Statistics of companies in UK

Companies population in United Kingdom

The following statistics consists of data of 9,515,855 companies registered in United Kingdom.
Last update of company data was on 27/05/2023.

Companies location and business activity breakdown in United Kingdom

The region with the highest number of companies - 2,792,242 is London. Northern Ireland has the lowest number of companies - 118,262. The top three most frequently registered business activities are Science - 14.1%, Wholesale, retail - 13.0% and Administrative - 10.5%.

Number of companies by region 9,334,474 companies with data in United Kingdom

London
2,792,242
29.3%
South East
1,222,314
12.8%
North West
952,383
10.0%
East
839,507
8.8%
West Midlands
753,763
7.9%
South West
597,009
6.3%
Yorkshire and the Humber
556,182
5.8%
East Midlands
548,294
5.8%
Scotland
490,834
5.2%
Wales
295,276
3.1%
North East
168,408
1.8%
Northern Ireland
118,262
1.2%

Business activity overview 8,878,053 companies with data in United Kingdom

Science
1,337,655
14.1%
Wholesale, retail
1,236,411
13.0%
Administrative
995,881
10.5%
Construction
892,392
9.4%
ICT
849,465
8.9%
Real Estate
664,501
7.0%
Service
541,103
5.7%
Accommodation
499,386
5.2%
Health
411,618
4.3%
Manufacturing
394,972
4.2%
Transportation
348,953
3.7%
Dormant
322,601
3.4%
Financial
298,250
3.1%
Arts
257,260
2.7%
Education
204,699
2.2%
Home
148,450
1.6%
Agriculture
58,023
0.6%
Water
30,498
0.3%
Energy
29,694
0.3%
Public
25,098
0.3%
Mining
19,240
0.2%
Extraterritorial
3,523
0.0%

Industrial classification of companies in United Kingdom

The Standard Industrial Classification code (SIC code) is a system of classifying industries in UK by business activities. Each company can operate under multiple SIC codes. The top three business activities for the whole of the UK are Other business support service - 6.0%, Management consultancy exl. financial - 5.0% and Other letting and operating of own or leased real estate - 4.4%.

Distribution of companies by SIC CODE 8,878,053 companies with data in United Kingdom

Companies population incorporation and dissolution trend in United Kingdom

The highest number of incorporated companies in any one month is 84,744 in in March 2023. There are usually fewer dissolved companies than incorporated, the highest number recorded being for October 2020 - 98,996 companies were dissolved.

Incorporation and dissolution of companies by month United Kingdom

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Persons with significant control
in companies in United Kingdom

Persons with Significant Control (PSC) have been registered in Companies House since April 2016. PSC have various functions, e.g. ownership of shares or voting rights. In this section we analyse companies with at least one Person with Significant Control from a foreign country.

Top countries with local PSCs in companies in United Kingdom

The most popular country, as regards to PSC origin, is China. In May 2023, there were 25,624 companies with at least one PCS from China. Other popular countries are United States, Germany and Channel Islands.

Top 10 countries with local PSCs United Kingdom

Percentage of companies with foreign PSCs being incorporated each month in the United Kingdom

The highest proportion of companies with a foreign PSC to be incorporated in one month was in January 2023 - 10.25%. Since 2017 the number of dissolutions has exceeded the number of new incorporations. The highest proportion to be dissolved in one month was 7.75% was in November 2022. The low number of dissolutions in 2016 is the result of only a small number of companies registering their PSC in Company House in that year.

Percentage of companies with foreign persons (PSC) incorporated and dissolved each month United Kingdom