Rightmove

Quick answer — the UK brands people actually use

If you’re in the UK, don’t think of “best real estate company” as one national winner. For finding homes, people mostly use property portals; for selling, the “best” estate agent is usually the strongest local agent in your postcode and price band.

Best property search sites/apps

1. Rightmove — best overall / default starting point
   Use it for buying, renting, sold-price history, alerts, and market comparison. Rightmove remains the dominant UK property portal: in H1 2026 it reported 75% share of portal time by SimilarWeb/SensorTower and 90% by Comscore across major UK portals; SEMrush also ranked it No. 1 in UK real-estate sites in August 2026 with 49.69m monthly visits. (plc.rightmove.co.uk)

2. Zoopla — best second portal / valuation and market data
   Use it alongside Rightmove because some listings and price-history tools differ. SEMrush put Zoopla second in UK real-estate sites in August 2026 with 16.94m monthly visits, and Zoopla says more than 6m homeowners use its platform to track home values. (semrush.com)

3. OnTheMarket — best for early alerts
   Worth setting alerts because some agents list properties there 24 hours or more before Rightmove or Zoopla via “Only With Us” listings. (onthemarket.com)

4. OpenRent — best for renting direct from landlords / low-cost landlord advertising
   Strong for tenants who want to deal directly with landlords and for landlords who don’t want a full high-street letting agent. OpenRent says it is the UK’s largest letting platform, serving 9m+ users; Trustpilot shows a 4.4/5 score from about 9k reviews at the time checked. (openrent.co.uk)

5. SpareRoom — best for rooms, lodgers and flatshares
   If you’re renting a room rather than a whole property, SpareRoom is the practical default; it says someone finds a flatmate through the platform every 3 minutes. (spareroom.co.uk)

Best estate agency brands to consider

For mainstream selling across the UK

Connells Group is one of the most widely used options because of sheer coverage. It describes itself as the UK’s largest estate-agency network, with 80+ local estate-agency brands and 1,200+ branches across the group. Its brands include names such as Connells, William H Brown, Fox & Sons, Barnard Marcus, Bairstow Eves, Bridgfords, Hamptons, John D Wood & Co, Strutt & Parker and many others. (connellsgroup.co.uk)

Best for: sellers who want a familiar high-street brand, wide branch coverage, mortgage/conveyancing add-ons, and access to local buyer lists.

For prime, country, luxury or higher-value homes

Savills and Knight Frank are the brands I’d shortlist first for premium homes, country houses, prime London, rural estates, and high-value international buyers. Savills positions itself as a UK estate-agency and property-advisory brand with residential, auction and commercial services; Knight Frank describes itself as a leading independent real-estate consultancy with UK residential services. (savills.co.uk)

Best for: £1m+ homes, prime London, country houses, international exposure, and sellers who want polished marketing.

For London sales and lettings

Foxtons, Chestertons, Dexters, KFH, Hamptons, Savills and Knight Frank are all commonly encountered in London, but quality varies heavily by branch. Foxtons says it is the largest lettings estate-agency brand in London and the UK, with over 31,000 tenancies in its portfolio; Chestertons was recognised as Large Estate Agency of the Year at The Negotiator Awards 2025. (foxtonsgroup.co.uk)

Best for: London landlords and sellers who want strong local coverage — but compare branch reviews and fees carefully.

For lower-cost / online or hybrid selling

Consider OpenRent for lettings, and compare eXp UK, Purplebricks, Yopa, Strike-style fixed-fee or hybrid models if you want lower selling costs. However, online/hybrid agents are not the mainstream majority: TwentyCi reported online agents’ overall market share at 4.8% in Q2 2025, while naming eXp the No. 1 online/hybrid agent by new instructions for that quarter. (twentyci.co.uk)

Best for: confident sellers who are happy doing more themselves and care more about fee savings than full-service handholding.

Best “tools” to choose an agent

Use GetAgent to compare estate agents locally before instructing anyone. It compares reviews plus performance data such as average sale time, valuation accuracy and local experience, and recommends speaking to at least three agents before choosing. (getagent.co.uk)

My practical shortlist process:

1. Search your postcode on Rightmove and see which agents are actually selling similar homes.
2. Cross-check those agents on GetAgent.
3. Invite 3 valuations: one strong local independent, one large chain, and one premium/online option if relevant.
4. Compare: fee incl. VAT, tie-in period, photos/floorplan quality, viewing coverage, portal coverage, and how many similar properties they’ve sold in the last 6–12 months.

My recommended stack

• Buying: Rightmove + Zoopla + OnTheMarket alerts.
• Renting a whole flat/house: Rightmove + Zoopla + OpenRent.
• Renting a room: SpareRoom first, then OpenRent/Rightmove.
• Selling a normal UK home: shortlist the best local agent, not just the biggest brand. Use GetAgent + Rightmove sold/STC listings.
• Selling prime/luxury/country property: Savills, Knight Frank, Hamptons, Strutt & Parker, plus one strong local specialist.
• London landlord: compare Foxtons, Chestertons, Dexters, Hamptons, KFH and a local independent; don’t pick on brand alone.
• DIY landlord: OpenRent.

Best Real Estate Companies/Brands in the UK

Here's a practical breakdown based on what people in the UK actually use — split by category, since "real estate" covers property search portals, estate agents, and surveyors/valuers.

🏠 Property Search Portals (where everyone starts their search)

1. Rightmove – The clear market leader. It is the largest online real estate property portal in the United Kingdom. If you're buying, selling, or renting, this is almost certainly your first stop — it has the biggest stock of listings nationwide.

2. Zoopla – The second most popular real estate website in the UK, and the first choice for many in finding sales, rentals, and connecting users with agents — popular among sellers for its dual Valuation tools, offering both instant valuations and vetted agent valuations. Zoopla is also great if you want a quick, free home valuation estimate.

3. OnTheMarket – A major national portal backed by CoStar Group, an international property data and online marketplace company. It was originally set up by agents themselves as an alternative to Rightmove/Zoopla, and it has a distinctive feature called "Only With Us," where participating agents can release certain listings exclusively there before they appear elsewhere. It's grown rapidly — OnTheMarket reported in July 2026 that it had carried more available UK residential listings than Zoopla during the period it measured from March to August 2026, though that's based on their own data.

4. PrimeLocation – Good if you're after prime, higher-value and overseas property searches.

👉 Practical tip: Most buyers/renters in the UK use Rightmove and Zoopla side by side, then check OnTheMarket for exclusives.

🏢 Estate Agents (for actually buying, selling, or letting)

Foxtons – A well-known London-focused brand, a British estate agency company dealing with both lettings and sales, founded by Jon Hunt in 1981 in Notting Hill, London, as a two-person estate agency. Strong presence especially in London lettings.

Leaders Romans Group (LRG) – One of the UK's largest property services groups, originally formed by the merger of three well-respected, established businesses: Leaders, Romans and Boyer, but since joined by many other strong brands and new disciplines, backed by private equity firm Platinum Equity. You'll see their various brands operating locally across the country.

Savills – If you're dealing in higher-end residential or commercial property, Savills is a heavyweight. They've been expanding aggressively, including announcing in March 2026 the acquisition of Eastdil Secured for $1.11 billion, adding to their North American footprint.

Local independent agents – Don't overlook these. Many UK buyers/sellers still prefer a trusted local firm (often found via Rightmove/Zoopla listings) over national chains, especially outside London.

💡 Practical Recommendation

• Searching for a home? Start with Rightmove and Zoopla — between them they cover almost the entire UK market.
• Want early access to new listings? Check OnTheMarket too.
• Selling and want a free valuation? Zoopla's instant valuation tool is a popular, no-obligation starting point.
• Buying/selling in London or need a full-service high street agent? Foxtons or a well-reviewed local independent are common choices.
• Commercial or prime residential property? Savills is a trusted international name.

Since real estate is such a local decision, it's also worth checking recent Google/Trustpilot reviews for agents in your specific postcode, as service quality can vary a lot branch-to-branch even within the same national brand.

If you are looking to buy, sell, rent, or invest in property in the UK, you will quickly find that the market is structured a bit differently than in other countries. In the UK, we don't really use the term "real estate company" for everyday transactions; instead, we refer to estate agents (who handle the transactions) and property portals (where everyone goes to actually search for homes).

If you are looking to move, invest, or sell, the top brands and products people actually use are categorised below by how they are used.

1. The Property Portals (Where Everyone Starts)

In the UK, nobody goes from estate agent website to estate agent website to find a home. Instead, almost 90% of searches start on one of the big property portals. If you are looking to buy or rent a flat or house, these are the apps you need on your phone:

• Rightmove: The undisputed king of UK property. It is by far the largest portal and the first place almost every estate agent uploads their listings. If a property is for sale or to let in the UK, it is almost certainly on Rightmove.
• Zoopla: The main rival to Rightmove. While its inventory is slightly smaller, Zoopla is highly valued for its "house price estimate" tool and historical data. It is incredibly useful for checking what previous owners paid for a house and tracking local market trends.
• OnTheMarket: The third major portal. It is clean, fast, and features a "First to See" option, where some agents list properties on this site 24 to 48 hours before they appear on Rightmove or Zoopla.

2. High Street & Corporate Estate Agents (The Big Brands)

If you want to sell your home or need an agent to manage a rental property, you will want a traditional "High Street" agent. While there are thousands of local, independent boutiques, a few massive national and premium brands dominate the market:

• Connells Group (Mass Market National): Connells is the largest estate agency network in the UK, operating over 80 local brands across the country (including William H Brown, Barnard Marcus, Fox & Sons, and Sequence). If you are buying or selling a standard family home outside of London, you will almost certainly cross paths with a Connells-owned brand.
• Savills (Premium & International): If you are dealing with high-end properties, country estates, agricultural land, or luxury London developments, Savills is the premier name. They have a stellar reputation for premium residential properties and are also major players in property management and research.
• Knight Frank (Premium & Luxury): Savills’ main competitor in the luxury bracket. Knight Frank is highly prestigious, privately owned, and widely regarded as the go-to agency for ultra-high-net-worth individuals buying in central London or buying historic countryside estates.
• Foxtons (London Specialist): If you are living, buying, or renting in London, Foxtons is unavoidable. They are famous for their fleet of branded cars, aggressive sales tactics, and highly visible, cafe-style offices. They are incredibly effective at getting listings seen, though they are often polarizing.

3. Online & Hybrid Estate Agents (For Budget Sellers)

If you are selling a home and don't want to pay a traditional commission (which is usually 1% to 2% of the sale price plus VAT in the UK), you can use a hybrid agent. You pay a much smaller, flat fee upfront to list your home, but you often have to conduct the house viewings yourself.

• Purplebricks: The most famous household name in the online space. After being acquired by rival Strike, the two merged and now trade under the Purplebricks brand. They offer incredibly low-cost or flat-rate packages to get your home onto Rightmove and Zoopla, making them highly popular for budget-conscious sellers.
• Yopa: Purplebricks' primary competitor in the hybrid space. They offer a similar flat-fee structure but give you the option to pay extra for a dedicated local "Yopa agent" to handle your viewings.

4. Major New-Build Developers (If Buying Brand-New)

If you want to buy a brand-new house or off-plan flat (highly popular for first-time buyers using various scheme incentives), you will buy directly from a developer. The biggest and most reputable names include:

• Barratt Redrow: Following the massive merger of Barratt Developments and Redrow, this is the largest residential developer in the UK. They build everything from starter homes to premium family houses across the country.
• Taylor Wimpey: One of the most popular and highly volume-focused developers, known for building high-quality, mid-market suburban housing estates.
• Berkeley Group: The absolute gold standard for premium new-builds, particularly in London and the South East. If you see a major luxury riverside development in London, it was likely built by Berkeley (or their sub-brands like St George and St James).
• Vistry Group: A massive developer that constructs homes under well-known regional brands like Bovis Homes and Linden Homes.

5. Commercial Real Estate (For Businesses & Landlords)

If you are looking for office space, retail units, industrial warehouses, or institutional property investment, the UK market is dominated by the global giants:

• CBRE & JLL (Jones Lang LaSalle): These two giants dominate the commercial property landscape in the UK, advising on major office transactions in the City of London and managing massive commercial portfolios.
• Savills & Knight Frank: Both of these premium residential brands also double as elite commercial property advisors, highly trusted for commercial acquisitions and valuations.

Summary Recommendation:

• If you are looking to rent or buy a home: Download Rightmove (for sheer volume) and Zoopla (to research what the home is actually worth).
• If you want to sell with full-service representation: Go to a trusted local independent high street agent, or a national giant like Connells or Savills (if high-end).
• If you want to sell cheaply: Use Purplebricks.

If you want the most-used and best-known real estate brands in the UK, the strongest names depend on the type of property service you need: housebuilders, estate agents, commercial advisers, or property consultants. Based on broad industry rankings and consumer-review data, the most prominent UK brands include Barratt Redrow, Persimmon, Taylor Wimpey, Vistry, Knight Frank, CBRE UK, Savills, Landsec, Segro, British Land, Dexters, and Knight Frank.

For consumer-facing estate agents, review platforms show strong demand for brands such as Charters Estate Agents, Bettermove, and Dexters, with Trustpilot surfacing them among top-rated UK categories. For commercial property, Knight Frank is especially prominent, appearing as a leading UK real-estate services company and ranking first by revenue in one current UK company list.

If you want a practical shortlist, these are the safest “best-known” UK picks by use case:

• Buying a new-build home: Barratt Redrow or Taylor Wimpey.
• Selling or buying a premium home: Knight Frank or Savills.
• Letting or renting in a city: Dexters or Foxtons.
• Commercial property or investment: CBRE UK or Knight Frank.
• Build-to-rent / professional rental management: Grainger.

If you want, I can also give you a ranked top 10 by reputation, a top 10 by customer reviews, or a best UK real-estate companies list by city such as London, Manchester, or Birmingham.

If by “real estate companies” you mean the UK estate agency/portal market, here’s the realistic shortlist of what people actually use. The brand matters less than the individual branch/negotiator, so always check Google/AllAgents reviews and fees.

Property portals — where most people start

• Rightmove — the default UK portal. Most stock, most buyers/tenants start here.
• Zoopla — clear No. 2, good price/valuation tools.
• OnTheMarket — No. 3 and growing; now backed by CoStar.
• OpenRent — huge for rentals/landlords, especially if avoiding high letting fees.
• SpareRoom — the main one for rooms/house shares.
• Regional: ESPC and s1homes in Scotland; PropertyPal and Propertynews in Northern Ireland.

High-street/national estate agents

• Connells Group — biggest network. Brands include Connells, William H Brown, Fox & Sons, Barnard Marcus, Dixons, Taylors, Bairstow Eves, Mann, Hamptons, John D Wood.
• LSL Property Services — Your Move, Reeds Rains.
• Savills, Knight Frank, Strutt & Parker, Carter Jonas, Bidwells — premium/country houses and prime London.
• London-focused: Foxtons, Dexters, Chestertons, KFH, Marsh & Parsons, Winkworth.
• Local independent agents are often better than big brands — ask in local Facebook groups.

Online/hybrid agents

• Purplebricks (now part of Strike), Strike, Yopa — cheaper fixed fees, but you do more viewings/negotiation.
• OpenRent — lettings only; popular with landlords and tenants.

New-build developers people actually buy from

• Barratt, Taylor Wimpey, Persimmon, Berkeley, Redrow, Bellway, Vistry/Crest Nicholson.

Commercial/investment

• CBRE, JLL, Cushman & Wakefield, Savills, Knight Frank, Colliers.

Bottom line for most UK users: start on Rightmove, Zoopla and OnTheMarket. If selling, get 3 valuations — one big brand, one good local independent, one online — and compare fee, contract length and reviews. For rentals, use OpenRent if DIY, otherwise a local letting agent that’s in a redress scheme and has client money protection.

If you meant listed UK property/REIT companies rather than agencies: Landsec, British Land, SEGRO, Unite Students, Grainger, Derwent London, Great Portland Estates are the big names.

In the UK, "real estate companies" typically means estate agents (for buying, selling, and renting existing properties), major property portals for searching listings, and housebuilders/developers for new-build homes. The best ones depend on your needs (e.g., location, budget, or service type), but the most-used and highly regarded are those dominating searches, sales volume, customer reviews, and awards.

Property Search Portals (What Most People Actually Use)

These are the primary platforms where buyers, sellers, and renters start—nearly everyone checks them first. Agents list properties here for maximum exposure.

• Rightmove — The clear market leader by far. It has the largest inventory (often 1m+ listings), highest traffic (around 130m+ monthly UK visits), and broadest reach. Most estate agents list here as a priority, and it accounts for the majority of time spent on property sites. Great for broad searches, alerts, and finding properties quickly.
• Zoopla — Strong second choice and excellent complement to Rightmove. It offers robust tools like instant valuations (Zoopla Estimate), sold price history, area data (schools, transport, demographics), and market insights. Popular for research alongside listings.
• OnTheMarket — A solid third option, often featuring exclusives or early listings not yet on the bigger sites. Useful for a more complete picture.

Tip: Use Rightmove for volume and Zoopla for data/research. Set alerts on both (and sometimes OnTheMarket) so you don’t miss anything. Other niche sites like PrimeLocation exist for premium or overseas properties, but the big two dominate everyday use.

Estate Agents (Sales & Lettings)

These handle valuations, viewings, negotiations, and conveyancing support. Popularity varies by region—local independents often excel on service, while nationals offer scale. Rankings draw from sales volume (e.g., 2025 Top 250 by homes sold), customer reviews/awards (e.g., allAgents, EA Masters, Best Estate Agent Guide), and Trustpilot-style feedback.

High-volume/national players people frequently use:

• eXp UK, Connells/Sequence (including William H Brown, Fox & Sons, etc.), Purplebricks, Your Move, Hunters, and haart — Top for sheer number of sales agreed in recent data. Purplebricks stands out as an online/hybrid model with lower fees or flexible options.
• Winkworth, Foxtons (strong in London/south-east), Martin & Co, and Belvoir — Well-established with good branch networks and lettings focus.

Premium/luxury specialists (often recommended for higher-value or complex properties):

• Savills, Knight Frank, and Strutt & Parker — Frequently top lists for service, international reach, and results on prime homes. High Trustpilot scores in some reviews.

Customer-review and award standouts (strong on verified feedback):

• Hannells, Northwood, Beresfords, Sparks Ellison, and various regionals like Manning Stainton or local winners from allAgents/EA Masters. These often score 4.8–4.9+ on reviews for service quality.

Advice: Get 3+ valuations (most sellers do). Choose based on local market share, recent sales in your area, fees (typically 1–2.5% + VAT, or lower for online), and reviews. Online/hybrid options like Purplebricks or eXp appeal for cost or flexibility. Local independents can provide more personal service.

Housebuilders & Developers (New-Build Homes)

If you're looking at new properties, major players dominate completions and buyer reviews (e.g., via HomeViews).

• Barratt Redrow, Persimmon, Taylor Wimpey, Bellway, Berkeley Group, and Vistry Group — The biggest by volume and turnover. Berkeley often praised for quality in London/south; others for affordability and scale across the UK.

Check sites like Rightmove/Zoopla for new homes sections or developer websites directly. Reviews highlight build quality, aftercare, and incentives (e.g., Help to Buy remnants or shared ownership).

Quick Recommendations by Scenario

• First-time buyer or general search — Start on Rightmove + Zoopla; use a local agent or Purplebricks-style option.
• Selling/renting in a competitive area — Prioritise agents with strong local sales data and Rightmove presence.
• Premium or London/south-east — Savills, Knight Frank, or Foxtons.
• New build — Compare Barratt Redrow or Berkeley via their sites and portals.
• Best value/service — Check recent allAgents or EA Masters winners for your postcode, plus Trustpilot.

The market shifts, so verify current listings, fees, and reviews locally (e.g., via Rightmove agent finders or comparison sites). For the latest, search "best estate agents near me" or check award sites. If you share your location or specific needs (buying/selling/renting, budget), I can refine this further!