Numbers of enterprises and local units produced from a snapshot of the Inter-Departmental Business Register (IDBR) taken on 14 March 2025.

This publication provides the only official government statistics that attempt to the estimate the total number of UK private sector businesses in the UK and their contribution to employment and turnover. Also provided is an estimate of the total number of businesses in the UK whole economy. The publication supercedes the publication 'Small and Medium-sized Enterprise Statistics for the UK and Regions'. National Statistics

In 2025, large businesses that employed 1,000 or more people had a combined turnover of over 1.76 trillion British pounds, the most of any business size displayed here.

In 2025, there were approximately 5.7 million private businesses operating in the United Kingdom, an increase when compared with the previous year, but down from a peak of 5.98 million businesses reported in 2020. There has been a net increase of around 2.2 million business enterprises since 2000, when there were 3.47 million. During the provided time period, the largest annual rise in the number of businesses occurred between 2013 and 2014, which saw a net increase of approximately 340,000 private enterprises. Employment in the UK Of the almost 34 million people employed in the UK in 2025 almost 28 million are employed in the private sector, highlighting their key role in the UK economy. Additionally, a significant share of the UK workforce are employed by around 4,000 large companies which employ over 500 people. In 2024, large companies employed over 9.65 million people, despite only composing a fraction of the total number of UK private enterprises. During the same time period, the UK public sector employed around 6.1million people, approximately 17.9 percent of the workforce. Retail and wholesale dominate Over 4.9 million people were employed in retail and wholesale in the UK in 2024, the most of any sector. After the retail sector, administrative, and support service businesses were the next biggest employer, at just over 3.09 million people. Retail and wholesale enterprises were also responsible for the highest combined turnover of UK businesses, at more than 1.8 trillion British pounds. The sector with the most enterprises, was the construction sector with over 870,000 enterprises belonging to this industry in 2024.

UK estimates of annual research and development (R&D) spending by UK businesses.

Scottish Annual Business Statistics includes detailed data on employees, turnover, gross value added, labour costs and other financial data. Data are shown by industry sector, local authority area and ownership. Source agency: Scottish Government Designation: National Statistics Language: English Alternative title: Scottish Annual Business Statistics

Findings of the Small Business Survey on the performance of small and medium-sized businesses with employees and with no employees. Official Statistics

Indicator : UK Business CountTheme : BusinessSource : Office for National Statistics (ONS) - UK Business CountsFrequency : AnnualDefinition : Snapshot of March each year data - enterprises that had either turnover or employment. This dataset covers the Black Country area by sector between 2010-2023.Latest Period : 2023Released : September 2023Next Update : To be announcedLink:https://www.ons.gov.uk/businessindustryandtrade/business/activitysizeandlocation/bulletins/ukbusinessactivitysizeandlocation/2023

In 2025, although just 0.2 percent of businesses in the UK were large-sized enterprises, they accounted for 40 percent of employment, and almost half of overall business turnover.

In 2025, there were estimated to be around 3.18 million business sites, or local units for VAT/PAYE based enterprises in the United Kingdom, compared with 3.17 million in the previous year.

In 2025, there were approximately **** million small and medium-sized enterprises operating in the United Kingdom. Micro-sized enterprises that employ up to nine people constitute the majority of SMEs in the UK, at over *** million. Enterprises that have between 10 and 49 employees are classed as small enterprises, and numbered around ******* in the UK, while there were ****** medium-sized enterprises. Business landscape dominated by SMEs As of this year, the vast majority of business enterprises in the UK were SMEs, accounting for almost ** percent of private sector employment, and just over half of its collective turnover. Over ******* SMEs were based in the construction sector, with a further ******* in the professional, scientific, and technical activities sector. SMEs in wholesale and retail trade employed more people than both these sectors, however, at around **** million people. In terms of turnover Outlook for SMEs in 2025 Towards the end of 2024, ** percent of SMEs surveyed advised that increasing costs would be the main obstacle to running an SME in 2025, with a further ** percent indicating that the current economic climate would also be an obstacle. Higher than expected inflation, as well as tax increases for businesses, are just some of the challenges businesses are facing this year. Perhaps as a result, businesses have been shedding jobs for several months, with an increasing share of SMEs looking to either maintain current staffing levels, or to start cutting jobs.

Annual data on births, deaths and survival of businesses in the UK, by geographical area and Standard Industrial Classification 2007: SIC 2007 groups.

This publication is compiled from the Inter Departmental Business Register (IDBR) which contains information on VAT traders and PAYE employers in a statistical register. The publication contains tables on local units and enterprises by geography, industry, legal status and employment size band. Additional tables at enterprise level provide information by age of business and turnover size band. Source agency: Office for National Statistics Designation: National Statistics Language: English Alternative title: PA1003

The UK Business Data Survey (UKBDS), commissioned by the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, began in 2021. The survey is a telephone- and online-based quantitative and qualitative study of UK businesses. It gathers evidence on the importance and awareness of digital data use for UK businesses and seeks to understand the role of digital data in UK businesses, international transfers of data and activities undertaken for data protection compliance.

The 2022 UKBDS was the second time the survey had been carried out. The quantitative survey took place from November 2021 to February 2022 and the qualitative interviews were undertaken in February 2022. A number of questions asked of businesses were new to the 2022 survey.

Business births and deaths from the Inter-Departmental Business Register with high-level breakdowns by industry and region. Quarterly official statistics in development.