United Kingdom: New business density (new registrations per 1,000 people ages 15-64)

Key figures

What the numbers say

In 2024, United Kingdom's new business density (new registrations per 1,000 people ages 15-64) fell 0.96 on 2023 (from 20.15 to 19.19).

Across the 17 yearly changes before that (2007 to 2023), the average change was +0.59 and a typical year strayed about 1.03 from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 1.5 standard deviations below that average, so it was larger than a typical year, though not out of the range seen before.

On record, the biggest yearly rise was 2.12 in 2020 and the biggest yearly fall was 2.28 in 2008. The numbers show how large and when, not why; for the cause, look at what happened in that country in those years.

From 2015 to 2024 the straight-line trend is upward, about 0.59 a year. A straight line explains 89% of the movement over 10 observed years.

Worked out from the yearly values above. How the checks work: standard deviation, z-scores and straight-line trends.

A straight-line projection, tested first

Extending that straight line gives about 21.75 for 2027. We show this only because the same method, fitted on earlier years, predicted 2022 to 2024 better than "no change" would have: its average miss was 0.73, against 1.22 for assuming no change. Treat it as a continuation of the recent pattern, not a forecast of events: it cannot see a recession, a policy change or a revision to the data.

See how a linear trend forecast works and the guide on forecasting without fooling yourself.

How it compares

In 2024, United Kingdom had the 8th highest value of the 127 economies reporting that year. Higher is not always better: for some indicators the lowest value is the one to aim for. See the full ranking.

Closest to United Kingdom in the 2024 ranking

• Estonia — 4th of 127: 26.76
• Cabo Verde — 5th of 127: 21.76
• Luxembourg — 6th of 127: 19.61
• St. Kitts and Nevis — 8th of 127: 18.72
• Australia — 9th of 127: 18.06
• Montenegro — 10th of 127: 17.86

What this measures

The number of newly registered firms with limited liability per 1,000 working-age people (ages 15-64) per calendar year.

Limitations: The definition of entrepreneurship used is limited to the formal sector. Yet, it should be noted that the exclusion of the informal sector is based on the difficulties of quantifying the number of firms that compose it, rather than on its relevance for developing economies. Data collected from economies categorized as offshore financial centers by Eurostat are excluded from the analysis, because registered entities in these countries may not fit the objective of the Entrepreneurship Database aiming at measuring formally registered companies with actual economic activities.

Regional and income-group figures are computed by the World Bank as a unweighted average.

All 19 values

New business density (new registrations per 1,000 people ages 15-64) in nearby economies

• Albania — 2.29 (2024)
• Armenia — 4.12 (2024)
• Austria — 1 (2023)
• Azerbaijan — 2 (2024)
• Belarus — 1.27 (2022)
• Belgium — 5.31 (2023)
• Bosnia and Herzegovina — 1.64 (2024)
• Bulgaria — 10.46 (2024)
• Croatia

More private sector & trade data for United Kingdom

• Merchandise trade (% of GDP) — 37.59% (2025)
• Merchandise imports (current US$) — US$948.64 billion (2025)
• Merchandise exports (current US$) — US$555.83 billion (2025)
• Agricultural raw materials imports (% of merchandise imports) — 1.06% (2025)
• Food imports (% of merchandise imports) — 9.8% (2025)
• Fuel imports (% of merchandise imports) — 8.11% (2025)
• Manufactures imports (% of merchandise imports) — 56.67% (2025)
• Ores and metals imports (% of merchandise imports) — 3.35% (2025)
• Merchandise imports from economies in the Arab World (% of total merchandise imports)

Reading data like this

• Where to find free public data, and how to check it before you trust it — 2 min read
• Data analysis examples: 6 worked from one dataset — 3 min read
• Real change or random noise? A plain guide to reading your numbers — 2 min read

Questions people ask

What is United Kingdom's new business density (new registrations per 1,000 people ages 15-64)?

19.19 in 2024, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

How has it changed since 2006?

It is up 90.97% from 10.05 in 2006 (3.66% a year on average, compounded). The highest value was 20.15 in 2023 and the lowest 8.85 in 2009.

Source

World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator IC.BUS.NDNS.ZS, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: Entrepreneurship Database, World Bank (WB), uri: https://www.worldbank.org/en/programs/entrepreneurship Figures are fetched from the World Bank API and refreshed monthly; see the series on data.worldbank.org. The full definition and method are in the World Bank's metadata glossary. Comparisons use the same World Bank release.

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