The UK’s most valuable brands are growing more quickly than their global rivals for the first time in nearly 10 years and have hit a record valuation of $321.2 billion, according to new analysis from Kantar’s 2026 BrandZ Most Valuable UK Brands ranking.
The good news for the country’s most valuable consumer-facing businesses comes as the Chancellor prepares to deliver his first Budget on 28 October and set out his plans to kickstart the economy. Reflecting the contribution of the UK’s creative and marketing industries, 49 of the UK’s top 75 brands gained in brand value despite the backdrop of sluggish GDP growth and ongoing cost of living challenges for households.
In line with the UK’s longstanding strength in service industries, financial services brands are the driving force behind the growth, with banks like Barclays and Lloyds Bank now making up more than one third of the ranking’s overall value. By comparison, telecoms and retail have lost some ground. They now contribute 17% and 9% respectively, down from 25% and 14% five years ago.
HSBC remains the UK’s most valuable brand, while all the top 10 fastest-growing brands are from the financial services sector. Revolut achieved the greatest year-on-year gains as it continues to underscore the services and experience which set it apart, most recently in its ‘Can your bank keep up with your business?’ campaign.
• British Airways’ brand value rose by 16% as its investment in customer experience helped to reflect its premium positioning
• Next’s brand value was up by 17% year on year, pipping the growth of Marks & Spencer (7%) and Very (1%)
• The KitKat brand grew by 21% boosted by its partnership with Formula 1, using fan experiences, social content and product innovation to reach new audiences
• Costa Coffee was the only quick-service food and drink brand to make the ranking, up by 14%.
Despite the positive results this year, UK brand growth could stutter in the long run. It’s fantastic to see the upward movement in the numbers, but there’s a risk this could be more of a short-term bounce than a long-term boom. Our analysis of brands’ equity suggests that many haven’t yet built the momentum they need to sustain demand in today’s low-growth economy, and that’s a concern for boardrooms.
Kantar’s assessment indicates that, to maintain a positive trajectory, UK brands must invest in building their relevance in consumers’ changing lives. For a long time, the emphasis in the marketing industry has been on differentiation. That’s clearly important, but being distinctive isn’t enough on its own. The big growth opportunity on the table is in forming emotional connections with customers, meeting their needs and fitting better into their changing lifestyles, in a way that other brands can’t. In the past six years, the businesses which have significantly improved perceptions of how relevant and meaningful they are grew their value by a whopping 140%.
Consumers’ use of AI is making this even more obvious because we typically search for brands based on specific ideas and requirements of what we’re looking for. If a business’ relevance isn’t clear, then LLMs won’t mention it and a sale won’t happen. One of the most effective ways the top brands are doing this and creating emotional connection is through investing in their cultural relevance, for example building fandoms and communities and offering immersive experiences. To win with both bots and humans, brands must get involved in a way that feels natural and authentic – anything forced will seem like bandwagon-jumping.
The 2026 Kantar BrandZ Most Valuable UK Brands rankings, full report and in-depth analysis are now available at: www.kantar.com/campaigns/brandz/uk
For category-level competitive insights, Kantar’s free BrandSnapshot tool, powered by BrandZ, offers at-a-glance intelligence on 15,000 brands worldwide. Explore it here.
The good news for the country’s most valuable consumer-facing businesses comes as the Chancellor prepares to deliver his first Budget on 28 October and set out his plans to kickstart the economy. Reflecting the contribution of the UK’s creative and marketing industries, 49 of the UK’s top 75 brands gained in brand value despite the backdrop of sluggish GDP growth and ongoing cost of living challenges for households.
In line with the UK’s longstanding strength in service industries, financial services brands are the driving force behind the growth, with banks like Barclays and Lloyds Bank now making up more than one third of the ranking’s overall value. By comparison, telecoms and retail have lost some ground. They now contribute 17% and 9% respectively, down from 25% and 14% five years ago.
HSBC remains the UK’s most valuable brand, while all the top 10 fastest-growing brands are from the financial services sector. Revolut achieved the greatest year-on-year gains as it continues to underscore the services and experience which set it apart, most recently in its ‘Can your bank keep up with your business?’ campaign.
Looking beyond financial services:
• Sainsbury’s brand value increased 19%, while Tesco maintained its place as the most valuable grocer, having grown by 15%• British Airways’ brand value rose by 16% as its investment in customer experience helped to reflect its premium positioning
• Next’s brand value was up by 17% year on year, pipping the growth of Marks & Spencer (7%) and Very (1%)
• The KitKat brand grew by 21% boosted by its partnership with Formula 1, using fan experiences, social content and product innovation to reach new audiences
• Costa Coffee was the only quick-service food and drink brand to make the ranking, up by 14%.
Despite the positive results this year, UK brand growth could stutter in the long run. It’s fantastic to see the upward movement in the numbers, but there’s a risk this could be more of a short-term bounce than a long-term boom. Our analysis of brands’ equity suggests that many haven’t yet built the momentum they need to sustain demand in today’s low-growth economy, and that’s a concern for boardrooms.
Kantar’s assessment indicates that, to maintain a positive trajectory, UK brands must invest in building their relevance in consumers’ changing lives. For a long time, the emphasis in the marketing industry has been on differentiation. That’s clearly important, but being distinctive isn’t enough on its own. The big growth opportunity on the table is in forming emotional connections with customers, meeting their needs and fitting better into their changing lifestyles, in a way that other brands can’t. In the past six years, the businesses which have significantly improved perceptions of how relevant and meaningful they are grew their value by a whopping 140%.
Consumers’ use of AI is making this even more obvious because we typically search for brands based on specific ideas and requirements of what we’re looking for. If a business’ relevance isn’t clear, then LLMs won’t mention it and a sale won’t happen. One of the most effective ways the top brands are doing this and creating emotional connection is through investing in their cultural relevance, for example building fandoms and communities and offering immersive experiences. To win with both bots and humans, brands must get involved in a way that feels natural and authentic – anything forced will seem like bandwagon-jumping.
The 2026 Kantar BrandZ Most Valuable UK Brands rankings, full report and in-depth analysis are now available at: www.kantar.com/campaigns/brandz/uk
For category-level competitive insights, Kantar’s free BrandSnapshot tool, powered by BrandZ, offers at-a-glance intelligence on 15,000 brands worldwide. Explore it here.
