estate market is the main attraction for venture and investment capital projects. And the Ocala Metro Catalyst Fund is a nonprofit focused on expanding access to capital for underserved populations and businesses.

Lake City, one of the three most populous cities in the Region, has limited access to outside private-sector investment and relies more heavily on internal regional or statewide resources, along with traditional local banking sources.

Culture, Personality and Seasonality

It is no exaggeration to call Gainesville one of the country's great college towns.

The University of Florida's 60,000-plus students infuse the city and surrounding Alachua County metro area with a vibrant, diverse, progressive and outdoorsy atmosphere while lowering the average age of its residents to 31.5 years, among the lowest in Florida.

Gainesville also has a strong local music, arts and festival scene.

More famously, however, UF is a college sports powerhouse, having won 49 national championships across 15 men's and women's sports. In April 2025, UF became the first school in NCAA history to win three national championships in both men’s basketball and football.

The ever-popular fall football and winter basketball seasons in Gainesville are major drivers of the region's seasonal economies.

Outside the pulsing energy of the UF campus, the North Central region has a more quiet and largely rural and agricultural-based feel, populated by smaller Old Florida towns and communities such as Lake City, Live Oak and Silver Springs.

Along the largely undeveloped Big Bend coast lies the quaint fishing villages of Cedar Key, Horseshoe Beach and Steinhatchee.