Boom towns: where new companies are being registered fastest

21 October 2026 · Figures as of 21/10/2026

London registers the most companies, but it also has the most already. To compare places fairly, our boom towns table divides new companies in the last 30 days by the number of active companies there, giving new companies per 1,000.

Top ten, as of 21/10/2026

1. Middlesbrough (North East): 17.8 per 1,000 (145 new, 8,144 active)
2. East Ayrshire (Scotland): 17.6
3. Caerphilly (Wales): 16.7
4. Falkirk (Scotland): 16.4
5. West Lothian (Scotland): 16.1
6. Blackburn with Darwen (North West): 15.6
7. Leicester (East Midlands): 15.3
8. North Lanarkshire (Scotland): 15.3
9. Luton (East of England): 15.2
10. Newham (London): 14.8

How it's worked out

• Areas are local authority districts (361 of them).
• Areas with fewer than 3,000 companies are left out, so a handful of registrations can't skew the ranking.
• Companies registered at formation-agent addresses are excluded, because the address says nothing about where they trade.
• "Registered in" means the registered office is there. It's the best public signal of where a company is, but not proof it trades there.

Every area has its own page with a month-by-month chart, its top industries and the latest 50 companies: start on the towns page.