Regional economic activity by gross domestic product, UK: 1998 to 2024

• In 2024, real gross domestic product (GDP) for the UK increased by 1.1%; of the four countries, England (1.3%) and Scotland (1.2%) grew by more than the average, while Northern Ireland (0.7%) and Wales (0.5%) grew by less than the average.

• Of the International Territorial Level (ITL) 1 regions, the North East and North West experienced the largest increase in real GDP in 2024, both at 1.6%; the smallest increase was seen in Wales, at 0.5%.

• At the ITL1 level, London had the highest GDP per head in current market prices in 2024, at £72,201, while the North East had the lowest GDP per head, at £29,957.

• In real terms, all combined authority areas covered in this bulletin saw an increase in GDP between 2023 and 2024, except Hull and East Yorkshire, which decreased by 1.2%.

UK gross domestic product (GDP), in chained volume measures, was estimated to have increased by 1.1% in 2024.

Out of England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales, the largest increase in real GDP in 2024 was in England, at 1.3% (Table 1), followed by Scotland, at 1.2%. The smallest increase in real GDP between 2023 and 2024 was in Wales, at 0.5%.

Notes:

1. Figures may not sum because of rounding in totals; per head (British pounds) figures are rounded to the nearest pound.  
2. 2024 data are provisional.
3. Population estimates are sourced from our Population estimates for the UK, England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland: mid-2024 bulletin.
4. "Real GDP" is GDP in chained volume measures.
5. Per head figures exclude Extra-Regio, as it comprises activity that cannot be assigned to regions.
6. n/a stands for not applicable.

At the International Territorial Level (ITL) 1, the largest increase in real GDP in 2024 was in the North East and the North West, both at 1.6%. The smallest increase in 2024 was in Wales, at 0.5%, followed by Northern Ireland, at 0.7%.

Figure 1: All UK countries and regions saw positive growth in real GDP between 2023 and 2024

Notes:

1. GDP in chained volume measures.  
2. This chart shows annual growth rates to one decimal place. There may be instances where growth in a region is showing no change to one decimal place. However, there may be movements in the underlying data.

The 2025 update to the International Territorial Levels (ITL) geography framework realigned the ITL2 level to match as far as possible the emerging combined authorities with elected mayors, also known as Mayoral Strategic Authorities (MSA). This makes ITL2 more relevant to current areas of economic interest.

In a change to our usual commentary, this year we include a focus on the 15 currently agreed combined authorities, 12 of which match ITL2 subregions. The other three are included in our supplementary tables for city and enterprise regions (CER).

Notes:

1. West of England estimates are suppressed from this release because of an issue we identified in the processing of geographic boundary changes.
2. Data for all ITL2 subregions are included in our Regional gross domestic product: all ITL regions dataset; data for CER areas are included in our Regional gross domestic product: city and enterprise regions dataset.
3. GDP at current market prices is on a workplace basis.
4. Figures may not sum because of rounding in totals; per head (British pounds) figures are rounded to the nearest pound.
5. 2024 data are provisional.
6. Per head figures exclude Extra-Regio, as it comprises activity that cannot be assigned to regions.
7. "Real GDP" is GDP in chained volume measures.

In real terms, all combined authority areas covered in this bulletin saw an increase in gross domestic product (GDP) between 2023 and 2024, except Hull and East Yorkshire, which decreased by 1.2%.

Estimates for the West of England are suppressed from this bulletin because of an issue we identified in the processing of ITL2 geographic boundary changes. We will update this section of the bulletin when the full set of data are available.

Chained volume measures (CVM)

These time series have the effects of inflation removed by considering changes in quantity between consecutive periods, holding prices from previous periods constant.

Constant price (KP) series

These series have the effects of inflation removed by holding prices throughout the series at the level in a chosen base year (also known as "real terms" series).

Current price (CP) series

These series include the effects of inflation.

GDP

Gross domestic product (GDP) measures the value of goods and services produced in the UK. It estimates the size of and growth in the economy.

Gross value added (GVA)

The value generated by any unit engaged in production and the contributions of individual sectors or industries to gross domestic product.

ITL

The International Territorial Levels (ITL) are part of the new UK geographies classification system. This has superseded the Nomenclature of Units for Territorial Statistics (NUTS) classification system.

Methodology information

Various guidance and methodology publications relating to regional gross value added: balanced (GVA(B)), income (GVA(I)) and production (GVA(P)) are available. Our Regional accounts methodology guide: June 2019 provides an overview of the methodology used to compile regional accounts outputs.

More quality and methodology information on strengths, limitations, appropriate uses, and how the data were created is available in our Regional economic activity by gross domestic product quality and methodology information.

Other historical guidance, methodology and update documents are also available in Section 7: Measuring the data of our Regional economic activity by gross domestic product, UK: 1998 to 2018 bulletin.

Revisions

Gross regional product (GDP) and GVA estimates show revisions for the period 1998 to 2023.

All estimates, by definition, are subject to statistical error. However, in this context the word refers to the uncertainty in any process or calculation that uses sampling, estimation or modelling. Most revisions reflect either the adoption of new statistical techniques or the incorporation of new information, which allows the statistical error of previous estimates to be reduced.

Since the previous edition of our bulletin, we have introduced some changes to our data and methods. We have improved the method used to deflate estimates of regional GDP to remove the effect of price inflation. Previously, we used regional GVA implied deflators to deflate GDP at subnational levels, but this has been found to result in a divergence from UK GDP when GVA and GDP are moving at different rates of growth.

Our new method uses GVA implied deflators to deflate total GVA but separately deflates taxes (less subsidies) on products using a UK-level implied deflator. It then chain-links the two parts together to create a chained volume measure of regional GDP that is consistent with UK estimates. 

We have also carried out a review of the data and methods used to measure the agriculture industry. With the help of colleagues in the Department of the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) and the devolved governments of Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, we have identified the best and most consistent data to measure each component of GVA across all countries and regions of the UK. These changes have been implemented in all years of our published data, resulting in long-term revisions.

We have also introduced a refinement to the apportionment of GVA for human healthcare, to better reflect the subsidising of NHS prescription charges in the countries of the UK. Free prescriptions were introduced in Wales in 2007, followed by Northern Ireland in 2010, and Scotland in 2011. In England, prescriptions are only free for people qualifying for exemption from charges.

We have published revisions triangles for GVA:

• Revisions triangles: regional gross value added (balanced) in current basic prices

• Revisions triangles: regional gross value added (balanced) in chained volume measures

Accredited official statistics

Data included in this release are designated as accredited official statistics, which means they have been independently assessed by the Office for Statistics Regulation (OSR) and confirmed to comply with the standards of trustworthiness, quality and value in the Code of Practice for Statistics.

Quality information

Figures for 2024 are provisional, as national estimates have not been through supply, and use balancing at the time of this publication. Regional industry estimates for the components of income and production in 2024 have been calculated by applying growth in gross domestic product (output) industry figures and then constraining these to sum to the income and production component totals. The figures used in this process are consistent with those published in our UK National Accounts, The Blue Book: 2025 compendium.

To maintain consistency with our regional gross disposable household income data, published in August 2026, we have not taken on the latest revisions to population estimates for areas of Great Britain, which were published by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) and the National Registers Scotland (NRS) in July 2026. We have updated population estimates with all other published revisions since the release of the Blue Book 2025, as this has allowed us to fill gaps in the data.