Official Statistics

Incorporated companies in the UK January to March 2025

Published 24 April 2025

1. Other statistics in this release

The tables that accompany this release include:

• register activity for all companies
• register activity for public companies
• register activity for limited liability partnerships (LLPs)
• company insolvencies and liquidations
• company removals from the register

The statistics within this release are presented by financial year, which runs from 1 April to 31 March.

2. Main points

The main things to note in this statistical release are that:

• between January and March 2025, the total register size grew, following a decrease in the previous quarter
• the total register size at the end of March 2025 was 5,427,787, an increase of 19,080 companies (0.35%) compared with the end of December 2024
• there were 4,872,293 companies on the effective register at the end of March 2025, an increase of 36,330 companies (0.75%) compared with the end of December 2024
• between January and March 2025, there were 211,112 incorporations in the UK, a decrease of 33,605 (13.73%) compared with the same period in 2024
• there were 190,147 dissolutions in the UK between January and March 2025, an increase of 30,099 (18.81%) compared with the same period in 2024
• Companies House was granted new powers as a result of the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act 2023 (ECCTA) - the ECCTA will introduce a number of changes over the next few years
• on 19 February 2024, Companies House published a list of changes to fees for incorporation and registration documents - these changes came into effect on 1 May 2024

3. Changes in the companies register

The total register size for the UK was 5,427,787 at the end of March 2025. This is an increase of 19,080 companies (0.35%) compared with the end of December 2024. The total register includes companies in the process of dissolution and liquidation (555,494).

Between January and March 2025, the total register size grew, following a decrease in the previous quarter.   

The total register changes for the constituent countries compared with the end of December 2024 are:

• an increase of 17,744 (0.35%) companies in England and Wales
• an increase of 2,572 (0.97%) companies in Scotland
• a decrease of 1,236 (1.32%) companies in Northern Ireland

The effective register size for the UK, which does not include companies in the process of dissolution or liquidation, was 4,872,293 at the end of March 2025. This is an increase of 36,330 companies (0.75%) compared with the end of December 2024.

Figure 3.1: The total and effective register sizes increased by 19,080 and 36,330, respectively, during the period January to March 2025  

The total and effective register size, UK companies register, 30 June 2012 to 31 March 2025

Source: Incorporated companies in the UK, January to March 2025, Companies House

There were 211,112 incorporations in the UK during January to March 2025. This is a decrease of 33,605 (13.73%) compared with the same period in 2024.

The number of incorporations has decreased in all constituent countries in the UK from January to March 2025 compared with January to March 2024. The change in incorporations across constituent countries in the UK was:

• a decrease of 30,161 (13.25%) in England and Wales
• a decrease of 882 (7.71%) in Scotland
• a decrease of 2,562 (45.95%) in Northern Ireland

There were 190,147 dissolutions in the UK between January and March 2025. This is an increase of 30,099 (18.81%) compared with the same period in 2024.

The number of dissolutions has increased in all constituent countries in the UK from January to March 2025 compared with January to March 2024. The change in dissolutions across constituent countries in the UK was:

• an increase of 27,606 (18.27%) in England and Wales
• an increase of 1 (0.01%) in Scotland
• an increase of 2,492 (167.02%) in Northern Ireland

Figure 3.2: Incorporations decreased by 33,605 companies, while dissolutions increased by 30,099 companies, compared with the same period last year     

Incorporations and dissolutions, UK companies register, 30 June 2012 to 31 March 2025

Source: Incorporated companies in the UK, January to March 2025, Companies House

The number of companies in the course of dissolution at the end of March 2025 was 443,076. This is a decrease of 17,736 (3.85%) compared with the end of December 2024.  

The change in the number of companies in the course of dissolution across constituent countries in the UK from the end of December 2024 to the end of March 2025 was:

• a decrease of 18,906 (4.38%) in England and Wales
• an increase of 838 (3.94%) in Scotland
• an increase of 332 (4.39%) in Northern Ireland

There is a full breakdown of company statistics for the UK, England and Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland in tables 1a, 2a, 3a and 4a respectively in the incorporated companies in the UK January to March 2025 spreadsheet. The tables contain figures from April 2012 onwards.

There are separate figures for:

• public limited companies in tables 1b, 2b, 3b and 4b
• limited liability partnerships in tables 1c, 2c, 3c and 4c
• company insolvencies and liquidations in tables 1d, 2d, 3d and 4d
• company removals from the register in tables 1e, 2e, 3e and 4e

4. About the data

The figures in this release give information about the population of companies in the UK.

Companies are:

• legal types of business registered at Companies House
• a group of corporate bodies formed under the Companies Act 2006

Companies and corporate bodies are registered at Companies House regardless of whether they go on to actively trade.

For more information on corporate bodies and companies included in the Companies Act 2006, visit Definitions to accompany statistical releases from Companies House. This document also explains the incorporation, dissolution and restoration processes.

The statistics in this release include the:

• total number of registered companies
• number of companies incorporated
• number of companies dissolved

This statistics release focuses on the headline messages.

There are figures for the constituent countries in the tables that accompany the release. These documents also include figures for:

• public limited companies (PLCs)
• limited liability partnerships (LLPs)

5. Glossary

Find definitions for the main terms used in Companies House official statistics publications.

6. Strengths and limitations

Companies House statistics are used extensively by government, the public, public bodies and businesses. For example, they are used by:

• government in understanding the likely impact of policy changes and monitoring the impact of economic changes on companies
• businesses in understanding their market share and planning marketing strategies
• banks in developing an understanding of their customer base
• foreign firms in making UK location decisions
• academics to inform research into businesses at local and national level
• a range of public bodies in decision-making and evaluating business-related policies

Our statistical practice is regulated by the Office for Statistics Regulation (OSR). OSR sets the standards of trustworthiness, quality and value in the Code of Practice for Statistics that all producers of official statistics should meet.

You are welcome to contact us directly with any comments about how we meet these standards at statistics@companieshouse.gov.uk.

Alternatively, you can contact OSR by emailing regulation@statistics.gov.uk or via the OSR website.

6.1 Quality

Read our document Quality information to accompany statistical releases from Companies House. It can help you decide if the data is suitable for your purpose.

This document measures the Companies House official statistics against characteristics called data quality dimensions. Companies House uses the European Statistical System’s data quality dimensions. 

The document also gives information on how Companies House official statistics relate to other business statistics.

6.2 Corrections and revisions to these statistics

We aim to minimise corrections and revisions to our statistical publications but sometimes changes are unavoidable. These changes could be:

• corrections, which are unplanned and occur when errors in either the data or the methodology are found after release of the publication
• revisions, which are generally, but not always, planned, and are the result of improvements in methods or of additional data

The source of these statistics is administrative data. This means the data are often used for operational purposes. Statistical use is not their main purpose. As the main purpose of collecting the data is operational, it is common that some of the values we report on change.

6.3 Consultation

We publish results of the most recent consultation on these official statistics on GOV.UK.

7. Future releases

Companies House will publish annual statistics for financial year ending 2025 on 26 June 2025.

We’ll publish statistics for the period 1 April to 30 June 2025 on 31 July 2025.  

We’ve announced the publication dates on the GOV.UK release calendar.

If you have a question about any of these tables or Companies House statistics in general, email statistics@companieshouse.gov.uk.

8. Related links

Companies House statistics newer than 2014 Annual and quarterly statistics produced by Companies House from June 2014.

Companies House statistics older than 2014 Annual and monthly statistics produced by Companies House before October 2014, on the National Archives website.

Open data products at Companies House Information about the open data products that Companies House offers. We update this page regularly.

Find and update company information Our service to find and update company information, which includes advanced search capabilities.

Companies House API overview Free, fully documented API, which gives access to real-time updates on companies. We update this information regularly.