Cardiff and Northampton are similarly sized business centres with 30,780 and 21,846 active companies respectively. This close match makes their industry mix, growth trajectory, and formation history all the more interesting to compare. Both cities share strength in Activities of other holding companies n.e.c. and Buying and selling of own real estate.
Cardiff has 30,780 active companies compared to 21,846 in Northampton — 8,934 more.
Cardiff has a higher 2020s company formation rate (61.7%) compared to Northampton (56.1%).
Both cities share these top industries: Activities of other holding companies n.e.c., Buying and selling of own real estate, Information technology consultancy activities, Management consultancy activities other than financial management, Other business support service activities n.e.c.. Cardiff is uniquely strong in Business and domestic software development and Other, while Northampton stands out in Development of building projects and Freight transport by road.