Estimate your business rates

Business rates are based on your property’s ‘rateable value’ and a ‘multiplier’ for each tax year. You can estimate how much you will pay in business rates.

This guide is also available in Welsh (Cymraeg).

There’s a different way to calculate business rates if:

How to estimate your business rates

  1. Find the rateable value of your business property.

  2. Check which multiplier to use below.

  3. Multiply your rateable value by your multiplier. This shows you how much you will have to pay in business rates for the year (before any relief is deducted).

  4. Take away any business rate relief that you’re entitled to. If your business rates are increasing as a result of a revaluation, this may include transitional relief so that changes to your bill are phased in gradually.

You may be eligible for the supporting small business scheme if you have previously received small business rates relief, rural rate relief, retail, hospitality and leisure relief or help from the supporting small business scheme. The scheme limits how much your bill will go up by. You can read the Budget 2025 retail, hospitality and leisure factsheet to see example case studies.

Multipliers for the 2026 to 2027 tax year

If your property is in England, which multiplier you use depends on:

  • your rateable value
  • the type of business you run if your rateable value is below £500,000

There are different multipliers if:

If your rateable value is below £500,000

If you do not run a retail, leisure or hospitality business, use a multiplier of:

  • 48 pence if your rateable value is £51,000 or more (up to £499,999)
  • 43.2 pence if your rateable value is below £51,000

Your council may use a different multiplier to calculate your rates if you run a retail, hospitality or leisure business - for example, a shop, restaurant, café, bar, pub, cinema, music venue, gym, spa or hotel. These multipliers replace the retail, hospitality and leisure rates relief offered for the 2025 to 2026 billing year.

If you received the retail, hospitality and leisure rates relief, you will usually be eligible for these multipliers. You also can contact your local council to check if your property is eligible.

If your property is eligible, use the retail, hospitality and leisure multipliers of:

  • 43 pence if your rateable value is £51,000 or more (up to £499,999)
  • 38.2 pence if your rateable value is below £51,000

Example 1

Ryan has a dental surgery in England. The rateable value of his business property is £60,000.

The property is not eligible to use a lower multiplier for retail, hospitality and leisure businesses.

The rateable value is between £51,000 and £499,999. So he uses a multiplier of 48 pence to estimate his business rates as follows:

£60,000 (rateable value) x £0.48 pence (multiplier) = £28,800 (basic business rates for the year)

Example 2

Barbara has a gift shop in England. The rateable value of her business property is £30,000.

The property is eligible to use a lower multiplier for retail, hospitality and leisure businesses.

The rateable value is below £51,000. So she uses a multiplier of 38.2 pence to estimate her business rates as follows:

£30,000 (rateable value) x £0.382 pence (multiplier) = £11,460 (basic business rates for the year)

If Barbara’s property received retail, hospitality and leisure relief in the 2025 to 26 billing year, it may also be eligible for the supporting small business scheme, which limits how much her bills will go up by. You can read the Budget 2025 retail, hospitality and leisure factsheet to see example case studies.

If your rateable value is £500,000 or more

Use a multiplier of 50.8 pence.

Multipliers for previous tax years

Use the:

  • standard multiplier if your rateable value is £51,000 or more
  • small business multiplier if your rateable value is below £51,000
Year Standard multiplier Small business multiplier
2025 to 2026 55.5 pence 49.9 pence
2024 to 2025 54.6 pence 49.9 pence
2023 to 2024 51.2 pence 49.9 pence
2022 to 2023 51.2 pence 49.9 pence
2021 to 2022 51.2 pence 49.9 pence
2020 to 2021 51.2 pence 49.9 pence
2019 to 2020 50.4 pence 49.1 pence
2018 to 2019 49.3 pence 48.0 pence
2017 to 2018 47.9 pence 46.6 pence

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