Largest UK Companies by Revenue (2026)

Shell is the largest UK-headquartered company by revenue and ranks second in the Fortune 500 Europe overall, behind only Volkswagen. Fortune records revenue of US$273.7bn for fiscal 2025, down 5.29% on the prior year in dollar terms, with 85,000 employees. The group, created in 1907 from the combination of a British and a Dutch company, produces oil and gas, refines fuels, operates service stations and trades energy, and its long-term strategy centres on liquefied natural gas.

BP ranks fourth in the 2026 Fortune 500 Europe and second among UK companies, with fiscal 2025 revenue of US$192.5bn, down 1.07% on the prior year in dollar terms. Fortune counts 93,700 employees. The London-headquartered company explores for and produces oil and gas, runs refineries and fuel retailing, and holds renewable-energy investments. Fortune notes that in 2025 BP reduced planned spending on renewable and other low-carbon projects while increasing investment in oil and gas.

HSBC Holdings is the largest UK bank by Fortune-defined revenue, which for banks is gross interest income plus non-interest income. Its fiscal 2025 figure was US$135.6bn, down 6.93% on the prior year in dollar terms. HSBC was also the most profitable company on the whole European list, with US$22 billion of 2025 profit. Founded in Hong Kong in 1865, it is headquartered in London but directs its growth strategy towards Asia and international clients.

Tesco is the largest UK retailer in the ranking, with revenue of US$98.5bn for the fiscal year ended 28 February 2026, up 9.76% on the prior year in dollar terms. Fortune lists 227,188 employees and a head office in Welwyn Garden City. The chain grew from a London market stall opened in 1919 and holds more than a quarter of the British grocery market; it also trades in Ireland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Hungary and runs Tesco Mobile and Tesco Bank.

Lloyds Banking Group reported Fortune-basis revenue of US$85.4bn for fiscal 2025, up 16.89% on the prior year in dollar terms, one of the larger increases among the UK top ten. It employs 60,061 people. The group is concentrated on the domestic market, and its brands include Halifax, Bank of Scotland, Scottish Widows and MBNA. Alongside retail banking it provides insurance and pensions and runs a commercial banking division oriented towards small and medium-sized enterprises.

Barclays recorded revenue of US$71.9bn for fiscal 2025 on Fortune's banking definition, up 0.94% on the prior year in dollar terms, with 93,000 employees. Tracing its origins to 1690, the bank organises its business into five lines: a ring-fenced UK retail bank that includes Barclaycard, a global investment bank, a UK corporate bank for small and mid-sized companies, a private bank and wealth division, and a US consumer bank focused on co-branded credit cards.

Unilever ranks seventh among UK companies with fiscal 2025 revenue of US$65.6bn, down 0.11% on the prior year in dollar terms. Fortune lists 96,092 employees and a London headquarters. The group was formed in 1930 from the merger of Lever Brothers and Margarine Unie and kept a dual Anglo-Dutch structure until 2020, when it made the UK its single headquarters. Its brands include Dove, Knorr, Hellmann's, Vaseline, Marmite and Lifebuoy.

AstraZeneca is the largest UK pharmaceutical company by revenue, at US$58.7bn for fiscal 2025, up 8.63% on the prior year in dollar terms. It is headquartered in Cambridge and employs 96,100 people. The company was formed in 1999 by the merger of Sweden's Astra AB and Britain's Zeneca Group. Fortune highlights its oncology medicines, including lung cancer treatments, and its role in developing a widely distributed COVID-19 vaccine.

Rio Tinto, listed by Fortune with a London headquarters, generated revenue of US$57.6bn in fiscal 2025, up 7.42% on the prior year in dollar terms, and employs 61,230 people. The company dates from 1873, when British and European investors bought a mine complex on the Rio Tinto river in Huelva, Spain. It now operates in 35 countries, with a portfolio spanning iron ore, copper and aluminium among other materials.

Vodafone Group reported revenue of US$46.9bn for the fiscal year ended 31 March 2026, up 5.58% on the prior year in dollar terms. Headquartered in Newbury, it employs 92,988 people. Vodafone provides mobile and fixed telecommunications services across Europe and Africa, and Fortune describes it as operating one of the world's largest internet-of-things platforms. The company has set a target of net zero emissions by 2040.

Compass Group is the largest UK employer in the ranking, with 591,767 staff, and reported revenue of US$46.1bn for the fiscal year ended 30 September 2025, up 9.69% on the prior year in dollar terms. Based in Chertsey, Surrey, it provides contract catering and support services to workplaces, hospitals, schools, sports grounds and leisure venues. It has the largest workforce of any company in the UK top 25.

J Sainsbury, which trades as Sainsbury's, reported revenue of US$45.2bn for the fiscal year ended 31 March 2026, up 7.02% on the prior year in dollar terms, and employs 91,000 people. The London-based retailer was founded in 1869 by John James Sainsbury. Its operations cover food, general merchandise and clothing retail, the Argos chain, and financial services through Sainsbury's Bank. It is the second-largest grocer in this ranking after Tesco.

GSK is the second UK pharmaceutical group in the ranking after AstraZeneca. Fortune lists fiscal 2025 revenue of US$43.0bn, up 7.34% on the prior year in dollar terms, and 66,841 employees, with headquarters in London. It places 103rd in the 2026 Fortune 500 Europe overall. Fortune's profile address for the company still uses the name GlaxoSmithKline, and Fortune classifies it as a public company.

Standard Chartered reported Fortune-basis revenue of US$40.6bn for fiscal 2025, down 3.09% on the prior year in dollar terms, and employs 81,832 people. Although headquartered in London, the bank focuses primarily on Asia, Africa and the Middle East. Its activities include wealth management, corporate and investment banking and treasury services, and Fortune notes its emphasis on cross-border banking for international clients.

NatWest Group is the only company in the UK top 25 that Fortune lists with a headquarters in Scotland, in Edinburgh. Its fiscal 2025 revenue on Fortune's banking definition was US$39.8bn, up 6.33% on the prior year in dollar terms, and it employs 58,720 people. NatWest ranks 111th in the Fortune 500 Europe and is the fourth-largest UK bank in this ranking, behind HSBC, Lloyds and Barclays.

St. James's Place, a wealth management group based in Cirencester, posted Fortune-basis revenue of US$39.7bn for fiscal 2025, up 19.73% on the prior year in dollar terms. With 2,859 employees it has by far the smallest workforce among the UK top 25. Its high revenue relative to headcount reflects Fortune's inclusion of investment income for financial companies; Fortune classifies it under diversified financials.

Standard Life appears in the 2026 Fortune 500 Europe under that name; Fortune's profile address still uses its former name, Phoenix Group Holdings. The London-based life and pensions group reported revenue of US$37.8bn for fiscal 2025, up 40.84% on the prior year in dollar terms, among the largest increases in the UK top 25. For insurers, Fortune's revenue includes premiums, annuity income and investment income. The group employs 5,519 people.

International Airlines Group, which Fortune lists with a headquarters in Harmondsworth near Heathrow airport, reported fiscal 2025 revenue of US$37.5bn, up 7.91% on the prior year in dollar terms. It employs 75,786 people and is the only airline company in the UK top 25. IAG is classified by Fortune as a UK company, ranking 117th in the European list, one place ahead of the defence contractor BAE Systems.

BAE Systems is the largest UK defence company by revenue. Fortune records fiscal 2025 revenue of US$37.3bn, up 11.03% on the prior year in dollar terms, one of the faster growth rates among the UK top 25, and a workforce of 111,400. The London-headquartered group ranks 121st in the Fortune 500 Europe. Rolls-Royce Holdings, also classified under aerospace and defence, appears further down this list.

ASDA Group is the largest privately held company in this ranking. Fortune lists it as a private company with fiscal 2025 revenue of US$34.1bn, down 0.62% on the prior year in dollar terms, a net loss of US$943 million and 91,379 employees. The Leeds-based supermarket operator is the third grocery retailer in the UK top 25, after Tesco and Sainsbury's, and made its debut on the Fortune 500 Europe in this edition.

Linde is included in the UK ranking because Fortune lists its headquarters in Woking, Surrey. The industrial gases and engineering company reported fiscal 2025 revenue of US$34.0bn, up 2.97% on the prior year in dollar terms, and employs 65,177 people. It is the only company in the UK top 25 that Fortune classifies under chemicals, and it ranks 135th in the European list, one place behind ASDA Group.

British American Tobacco is the larger of the two UK tobacco groups in the 2026 Fortune 500 Europe. It reported fiscal 2025 revenue of US$33.7bn, up 2.07% on the prior year in dollar terms, and employs 47,797 people from its London headquarters. The other, Imperial Brands of Bristol, ranks just outside the UK top 25 with US$24.8 billion. Fortune measures revenue excluding excise taxes, which matters for tobacco companies.

Rolls-Royce Holdings reported fiscal 2025 revenue of US$27.9bn, up 15.63% on the prior year in dollar terms, the fastest growth rate among the UK top 25 apart from Standard Life, St. James's Place and Lloyds. The London-headquartered engineering group employs 43,162 people and ranks 154th in the European list. Fortune classifies it under aerospace and defence, alongside BAE Systems.

BT Group reported revenue of US$26.3bn for the fiscal year ended 31 March 2026, up 1.46% on the prior year in dollar terms. The London-based operator employs 77,200 people and ranks 162nd in the Fortune 500 Europe. It is the second UK telecoms company in this ranking, behind Vodafone, whose revenue was about 1.8 times larger on Fortune's dollar figures for the same fiscal year end of March 2026.

Wittington Investments is a privately owned holding company whose principal investment is a majority stake in Associated British Foods plc, which is listed on the London Stock Exchange. Fortune ranks it on consolidated revenue of US$25.8bn for the fiscal year ended 30 September 2025, down 0.12% on the prior year in dollar terms, with 139,468 employees. It is classified under food consumer products and is the second private company in the UK top 25.