Best UK areas to open golf course
156 local authorities ranked by the Gera Business Location Score — real commercial rent, local wages, business rates and market density.
Which UK areas are best for opening a golf course in 2026?
The best UK area to open a golf course is North Northamptonshire (East Midlands), with a Gera Business Location Score of 77.9/100: premises at £95/m²/yr and local median pay of £31,027. Wokingham ranks lowest at 22.1/100. Ranked across 156 local authorities from 2025 government open data; re-dated annually.
Top 10 areas for golf course
| # | Local authority | Region | GBLS | Rent (£/m²/yr) | Local pay | Rates / 100 m² |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | North Northamptonshire | East Midlands | 77.9/100 | £95 | £31,027 | £4,104 |
| 2 | Gwynedd | Wales | 76.3/100 | £56 | £25,217 | £2,419 |
| 3 | Powys | Wales | 75.5/100 | £60 | £26,839 | £2,592 |
| 4 | Bromsgrove | West Midlands | 75.2/100 | £74 | £27,494 | £3,197 |
| 5 | Denbighshire / Sir Ddinbych | Wales | 73.8/100 | £49 | £27,011 | £2,117 |
| 6 | Conwy | Wales | 72.9/100 | £57 | £26,961 | £2,462 |
| 7 | Pembrokeshire / Sir Benfro | Wales | 72.6/100 | £79 | £26,535 | £3,413 |
| 8 | Stockport | North West | 70.2/100 | £61 | £28,296 | £2,635 |
| 9 | East Lindsey | East Midlands | 70.2/100 | £70 | £26,724 | £3,024 |
| 10 | Cotswold | South West | 69.8/100 | £116 | £29,655 | £5,011 |
Filter by your budget
Set a premises size and monthly budget to shortlist the areas that fit.
Budget covers estimated annual rent (VOA rateable value × floor area) plus the 2026-27 small-business rates bill (43.2p multiplier), spread over 12 months. Real reliefs (e.g. Small Business Rate Relief) can reduce the rates portion further.
Best areas to open a golf course within £2,000/month
- 1North NorthamptonshireEast MidlandsGBLS 77.9≈ £907/mo
- 2GwyneddWalesGBLS 76.3≈ £535/mo
- 3PowysWalesGBLS 75.5≈ £573/mo
- 4BromsgroveWest MidlandsGBLS 75.2≈ £706/mo
- 5Denbighshire / Sir DdinbychWalesGBLS 73.8≈ £468/mo
- 6ConwyWalesGBLS 72.9≈ £544/mo
- 7Pembrokeshire / Sir BenfroWalesGBLS 72.6≈ £754/mo
- 8StockportNorth WestGBLS 70.2≈ £582/mo
- 9East LindseyEast MidlandsGBLS 70.2≈ £668/mo
- 10CotswoldSouth WestGBLS 69.8≈ £1,107/mo
- 11HyndburnNorth WestGBLS 68.8≈ £468/mo
- 12Isle of WightSouth EastGBLS 68.8≈ £754/mo
- 13Derbyshire DalesEast MidlandsGBLS 67.9≈ £840/mo
- 14GatesheadNorth EastGBLS 67.7≈ £506/mo
- 15MaldonEastGBLS 67.6≈ £831/mo
Golf course by region
Frequently asked questions
- Where is the cheapest place to open a golf course in the UK?
- By premises cost alone, the lowest VOA rateable value among the 156 ranked areas is £49/m²/yr in Denbighshire / Sir Ddinbych. But the Gera Business Location Score also weighs local wages and market demand: on the combined score, North Northamptonshire ranks #1 at 77.9/100.
- How much is rent and business rates for golf course premises in North Northamptonshire?
- In North Northamptonshire, the VOA rateable value for this property type is £95 per m² per year. For a 100 m² unit that is about £9,500/yr rent, plus roughly £4,104/yr business rates at the 2026-27 small-business multiplier (43.2p) — before any Small Business Rate Relief.
- What data is this based on?
- VOA Non-Domestic Rating Business Floorspace (rateable value per m², 31 March 2025), ONS UK Business Counts 2025 (market density), ONS ASHE 2025 (local wages) and ONS mid-2024 population — all Open Government Licence v3.0, joined on the ONS local-authority code.
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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).