Companies in Leicester
Leicester is the 10th biggest place on the UK company register, with 47,003 live companies, or 0.8% of the UK total. 6,417 of those were formed in 2025. 3,722 (7.9%) have a proposal to strike off on file, close to the UK figure of 7.3%. Compared with the UK as a whole, Leicester stands out for manufacture of other women's outerwear: 183 companies, 15.5 times the national share.
What Leicester has more of than the rest of the UK
Each trade's share of Leicester companies, compared with its share across the UK.
Biggest trades in Leicester
Live Leicester companies, by year formed
Only companies still live are counted, so older years look smaller. 2026 stops on 1 November 2026.
See every year as a table
| Year | Live companies |
|---|---|
| 2012 | 865 |
| 2013 | 980 |
| 2014 | 1,461 |
| 2015 | 1,476 |
| 2016 | 1,522 |
| 2017 | 1,790 |
| 2018 | 2,103 |
| 2019 | 2,469 |
| 2020 | 2,442 |
| 2021 | 2,414 |
| 2022 | 2,834 |
| 2023 | 3,371 |
| 2024 | 4,228 |
| 2025 | 6,417 |
| 2026 | 5,909 |
Oldest active companies in Leicester
- T.b.f. CommunicationsFormed 1885
- Consumer Credit Trade AssociationFormed 1891
- Next HoldingsFormed 1891
- Mappin & WebbFormed 1897
- Otis InvestmentsFormed 1900
Funny company names registered in Leicester
- Cuts Both WaysFormed 2002
Nearest in size
Town means the post town of the registered address, which isn't always where a company trades. Many companies use an accountant's or formation agent's address. Figures come from Companies House on 1 November 2026.