The UK economy grew by 0.7% in the third quarter of 2026, according to the first estimate from the Office for National Statistics (ONS), published on 12 November. That is faster than the 0.5% growth recorded between April and June, and leaves the economy 1.9% bigger than a year earlier.
Services lead the way
Services output rose 0.9% over the quarter, up from 0.6% in the previous three months, and is 2.3% higher than a year ago. Within services, the ONS points to administrative and support services (up 4.1%), information and communication (up 2.1%) and professional, scientific and technical activities.
The ONS says information and communication has been the largest driver of growth across 2026, with many firms reporting large increases in turnover linked to artificial intelligence and cloud computing. It adds that its data make the exact effect hard to quantify.
Factories edge up, construction falls
Production output rose 0.1% in the quarter after a 0.1% fall in the spring. Manufacturing was the only positive contributor within production, up 0.9%, helped by computer, electronic and optical products, which grew 4.6%.
Construction went the other way. Output fell 0.7% over the quarter and is 1.7% lower than a year earlier, with private housing new work down 4.7%. Education, and accommodation and food services, each fell 0.5%.
Month by month
Monthly figures published alongside the quarterly release show GDP grew 0.4% in July, was flat in August (revised down from an initial 0.1% rise) and grew 0.2% in September.
What households and businesses spent
On the spending side, the ONS says growth came mainly from household consumption, which rose 0.6%, and gross fixed capital formation, which rose 1.7%. Government consumption also rose 0.6%. Exports grew 1.6% and imports 1.8%.
GDP per head, a rough guide to living standards, rose 0.7% in the quarter and is 1.7% higher than a year earlier. In cash terms, nominal GDP rose 1.4% over the quarter and is 4.3% higher than a year ago, while the GDP deflator, a broad measure of price changes across the economy, is up 2.3% on the year.
A first estimate
The ONS stresses that this is a first estimate based on incomplete data, and that early GDP figures can be revised up or down. Since 2000, the average revision between the first estimate and the figure published three years later has been 0.27 percentage points in either direction. The next quarterly estimate is due on 22 December 2026.
