The businesses of Christchurch

7,301 premises the public record names, across 283 kinds and 111 suburbs, what each one is, where it is, and which source lists it.

Eat & drink

Restaurants 980 Fast food 770 Cafés 611 Bars & pubs 262 Bottle stores 201 Delis 97 Bakeries 76 Wineries 39 Butchers 27 Fruit & veg 18 Caterers 17 Ice cream 12

5 more kinds: the long tail, still counted

Shopping

Clothing 260 Dairies & convenience 151 Supermarkets 135 Car dealers 67 Gift shops 52 Shoes 50 Bike shops 37 Op shops 37 Department stores 35 Jewellery 34 Markets 34 Furniture 31

115 more kinds: the long tail, still counted

Services

Business 270 Hairdressers 132 Petrol stations 94 Car repair 83 Beauty 62 Company 48 Banks 38 Real estate 33 ATMs 30 Car washes 23 Government 22 Laundromats 18

84 more kinds: the long tail, still counted

Health

Doctors & clinics 138 Pharmacies 71 Dentists 42 Vets 25 Physio 18 Centre 14 Opticians 14 Alternative 13 Audiologists 12 Optometrists 9 Clinic 3

9 more kinds: the long tail, still counted

Stay

Motels 174 Hotels 92 B&Bs 68 Hostels 41 Campgrounds 28 Guest houses 20 Apartments 3

Going out

Attractions 154 Clubs 108 Venues & events 80 Sports centres 63 Gyms & fitness 62 Galleries 44 Cinemas & theatres 32 Golf courses 19 Museums 19 Mini golf 8 Arcades 7 Escape rooms 3

4 more kinds: the long tail, still counted

Straight from the gate

Farm 18 · the listed farm gate: buy where it grows
Fruit & veg 18 · the greengrocers and fruit stalls
Markets 34 · the markets: farmers’ ones included
Raw milk the farms still pouring at the gate

Skip the shop, the sellers the record names for buying where it’s grown.

What the record says

In the central city

21.1%

1,537 premises

Liquor licences

985

on 935 premises

Heritage-listed sites

282

ECan consents

709

on 545 premises, the roll →

Never close

open 24 hours

Restaurants are the most common listing, 980 of 7,301 businesses (13.4%).
Christchurch Central City has the most businesses on the record, 1,537 of 7,301 (21.1%). Next: Riccarton 446, Sydenham 371, Upper Riccarton 253, Hornby 234.
Christchurch Central City has 265 restaurants, 27% of the city's 980. the kind →
Christchurch Central City has 150 fast food listings, 19.5% of the city's 770. the kind →
Most common cuisines: Fish and chips 125, Burger 82, Coffee shop 78, Indian 70, Pizza 66, Chinese 61, Thai 41, Sushi 41.
Christchurch Central City is the city's most diverse food suburb, 66 distinct cuisines on the record. the suburb →
74 cuisines appear on three or fewer listings each, the rare end of the city's food map.
The oldest business on the record is Hagley Golf Club in Christchurch Central City, opened 1873. the record →
935 premises hold 985 liquor licences, 12.8% of the record.
98 businesses never close, 36 petrol stations, 20 gyms & fitness, 9 ATMs, 8 fast food listings.
282 businesses sit on heritage-listed sites.
545 premises have 709 ECan consents between them.
The median business sits 3.7 km from Cathedral Square; the furthest is Mount Hutt Ski Field (89.8 km).
1,992 listings are directory leads awaiting confirmation, 27.3% of the record.

The record behind this

Three public sources, merged by name and proximity: OpenStreetMap’s named premises (the freshest, mapper-maintained), the council’s licensed-premises register (current by law, an expired licence is not a licence, checked October 2026), and the council’s Find Christchurch business directory (rich but frozen around March 2024).

A listing is a lead, not proof a business still trades, 1,992 entries rest on the 2024 directory alone and say so on their pages. Business data © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL); council data under CC BY 4.0. This page as markdown: /businesses.md.

Elsewhere: outbid.nz: the top bid puts your site on a New Zealand region.

Questions, answered briefly

How many businesses does Christchurch have?

7,301 premises in this directory, across 283 kinds, a directory of record, not a count of everyone trading.

Where does the business directory come from?

Three lists: OpenStreetMap (what mappers have drawn), the council’s licensed-premises register (current by law), and the Find Christchurch council directory (~March 2024). 1,992 entries rest on the directory alone, a listing is a lead, not proof a business still trades.