North and Scotland dominate new study of UK’s best cities for freelancers – Prolific North

The North is the best place in the UK to be a freelancer, according to a new study by specialist insurer Markel Direct, with Northern and Scottish cities taking six out of the top 10 UK freelance locations.

The study compared 49 locations in the UK across five key metrics to determine the best locations to be a freelancer in the UK. These included freelancer availability, percentage of freelance jobs paying more than £40,000, full-fibre internet coverage, train connectivity and the number of free Wi-Fi working spaces, with each factor ranked out of 49 depending how it compared to the other locations (1 being the highest, 50 being the lowest).

Although Exeter took top spot, it was plain sailing for the North from thereon in, with Leeds, Wakefield, Manchester, Aberdeen and Edinburgh taking the next five slots in that order.

The South enjoyed a brief resurgence for slots seven to nine (Bristol, Brighton, Milton Keynes, as if we’re interested) before Liverpool rounded out the top 10.

There was further success for the North in the internet connectivity field where Hull, despite not making the overall top 10, topped the rankings.

Second-placed Leeds didn’t rank number one for any single factors, but scored well for railway station connectivity and the number of free workspaces. There was a similar story for third-placed Wakefield, which ranked fourth for the number of freelance jobs and ninth for train connectivity – although at least one Prolific North journalist may dispute this assessment following a recent much-delayed trip to ‘Yorkshire’s next creative hub.’

The study asked 500 self-employed people a series of questions related to their business or work, and also explored the key challenges that the self-employed are facing in 2024. Over half (51%) said that “irregular income due to economic issues” was top of their list.

Second in the list of challenges being faced was a “limited client/customer base” for 34% of respondents, followed by struggling with the “seasonal fluctuations in demand” by 33% of respondents.

But despite these challenges, an overwhelming 92% of those surveyed said they intend on remaining self-employed in the future, with “being my own boss,” “flexibility” and “pursuing a passion” cited as the biggest benefits of going it alone.

As for London – it was nowhere to be seen, although it unsurprisingly topped the rankings for train connectivity. Because who needs trains in the North, right Rishi?