The Startup Ecosystem of United Kingdom

The United Kingdom has 83 cities in the top 1000 and has a vibrant startup scene that ranks 2nd within the competitive global top 10.

COUNTRY RANKING

The United Kingdom’s startup scene remains stable in 2022 on the 2nd position, having gained 25 more cities in the global top 1000.

Population

67.5
Million

Regional Ranking

1st
0
In Western Europe

Global Ranking

2nd
0
Worldwide

Ecosystem

Startup Ecosystem Overview

aerial photography of London skyline during daytime

The United Kingdom has excelled in entrepreneurship and science by attracting global talent to its main startup ecosystem, London. The UK is blessed with world class scientific infrastructure, and relatively small university cities such as Oxford and Cambridge (where the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine was developed) are joining the highly successful fintech hub of London to create a national array of top startup ecosystems. London is one of the world’s most successful international cities, making it an extremely attractive location for ambitious entrepreneurs.
Contributing to the country’s appeal to foreign entrepreneurs is the fact that the UK boasts programs such as the Innovator visa and a Start-up visa, as well as one of the lowest corporation tax rates in the G20, although it is currently on the rise. Moreover, Innovate UK, the national innovation agency, supports the ecosystem through multiple accelerator programs, grants, and resources.
However, the challenges posed by the aftermath of Brexit should not be underestimated. The UK has an outstanding startup ecosystem mainly due to its ability to attract foreign entrepreneurs, largely from Europe due to the ease of relocating and fitting in for any English speaker. However, Brexit has made relocation more difficult for European entrepreneurs, and it will take outstanding government effort to mitigate this potential damage in the long term. It seems that amidst the global market slowdown, the government’s support for the ecosystem is also forced to take a step back. In 2023, the public sector withdrew its £12m Digital Growth Grant for Tech Nation, a support organization that has contributed greatly to the ecosystem, which will now cease its operations]. Despite such challenges, the UK startup ecosystem remains resilient. Faced with the SVB shutdown, we’ve seen all the ecosystem stakeholders, including the government, come together to rescue SVB U.K. The coordinated response of the ecosystem saved an estimated 3,000 tech firms and as many as 40% of U.K. startups had accounts or relationships with SVB. The strength of the UK startup scene is reflected in the powerful innovations that have come from the entrepreneurs it attracts, demonstrated by global unicorns such as Revolut and Wise. If the UK retains its ability to continue being the ecosystem of choice in Europe, and continues to leverage its top rated universities, pro business environment, and cutting edge innovation, the UK startup ecosystem should continue to develop.

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Ecosystem

The Startup Ecosystem in United Kingdom

Our startup ecosystem map for The United Kingdom includes a sample of 6786 tech companies. We have identified as unicorns 50 startups that have passed the USD 1 billion valuations. Contributing to the vitality of this startup ecosystem are the 10 pantheon member entities.

Global Rank

The United Kingdom is ranked within the top 10 startup ecosystems globally.

Top Industries

The United Kingdom’s startup scene is best represented in Ecommerce & Retail, Energy & Environment, and in and Fintech.

Top Cities for Startups in United Kingdom - Ranked by StartupBlink
StartupBlink ranks the startup ecosystems of 100 countries and 1,000 cities. Download our latest Global Startup Ecosystem Report.
Rows:
2022 National Rank & Change ▲
Access subscores for 1000 cities and 100 countries
2022 National Rank & Change City
search leaderboards icon
Global Rank & ChangeTotal ScoreQuantity ScoreQuality ScoreBusiness Score
1st
0
3rd
+
2
125.637
00.00
00.00
00.00
2nd
0
60th
+
8
10.406
00.00
00.00
00.00
3rd
0
63rd
+
13
10.219
00.00
00.00
00.00
4th
0
94th
-
4
7.806
00.00
00.00
00.00
5th
0
95th
-
3
7.704
00.00
00.00
00.00
6th
0
96th
+
6
7.682
00.00
00.00
00.00
7th
+
6
126th
+
86
5.588
00.00
00.00
00.00
8th
-
1
130th
-
16
5.537
00.00
00.00
00.00
9th
+
3
145th
+
63
5.210
00.00
00.00
00.00
10th
+
1
148th
+
59
5.166
00.00
00.00
00.00
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Startups

Notable Startups in United Kingdom
Rover startup icon
Rover
Permutive startup icon
Permutive
Nexo startup icon
Nexo

Startups

Successful Ecommerce & Retail startups in United Kingdom
LoveCrafts startup icon
LoveCrafts
Spoke London startup icon
Spoke London
OnBuy startup icon
OnBuy

Startups

Startups Ranking by Industry

Ecommerce & Retail icon
Ecommerce & Retail
#2 worldwide

On our map, you can explore a total of 2003 startups for Ecommerce & Retail.

Energy & Environment icon
Energy & Environment
#2 worldwide

In Western Europe, The United Kingdom's Energy & Environment is in top 2. The United Kingdom has a concentration of about 1041 of the region's total Energy & Environment startups that are represented on our map.

Fintech icon
Fintech
#2 worldwide

The United Kingdom's Fintech is ranked 2nd in the world. Our database contains 788 for this industry.

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