Data

How many UK companies are "not elsewhere classified"

A "not elsewhere classified" SIC code tells anyone reading the register that the company does something in a broad area, and not much more. In Companies House's own data to the end of August 2026, 762,111 live companies had one as their first code and 703,328 had nothing else. This tracker counts them every quarter, straight from the snapshot files, and shows which codes and which sectors hold them.

Is your SIC code accurate?

762,111

live companies with an n.e.c. first code, 13.4% of the register

703,328

with only n.e.c. codes, nothing more specific alongside

955,224

with at least one n.e.c. code anywhere on the record

Our counts, from the Companies House snapshot dated 1 September 2026, which covers live companies on the register to the end of August 2026. Denominator: all 5,689,367 live companies in the file, including the 231,523 with no SIC code (our count of the Companies House Free Company Data Product).

What "n.e.c." means

38 codes that say where a company sits, not what it does

Companies House uses a condensed version of the ONS's SIC 2007 list, and 38 of its codes end in "n.e.c." (Companies House SIC list). Each is the leftover bucket at the bottom of a group: "Other business support service activities n.e.c.", "Other manufacturing n.e.c.", "Other education n.e.c.". A company picks one when nothing more specific on the list seems to fit, or when it's the first plausible option at incorporation and nobody revisits it.

Sometimes that's the right answer. A group holding company with no more specific holding code that fits belongs under 64209, and that's what the code is for. But for a trading company, an n.e.c. code means the one public, standardised description of its business says very little. Lenders and funding bodies use SIC codes to assess eligibility, often before anyone reads the accounts, and Companies House has said it can now challenge SIC codes that look incorrect, inconsistent or misleading (Companies House, 28 May 2026). What that means for a filing is on SIC code accuracy.

The quarterly series

The share has fallen in every quarter we hold

Companies whose first code is n.e.c. made up 14.13% of live companies in the snapshot to the end of November 2023 and 13.40% to the end of August 2026. The count itself peaked at 781,491 in the snapshot to the end of May 2024 and is 19,380 lower now, while the register grew by 221,948 companies over the whole period. Companies with only n.e.c. codes fell from 727,971 to 703,328. The one measure that rose is "any n.e.c. code", from 917,742 to 955,224, because more companies now carry an n.e.c. code alongside a specific one: 189,771 then, 251,896 now.

Snapshot file	Register to end of	Live companies	n.e.c. first code	Share	Only n.e.c.	Any n.e.c.
1 September 2026	August 2026	5,689,367	762,111	13.40%	703,328	955,224
1 June 2026	May 2026	5,698,274	766,081	13.44%	708,859	955,383
2 March 2026	February 2026	5,677,276	766,660	13.50%	711,309	950,583
1 December 2025	November 2025	5,685,825	768,834	13.52%	714,650	948,718
1 September 2025	August 2025	5,659,715	769,720	13.60%	717,746	943,906
25 June 2025	May 2025	5,650,545	773,351	13.69%	722,414	943,491
1 March 2025	February 2025	5,626,630	774,579	13.77%	724,944	938,875
1 December 2024	November 2024	5,652,241	779,567	13.79%	730,720	940,943
1 September 2024	August 2024	5,632,838	779,621	13.84%	732,024	937,638
1 June 2024	May 2024	5,609,246	781,491	13.93%	734,861	936,394
1 March 2024	February 2024	5,529,683	774,675	14.01%	729,068	924,771
4 December 2023	November 2023	5,467,419	772,317	14.13%	727,971	917,742

Our counts from each quarter's Companies House Free Company Data Product file, which holds "basic company data of live companies on the register", compiled to the end of the previous month. The June 2025 file is dated 25 June rather than the start of the month; we've read it the same way. A company counts once per row however many n.e.c. codes it has. Download the series as CSV or JSON.

A snapshot can't say why a number moved. Between two files, companies are incorporated, dissolved and change their codes on a confirmation statement, and the totals net all three together. So the fall is real in the data, but this series alone doesn't show whether it comes from companies correcting their codes, from n.e.c.-coded companies dissolving faster, or from new companies choosing specific codes more often.

By code

Three codes hold 55% of the total

The five biggest n.e.c. codes are the first code for 536,212 companies, 70% of all n.e.c. first codes. The movement inside them is the most interesting part of the tracker. 82990, the generic business support code, is down 14.2% since the end of November 2023, and 96090, "Other service activities", is down 12.3%. Over the same period 64209, the holding company code, went from 79,246 to 118,265, up 49.2%. Holding companies are the case where an n.e.c. code is often correct, so a falling total understates how far the generic trading codes have shrunk.

Code	Description	Section	First code, end of August 2026	A year earlier	End of November 2023	Change since	Anywhere on the record
82990	Other business support service activities n.e.c.	N	181,299	195,936	211,304	-14.2%	231,379
96090	Other service activities n.e.c.	S	119,060	127,520	135,704	-12.3%	156,550
64209	Activities of other holding companies n.e.c.	K	118,265	101,071	79,246	+49.2%	122,559
74909	Other professional, scientific and technical activities n.e.c.	M	63,636	65,686	67,914	-6.3%	86,038
43999	Other specialised construction activities n.e.c.	F	53,952	54,085	54,310	-0.7%	70,795
85590	Other education n.e.c.	P	40,340	38,172	34,824	+15.8%	69,705
32990	Other manufacturing n.e.c.	C	18,190	18,750	20,418	-10.9%	20,341
93290	Other amusement and recreation activities n.e.c.	R	17,015	17,081	16,249	+4.7%	25,599
42990	Construction of other civil engineering projects n.e.c.	F	16,416	16,817	17,582	-6.6%	20,401
63990	Other information service activities n.e.c.	J	16,242	17,526	19,321	-15.9%	25,398
88990	Other social work activities without accommodation n.e.c.	Q	14,068	14,169	14,302	-1.6%	25,901
94990	Activities of other membership organisations n.e.c.	S	10,025	10,139	9,958	+0.7%	14,585
87900	Other residential care activities n.e.c.	Q	9,243	9,112	8,243	+12.1%	17,885
18129	Printing n.e.c.	C	9,192	9,298	9,118	+0.8%	9,743
69109	Activities of patent and copyright agents; other legal activities n.e.c.	M	8,871	8,458	7,837	+13.2%	10,577
25990	Manufacture of other fabricated metal products n.e.c.	C	8,181	8,281	8,346	-2.0%	9,574
66190	Activities auxiliary to financial intermediation n.e.c.	K	8,010	7,604	7,580	+5.7%	10,434
10890	Manufacture of other food products n.e.c.	C	5,998	5,741	5,163	+16.2%	7,099
77390	Renting and leasing of other machinery, equipment and tangible goods n.e.c.	N	5,491	5,569	5,266	+4.3%	8,429
14190	Manufacture of other wearing apparel and accessories n.e.c.	C	5,374	5,129	4,926	+9.1%	6,348
46499	Wholesale of household goods (other than musical instruments) n.e.c	G	5,158	4,946	5,488	-6.0%	7,798
33170	Repair and maintenance of other transport equipment n.e.c.	C	4,102	4,189	4,170	-1.6%	4,479
28990	Manufacture of other special-purpose machinery n.e.c.	C	3,017	3,004	3,024	-0.2%	3,488
52219	Other service activities incidental to land transportation, n.e.c.	H	2,886	2,903	3,295	-12.4%	4,644
79909	Other reservation service activities n.e.c.	N	2,669	2,607	2,665	+0.2%	5,262
47749	Retail sale of medical and orthopaedic goods in specialised stores (not incl. hearing aids) n.e.c.	G	2,241	2,366	2,317	-3.3%	3,240
01629	Support activities for animal production (other than farm animal boarding and care) n.e.c.	A	2,181	2,217	2,246	-2.9%	2,622
64929	Other credit granting n.e.c.	K	1,898	1,831	1,858	+2.2%	2,309
32409	Manufacture of other games and toys, n.e.c.	C	1,777	1,791	1,660	+7.0%	2,072
13990	Manufacture of other textiles n.e.c.	C	1,632	1,762	1,841	-11.4%	1,836
20590	Manufacture of other chemical products n.e.c.	C	1,171	1,214	1,176	-0.4%	1,610
28290	Manufacture of other general-purpose machinery n.e.c.	C	1,083	1,077	1,131	-4.2%	1,310
30990	Manufacture of other transport equipment n.e.c.	C	860	914	1,035	-16.9%	1,012
08990	Other mining and quarrying n.e.c.	B	838	926	1,057	-20.7%	975
95290	Repair of personal and household goods n.e.c.	S	760	781	687	+10.6%	1,665
17290	Manufacture of other articles of paper and paperboard n.e.c.	C	499	546	557	-10.4%	600
23990	Manufacture of other non-metallic mineral products n.e.c.	C	320	339	362	-11.6%	387
23490	Manufacture of other ceramic products n.e.c.	C	151	163	137	+10.2%	210

All 38 n.e.c. codes on the Companies House SIC list, with the descriptions as Companies House gives them. "First code" is the first of the up to four codes on the record; "anywhere on the record" counts a company once if the code appears in any of the four places. Counts and changes are ours.

By sector

Where n.e.c. codes cluster: holding companies, business support and "other services"

n.e.c. codes aren't spread evenly. 7 of the 21 SIC sections have none at all, so every company in them has a specific code by construction: property, hospitality and utilities among them. Three sections carry most of them: financial and insurance (56%, almost all of it 64209), other service activities (55%) and administrative and support services (48%). Section K is where the share has grown most, up from 46% at the end of November 2023.

Section	n.e.c. codes in it	Companies, end of August 2026	With an n.e.c. first code	Share	Share, end of November 2023
A Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing	1	43,951	2,181	5.0%	5.3%
B Mining and Quarrying	1	8,423	838	9.9%	10.7%
C Manufacturing	15	234,965	61,547	26.2%	26.4%
D Electricity, gas, steam and air conditioning supply	0	17,827	0	0.0%	0.0%
E Water supply, sewerage, waste management and remediation activities	0	18,205	0	0.0%	0.0%
F Construction	2	570,855	70,368	12.3%	12.9%
G Wholesale and retail trade; repair of motor vehicles and motorcycles	2	740,028	7,399	1.0%	1.1%
H Transportation and storage	1	155,067	2,886	1.9%	2.0%
I Accommodation and food service activities	0	297,954	0	0.0%	0.0%
J Information and communication	1	472,111	16,242	3.4%	4.4%
K Financial and insurance activities	3	229,176	128,173	55.9%	46.0%
L Real estate activities	0	630,521	0	0.0%	0.0%
M Professional, scientific and technical activities	2	635,064	72,507	11.4%	12.2%
N Administrative and support service activities	3	394,237	189,459	48.1%	50.7%
O Public administration and defence; compulsory social security	0	10,109	0	0.0%	0.0%
P Education	1	111,934	40,340	36.0%	35.0%
Q Human health and social work activities	2	230,643	23,311	10.1%	10.2%
R Arts, entertainment and recreation	1	130,989	17,015	13.0%	13.2%
S Other service activities	3	235,331	129,845	55.2%	60.2%
T Activities of households as employers; undifferentiated goods- and services-producing activities of households for own use	0	127,942	0	0.0%	0.0%
U Activities of extraterritorial organisations and bodies	0	629	0	0.0%	0.0%

Section from the company's first code, using the section headings on the Companies House SIC list. Left out of every section: companies with no code (231,523), a first code of 99999 "Dormant Company" (105,409) or 74990 "Non-trading company" (40,383), and 16,091 still carrying an older four-digit SIC 2003 code that the current list no longer includes. Shares are ours.

New companies

Newer companies are less likely to be n.e.c.-coded, with a caveat

Grouping the latest snapshot by incorporation date shows the share of surviving companies with an n.e.c. first code mostly falling for more recent cohorts, from 13.7% for 2019 to 10.7% so far for 2026 (2021 was slightly above 2020). The caveat matters: this counts only companies still live at the end of August 2026, so older cohorts have already lost the companies that dissolved, and if n.e.c.-coded companies dissolve at a different rate the comparison tilts. It also reflects codes as they stand now, not as they were chosen at incorporation.

Incorporated in	Still live, end of August 2026	With an n.e.c. first code	Share
2019	280,864	38,359	13.7%
2020	268,046	34,862	13.0%
2021	284,439	37,364	13.1%
2022	308,575	39,381	12.8%
2023	381,517	47,640	12.5%
2024	468,719	55,436	11.8%
2025	720,344	78,154	10.8%
2026 (Q1 to Q3, last quarter part-complete)	518,739	55,591	10.7%

Our counts from the 1 September 2026 snapshot, by the IncorporationDate field. Survivors only; not a count of incorporations.

Check a code

Is your SIC code n.e.c., and what sits next to it?

Type a five-digit SIC code from your Companies House record. You'll see whether it's an n.e.c. code, how many live companies use it as their first code, and the other codes in the same group that might describe the business more precisely. Runs in your browser; nothing is sent anywhere.

The table below shows the same check for the eight largest n.e.c. codes with neighbours on the list.

The more specific codes next door

The alternatives beside the biggest n.e.c. codes

Where an n.e.c. code has neighbours in the same group, one of them may describe the business better. Whether one does is a question about what the company actually does, and a code should only change if the new one is accurate.

n.e.c. code (companies using it as first code)	More specific codes in the same group (companies using each)
82990 Other business support service activities n.e.c. (181,299)	82911 Activities of collection agencies (609) 82912 Activities of credit bureaus (43) 82920 Packaging activities (1,953)
96090 Other service activities n.e.c. (119,060)	96010 Washing and (dry-)cleaning of textile and fur products (4,185) 96020 Hairdressing and other beauty treatment (70,423) 96030 Funeral and related activities (3,190) 96040 Physical well-being activities (9,930)
74909 Other professional, scientific and technical activities n.e.c. (63,636)	74901 Environmental consulting activities (8,395) 74902 Quantity surveying activities (6,899)
43999 Other specialised construction activities n.e.c. (53,952)	43910 Roofing activities (15,491) 43991 Scaffold erection (7,045)
85590 Other education n.e.c. (40,340)	85510 Sports and recreation education (14,074) 85520 Cultural education (7,375) 85530 Driving school activities (3,830)
32990 Other manufacturing n.e.c. (18,190)	32910 Manufacture of brooms and brushes (49)
93290 Other amusement and recreation activities n.e.c. (17,015)	93210 Activities of amusement parks and theme parks (710)
63990 Other information service activities n.e.c. (16,242)	63910 News agency activities (759)

"Same group" means codes sharing the first three digits on the Companies House SIC list. Counts are first codes in the 1 September 2026 snapshot. 74990 "Non-trading company" is left out, since it isn't an alternative for a business that trades. 64209 is left out on purpose: its neighbours are other kinds of holding company, and 64209 is often right.

Other estimates

How this compares with The Data City's figure

The figure most often quoted is The Data City's: 886,106 companies "currently classified" under one of the same 38 n.e.c. codes, and around 740,000 "only classified under n.e.c. codes", in a post dated 14 December 2022 (The Data City). Our earliest snapshot, to the end of November 2023, gives 917,742 and 727,971 on the closest definitions we can match. The post doesn't state which snapshot or filters it used, so the gap between the two shouldn't be read as a change over time; the series on this page is counted one way throughout and is the one to compare quarter with quarter.

Method

How the counts are made

Source. Each row is one Companies House Free Company Data Product file, the whole register of live companies in one CSV. Older files are still served at the same address pattern, which is how the back series was built. Each file's SHA-256 hash is recorded with the counting script so the same file can be checked.
Which codes count. The 38 codes whose description on the Companies House SIC list ends "n.e.c.". Nothing is inferred from company names or accounts.
Three measures. First code n.e.c. (the headline); any of the up to four codes n.e.c.; and every code n.e.c. ("only n.e.c."). Companies with no code are in the denominator and in none of the numerators.
What it isn't. Not an official statistic, not a measure of wrong codes, and not a view on any company. A code being n.e.c. says the classification is broad, nothing more.
Updates. A new row each quarter, counted the same way. Corrections go in the methodology changelog.

Sources

Companies House Free Company Data Product, 12 snapshot files from 4 December 2023 to 1 September 2026, downloaded 24 September 2026. Companies House SIC code list and guidance on keeping your SIC code accurate, read 24 September 2026. The Data City, read 24 September 2026. Every count, share and change on this page is our own.

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Adam Parker

Founder of Muswell Rose Consulting Ltd, which trades as Established Finance · former Managing Director of Penny, an invoice finance business, working in mortgages, commercial finance and fintech lending since 2010 (career history).

Figures checked: 25 September 2026

Common questions

Questions about this

How many UK companies use a "not elsewhere classified" SIC code?

955,224 live companies had at least one n.e.c. code in Companies House's snapshot compiled to the end of August 2026, 16.8% of the 5,689,367 on the register. 762,111 (13.4%) had one as their first code, and 703,328 (12.4%) had no other kind of code at all. These are our counts from the snapshot file, not a Companies House statistic.

Which n.e.c. SIC code is used most?

82990, "Other business support service activities n.e.c.", the first code for 181,299 live companies. Next come 96090 "Other service activities n.e.c." (119,060) and 64209 "Activities of other holding companies n.e.c." (118,265). Those three account for 55% of all companies whose first code is n.e.c.

Is the number of n.e.c.-coded companies going up or down?

As a share of the register, down. Companies whose first code is n.e.c. were 14.13% of live companies in the snapshot to the end of November 2023 and 13.40% to the end of August 2026. The mix moved too: 82990 and 96090 have shrunk while 64209, the holding company code, grew by 49.2%.

Is an n.e.c. SIC code wrong?

Not necessarily. For some companies it is the most accurate code on the list: a group holding company with no more specific holding code that fits will usually sit under 64209. The problem is when a generic n.e.c. code is standing in for an activity that has its own code, which leaves anyone reading the register, a lender included, with nothing specific to go on. Companies House can now challenge information on the register that looks inaccurate.

How often is this tracker updated?

Quarterly. Companies House publishes a new snapshot within five working days of each month end, and we add one per quarter, counted the same way. The counting script and the SHA-256 hash of every file used are kept with the site's source, so any figure can be reproduced from the same file.