Official Statistics

Facts and figures: patents, trade marks, designs and hearings: 2024

Published 26 June 2025

Note: This document is to be used in conjunction with the data download for patent, trade mark, design and hearing data for 2024 and provides further insight for these statistics.

1. Main points

These statistics include the latest annual figures for patents, trade marks, and designs, based on IPO administrative data:

Applications

The number of applications to the UK IPO for trade marks has increased in 2024 compared to the previous year, while applications for patents and designs have decreased. Patent applications decreased by 5.1% between 2023 and 2024 to 18,953. Trade mark applications increased by 5.8% to 173,180 applications in 2024. Design applications decreased to 77,486 applications in 2024 compared to the record high of 81,215 applications in 2023, a decrease of 4.6%.

Registrations and grants

Registrations and grants in 2024 followed a similar trend to the application trends. Patent grants have decreased by 1.8% between 2023 and 2024. There has been an increase in the number of trade marks registered in 2024 with 156,596 registrations, an increase of 9.1%. A record number of designs were registered in 2023 with 77,254 registrations, this fell in 2024 by 3.4% to 74,619.

International

For patents, trade marks and designs, the highest number of non-UK applications came from China and the USA. The USA has the highest number of patent applications filed at the UK IPO by non-UK applicants, while China has the highest number of trade mark and designs by non-UK applicants.

Hearings

Cases relating to trade marks make up the largest proportion of hearings activity at the UK IPO. A total of 6,695 oppositions were filed in relation to trade marks (including Fast Track options) in 2024.

2. Facts and figures: patents, trade marks, designs and hearings

Table 1: Summary of all registered intellectual property rights [1]

Intellectual Property Right		2019	2020	2021	2022	2023	2024
Patents [2]	Applications	19,245	20,651	18,854	19,470	19,943	18,953
	Publications	11,125	10,040	11,306	11,785	11,696	11,068
	Grants	5,948	9,772	10,899	10,576	8,374	8,228
Trade marks [3]	Applications	107,526	137,035	196,639	158,821	163,726	173,180
	Registrations	95,177	96,204	168,991	163,104	143,513	156,596
Designs	Applications	28,895	31,460	72,157	67,315	81,215	77,486
	Registrations	27,589	27,220	59,983	70,098	77,254	74,619

Notes:

[1] Values from this table report annual counts based on a calendar year, therefore there may be differences when comparing to counts in other tables, as these may be based on a financial year

[2] Patents filed directly at the UK IPO and Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) applications.

[3] Domestic trade mark applications and International Registrations (excluding additional classes).

Patents

Between 2023 and 2024, the number of patent applications [1] to the UK IPO decreased by 5.1% from 19,964 applications to 18,953. This decrease is largely driven by a decrease in all international applications (both direct and through the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) filing route) which have seen a 7.4% decrease (from 8,489 applications in 2023 to 7,858 in 2024) but more specifically, international applications by the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) filing route which has decreased by 14.7%. In comparison, all domestic applications, those filed direct to the UK IPO by either UK-based or international applicants decreased by 3.4%. The number of applications from UK-based applicants has decreased to 11,095 from 11,475 in 2023, a 3.3% decrease.

The number of patent applications has generally been lower since 2020 (See Figure 1), a trend that has also been seen in a number of countries such as France, Germany, and Japan [2]. The top 50 applicants, excluding private applicants, accounted for 27.1% of all applications in 2024, with the top two applicants, Nokia Technologies and Jaguar Land Rover Limited contributing 6.2% of all patent applications in 2024.

The number of patents published decreased by 5.4% from 11,701 to 11,068 between 2023 and 2024. The overall number of patents granted decreased by 1.8% to 8,228 in the same time period. The decrease in grants is again attributed to PCT filing (1,666) route which saw a 19.9% decrease, whereas granted domestic applications (6,562), those filed direct to the UK IPO by either UK-based or international applicants, increased by 4.2%. This is a similar trend to the previous year where PCT grants decreased by 37.4% between 2022 and 2023, compared to domestic grants which decreased by 13.2%. The top 50 applicants with patent grants, excluding private applicants, accounted for 34.4% of all applications in 2024. Trends in patent filing has been researched in greater detail in The changing profile of users of the UK patent system analysis.

Figure 1: Patent applications, publications and grants have decreased in 2024

Notes:

[1] Patents filed directly at the UK IPO and Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) applications.

[2] According to World Intellectual Property Organization IP statistics

The majority of patent applications to the UK IPO are from UK-based applicants. In 2024 there were 11,095 domestic applications from UK-based applicants, representing 58.6% of all applications received. From the regional breakdown of UK-based applicants there were notable increases in applications from West Midlands (26.6% increase, 1,084 applications) and North East England (7.0% increase, 229 applications). Notably, West Midlands has seen a significant increase in patent applications in recent years with an 56.7% increase in the last two years. The largest decrease in applications were in London (decrease of 18.6%, 2,189 applications) followed by Scotland (16.2% decrease, 578 applications).

Following the same trend from the past several years, the highest number of non-UK based applications came from the USA, although there has been a sizable decrease in applications in 2024 (1,986 applications, a 25.0% decrease from 2023). Meanwhile China, with the second highest number of international applications also decreased by 3.1% (953 applications). Third ranked Finland increased by 55.5% (776 applications), which was mainly driven by applications from Nokia Technologies (754 applications).

Prior to 2022, Licences of right had remained relatively stable, with 1,058 licences issued in 2022. In 2023 however, the number of Licences of right increased to 2,046, a 93.4% increase. This increased further in 2024 to 2,128, an increase of 4.0% (See Table 2.11). This increase has driven been by Licences of right on the European Patent Office patents with UK designation which increased from 758 licences in 2022 to 1,786 in 2024. In comparison, UK Licences of right increased from 300 in 2022 to 342 in 2023 and remained the same figure in 2024.

Green Channel patents

The Green Channel for patent applications was introduced in 2009 and allows applicants to request accelerated processing of their patent application if the invention has an environmental benefit. The UK IPO received 559 requests in 2024 through the Green Channel, which is one request less than 2023 (560 applications, See Table 2.7). Further analyses on the current patent and trade mark landscapes relating to green technologies can be found in the recent race to net zero publication.

There have been 196 Green Channel requests which were published [1] in 2024 [2], which is 30 less than 2023. As the publication of a patent application usually takes place 18 months from the filing or priority date, the current number of published green channel requests is a provisional count and will likely increase.

Figure 2: Green Channel requests decreased by one

Notes:

[1] According to Intellectual Property Office - Green Channel Patent Applications

[2] The application filing date may differ from the Green Channel patent request date

Trade marks

In 2024, the UK IPO received a 173,180 trade mark applications [1] which is the second highest number of applications to the UK IPO. This is a 5.8% increase compared to 2023 (163,725 applications), much of this increase was driven by an increase in international applications sent directly to the UK IPO which rose by 16.2%. The number of trade mark registrations has increased from 143,513 in 2023 to 156,596 in 2024, an increase of 9.1%. This is still the third highest number of registrations in a calendar year behind 2021 and 2022 respectively. The significant increases in trademark applications and registrations seen since 2016 are believed to have been driven by three factors; a significant surge in applications from China, the COVID-19 pandemic and filings driven by the UK’s exit from the European Union. The first two reasons have seen the number of applications increase for the majority of IP offices globally [2], however the relative size of this increase is smaller in these IP offices compared to the increase in the UK, as the UK’s exit from the European Union is an extra factor in increased trade mark filings for the UK IPO.

Figure 3: Trade mark applications and registrations have increased in 2024

Notes:

[1] Domestic trade mark applications and International Registrations (excluding additional classes).

[2] According to World Intellectual Property Organization IP statistics

In 2024, 90,480 trade mark applications were filed directly with the UK IPO (domestic applications) from UK-based applicants, which represents an increase of 5.4% compared to 2023. UK-based applicants account for 52.2% of all trade marks filed to the UK IPO in 2024. Applications filed in 2024 from UK-based applicants increased in across almost every region, notably in Northern Ireland (a 33.5% increase to 1,782 applications in 2024) and the West Midlands (7.4% increase, 6,491 applications). It is worth noting trade mark applications from Northern Ireland increased substantially between 2023 and 2024 by 46.1% and therefore has nearly doubled in the space of the past two years.

53,575 direct applications to the UK IPO were from non-UK-based applicants, which is a 16.2% increase from 2023 and is the second highest number of international applications received by the UK IPO from international applicants after 2021. In contrast, there were 29,215 trade mark applications through the ‘Madrid’ International Registration (IR) route, an 8.3% decrease. This is the lowest number of ‘Madrid’ International Registration applications since 2020.

Similar to the past few years, the highest number of non-UK based applications in 2024 (both domestic and IR) came from China with 31,745 applications (29,824 domestic and 1,921 IR) which is a 27.4% increase compared to 2023. The second highest number of non-UK based applications came from the USA with 15,416 applications (8,262 domestic and 7,154 IR), a 2.6% decrease. Trade mark applications from China and the USA (a total of 47,161) account for 57.0% of all non-UK-based applications and 27.2% of all trade mark applications to the UK IPO in 2024.

Registered trade marks provide protection within different classes of goods and services. For example, in the UK, the word ‘Polo’ is protected simultaneously by different applicants in relation to different goods: a type of mint, a clothing brand and a model of car. The total number of classes in all applications in 2024 was 357,136 (287,673 domestic and 69,463 IR), an increase of 1.6% from 2023. This increase was driven by an increase in the number of classes filed in domestic applications which was up by 6.1%, where the number of classes applied for in IR applications decreased by 13.8%.

Designs

Design applications to the UK IPO have seen a dramatic increase since 2015, with the number of applications growing 1154.9% between 2015 and 2023. The process of applying for registered design protection with the UK IPO has changed in recent years, with a new fee structure coming into force in October 2016 and an online application form in October 2017. These changes were intended to make the process more straightforward and cost-effective for applicants and are likely to have contributed to increased filing activity. Other drivers to these increases include a significant surge in applications from China, the COVID-19 pandemic and filings driven by the UK’s exit from the European Union.

As of May 2018, the UK became a member of the Hague Agreement for International Registrations [1]. These figures,14,313 international applications for 2024, are included within this publication, which accounts for a portion of the applications and registrations shown. This represents a 4.9% decrease from 2023.

Figure 4: Design applications and registrations decrease from record highs in 2023

Notes:

[1] Designs registrations include the international Hague applications and registrations. This is a route for applying for designs through World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), which the UK joined in 2018. This allows for a single international application filed with WIPO rather than a whole series of applications which would otherwise have to be filed with different national offices.

Both design applications and registrations decreased from record high counts in 2023 but are still the second highest annual counts. Designs applications have decreased by 4.6% between 2023 and 2024, from 81,215 to 77,486. Much of this decrease is from UK-based applicants which decreased by 12.6%. 30,988 design applications to the UK IPO were from UK-based applicants which accounted for 40.0% of all design applications in 2024. Some regions of the UK saw a substantial increase in Design filings such as Northern Ireland (39.3%, 319 applications filed), the East Midlands (30.6% increase to 1,673 applications filed), and Yorkshire and the Humber (11.5% increase, 2,121 applications filed). Noticeably, between 2022 and 2024 applications from the East Midlands has increased from 668 to 1,673, a 150.4% increase.

There has also been an increase in applications by international (non-UK) applicants, with 46,498 applications in 2024, which is a 1.6% increase from 45,746 in 2023. Similar to previous years, over half (55.5%) of applications from international countries in 2024 were from either China or the USA (16,791 and 9,018 respectively) with the number of applications from China increasing by 9.3% compared to 2023. Another notable increase in design applications is from India which increased from 103 applications in 2022 to 2,225 in 2024.

The number of registrations decreased from a record high of 77,254 to 74,619 in 2024, a decrease of 3.4%, much of this increase is due to a decrease in registrations from UK-based applicants which fell by 16.5%.The top 10 applicants of designs in 2024 consists of 7.5% of all applications, meanwhile the top 50 design registrations represent 16.8% of all registrations. Nike Innovate C.V. was the top of both applicant and registration lists.

Hearings

In addition to processing and examining applications for intellectual property rights, the UK IPO also facilitates the resolution of IP disputes through hearings and tribunals. The UK IPO’s facilitation of hearings means that cases can be processed faster and gives businesses a more affordable dispute option than seeking redress through the courts. Cases relating to trade marks make up the largest proportion of hearings activity at the UK IPO. There was a total of 6,695 oppositions filed (a decrease from 6,801 in 2023) in relation to trade marks in 2024 (including Fast Track oppositions) and 830 ex parte hearings taken to challenge examiners’ objections to trade marks.

3. Facts and figures: patent, trade mark, design and hearing data

The full dataset which contains further breakdowns of these data is available to download in the data set released 26 June 2025.

4. Glossary

Patents

A patent protects inventions. It gives the right to take legal action against anyone who makes, uses, sells or imports it without the patent holder’s permission.

To be granted a patent, the invention must be all of the following: something that can be made or used, new, and inventive - not just a simple modification to something that already exists.

Patent cannot be granted for certain types of invention, including:

• literary, dramatic, musical or artistic works
• a way of doing business, playing a game or thinking
• a method of medical treatment or diagnosis
• a discovery, scientific theory or mathematical method
• the way information is presented
• some computer programs or mobile apps
• ‘essentially biological’ processes like crossing-breeding plants, and plant or animal varieties

Application

An application for a patent includes a full description of the invention (including any drawings), a set of claims defining the invention, and a short abstract summarising the technical features of the invention.

Search

The UK IPO carries out a search to check whether the invention is new and inventive.  The results of the search and any defects in the application are reported. Search reports can take up to 6 months.

Publication

Applications are published 18 months from filing or priority date, provided they are complete and pass the search.

Substantive examination

The examination checks whether an invention is new and inventive enough. It also checks that the description and claims match and are good enough to patent. The examination will show if an application meets the legal requirements. Examination of a patent application must be requested within 6 months of publication. Examinations can take place several years after the filing date of an application.

European patent protection

European patents (EP) can also provide protection in the UK. Applications can be made through the UK IPO or directly to the European Patent Office (EPO). Once granted an application becomes separate patents in the countries designated.

Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT)

Patents providing protection in the UK may also be received by the UK IPO through the international route. International applications use the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) to pursue patent rights across many countries from a single filing.

Licences of right

Some patent applicants may wish to let other people licence their patent, usually for a fee, and make this known publicly. These granted patents (both UK and EP (designating UK)) are recorded on a register and the applicant is entitled to pay renewal fees at half the normal rate.

Trade mark

A trade mark is a sign which can distinguish goods and services from those of other traders. A sign includes, for example, words, logos, colours or a combination of these. A trade mark can be used as a marketing tool so that customers recognise products or services.

Trade marks are not granted for words, logos, colours or other signs which are unlikely to be seen as a trade mark by the public. For example, marks which describe goods or services or any characteristics of them (e.g. marks which show the quality, quantity, purpose, value or geographical origin of goods or services); terms that have become customary (e.g. technical terms that are in common use); terms that are not distinctive (e.g. promotional advertising slogans); or a combination of these.

Trade marks will not be granted if they are offensive (e.g. taboo swear words), against the law (e.g. promoting illegal drug use), or deceptive (e.g. there should be nothing in your mark which would mislead the public). In addition, UK IPO will object to marks that contain specially protected emblems (e.g. the Red Cross or Olympic symbols).

To be registrable, a trade mark must be distinctive for the goods and services that are applied for registration.

Design

A registered design protects the visual appearance of a product, part of a product, or its ornamentation. This can also apply to an industrial or handicraft item. This IP right gives no protection for how a product works but merely for its appearance. That appearance can be affected by a number of contributory features including: lines, contours, colours, shape, texture, material.

The protection lasts for five years and can be renewed every five years, for up to 25 years.

Hearings

A hearing is an open attendance before a Hearing Officer at the UK IPO, which is normally open to the public.

An ex parte hearing is the name given to hearings held between a single party (either private individuals or firms) and the UK IPO. An ex parte hearing is a way of taking things forward with a patent, trade mark or design application or granted application. It allows the IP right holder to explain their case in person to a ‘hearing officer’. The hearing officer is trained to be independent and to look at all sides of the arguments and make the final decision about the case.

Opposition

An opposition is the procedure where a third party may formally object to an application for registration of a trade mark.

For a further glossary of terms relating to trade mark hearings, please see this guidance.

5. Data

Data source

The statistics in this release are produced using administrative data from the UK Intellectual Property Office (UK IPO), covering various aspects of UK IPO business. For patents, trade marks, and designs, snapshots of administrative databases for the calendar year 2024 were taken in April 2025. Data relating to hearings activity are provided directly by the relevant teams within the UK IPO. Due to the cessation of collection internally of some data points, certain tables and data points relating to Hearings have been removed from this publication.

Coverage

Patent protection in the UK can also be obtained from the European Patent Office (EPO). Prior to 2021, trade mark and design protection was also available through the EU Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO), this route is no longer available. Statistics relating to the EPO and the EUIPO are not covered in this publication and as such, the statistics in this publication do not represent all intellectual property activity in the UK. While all EPO applications are automatically designated to the UK, applicants have the option to specify otherwise.

6. Strengths and limitations

It is important to note that the UK IPO’s data is collected for business purposes, not statistical purposes, and it is therefore subject to a number of limitations from a statistical perspective.

Intellectual property (IP) statistics should not be used alone to describe the level of innovation in the UK, or as a measure of inventorship. See the patent guide, or the trade mark guide for information on the limitations of using patents and trade marks as proxies for measuring innovation.

Accuracy of the statistics

Administrative data at the UK IPO are generated through receipt of forms to the office, which can be filed online or in paper format. To compile statistics on the three registered intellectual property rights (patents, trade marks and designs), data are extracted from the relevant databases. The extraction of data is not performed immediately at the close of the calendar year but is delayed allowing for any necessary retrospective amendments to be made in the databases. This ensures that the statistics presented in this release have a higher level of accuracy.

Name consistency

Applicants are free to write their name as they choose, which can lead to variation over multiple applications. For example, one individual may write “Limited” as part of the company name on whose behalf they are applying, while another individual may use the abbreviation “Ltd.” on a later application for the same company. We therefore use probabilistic matching to produce the “Top 50” and “Top 10” tables in this release, aiming to group all variations of a company name together.

Address consistency

Applicants are free to write their address as they choose, which can lead to variation over multiple applications in a similar manner to names (please see above). The address listed on application may not represent the location of where the IP was generated. For example, a patent for a product invented in one location may be filed under a company headquarters address in a completely different location (which could be in a different country). Address data on trade mark and design applications represents the current address the rights owner wishes to use for correspondence. This may not be the address that the application was originally filed under.

“Rejected” patent applications

The UK IPO does not formally issue decisions rejecting patent applications. Furthermore, we do not associate withdrawals or abandonment with specific decisions. Applications that do not become granted patents include applications which had outstanding objections at expiry of the compliance period, applications withdrawn, and applications abandoned.

IP timelines

The applications granted/registered in a given calendar year often refer to applications filed in a previous year. It is therefore not possible to use the number of applications filed in 2024 and the number of grants/registrations in 2024 to calculate the proportion of “successful” applications.

Applicants’ characteristics

It is not a requirement for applicants to provide information such as sex, ethnicity, or disability status in order to obtain intellectual property rights, and these questions are not asked on our forms. We cannot provide statistics on the diversity of applicants; however, the UK IPO has published research into the gender of inventors on patents using name-gender inference.

The UK IPO is responsible for copyright legislation in the UK but does not produce statistics on this intellectual property right as there is no copyright register. For further information, access the copyright page.

7. Related links

Monthly statistics: Patents, trade marks and designs: April 2025 - GOV.UK
Official Statistics | Released 29 May 2025
The statistics in this release provide factual information relating to monthly applications and registrations of intellectual property registered rights (patents, trade marks, and designs)

Facts and figures: patents, trade marks, designs and hearings: 2023
Official Statistics | Released 20 June 2024
These statistics include annual data for designs, patents, trade marks and hearings for 2023, based on administrative data.

Trends at UK Intellectual Property Office 1995 to 2017
Official Statistics | Released 13 July 2018
A report on the trends of patent, trade mark and design applications, publications and grants at the UK IPO over 1995 to 2017.

The changing profile of users of the UK patent system
Official Statistics | Released 9 August 2021
This paper forms part of the IPO’s research into the drivers of IP demand. This research paper focuses on the changing profile of users of the UK patent system.

We are seeking feedback

We are always looking to improve our release for these statistics and datasets. Feedback on this release is welcomed at statistics@ipo.gov.uk