South West · 2025-26
Business Rates in Somerset
Businesses in Somerset paid £191.0m in net business rates during 2025-26, above the average English council's £93.2m.
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Relief granted in Somerset
Share of £71.1m total relief, 2025-26.
Somerset at a glance
Somerset granted £71.1m in relief overall, higher than the national council average of £26.3m. This included £27.9m in Small Business Rate Relief and £13.0m in retail, hospitality and leisure relief.
A further £17.3m went to charity relief and £6.9m to empty property relief, reflecting the mix of ratepayers across the local authority.
Somerset has an estimated 24,520 active businesses, according to the latest ONS Business Counts (2025).
Somerset ranks 143 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 Somerset rose by 18.6% — if this pushed your assessment too high, an appeal may be worth considering.
Frequently asked questions
How much are business rates in Somerset?
Somerset's local authority collected £191.0m 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 Somerset?
Somerset granted £71.1m in business rates relief in 2025-26, including £27.9m in Small Business Rate Relief, £13.0m in retail, hospitality and leisure relief, £17.3m in charity relief, and £6.9m 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.
Somerset compared with the South West and England
- Average rateable value
- £21,868£2,076 below the South West average (£23,944)£12,122 below the England average (£33,990)
- Largest sector by value
- Industrial property, 35.6%4.8 percentage points above its 30.8% share in the South West
- Total rateable value, 2023 to 2026 list
- +17.3%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
At £21,868, Somerset's average rateable value ranks 232nd of 296 councils in England and 14th of 27 in the South West. The same sector leads on numbers too: 35.4% of Somerset's rateable properties fall in the industrial category.
Retail accounts for 19.1% of Somerset's rateable properties and 22.9% of its rateable value, compared with 20.1% and 22.7% across the South West. At March 2026, around 90 of Somerset's rateable properties had a rateable value of £500,000 or more, rising to 120 on the 2026 list.
Change at the 2026 revaluation
Somerset's +17.3% change in total rateable value at the 2026 revaluation sits mid-table in the South West: stronger than in 15 of the 26 other councils and weaker than in 11. The sharpest increase in Somerset was in other commercial property, where total rateable value rose 24.1% at the 2026 revaluation, compared with +23.0% for other commercial property across the South West. No sector fell in Somerset: retail property moved least, up 7.5% at the 2026 revaluation, in line with the +7.7% across the South West.
Reliefs
In 2025-26, relief in Somerset came to 26.6% of gross rates payable, above the 21.2% for England as a whole. Small Business Rate Relief was the largest of the four main reliefs in Somerset, at 39.2% 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 Somerset 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 Somerset's £21,868.
- Business rates in Stroud£23,824 average rateable value, £1,956 higher than Somerset
- Business rates in Bournemouth, Christchurch & Poole UA£24,826 average rateable value, £2,958 higher than Somerset
- Business rates in Cotswold£18,839 average rateable value, £3,029 lower than Somerset
- Business rates in Torbay UA£18,051 average rateable value, £3,817 lower than Somerset
- Business rates in Wiltshire UA£26,799 average rateable value, £4,931 higher than Somerset
- Business rates in North Somerset UA£27,577 average rateable value, £5,709 higher than Somerset
Figures from MHCLG National Non-Domestic Rates statistics (2025-26), ONS UK Business Counts (2025), and English Indices of Deprivation (2025).
Updates for Somerset
By email.