The UK’s medium-sized businesses drove job growth in the last ten years compared to their small and large counterparts, according to new analysis.
The research from iwoca––one of Europe’s largest SME lenders––finds that businesses of 50 to 249 people expanded their headcount at double the rate of their small and large counterparts between 2014 and 2024.
As of last year, medium-sized businesses employ 3.7 million UK workers, a 20% increase on 2014.
Since 2014, both small (0–49 employees) and large businesses (250+ employees) have grown their workforces by just 10%—half the rate of companies operating in the ‘middle’.
Business growth steady across size
While jobs have grown faster in mid-sized businesses than counterparts, the total number of UK businesses grew evenly in the last ten years, regardless of size. Small, medium, and large firms grew in number by 20%, 18% and 19% respectively over the last 10 years––up 300,000 in total.
Today, there are 41,540 medium-sized companies—up from 34,985 in 2014.
IT and professional sectors lead mid-sized growth
IT and healthcare sectors saw the highest growth in the number of firms in the ‘middle’ in the last ten years. In IT, the total number of mid-sized businesses grew by 62% to over 2,500, while the number of professional, scientific, or technical companies grew 35% to 4,285.
Regionally, London and the south west of England have enjoyed the highest increase of medium-sized businesses. In London, these firms grew in number by a third in the last decade, to 8,000 in 2024. The capital was followed by the South West, where the number of mid-sized businesses jumped by 22% since 2014.
To keep pace with the growth of medium-sized businesses and support the jobs they create, iwoca last year expanded the loan ceiling of its Flexi-Loan to £1 million, bolstering mid-sized firms.
Colin Goldstein, Chief Commercial Officer, UK at iwoca, said: “Medium-sized businesses are driving job growth in the UK and creating jobs at a faster rate than both small and large firms. They are responsible for 3.7m jobs, and need access to finance to continue making significant contributions to the UK economy and increase their productivity.”
