New Report Shows UK Economic Growth and Jobs Powered by Advertising Investment

A new report – Advertising Pays 2025 – by Credos, UK advertising’s think tank has revealed that the advertising industry is contributing a record amount to the UK economy, primarily through ad investment, Gross Value Added (GVA), and employment.

Additionally, advertising now supports over 1.7 million jobs across the UK economy, making up 5% of all UK employment.

Advertising is driving business growth

In 2024, 3.5 million businesses spent an estimated £66.6bn on advertising, including £42.6bn on media, £7.4bn on agencies and production, and £16.6bn on marketing professionals. 3.5 million out of 5.5. million businesses in the UK rely on services provided by the advertising sector.

On average, £1 spent on advertising now generates a profit ROI of £4.11 for medium-large businesses and £1.89 for micro-small businesses

Advertising supports 5% of all UK employment

Advertising directly funds a broad range of roles across the UK’s media and digital industries to the tune of £42.6 billion through businesses’ advertising investment. This means that advertising and marketing now supports 5% of UK employment - representing 1.7 million jobs across the UK. Advertising remains the “currency” that funds and supports many valued UK industries and services, such as TV and radio programming, journalism, cinema and streaming services. Online tools such as maps, search and educational content would also be significantly more expensive without advertising income.

Notably, the report also revealed that 60% of advertising and marketing jobs were based outside of London. The North West is the largest hub outside of London, accounting for 12% of UK employment, followed by the South East (11%) and Yorkshire and Humber (8%).

Since 2017, there has been a change in the distribution of the advertising and marketing workforce, with a decline in London (down three percentage points). In contrast, the proportion of advertising and marketing professionals in the North West increased from 8% in 2017 to 12% in 2024. This growth is largely driven by increased employment in Manchester and Leeds, though Liverpool and Sheffield also entered the top 10 city hubs for the first time in 2024.

Advertising represents 4% of total UK GVA

Overall, the advertising and marketing industries are experiencing a record amount of growth, now contributing £109 billion of GVA to the UK economy in 2024. This means advertising now represents 4% of total UK GVA.

Advertising is uniquely positioned within both the creative industries and professional services, with its GVA outstripping that of other major industries such as film, TV, law and accounting.

Other key areas of change and growth for the industry highlighted in the report include:

Overseas influence: £17.9bn worth of UK advertising services were exported in 2024, second only to the US.

Rise of e-commerce: The UK is now a leader within the global advertising market, with findings showing that the UK’s share of e-commerce in retail sales of goods (30%) is the highest in the world, ahead of the U.S. (24%).

Influencer market: This has expanded significantly, and was estimated to be worth £828 million in 2023, with spend anticipated to reach £1 billion in the UK by 2026.

The report goes on to expand on the changes taking place within the advertising industry, including the distribution of the advertising and marketing workforce, consumer habits and behaviours, and the changing landscape of TV, print, and audio.

Dan Wilks, Director, Credos, said, “Advertising Pays 2025 reflects on the first quarter of this century and shows the full scale of advertising’s value to the UK’s changing economy. This report not only demonstrates advertising’s economic impact, but its unique position within the creative and professional services, contributing a record amount of GVA towards the UK economy. Advertising Pays 2025 highlights how advertising is continuing to thrive across all mediums, from out of home to social media, to e-commerce. Advertising is increasingly innovative and adaptable, and our industry’s world leading creative talent is proof of this.”

Andria Vidler, president, Advertising Association said, “This new Advertising Pays report contains a valuable set of messages for us all to share about what our industry contributes and provides many answers to those who ask what value the advertising industry brings to the UK. To my mind though, these messages not only serve as a baseline to grow from, but they can also be used as a springboard for action to go further and help more businesses and organisations to grow sustainably, to support growth, jobs and exports, all for the long-term.”