The UK’s entrepreneurial spirit is thriving, with new research revealing that London and Cardiff lead the pack as the most entrepreneurial cities in the country.
New analysis from Instant Offices – a global workspace innovation company specialising in helping businesses find flexible office solutions – examined the number of new businesses launched from 2022 to 2024 relative to city populations.
Whilst there remains regional differences, entrepreneurship on the whole in the UK remains robust. Over 1 million new businesses have launched in the UK since 2022. This entrepreneurial surge reflects a growing trend of individuals taking the plunge to start new ventures, either as side hustles or full-time businesses.
Cardiff is home to the youngest entrepreneurs in the UK
Since 2022, Cardiff has seen just under 20,000 new businesses launched with a huge 30% of the entrepreneurs within the age 31-40 age group, and 39% are under 30. With a population of 488,153 – it shows 1 in 25 Cardiffians are entrepreneurs, tying it with the UK capital – London.
Birmingham follows in second place in relation to younger generations starting businesses with 32% of new entrepreneurs under the age of 30.
Ecommerce businesses are the most popular industry for new entrepreneurs in Cardiff, but there are other sectors in the Welsh capital that may benefit from support programs and initiatives. Earlier this year, in a joint venture between the Cardiff Capital Region and UK Shared Prosperity Fund the CCR Business Growth Programe was launched – offering 75 selected businesses the opportunity for bespoke mentoring, support and specialist training with seasoned business leaders.
Unsurprisingly, London ranks joint first with Cardiff
In tied first place was the UK capital; London. Similarly to Cardiff, with 1 in 25 people starting a business, and close to 400,000 new startups between 2022 and 2024.
Like Cardiff, ecommerce was the most popular industry for new startups, with the second most popular was ‘buying and selling of real estate’. In London’s booming property market, it may not be a surprise that real estate was one of the top industries for new entrepreneurs.
A Brunel University study showed that university galvanised budding entrepreneurs, and with 46% of Londoners holding an undergraduate degree – it’s clear the correlation between that and younger entrepreneurs, with 16% of London’s new entrepreneurs aged 18-25.
Manchester ranks 19th for entrepreneurs, despite being the UK’s third largest economic area
When looking at GVA (Gross Value Added), Manchester is the third largest region in the UK. However, it comes last in our ranking looking at the largest cities in the UK when it comes to entrepreneurship. Only 1 in 237 people became entrepreneurs during the last 2 years, with 32,896.
Smaller cities such as Brighton and Southampton beat out Manchester. 1 in 163 Brightonians were entrepreneurs and 1 in 144 in Southampton. The property industry was most popular in Brighton, whereas Southampton followed the trend of ecommerce being the most popular.
Despite having fewer entrepreneurs, a huge 90% of new entrepreneurs were female in Manchester, Brighton and Southampton.
Ranked: The most entrepreneurial cities in the UK
| Rank | City | Estimated population | Number of startups Last 2 years (2022 – 2024) | Startup Density1 startup for every 25 people in London, for example | Top Industry |
| 1 | London | 9,648,110 | 392,420 | 25 | Ecommerce |
| 1 | Cardiff | 488,153 | 19,535 | 25 | Ecommerce |
| 3 | Leicester | 566,282 | 13,560 | 42 | Ecommerce |
| 4 | Coventry | 444,153 | 9,281 | 48 | Commercial Transport |
| 5 | Bristol | 707,412 | 13,884 | 51 | Property |
| 6 | Edinburgh | 553,569 | 10,475 | 53 | Ecommerce |
| 7 | Liverpool | 917,032 | 14,687 | 62 | Ecommerce |
| 8 | Nottingham | 806,757 | 12,387 | 65 | Property |
| 9 | Birmingham | 2,665,100 | 35,178 | 76 | Ecommerce |
| 10 | Sheffield | 745,876 | 9,748 | 77 | Ecommerce |
| 11 | Belfast | 643,005 | 7,891 | 81 | Ecommerce |
| 12 | Glasgow | 1,698,088 | 20,136 | 84 | Ecommerce |
| 13 | Stoke-on-Trent | 391,927 | 4,366 | 90 | Ecommerce |
| 14 | Middlesborough | 392,813 | 3,525 | 111 | Construction |
| 15 | Bournemouth | 518,556 | 4,126 | 126 | Ecommerce |
| 16 | Newcastle upon Tyne | 823,431 | 6,087 | 135 | Property |
| 17 | Southampton | 951,531 | 6,628 | 144 | Ecommerce |
| 18 | Brighton | 622,480 | 3,827 | 163 | Property |
| 19 | Manchester | 7,791,005 | 32,896 | 237 | Ecommerce |
New business ventures
Research from Enterprise Nation underscores this trend, with 35% of Brits expressing a desire to start a business in 2024. According to Instant Offices analysis, the number of businesses launched in the UK is on a steady incline:
- 2022: 526,970 new businesses
- 2023: 862,587 new businesses
- 2024 (YTD): 98,882 new businesses
With the widespread switch to remote working and online shopping fuelling a digital transformation in the UK, it was no surprise to see ecommerce start-ups remaining the most popular business type.
You can see the full data https://www.instantoffices.com/blog/instant-offices-news/entrepreneurial-uk-cities-2024/
