Statistics of companies in UK
Companies population in Scotland
Number of companies in region Scotland is 605,340, which is 5.1% of all 11,923,021 companies in UK. Scotland is ranked 9th among 12 regions in the number of companies. Last update of company data was on 28/02/2026.
Companies location and business activity breakdown in Scotland
The region with the highest number of companies - 121,633 is Glasgow City. Orkney Islands has the lowest number of companies - 1,360. The top three most frequently registered business activities are Science - 14.7%, Wholesale, retail - 12.5% and Construction - 10.2%.
Number of companies by county 605,340 companies with data in Scotland
Business activity overview 548,791 companies with data in Scotland
Industrial classification of companies in Scotland
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 letting and operating of own or leased real estate - 5.3%, Other business support service - 5.1% and Management consultancy exl. financial - 4.5%.
Distribution of companies by SIC CODE 548,791 companies with data in Scotland
Companies population incorporation and dissolution trend in Scotland
The highest number of incorporated companies in any one month is 4,105 in in March 2023. There are usually fewer dissolved companies than incorporated, the highest number recorded being for January 2021 - 4,765 companies were dissolved.
Incorporation and dissolution of companies by month Scotland
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Persons with significant control
in companies in Scotland
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 Scotland
The most popular country, as regards to PSC origin, is Switzerland. In January 2026, there were 1,474 companies with at least one PCS from Switzerland. Other popular countries are Ukraine, United States and Russia.
Top 10 countries with local PSCs Scotland
Percentage of companies with foreign PSCs being incorporated each month in the Scotland
The highest proportion of companies with a foreign PSC to be incorporated in one month was in October 2022 - 4.22%. Since 2017 the number of dissolutions has exceeded the number of new incorporations. The highest proportion to be dissolved in one month was 7.14% was in October 2016. 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.
