Atlanta is an amazing city for business. From its early start as a railroad terminus in 1837, Atlanta grew exponentially and today the state’s capital is one of the nation’s largest, most business friendly cities in the world.

Since 1996, Atlanta has ranked in the top five cities with the most Fortune 500 companies calling it home. Forbes magazine also recently ranked the state of Georgia sixth for doing business and Georgia’s gross state product was a whopping $329 billion in 2009.

Atlanta is headquarters to 12 Fortune 500 companies.

Twelve Fortune 500 and fifteen Fortune 1,000 companies are headquartered in Atlanta with the three largest and most notable being:

The Home Depot – the world’s largest home improvement specialty store.
United Parcel Service – the world leader in specialized transportation, logistics and package delivery.
The Coca-Cola Company – the world’s largest and best known soft drink company.

Some of the other great Fortune 500 companies which have established headquarters in the metro Atlanta area include Genuine Parts, NCR, ING Americas, Holiday Inn and Porsche Cars North America.

Atlanta Fortune 500 Companies

1. The Home Depot, Rank: 29
2. UPS, Rank: 43
3. The Coca-Cola Company, Rank:    72
4. Delta Air Lines, Rank: 84
5. Coca-Cola Enterprises, Rank: 113
6. Southern Company, Rank: 145
7. SunTrust Banks, Rank: 224
8. Genuine Parts, Rank: 236
9. First Data, Rank: 250
10. AGCO, Rank: 337
11. Newell Rubbermaid, Rank: 373
12. NCR, Rank: 451

Georgia Fortune 500 companies

AFLAC, Rank: 152
Mohawk Industries, Rank: 392
Source: Fortune magazine