The United Kingdom’s Newspapers have contributed significantly to the country’s history. This article is a curated list that comprises the 10 largest newspapers in the United Kingdom in 2026. It also mentions the average circulation, foundation year, and the owner of the top leading newspapers.
In the United Kingdom, newspapers play a significant part in British history and play a beneficial role in educating citizens about updated information and events. While in the digital age, many people termed newspapers as outdated, the print media still stands as the most reliable source of information.
A recent data survey states that almost 62 per cent of adults read physical newspapers, and almost 49.1 million adults read newspapers of different brands in the country. Here’s a closer look at the United Kingdom’s largest newspapers and how they continue to excel among the media.
About British Newspapers
Initiated in the 17th century, the British news publication types like posters, ballads, and pamphlets were introduced, where they covered both the news and the rumours. The sales of newspapers in the country rose in the 18th century, and in the 20th century, they reached their peak; however, since then, the numbers have been constantly declining.
UK Newspapers are categorised into two niches: intellectual newspapers that cover topics related to education, finance, and related, and others, commonly termed ‘tabloids’, which comprise news related to entertainment. The United Kingdom’s highest-selling newspaper is The Metro.
List of the top 10 Largest UK Newspapers in 2026
1. Metro
- Average Circulation: 953, 475
- Owned By: DMG Media
Published by The Daily Mail and General Trust (DMGT), The Metro is known as one of the fastest-growing newspapers in the United Kingdom. It has 1.3 million copies distributed daily across the UK in 50 cities. A daily newspaper, The Metro, is distributed from Monday to Friday; it excludes public holidays.
2. The Telegraph
- Average Circulation: N/A
- Owned By: Telegraph Media Group
Founded by Colonel Arthur B. Sleigh in 1855, The Daily Telegraph ranks second among the top newspapers in 2024. It has 30 million daily readers in print and digital across the UK. While the newspaper had a 1.4 million circulation in the 1980s, it dropped by a substantial 20 per cent in 2018. The Daily Telegraph is a daily newspaper.
Also Read – Ranked: Top 10 Most Popular Sports in The World
3. Daily Mail
- Average Circulation: 687,063
- Owned By: Daily Mail and General Trust
Founded in 1896 by Alfred Harmsworth, The Daily Mail ranks as the second-largest circulated newspaper in 2020. According to the data publishing record, women make up the majority of this newspaper’s readership; it comprises 652,866 paid circulation as of February 2025.
4. Evening Standard
- Average Circulation: In 2021, its circulation was 489,405, which dropped by 3,00,000
- Owned By: Evgeny Lebedev, Daily Mail & General Trust, Justin Byam Shaw, Geordie Greg
Founded in 1827 as The Standard, The Evening Standard is a long-established newspaper. Initially, the newspaper promoted paid circulation. However, the newspaper, in 2009, ended its 180 years of history by becoming a free newspaper that is published on Weekdays.
On May 29, 2024, The Evening Standard was announced as a weekly newspaper under the title The London Standard.
5. Daily Mirror
- Average Circulation: 451,000 per issue
- Owned By: Reach Plc
Founded in 1903 by the British company, Reach Plc, The Daily Mirror is a national daily tabloid newspaper. The leading British newspaper has 832,000 daily print readership. While the Daily Mirror is a daily newspaper, the Sunday Mirror is its Sunday sister newspaper.
Also Read – Top 10 Highest Paying Real Estate Jobs (With Duties & Salaries)
6. Daily Express
- Average Circulation: 128,551
- Owned By: Reach plc
Founded in 1900 by Sir Arthur Pearson, The Daily Express is a national daily British media-market newspaper. Published in London in a tabloid format, in the 1940s, the newspaper went on to become the largest newspaper in the world with an average circulation of 4 million copies. A source indicates a daily readership of 548,000 currently.
7. Daily Star
- Average Circulation: 95,543
- Owned By: Reach plc
Founded in 1978 as a part of the Express Newspapers, Daily Star sold out its first-night print of 1,40,000; however, its cover price decreased to pass its competitor, The Sun. Published by Rich plc, the Daily Star covers news related to entertainment, celebrities, sports, news/gossip, and soap operas.
8. City A.M.
- Average Circulation: 68,602 (Free Edition)
- Owned By: THG plc
Founded in 2005, City A.M.’s former editors were Sunday Times and journalist David Parsley. Distributed primarily in London, as of 2025, the business-focused newspaper City A.M. had a monthly online readership of 4 million and a print circulation of 68,053. The print newspaper is distributed for free in and around London.
9. Daily Record
- Average Circulation: 44,207
- Owned By: Reach plc
Founded in 1895 as a sister title to the North British Daily Mail, the Daily Record is a Scottish national tabloid newspaper that is published from Monday to Saturday, with its website being updated hourly.
The Daily Record’s newspaper is based on sports and news, primarily serving the Scottish location.
10. The Guardian
- Average Circulation: 108,687 (As of 2021)
- Owned By: Guardian Media Group
Founded in 1821 as The Manchester Guardian, The Guardian is the United Kingdom’s daily newspaper. Owned by Scott Trust Limited, the sister groups of popular newspapers are The Observer and The Guardian Weekly. Besides its physical newspaper, The Guardian has three prominent news websites, TheGuardian.com, Guardian Australia, Guardian US, and The Guardian New Zealand. It has a 3.1 million readership.
Why is the Newspaper Industry Declining?
Since the introduction of newspapers in the 17th century, they have served as one of the most important news media. However, following the era of television, the readership steadily declined in 1950, making people shift from print to electronic media swiftly.
The major change came in 1990 when the world was introduced to the Internet. While the internet brought varied topics and niches to read from, it made the newspaper dominate the state of news.
Here are some of the significant impacts of the Internet on the newspaper industry,
- In the United Kingdom, one of its leading newspapers, The Independent (2008, announced major job cuts, and in 2016, the leading newspaper ceased circulation. In 2023, the Department for Media, Sports, and Culture, while announcing a shocking revelation, claimed that almost 300 newspaper titles went off between 2009 and 2019.
- Not only in the United Kingdom, but the United States saw a steady newspaper decline, with more than 2200 American local newspapers being closed between 2005 to 2021.
Final Words
Despite the Internet continuously dominating the newspaper industry, these leading UK newspapers are continuing to win readers’ attention. Not only newspapers, but several readers still prefer physical newspapers over E-newspapers. For those newspaper fanatics, we have drafted a whole list of the top 10 UK newspapers mentioned above.
