This paper explores how external economies influence the survival of new, independent business establishments in the continental United States using a confidential, establishment-level dataset on new firm longevity. Industrial localization has a positive influence on new businesses survival in five of the eight industries examined. Regional industrial diversity is also beneficial to new firms in five study industries, particularly those that are more knowledge-intensive. The benefits of city size are limited to two study industries, with diseconomies of size found for an additional three.