Web Design in Brighton and Hove

Brighton and Hove: the place behind the numbers

Flat living (50.0% of households) shapes what people buy: delivery, nearby services and anything that saves space or time. Your site should say clearly where you deliver and how to reach you.

Private renters (32.6% of households) move more often than owners, and every move starts with a search for local services. Up-to-date contact details are how a Brighton and Hove business gets found by people new to the street.

Working from home was common in Brighton and Hove at Census 2021 (42.7% of working residents). People who work locally shop locally, and they look up businesses on their laptops between calls.

Around Brighton and Hove

Customers may also come from East Saltdean (4.3 miles), Telscombe Cliffs (5 miles), Lewes (5.3 miles), Ditchling (5.5 miles) and Southwick, Adur (5.6 miles). A website can name each place you serve, from East Saltdean to Telscombe Cliffs.

East Saltdean (2,892 residents) and Telscombe Cliffs (4,237) are the nearest places with their own page. In East Saltdean, 38.5% of workers were based mainly at home in 2021; in Brighton and Hove, 42.7%.

Local businesses in Brighton and Hove

UK Business Counts lists 16,150 business sites in the Brighton and Hove local authority area in 2026. Compared with England as a whole, these sectors have a larger presence:

• IT, software and digital firms (1,025 sites): services and how projects run and case studies of past work.
• Photographers, designers and creative studios (510 sites): a portfolio and how a project starts.
• Furniture, electronics and homeware shops (1,680 sites): a contact form for stock questions and delivery areas.
• Restaurants, cafés and pubs (1,350 sites): photos of the dishes and the room and opening hours and a map.
• Tutors, driving schools and training providers (430 sites): fees and how to enrol.

The local count includes 235 hairdressing and beauty businesses, 210 plumbing and heating installers and 5 driving schools. Most are small: 85.5% employ fewer than ten people.

Key numbers for Brighton and Hove

Brighton and Hove has 121,384 households; 34.7% are one-person households.

Other numbers worth knowing

• No formal qualifications: 12.4% of adults
• Average household size: 2.2 people
• Residents born in the United Kingdom: 80.4%
• Households paying a mortgage: 26.3%
• Workers on 49 or more hours a week: 9.3%
• Train commuters: 2.5%

Side by side with the Brighton and Hove local authority area

The share of households without a car or van is 37.5% in Brighton and Hove, against 37.5% in the Brighton and Hove local authority area and 23.5% in England. On home ownership, Brighton and Hove (51.5%) compares with 51.5% for the Brighton and Hove local authority area as a whole and 61.3% nationally. Workers based mainly at home: 42.7% in Brighton and Hove, 42.7% across the Brighton and Hove local authority area and 31.5% in England.

The population of the Brighton and Hove local authority area went from 276,454 in mid-2021 to 285,063 in mid-2024, a rise of 3.1%.

Who is searching in Brighton and Hove

37.5% of households have no car or van. Many customers do not drive, so location details matter.

14.3% of workers walk to work. Foot traffic matters, so show your street and opening hours clearly.

Degree-level qualifications: 44.5% of adults in Brighton and Hove. A page that explains your process answers their questions.

25.0% of residents are aged 20 to 34. Make it easy to send a message without a phone call.

Self-employed people are 13.3% of adults in Brighton and Hove. There is plenty of competition among sole traders, so a portfolio sets you apart.

Paperwork and rules for South East businesses online

Before launch, it helps to have the basics in order. These apply to many small businesses in England:

• A limited company must include its name on all company documents, publicity and letters, and on business letters, order forms and websites it must also show its registered number, its registered office address and where it is registered. GOV.UK: company names on websites
• Organisations, including sole traders, that use personal information need to pay a data protection fee to the ICO, although many can rely on an exemption; the tier 1 fee is £52. ICO: data protection fee
• You cannot set non-essential cookies on your website before the visitor has consented to them, and that consent must be actively and clearly given. ICO: cookies

This is general information, not legal advice; confirm the details with the agency behind each item or with a professional adviser.

A £69 website, step by step

Aria has built business websites for small companies since 2008, with every step handled online. Nothing needs to happen in person: you send what you have by email and see the whole website on a temporary link before it goes live.

1. Sign up online in roughly 5 minutes, then email us your logo and a few photos.
2. We put the site together with your logo, colours and photos, and send you a temporary link within 3 working days.
3. Approve the site and pay the first month: only then does it go live on your domain.

After it goes live, hosting, SSL and daily backups are on our side, and the changes you email in are included.