Infographic: Size and Health of the UK space industry 2024
Updated 20 August 2025
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Size and Health of the UK space industry 2024
£7.2bn GVA
The industry’s direct contribution to UK GDP
£18.6bn sector income
Total space industry income in 2022/23
1,907 organisations
UK-based organisations with space-related activities
55,550 employees
Direct employees in the UK space sector
£5.8bn export income
Income generated from exports (31% of total)
3 in 5 expect growth
60% of survey respondents expect income to increase
Employment by region
London 33%
South East 17%
Scotland 13%
South West 8%
Rest of the UK 29%
Income by segment
Space applications – DTH broadcasting 48%
Space applications – other 25%
Space operations 10%
Space manufacturing 13%
Ancillary services 3%
In-space economy <1%
2x average UK labour productivity
UK space sector labour productivity is twice the UK average
£454bn, 18% of total UK GDP is supported by satellite services
Earth Observation
Meteorology
Navigation
Communications
70% with primary degree or higher
Survey respondents’ employees with bachelor’s degree or higher
1 in 4 female employees
Almost on quarter of employees from surveyed organisations were female
£1.1bn R&D expenditure
Total expenditure on R&D in 2022/23
Investment
£481m invested, total invested into UK-based space organisations in 2022/23
92 deals, total number of investment deals
85 investment targets, UK-based space organisations received investments