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All businesses

Filter by capital, district and kind of work. Every number uses the same units, so you can compare businesses side by side.

267 businesses

Light manufacturing & workshop

Nakshi kantha embroidery

Hand-embroidered layered quilts. In Jamalpur one kantha costs Tk 1,600-1,800 including wages, goes to Dhaka wholesalers at Tk 2,000, and sells in Dhaka shops for Tk 4,000-5,000.

Capital
৳20k – ৳2 lakh
People
1 – 25
First income
30 – 365 days
Editorial estimate
Agriculture & farming

Plain-land tea growing

Growing tea on flat land, plucking green leaf and selling it to factories for cash. The fixed rate in March 2026 was Tk 28 a kg with the market at Tk 34-35, but up to 40 percent can be cut off the weight.

Capital
৳1 lakh – ৳5 lakh
People
1 – 6
First income
730 – 1,095 days
Editorial estimate
Light manufacturing & workshop

Agarwood attar distilling

Soaking and boiling agarwood to draw off fragrant attar. Barlekha's Sujanagar has about 250 units, attar sells at Tk 6,000-10,000 a tola by grade, and nearly all of it is exported.

Capital
৳1.5 lakh – ৳10 lakh
People
3 – 15
First income
2,555 – 10,950 days
Editorial estimate
Light manufacturing & workshop

Computer embroidery unit

Machine-stitching thread designs onto cloth as a job for others. The customers are cap factories, boutiques and saree workshops. What takes fifteen days by hand, the machine does in hours.

Capital
৳3 lakh – ৳12 lakh
People
2 – 30
First income
30 – 90 days
Market quote
Agriculture & farming

Poultry and duck hatchery

Setting eggs in an incubator and selling day-old chicks to farmers. Ducklings cost Tk 30-35 and sell at Tk 72-75, but chicken chick prices swing from Tk 25 to Tk 85 and back to Tk 5 within months.

Capital
৳50k – ৳8 lakh
People
2 – 15
First income
28 – 60 days
Market quote
Agriculture & farming

Dairy cattle farm

Rearing milch cows and selling milk daily. Milk Vita pays Tk 45-47 a litre and the open market about Tk 55, against a farmer-stated cost of roughly Tk 32.5 a litre. Output halves for three monsoon months.

Capital
৳2.5 lakh – ৳12 lakh
People
1 – 6
First income
7 – 60 days
Editorial estimate
Home & local services

Sound and light rental

Buying mics, sound boxes and lights and hiring them out by the day. A one-day mic hire with vehicle was Tk 1,200 in Bhermara, of which Tk 500 is the equipment. Written permission is now required under the 2025 noise rules.

Capital
৳1 lakh – ৳4.5 lakh
People
1 – 4
First income
7 – 30 days
Editorial estimate
Agriculture & farming

Rooftop farming and nursery

Growing plants in pots on the roof and selling seedlings. A small plant is Tk 50 while cactus and ferns reach Tk 1,200-5,000, and the pot, soil and fertiliser carry more money than the plant itself.

Capital
৳5k – ৳80k
People
1 – 2
First income
60 – 180 days
Editorial estimate
Agriculture & farming

Pigeon and bird rearing

Rearing pigeons on a roof or in a yard with no land at all. A pair sells for Tk 500-5,000 at Bhojeshwar hat, and one Jashore farmer's 400 birds cost Tk 20,000 a month to keep against Tk 30,000-35,000 of sales.

Capital
৳15k – ৳1.5 lakh
People
1 – 2
First income
45 – 75 days
Editorial estimate
Light manufacturing & workshop

Water hyacinth and hogla handicraft

Drying water hyacinth and weaving it into trays, baskets and doormats. In Jhenaidah 800 women do this at home at Tk 20 a piece, 12-15 pieces a day, about Tk 3,000 a month, and the goods go to 82 countries.

Capital
৳1k – ৳40k
People
1 – 5
First income
7 – 30 days
Editorial estimate
Home & local services

Sewing and handicraft training

Teaching sewing and handicraft on a few machines at home. The fee comes at the start of the course, but the government runs six-month trade courses for Tk 300-1,000, and that is the price to beat.

Capital
৳15k – ৳2 lakh
People
1 – 3
First income
30 – 90 days
Editorial estimate
Home & local services

Private tuition and home tutoring

Teaching at the student's home or in your own room for a monthly fee per student, with almost no capital. More than three-quarters of Bangladeshi students use a private tutor or coaching centre.

Capital
৳500 – ৳8k
People
1
First income
7 – 45 days
Editorial estimate
Food processing

Home kitchen selling online

Cooking pickles, pitha and meals at home and selling them through a Facebook page. A jar of pickle sells for Tk 150-465, and the 2026 food safety rules now require packaged-food registration at Tk 1,000 for three years.

Capital
৳5k – ৳60k
People
1 – 3
First income
7 – 30 days
Editorial estimate
Digital & B2B services

Web development and IT service

Building and running websites for local clients. A simple site is Tk 8,000-15,000, e-commerce Tk 16,000-25,000, with maintenance at Tk 3,000-8,000 a month.

Capital
৳40k – ৳2 lakh
People
1 – 8
First income
10 – 35 days
Editorial estimate
Home & local services

Home repair and handyman service

Small repairs at home - fans, wiring, taps and pipes, furniture. A job on a platform runs Tk 300-805, but the platform's commission rate can go up to 30 percent.

Capital
৳5k – ৳60k
People
1 – 3
First income
3 – 30 days
Editorial estimate
Home & local services

Pest control service

Controlling insects and rodents in homes, restaurants and warehouses. Annual contracts make the income predictable, and the work is illegal without a licence.

Capital
৳50k – ৳3 lakh
People
2 – 6
First income
15 – 60 days
Editorial estimate
Retail & wholesale

Fruit wholesale arot

Unloading truckloads of fruit and selling by the crate to retail shops. Badamtoli turns over about Tk 40 crore a day, and opening a crate can show 25-33 percent rotten.

Capital
৳5 lakh – ৳40 lakh
People
2 – 10
First income
30 – 90 days
Editorial estimate
Retail & wholesale

Onion and garlic storage trading

Buying cheap at harvest, storing, and selling when prices rise. But 25-30 percent of the country's onion rots for want of storage, and local onion fell 30 percent in twelve months.

Capital
৳70k – ৳4.7 lakh
People
1 – 4
First income
90 – 250 days
Editorial estimate
Digital & B2B services

Overseas manpower recruiting agency

A licensed agency sending workers abroad. A new licence needs a Tk 35 lakh security deposit plus about Tk 4 lakh in fees, and doing this work without a licence carries up to five years in jail.

Capital
৳39 lakh – ৳50 lakh
People
3 – 12
First income
730 – 1,095 days
Editorial estimate
Digital & B2B services

Medical tourism support

Arranging appointments, visas, tickets and stay for patients travelling abroad for treatment. There is no separate licence, but a travel agency registration certificate is required, valid three years.

Capital
৳1.5 lakh – ৳12 lakh
People
1 – 6
First income
30 – 120 days
Editorial estimate
Light manufacturing & workshop

Interior design and fitout

Project work designing and building out flats, offices and shops. Materials are bought up front while payment comes in stages, so unpaid balances are the main risk.

Capital
৳1.5 lakh – ৳20 lakh
People
2 – 25
First income
15 – 90 days
Editorial estimate
Light manufacturing & workshop

Book publishing and printing

Turning a manuscript into a printed book and getting it to market. White writing paper is Tk 34-40 per dista, and keeping a press requires a declaration before the District Magistrate.

Capital
৳2 lakh – ৳50 lakh
People
2 – 20
First income
60 – 240 days
Editorial estimate
Home & local services

Diagnostic centre

A centre for blood tests, X-ray and ultrasonogram. It needs a DGHS licence, with an annual fee of Tk 15,000-50,000 by category and location.

Capital
৳8 lakh – ৳1.5 crore
People
3 – 15
First income
90 – 365 days
Editorial estimate
Retail & wholesale

Model pharmacy

A DGDA-accredited pharmacy. 300 sq ft, air-conditioning, a pharmacy-grade fridge and a Grade A pharmacist are compulsory; the drug licence runs two years.

Capital
৳5 lakh – ৳25 lakh
People
2 – 5
First income
45 – 180 days
Editorial estimate