West Midlands · 2025-26
Business Rates in Sandwell
Businesses in Sandwell paid £119.4m in net business rates during 2025-26, above the average English council's £93.2m.
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Relief granted in Sandwell
Share of £36.0m total relief, 2025-26.
Sandwell at a glance
Sandwell granted £36.0m in relief overall, higher than the national council average of £26.3m. This included £14.3m in Small Business Rate Relief and £3.5m in retail, hospitality and leisure relief.
A further £9.0m went to charity relief and £4.5m to empty property relief, reflecting the mix of ratepayers across the local authority.
Sandwell has an estimated 10,140 active businesses, according to the latest ONS Business Counts (2025).
Sandwell ranks 19 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 Sandwell rose by 29.2% — if this pushed your assessment too high, an appeal may be worth considering.
Frequently asked questions
How much are business rates in Sandwell?
Sandwell's local authority collected £119.4m 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 Sandwell?
Sandwell granted £36.0m in business rates relief in 2025-26, including £14.3m in Small Business Rate Relief, £3.5m in retail, hospitality and leisure relief, £9.0m in charity relief, and £4.5m 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.
Sandwell compared with the West Midlands and England
- Average rateable value
- £28,129£93 below the West Midlands average (£28,222)£5,861 below the England average (£33,990)
- Largest sector by value
- Industrial property, 53.2%13.5 percentage points above its 39.7% share in the West Midlands
- Total rateable value, 2023 to 2026 list
- +24.1%West Midlands: +17.4%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
On average rateable value, Sandwell sits 149th among England's 296 councils at £28,129, which is 15th of 30 in the West Midlands. The same sector leads on numbers too: 41.8% of Sandwell's rateable properties fall in the industrial category.
Retail accounts for 27.2% of Sandwell's rateable properties and 18.1% of its rateable value, compared with 24.2% and 20.1% across the West Midlands. At March 2026, around 60 of Sandwell's rateable properties had a rateable value of £500,000 or more, rising to 100 on the 2026 list.
Change at the 2026 revaluation
Sandwell's +24.1% change in total rateable value at the 2026 revaluation was stronger than in all 29 other councils in the West Midlands. The sharpest increase in Sandwell was in industrial property, where total rateable value rose 29.2% at the 2026 revaluation, compared with +20.7% for industrial property across the West Midlands. No sector fell in Sandwell: office property moved least, up 13.3% at the 2026 revaluation, compared with +12.4% for office property across the West Midlands.
Reliefs
In 2025-26, relief in Sandwell came to 22.1% of gross rates payable, close to the 21.2% for England as a whole. Small Business Rate Relief was the largest of the four main reliefs in Sandwell, at 39.7% of total relief, above 28.0% across England.
Source: HM Revenue & Customs, using Valuation Office Agency data, and MHCLG relief returns. Open Government Licence v3.0. Method and rounding: /methodology.
See how Sandwell compares with the rest of the region: Business rates in West Midlands, State of Business Rates in England 2026 →
Nearby areas
Compare with other councils in the West Midlands
Other West Midlands councils with their average rateable value, listed from the closest to Sandwell's £28,129.
- Business rates in Newcastle-under-Lyme£27,855 average rateable value, £274 lower than Sandwell
- Business rates in Stratford-on-Avon£26,708 average rateable value, £1,421 lower than Sandwell
- Business rates in Wychavon£26,342 average rateable value, £1,787 lower than Sandwell
- Business rates in South Staffordshire£30,225 average rateable value, £2,096 higher than Sandwell
- Business rates in Stoke-on-Trent UA£25,880 average rateable value, £2,249 lower than Sandwell
- Business rates in Stafford£30,506 average rateable value, £2,377 higher than Sandwell
Figures from MHCLG National Non-Domestic Rates statistics (2025-26), ONS UK Business Counts (2025), and English Indices of Deprivation (2025).
Updates for Sandwell
By email.