UK out-of-home reports “best ever year”

Outsmart, the trade body for the out-of-home (OOH) advertising industry, has announced that UK OOH revenue in 2024 was the highest ever recorded.

According to Outsmart, overall OOH revenue for year end 2024 saw a growth of 7.7% year-on-year, with total revenues of £1.4bn, the highest calculated amount for the industry.

The figures, collated by PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), show that digital out-of-home (DOOH) grew by 10.2%, with classic OOH up by 3%. This means that DOOH’s share of total revenue is now at 66%, a slight increase from 65% in 2023.

However, according to Outsmart, Q4 2024 revenue was impacted by some uncertainty and a dip in business and consumer confidence surrounding the Labour government’s October budget.

Year-on-year, a 2.2% decline in overall Q4 revenues was reported, with total revenues of £387.3m. Outsmart has reported that this impact may continue into early 2025.

Outsmart had already reported that UK spending in OOH for 2024 had reached £1bn in December, an increase of 12% compared to the same period last year.

Justin Cochrane, chair of Outsmart, comments: “2024 is a real milestone for OOH and we celebrate our best year. Brands continue to recognise that for broadcast strategies, OOH plays a vital role by offering unrivalled reach, creative dynamism, and real-time targeting.”

Dan Bunyan, partner at PwC, adds: “While there have been macro headwinds to navigate, the UK OOH market remains in good health and has delivered a strong growth for 2024 vs other media. New investment into OOH infrastructure remains strong and this should underpin future industry revenue growth.”

A detailed breakdown of UK OOH revenue figures and research can be found on the Outsmart website.