Best areas to open light-industrial business unit in North West
6 North West local authorities ranked by the Gera Business Location Score — real rent, wages, rates and market density.
Where is the best place to open a light-industrial business unit in North West?
In North West, the best area to open a light-industrial business unit is Stockport, with a Gera Business Location Score of 71.7/100: premises at £57/m²/yr and local median pay £28,296. Liverpool ranks lowest of 6 North West authorities at 59.6/100. From 2025 UK government open data; re-dated annually.
Gera Business Location Score
Top North West area for light-industrial business unit: Stockport.
How this is calculatedNorth West ranked for light-industrial business unit
| # | Local authority | GBLS | Rent (£/m²/yr) | Local pay | Rates / 100 m² |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Stockport | 71.7/100 | £57 | £28,296 | £2,462 |
| 2 | Bolton | 70.2/100 | £83 | £27,696 | £3,586 |
| 3 | Bury | 68.8/100 | £72 | £29,060 | £3,110 |
| 4 | Trafford | 66.1/100 | £90 | £31,516 | £3,888 |
| 5 | Salford | 59.9/100 | £104 | £34,741 | £4,493 |
| 6 | Liverpool | 59.6/100 | £89 | £33,648 | £3,845 |
Frequently asked questions
- What is the cheapest area for light-industrial business unit premises in North West?
- The lowest VOA rateable value for this property type in North West is £57/m²/yr in Stockport. On the combined Gera Business Location Score, which also weighs wages and demand, Stockport ranks #1.
- How much are business rates for light-industrial business unit in Stockport?
- For a 100 m² unit in Stockport, business rates are roughly £2,462/yr at the 2026-27 small-business multiplier (43.2p), on top of about £5,700/yr rent — before Small Business Rate Relief.
Opening a light-industrial business unit in North West?
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Contains public sector information published by Valuation Office Agency and Office for National Statistics and licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Source: VOA Business Floorspace + ONS Business Counts + ONS ASHE (work geography) + ONS population estimates (2025 (VOA 31 March 2025; ASHE 2025 provisional; Business Counts 2025; population mid-2024), published December 2025).