An unbroken record of growth is the plainest evidence that growth will continue, which is why a buyer looks for it. Most companies don’t have one.
Over five years, the median company in this range grew turnover by 7.0% a year. 36% grew by more than 10% a year, and 16% were smaller at the end than at the start. These figures are in cash terms, before inflation, which was unusually high over these years; in real terms the typical company grew less. They also flatter a little, because they describe companies that are in this range today. Those that shrank out of it, or failed, are not here to pull the figures down. Companies with fewer than six years of accounts are also left out of the “every year” count.
Show the figures
| Growth a year | Companies | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Shrank | 845 | 16.4% |
| 0–5% | 1,152 | 22.4% |
| 5–10% | 1,305 | 25.4% |
| 10–15% | 798 | 15.5% |
| 15–20% | 436 | 8.5% |
| 20%+ | 604 | 11.8% |
Every year is rare
Of the companies with six years of accounts, only 12% (371 of 3,033) grew in every single year. Most companies have a flat or falling year somewhere in the record. In the most recent year alone, 37% of companies in this range saw turnover fall.
Ownership makes very little difference. Founder-owned companies grew every year in 12% of cases, those in groups in 12%, and private equity-backed ones in 13%.
Show the figures
| Sector | Companies | Median growth |
|---|---|---|
| Information and communication | 244 | 11.5% |
| Health and social care | 137 | 9.6% |
| Professional services | 395 | 9.1% |
| Other services | 126 | 8.5% |
| Hospitality | 192 | 8.4% |
| Business support | 474 | 8.2% |
| Construction | 651 | 7.3% |
| Transport and logistics | 253 | 6.5% |
| Manufacturing | 1,137 | 6.1% |
| Retail and wholesale | 1,240 | 5.9% |
By sector
Information and communication grew fastest, at a median of 11.5% a year, with more than half its companies above 10%. Retail and wholesale and manufacturing were slowest, at 5.9% and 6.1%.
What it means for an owner
For an owner, the shape of the record matters more than the rate. A dip in the record is something a buyer is likely to ask about, so the answer is worth preparing: what happened, why it won’t recur, and what the figures since then show. Where a sale is a year or two away, making the next two years the best two is often the most valuable thing a business can do.
How we worked this out
Figures are from Companies House as at 26th September 2026: turnover from each company’s filed accounts, year by year. The population is UK private companies with £10–100M of turnover in their latest accounts and no insolvency notice, leaving out holding companies.
Five-year growth is the compound annual rate over the five years to the latest accounts, for the 5,142 companies with figures at both ends. “Every year” counts the 3,033 companies with six years of turnover on file, of which 371 had a rise in each. Figures are in cash terms and cover only companies in the range today, so they leave out any that shrank below it or failed. Sectors with fewer than 100 companies are not shown. No figure here identifies a company or a person.