South West · 2025-26
Business Rates in Cornwall UA
Businesses in Cornwall UA paid £167.4m in net business rates during 2025-26, above the average English council's £93.2m.
Are you paying too much in Cornwall UA?
Check your rateable value and relief eligibility in about 60 seconds. Free, no sign-up.
Relief granted in Cornwall UA
Share of £101.4m total relief, 2025-26.
Cornwall UA at a glance
Cornwall UA granted £101.4m in relief overall, higher than the national council average of £26.3m. This included £47.5m in Small Business Rate Relief and £20.7m in retail, hospitality and leisure relief.
A further £21.5m went to charity relief and £4.1m to empty property relief, reflecting the mix of ratepayers across the local authority.
Cornwall UA has an estimated 25,345 active businesses, according to the latest ONS Business Counts (2025).
Cornwall UA ranks 112 out of 296 local authorities in England on the 2025 Index of Multiple Deprivation, where 1 is most deprived and 296 is least deprived.
Following the 2026 revaluation, the total rateable value of industrial property in Cornwall UA rose by 18.0% — if this pushed your assessment too high, an appeal may be worth considering.
Frequently asked questions
How much are business rates in Cornwall UA?
Cornwall UA's local authority collected £167.4m in net business rates income during 2025-26, based on the national multiplier applied to each property's rateable value, less any relief granted.
What reliefs are available in Cornwall UA?
Cornwall UA granted £101.4m in business rates relief in 2025-26, including £47.5m in Small Business Rate Relief, £20.7m in retail, hospitality and leisure relief, £21.5m in charity relief, and £4.1m in empty property relief.
How do I know if I'm overpaying?
If your rateable value looks high compared to similar properties nearby, or you're not currently receiving relief you may be entitled to, it's worth checking your assessment. Use our free checker to compare your rateable value and see if you may be eligible for a reduction or backdated refund.
Cornwall UA compared with the South West and England
- Average rateable value
- £14,496£9,448 below the South West average (£23,944)£19,494 below the England average (£33,990)
- Largest sector by value
- Other commercial property, 46.8%12.8 percentage points above its 34.0% share in the South West
- Total rateable value, 2023 to 2026 list
- +19.4%South West: +17.7%England: +19.6%
Counts and rateable values are from the stock of properties at March 2026, on the 2023 rating list. Changes are from the 2026 revaluation, comparing the 2023 rating list with the 2026 rating list.
Property mix
With an average rateable value of £14,496, Cornwall UA has the 8th lowest figure of England's 296 councils and 24th of 27 in the South West. Other commercial property also accounts for the most properties in Cornwall UA, at 54.2% of its rateable properties.
In Cornwall UA, retail is 15.9% of rateable properties and 23.4% of rateable value; across the South West the figures are 20.1% and 22.7%. High-value property is limited in Cornwall UA: around 80 properties were rated at £500,000 or more at March 2026, rising to 100 on the 2026 list.
Change at the 2026 revaluation
Only 4 of the 26 other councils in the South West saw a stronger change in total rateable value at the 2026 revaluation than Cornwall UA's +19.4%. Other commercial property saw the biggest rise in Cornwall UA: total rateable value up 24.5% between the 2023 and 2026 lists, against +23.0% for other commercial property across the South West. Even the weakest sector in Cornwall UA, retail property, rose 10.9% in total rateable value at the 2026 revaluation, against +7.7% for retail property across the South West.
Reliefs
Total relief granted in Cornwall UA equalled 36.7% of gross rates payable in 2025-26, above the 21.2% across English councils taken together. Of the four main reliefs, Small Business Rate Relief accounted for the most in Cornwall UA: 46.8% of the total, above the England figure of 28.0%.
Source: HM Revenue & Customs, using Valuation Office Agency data, and MHCLG relief returns. Open Government Licence v3.0. Method and rounding: /methodology.
See how Cornwall UA compares with the rest of the region: Business rates in South West, State of Business Rates in England 2026 →
Nearby areas
Compare with other councils in the South West
Other South West councils with their average rateable value, listed from the closest to Cornwall UA's £14,496.
- Business rates in West Devon£14,343 average rateable value, £153 lower than Cornwall UA
- Business rates in South Hams£14,795 average rateable value, £299 higher than Cornwall UA
- Business rates in Forest of Dean£15,157 average rateable value, £661 higher than Cornwall UA
- Business rates in Mid Devon£15,311 average rateable value, £815 higher than Cornwall UA
- Business rates in Torridge£11,287 average rateable value, £3,209 lower than Cornwall UA
- Business rates in Isles of Scilly£8,791 average rateable value, £5,705 lower than Cornwall UA
Figures from MHCLG National Non-Domestic Rates statistics (2025-26), ONS UK Business Counts (2025), and English Indices of Deprivation (2025).
Updates for Cornwall
By email.