SIC codes for manufacturing companies in the UK: the Section C list, SIC 2026 and how to search

Companies House asks every company to give at least one and up to four five-digit SIC codes, and to use only codes on its condensed SIC 2007 list; a code that is not on the list can lead to a rejected filing.[1][2] The UK classification has followed the EU's NACE classification down to the four-digit class since 1992, and adds a fifth digit where the UK needs more detail.[3][4]

That gives two kinds of five-digit code:

• A class code ending in 0. 28140 is class 28.14, "Manufacture of taps and valves", with no UK subdivision.[1]
• A UK subclass ending in 1 to 9. Class 28.13 is split into 28131 "Manufacture of pumps" and 28132 "Manufacture of compressors"; class 10.51 is split into 10511 liquid milk and cream, 10512 butter and cheese, and 10519 other milk products.[1]

The practical consequence: a filter on the four-digit class (2813*) catches both pumps and compressors, while a filter on 28131 catches pumps alone. Decide which one your brief needs before you search.

The table counts active companies in the 1 October 2026 Free Company Data Product that list at least one code from each division.[5] A company with codes in two divisions is counted in both, so the column does not add up to the 212,868 total.

Three things stand out for an industrial supplier:

• Division 33 is the largest. Repair and installation businesses are classed as manufacturing, but many are service firms, not plants. 33120 "Repair of machinery" alone has 5,775 active companies, and 33200 "Installation of industrial machinery and equipment" has 5,214.[5]
• The catch-all codes are big. 32990 "Other manufacturing n.e.c." is the most-used single code in Section C, with 18,413 active companies; 25990 other fabricated metal products follows with 8,719.[5] Anything ending "n.e.c." (not elsewhere classified) needs a second check.
• Most companies give one code. Of the 212,868, 132,532 list a single SIC code of any kind; the rest list two to four.[5] A company that makes pumps and also runs a service arm may only show one of those activities.

These are counts of registered companies, not factories. A group with five plants may be one company; a plant may sit under a company registered at an accountant's address. Our UK manufacturer list guide covers confirming the operating site.

The 212,868 figure counts registered companies. The ONS publishes a different number from the Inter-Departmental Business Register, the list government uses for statistics, which counts businesses registered for tax or PAYE. In March 2026 it held about 128,000 UK manufacturing businesses, 4.6% of all businesses, down from about 130,000 in March 2025.[10]

The two figures answer different questions:

If your list from Companies House is far larger than the ONS count for the same industries, the difference is usually holding companies, dormant or service-only companies and codes that are out of date. That is a reason to check, not to trust the bigger number.

Use this as a starting set, not a target list. The right codes depend on what you sell and who specifies it; check every code's wording on the Companies House list before you run a search.[1]

Pump, valve and flow-control suppliers can take this further with our pump and flow control prospecting guide.

Some codes sit next to manufacturing companies on the register without describing a plant. The figures show how many active companies list the code, and how many of those also list a Section C code.[5]

Companies House says that a dormant or non-trading code on an active company is one of the most common discrepancies it sees, and that the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act lets it challenge, reject or remove information that appears incorrect.[2] Codes should get more accurate over time, but a code filed years ago may still be on the record today.

The ONS finalised UK SIC 2026 in April 2026 and published its structure, indexes and a SIC 2007 to SIC 2026 correspondence table on its SIC 2026 page.[6][7] It is based on NACE Rev. 2.1 down to the four-digit level.[4] The ONS is bringing it in by stages, starting with business registers and then survey sampling, and expects the earliest use in National Accounts to be the 2031 Blue Book. It doesn't require outside organisations to adopt it.[7]

Companies House's guidance for filers still points to its condensed SIC 2007 list.[1][2] Until it says otherwise, expect register searches to use SIC 2007 codes, and expect official statistics to move to SIC 2026 first.

We joined the 259 Section C codes to the ONS correspondence table.[6] The result is in the CSV:

• 176 codes keep the same code number (some with slightly reworded headings).
• 26 codes move to a different code or merge with another, such as 25620 machining becoming 25.53, and the four furniture codes 31010–31090 merging into 31.00.
• 57 codes split across two or more SIC 2026 classes.

At company level, 100,494 of the 212,868 active Section C companies list at least one code that splits.[5][6]

Splits that matter most to industrial suppliers:

The CSV gives the full SIC 2026 headings for every row. Our industrial prospect list maintenance guide covers how to keep both codes on an account record while the change works through.

You can search in two ways:

• One code at a time. The Companies House advanced search has a "Nature of business" field that takes a SIC code, and you can filter by company status, company type and incorporation date.[8]
• Every code at once. The Free Company Data Product is a free monthly CSV snapshot of live companies, updated within five working days of each month end.[5] Each row carries up to four SIC codes in the fields SICCode1 to SICCode4.[9] The 1 October 2026 file is about 470 MB zipped.

When you work from the snapshot:

• ☐ Filter on company status = Active. The snapshot also includes companies in liquidation, administration or a proposal to strike off.
• ☐ Match on all four SIC fields, not only the first. Companies House asks for at least one code and up to four; its guidance does not ask companies to rank them.[2]
• ☐ Split the code from its description. Each field holds a value such as "28131 - Manufacture of pumps".
• ☐ Flag the pitfall codes in the table above rather than deleting them, so a reviewer can decide.
• ☐ Record the snapshot date on every row. A list built from the 1 October file describes the register on that date.
• ☐ Treat the registered office as an address for post, not as the plant. Confirm the operating site from a second source.

This example is fictional. The company, territory and decisions are invented to show the method; only the SIC codes and their wording come from the Companies House list.

A fictional valve distributor wants process manufacturers in Scotland that might buy industrial valves. Its brief lists divisions 10, 11, 20 and 21, plus 17 for paper mills.

1. Pull. It filters the snapshot on active companies listing a code in those divisions in any of the four fields, and keeps those with a Scottish registered office as a first cut. It notes that this misses Scottish plants owned by companies registered in England.
2. Flag. Any record that also lists 99999, 74990, 70100 or 64209 is set to hold. Records whose only Section C code is 10890 or 20590 are set to hold for a website check, because both are "n.e.c." codes and both split under SIC 2026.
3. Recode. It adds the SIC 2026 code(s) for each row from the CSV, so the list can be refiltered when the register moves.
4. Confirm. For each remaining candidate, a researcher checks the site against a regulator source, such as the SEPA or HSE registers covered in our UK manufacturer list guide, and records include, hold or reject with a reason.

The distributor ends up with a shorter list where every row says why it is there. It also has a separate list of holding companies to investigate later for subsidiaries.

Before accepting a list built this way, audit a fictional prospect batch for duplicate companies, holds and unresolved evidence.

What is the SIC code for a manufacturing company in the UK?

There isn't a single code. Manufacturing is Section C of UK SIC 2007, codes 10110 to 33200, and a company picks the code or codes that describe what it makes. If none fits, the "n.e.c." code for the closest group applies, for example 25990 or 28290.

Can a company have more than one SIC code?

Yes. Companies House accepts between one and four codes, updated through the confirmation statement.[2] In the October 2026 snapshot, 80,336 active Section C companies list more than one code.[5]

Do I need to switch to SIC 2026 codes now?

Not for searching the Companies House register. Its guidance still points to the condensed SIC 2007 list.[1][2] The ONS doesn't require outside organisations to adopt SIC 2026, though it encourages it.[7] Storing both codes on each account means your filters keep working through the change.

Does the ONS help companies choose a SIC code?

No. The ONS stopped advising individual companies on which code to use in September 2019, and points them to the classification documents instead.[3]

How many manufacturing companies are there in the UK?

It depends on the count. In the Companies House snapshot of 1 October 2026, 212,868 active companies listed at least one manufacturing code.[5] The ONS business register held about 128,000 manufacturing businesses in March 2026, counted on a different basis.[10]

Are UK SIC codes the same as Irish or EU NACE codes?

They match down to the four-digit class; the UK fifth digit adds detail. Irish statistics use NACE codes. Our Irish manufacturing account research guide covers the Irish side.

Demand Range builds industrial account lists for Ireland, the UK and the EU. Every row comes with the activity evidence, the classification codes and the reason for inclusion. If you want a UK manufacturer list cut to your brief, see industrial lead research, request a quote or email partners@demandrange.com.

1. Companies House: Standard industrial classification of economic activities (SIC), condensed SIC 2007 list
2. Companies House blog: Keeping your standard industrial classification (SIC) code accurate (28 May 2026)
3. Office for National Statistics: UK SIC 2007
4. Office for National Statistics: UK SIC 2026 introductory guidelines (31 July 2026)
5. Companies House: Free Company Data Product (snapshot dated 1 October 2026)
6. Office for National Statistics: UK SIC 2026, including the SIC 2007 to SIC 2026 correspondence table (3 August 2026)
7. Office for National Statistics: UK SIC 2026 guidance
8. Companies House: Advanced company search
9. Companies House: Free Company Data Product field list
10. Office for National Statistics: UK business; activity, size and location: 2026 (24 September 2026)

Sources were checked on 27 October 2026. Company counts are Demand Range's analysis of the Companies House Free Company Data Product dated 1 October 2026: active companies only, matched on all four SIC fields against the 259 Section C codes on the condensed list. SIC 2026 mappings come from the ONS correspondence table of 3 August 2026. Companies House and ONS material is Crown copyright, used under the Open Government Licence v3.0. No company names or records are reproduced.