Profit league table
How much UK contractors and housebuilders make
Profit before tax and profit margin from each company's latest accounts at Companies House. Thin margins leave little room when a job goes wrong, and losses are one of the warning signs to check before you take on work.
- Companies in the table
- 115
- Middle margin (median)
- 3.9%
- Made a loss
- 16 of 115
Read these figures with care. Each is for the company we list, which is sometimes the group and sometimes its main trading company, so check the accounts linked in the last column. Year ends differ, one-off items can swing a single year, and margin is profit before tax divided by turnover. For payment times, see the payment league table.
Profit before tax as a share of turnover, 115 companies. 16 made a loss.
| Company | Margin |
|---|---|
| Emerson Developments | 28.1% |
| Van Oord UK | 21.3% |
| Bovis Homes | 15.8% |
| Bloor Homes | 14.3% |
| Morgan Lovell PLC | 12.3% |
| Gallagher | 12.3% |
| FP McCann | 11.4% |
| Persimmon | 10.6% |
| M J Church (Plant) | 10.1% |
| QTS Group | 10.0% |
| Toureen Group | 9.8% |
| Neilcott Construction | 9.5% |
| George Leslie | 9.1% |
| Andrew Scott | 8.7% |
| Hill Holdings | 8.4% |
| Overbury PLC | 8.1% |
| J Murphy & Sons Ltd | 8.0% |
| Sacyr UK | 8.0% |
| Colas Rail | 7.7% |
| Bugler Developments | 7.5% |
| Carnell Support Services | 7.2% |
| Willis Construction Ltd | 7.0% |
| P&P Builders | 6.7% |
| LCB Construction | 6.6% |
| Keepmoat Homes | 6.6% |
| Heron Bros. | 6.6% |
| Ocu Group | 6.6% |
| Countryside Properties | 6.4% |
| Lindum Group | 6.3% |
| Keller Group plc | 6.0% |
| Mears Group Plc | 5.6% |
| Bowmer & Kirkland Ltd | 5.6% |
| MJ Gleeson Group | 5.6% |
| Clipfine | 5.4% |
| B E C T Building Contractors Ltd | 5.4% |
| Feltham Construction | 5.1% |
| Henry Brothers | 5.1% |
| Harron Homes | 5.1% |
| F M Conway | 5.0% |
| Springfield Properties | 4.9% |
| Matthew Homes | 4.9% |
| Reds10 (UK) | 4.9% |
| J.N. Bentley | 4.8% |
| Equans | 4.8% |
| Keltbray Group Ltd | 4.8% |
| VolkerWessels UK Ltd | 4.7% |
| Beech Grove Homes | 4.6% |
| Fortel Services | 4.6% |
| Bancon Homes | 4.6% |
| Wain Group | 4.5% |
| Watkin Jones & Sons | 4.4% |
| Strabag UK | 4.3% |
| Crest Nicholson | 4.3% |
| Clancy Docwra | 4.3% |
| Robertson Group | 4.0% |
| Jones Bros | 4.0% |
| Bam Nuttall Ltd | 3.9% |
| Sweet Projects | 3.9% |
| M.V. Kelly | 3.9% |
| Taylor Wimpey | 3.8% |
| Gilbert-Ash | 3.8% |
| Abbey Developments | 3.7% |
| VINCI Construction UK | 3.6% |
| Seddon Group Ltd | 3.6% |
| Balfour Beatty PLC | 3.4% |
| M Group Highways | 3.2% |
| Speller Metcalfe | 3.2% |
| Winvic Group Ltd | 3.0% |
| John Graham Holdings Ltd | 2.9% |
| Laing O'Rourke | 2.9% |
| Willmott Dixon Holdings Ltd | 2.9% |
| Luddon Construction | 2.8% |
| Midgard Ltd | 2.7% |
| Anwyl Group | 2.7% |
| Wynne Construction | 2.7% |
| J. Reddington | 2.5% |
| Encon Construction | 2.5% |
| Barnwood Limited | 2.4% |
| Lovell Partnerships | 2.4% |
| Clark Contracts | 2.1% |
| City & Country | 2.1% |
| Beard Construction | 2.0% |
| Carter Lauren Construction | 2.0% |
| E.g.carter & Company | 1.9% |
| Stepnell | 1.9% |
| Volkerrail | 1.9% |
| Kier Group | 1.9% |
| McLaren Construction Group Plc | 1.9% |
| Tilbury Douglas Construction Ltd | 1.8% |
| T & B (Contractors) | 1.6% |
| 8BUILD | 1.3% |
| Glencar Construction | 1.1% |
| John Sisk & Son Ltd | 1.0% |
| Borras Construction | 0.9% |
| Hercules PLC | 0.7% |
| McLaughlin & Harvey Ltd | 0.6% |
| Tarmac | 0.4% |
| Higgins Group | 0.4% |
| Van Elle | 0.2% |
| Galliford TRY Infrastructure | -0.6% |
| Cala Homes | -1.4% |
| Mulalley & Co | -1.6% |
| Hopkins Homes | -1.7% |
| Weston Group | -2.2% |
| Hale Construction / JG Hale | -2.5% |
| Homeserve Plc | -3.1% |
| London Square | -3.7% |
| Morris Homes | -4.3% |
| Durkan | -5.7% |
| Bewley Homes | -7.8% |
| United Living | -11.0% |
| Allenbuild | -11.2% |
| Farrans | -12.2% |
| Bouygues (U.K.) Ltd | -19.3% |
| Fairview Holdings | -21.2% |
Latest accounts at Companies House. The end bars include every margin below -10% or above 20%.
The middle (median) profit margin in each group.
| Group | Companies | Middle margin | Made a loss |
|---|---|---|---|
| Main contractors | 87 | 3.9% | 8 |
| Housebuilders and developers | 28 | 4.4% | 8 |
Latest accounts at Companies House.
| # | Company | Turnover | Profit before tax | Margin | Year before | 5-year average | Loss years | Year to |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Emerson Developments | £300.1m | £84.3m | 28.1% | 32.6% | Apr 2025 | ||
| 2 | Van Oord UK | £46.1m | £9.8m | 21.3% | 7.1% | Dec 2025 | ||
| 3 | Bovis Homes | £1.62bn | £256.0m | 15.8% | 3.2% | Dec 2025 | ||
| 4 | Bloor Homes | £1.25bn | £179.1m | 14.3% | 16.6% | Jun 2025 | ||
| 5 | Morgan Lovell PLC | £162.3m | £20.0m | 12.3% | 12.0% | Dec 2025 | ||
| 6 | Gallagher | £129.3m | £15.9m | 12.3% | 12.3% | Sept 2025 | ||
| 7 | FP McCann | £485.6m | £55.3m | 11.4% | 11.1% | Dec 2025 | ||
| 8 | Persimmon | £3.75bn | £397.3m | 10.6% | 11.2% | Dec 2025 | ||
| 9 | M J Church (Plant) | £108.8m | £11.0m | 10.1% | 9.1% | Sept 2025 | ||
| 10 | QTS Group | £162.5m | £16.3m | 10.0% | 10.7% | Sept 2025 | ||
| 11 | Toureen Group | £141.8m | £13.9m | 9.8% | 7.3% | Jul 2025 | ||
| 12 | Neilcott Construction | £154.4m | £14.7m | 9.5% | 5.3% | Dec 2025 | ||
| 13 | George Leslie | £95.4m | £8.7m | 9.1% | 12.0% | Mar 2026 | ||
| 14 | Andrew Scott | £79.6m | £7.0m | 8.7% | 6.2% | Jun 2025 | ||
| 15 | Hill Holdings | £1.10bn | £92.5m | 8.4% | 8.5% | Mar 2026 | ||
| 16 | Overbury PLC | £1.63bn | £132.4m | 8.1% | 8.1% | Dec 2025 | ||
| 17 | J Murphy & Sons Ltd | £1.28bn | £102.4m | 8.0% | 6.7% | Dec 2025 | ||
| 18 | Sacyr UK | £75.7m | £6.1m | 8.0% | 9.0% | Dec 2025 | ||
| 19 | Colas Rail | £428.6m | £33.0m | 7.7% | 6.9% | Dec 2025 | ||
| 20 | Bugler Developments | £128.6m | £9.7m | 7.5% | 2.7% | Mar 2025 | ||
| 21 | Carnell Support Services | £56.3m | £4.0m | 7.2% | 11.1% | Sept 2025 | ||
| 22 | Willis Construction Ltd | £19.6m | £1.4m | 7.0% | 6.6% | Sept 2025 | ||
| 23 | P&P Builders | £14.6m | £975k | 6.7% | 8.5% | Apr 2025 | ||
| 24 | LCB Construction | £75.6m | £5.0m | 6.6% | 5.9% | Feb 2026 | ||
| 25 | Keepmoat Homes | £694.5m | £45.8m | 6.6% | Oct 2025 | |||
| 26 | Heron Bros. | £151.2m | £10.0m | 6.6% | 7.3% | Aug 2025 | ||
| 27 | Ocu Group | £886.5m | £58.4m | 6.6% | 7.2% | Apr 2025 | ||
| 28 | Countryside Properties | £1.91bn | £122.3m | 6.4% | 1.3% | Dec 2025 | ||
| 29 | Lindum Group | £209.3m | £13.2m | 6.3% | 5.2% | Nov 2025 | ||
| 30 | Keller Group plc | £3.09bn | £186.4m | 6.0% | 6.2% | Dec 2025 | ||
| 31 | Mears Group Plc | £1.14bn | £63.5m | 5.6% | Dec 2025 | |||
| 32 | Bowmer & Kirkland Ltd | £1.37bn | £76.4m | 5.6% | 5.3% | Aug 2025 | ||
| 33 | MJ Gleeson Group | £365.8m | £20.5m | 5.6% | 7.2% | Jun 2025 | ||
| 34 | Clipfine | £83.1m | £4.4m | 5.4% | 6.5% | May 2025 | ||
| 35 | B E C T Building Contractors Ltd | £58.3m | £3.1m | 5.4% | 2.8% | Jun 2025 | ||
| 36 | Feltham Construction | £75.3m | £3.9m | 5.1% | 5.2% | Jun 2026 | ||
| 37 | Henry Brothers | £102.9m | £5.3m | 5.1% | 4.6% | Mar 2026 | ||
| 38 | Harron Homes | £156.9m | £8.0m | 5.1% | 4.7% | Dec 2025 | ||
| 39 | F M Conway | £396.2m | £19.7m | 5.0% | 5.5% | Dec 2025 | ||
| 40 | Springfield Properties | £243.7m | £11.9m | 4.9% | 6.8% | May 2026 | ||
| 41 | Matthew Homes | £45.1m | £2.2m | 4.9% | 6.7% | Apr 2025 | ||
| 42 | Reds10 (UK) | £144.7m | £7.1m | 4.9% | 4.9% | Mar 2025 | ||
| 43 | J.N. Bentley | £533.8m | £25.8m | 4.8% | 3.7% | Dec 2025 | ||
| 44 | Equans | £678.0m | £32.7m | 4.8% | 6.6% | Dec 2025 | ||
| 45 | Keltbray Group Ltd | £343.9m | £16.4m | 4.8% | -1.3% | Oct 2025 | ||
| 46 | VolkerWessels UK Ltd | £1.49bn | £70.5m | 4.7% | 3.2% | Dec 2025 | ||
| 47 | Beech Grove Homes | £108.3m | £5.0m | 4.6% | -26.0% | Mar 2026 | ||
| 48 | Fortel Services | £92.6m | £4.3m | 4.6% | 5.8% | Sept 2025 | ||
| 49 | Bancon Homes | £78.3m | £3.6m | 4.6% | 4.3% | Mar 2025 | ||
| 50 | Wain Group | £303.6m | £13.5m | 4.5% | 3.3% | Sept 2025 | ||
| 51 | Watkin Jones & Sons | £184.3m | £8.2m | 4.4% | 6.8% | Sept 2025 | ||
| 52 | Strabag UK | £189.2m | £8.2m | 4.3% | Dec 2025 | |||
| 53 | Crest Nicholson | £610.8m | £26.4m | 4.3% | -19.4% | Oct 2025 | ||
| 54 | Clancy Docwra | £428.6m | £18.6m | 4.3% | 3.4% | Mar 2025 | ||
| 55 | Robertson Group | £769.7m | £30.5m | 4.0% | -0.5% | Jun 2025 | ||
| 56 | Jones Bros | £150.5m | £6.0m | 4.0% | 4.6% | Mar 2025 | ||
| 57 | Bam Nuttall Ltd | £1.48bn | £57.8m | 3.9% | 6.7% | Dec 2025 | ||
| 58 | Sweet Projects | £65.4m | £2.6m | 3.9% | 3.6% | Dec 2025 | ||
| 59 | M.V. Kelly | £504.0m | £19.8m | 3.9% | 3.1% | May 2025 | ||
| 60 | Taylor Wimpey | £3.84bn | £146.5m | 3.8% | Dec 2025 | |||
| 61 | Gilbert-Ash | £195.6m | £7.4m | 3.8% | Dec 2025 | |||
| 62 | Abbey Developments | £144.1m | £5.3m | 3.7% | Apr 2025 | |||
| 63 | VINCI Construction UK | £2.72bn | £96.7m | 3.6% | 2.8% | Dec 2025 | ||
| 64 | Seddon Group Ltd | £140.3m | £5.1m | 3.6% | 4.2% | Dec 2025 | ||
| 65 | Balfour Beatty PLC | £9.49bn | £323.0m | 3.4% | 2.6% | Dec 2025 | ||
| 66 | M Group Highways | £532.8m | £17.0m | 3.2% | 3.0% | Mar 2026 | ||
| 67 | Speller Metcalfe | £158.9m | £5.0m | 3.2% | 2.1% | Mar 2026 | ||
| 68 | Winvic Group Ltd | £1.00bn | £29.7m | 3.0% | 3.2% | Jan 2026 | ||
| 69 | John Graham Holdings Ltd | £1.23bn | £35.8m | 2.9% | 2.4% | Mar 2026 | ||
| 70 | Laing O'Rourke | £2.41bn | £69.1m | 2.9% | -0.3% | Mar 2026 | ||
| 71 | Willmott Dixon Holdings Ltd | £1.11bn | £31.8m | 2.9% | 4.0% | Dec 2025 | ||
| 72 | Luddon Construction | £161.7m | £4.5m | 2.8% | 2.6% | Aug 2025 | ||
| 73 | Midgard Ltd | £410.0m | £11.0m | 2.7% | -2.7% | Mar 2026 | ||
| 74 | Anwyl Group | £177.1m | £4.7m | 2.7% | 5.6% | Sept 2025 | ||
| 75 | Wynne Construction | £74.1m | £2.0m | 2.7% | 2.6% | Jul 2025 | ||
| 76 | J. Reddington | £195.8m | £4.9m | 2.5% | -2.4% | Mar 2026 | ||
| 77 | Encon Construction | £20.3m | £500k | 2.5% | 2.1% | Jun 2025 | ||
| 78 | Barnwood Limited | £116.8m | £2.8m | 2.4% | 4.4% | Dec 2025 | ||
| 79 | Lovell Partnerships | £906.7m | £21.4m | 2.4% | 2.0% | Dec 2025 | ||
| 80 | Clark Contracts | £125.9m | £2.7m | 2.1% | 2.1% | Oct 2025 | ||
| 81 | City & Country | £99.5m | £2.0m | 2.1% | 6.7% | Jul 2025 | ||
| 82 | Beard Construction | £230.2m | £4.5m | 2.0% | 2.6% | Dec 2025 | ||
| 83 | Carter Lauren Construction | £47.8m | £955k | 2.0% | 1.8% | Mar 2025 | ||
| 84 | E.g.carter & Company | £92.2m | £1.7m | 1.9% | 1.4% | Jun 2026 | ||
| 85 | Stepnell | £150.3m | £2.8m | 1.9% | 0.9% | Mar 2026 | ||
| 86 | Volkerrail | £143.5m | £2.8m | 1.9% | 3.2% | Dec 2025 | ||
| 87 | Kier Group | £4.08bn | £78.1m | 1.9% | Jun 2025 | |||
| 88 | McLaren Construction Group Plc | £1.12bn | £21.0m | 1.9% | 1.3% | Jul 2025 | ||
| 89 | Tilbury Douglas Construction Ltd | £581.0m | £10.7m | 1.8% | Dec 2025 | |||
| 90 | T & B (Contractors) | £48.2m | £796k | 1.6% | 3.9% | Dec 2025 | ||
| 91 | 8BUILD | £157.1m | £2.1m | 1.3% | -1.3% | Mar 2025 | ||
| 92 | Glencar Construction | £359.2m | £4.0m | 1.1% | 1.2% | Sept 2025 | ||
| 93 | John Sisk & Son Ltd | £704.2m | £7.3m | 1.0% | 1.0% | Dec 2025 | ||
| 94 | Borras Construction | £38.3m | £327k | 0.9% | 0.8% | Dec 2025 | ||
| 95 | Hercules PLC | £121.2m | £852k | 0.7% | 2.2% | Sept 2025 | ||
| 96 | McLaughlin & Harvey Ltd | £437.3m | £2.8m | 0.6% | 0.8% | Jun 2025 | ||
| 97 | Tarmac | £1.96bn | £7.6m | 0.4% | 2.7% | Dec 2025 | ||
| 98 | Higgins Group | £298.9m | £1.1m | 0.4% | 0.1% | Jul 2025 | ||
| 99 | Van Elle | £126.9m | £204k | 0.2% | 5.3% | Apr 2025 | ||
| 100 | Galliford TRY Infrastructure | £190.4m | -£1.1m | -0.6% | -2.1% | Jun 2025 | ||
| 101 | Cala Homes | £1.13bn | -£16.3m | -1.4% | 1.6% | Dec 2025 | ||
| 102 | Mulalley & Co | £199.3m | -£3.2m | -1.6% | 0.3% | Mar 2025 | ||
| 103 | Hopkins Homes | £169.6m | -£2.9m | -1.7% | 3.8% | Mar 2025 | ||
| 104 | Weston Group | £208.4m | -£4.5m | -2.2% | -11.8% | Jul 2025 | ||
| 105 | Hale Construction / JG Hale | £44.7m | -£1.1m | -2.5% | 0.5% | Jun 2025 | ||
| 106 | Homeserve Plc | £1.21bn | -£37.1m | -3.1% | -2.7% | Dec 2025 | ||
| 107 | London Square | £343.6m | -£12.7m | -3.7% | -4.8% | Dec 2025 | ||
| 108 | Morris Homes | £232.5m | -£10.0m | -4.3% | -9.1% | Apr 2025 | ||
| 109 | Durkan | £135.3m | -£7.7m | -5.7% | -6.0% | Nov 2025 | ||
| 110 | Bewley Homes | £96.9m | -£7.5m | -7.8% | 2.5% | Sept 2025 | ||
| 111 | United Living | £845.8m | -£93.5m | -11.0% | -6.0% | Mar 2026 | ||
| 112 | Allenbuild | £4.1m | -£455k | -11.2% | -13.9% | Mar 2025 | ||
| 113 | Farrans | £297.7m | -£36.2m | -12.2% | 0.9% | Dec 2025 | ||
| 114 | Bouygues (U.K.) Ltd | £394.8m | -£76.1m | -19.3% | -8.6% | Dec 2025 | ||
| 115 | Fairview Holdings | £108.6m | -£23.0m | -21.2% | -12.6% | Dec 2025 |
Why margins matter to subcontractors
Construction runs on thin margins. A contractor making 2% on its turnover has little to absorb a bad job, a dispute or a slow-paying client, and the first place cash pressure shows is often in how quickly it pays its supply chain. Many of the firms in our biggest failures list reported a profit in their last accounts, so a margin is never the whole story: check the company's CR Signals for late filings and going concern warnings too.
The figures come from the accounts each company files at Companies House, read and checked line by line. Accounts made up to before 2024 are left out so the table compares like with like.