A substantial portion of the population is engaged in various trades, notably in traditional handicrafts and small scale cottage industries and some residents work in agriculture. Lalitpur is the city in Nepal that has produced the highest number of renowned artists and finest craftsmen ever recorded in the history of Nepali art.
Patan has maintained a culture of craft work even in the face of rapid urbanization and many social and political upheavals.
The city is less urbanized than Kathmandu, north of the Bagmati river, but is home to many workshops, stores, restaurants, hotels, schools, embassies and other important sectors of the Kathmandu Valley economy.
Buddha Air has its headquarters in Jawalakhel, near Patan
