Outdoor Living Statistics UK 2026

UK homeowners are spending more than ever on their outdoor spaces. Households across the country are projected to spend more than £6.5 billion on outdoor living in 2026, with the average homeowner set to invest £865 on garden and outdoor projects this year alone. From a fast-growing garden furniture market and the rise of outdoor wellness rooms to lengthening allotment waiting lists and the growing weight gardens carry in property valuations, outdoor living has become one of the UK's largest consumer categories. The figures below map the full scale of that boom, from market size and participation to property value and the sector's contribution to the wider economy.

Market Size and Consumer Spending

Spending on outdoor spaces has moved from a seasonal afterthought to a year-round household priority. The figures below set out the total market value and show how spending splits across age groups and income bands.

Overall Market Value

These numbers capture the headline scale of the market and how outdoor projects sit against wider home improvement.

• UK homeowners are projected to spend more than £6.5 billion on outdoor living spaces in 2026, reflecting a wider focus on wellness and relaxation at home.
• In 2025, UK households collectively spent £9 billion on retail garden products.

Spending by Demographic

Age and income shape outdoor budgets more than any other factor, with younger homeowners outspending older ones by wide margins. The data also shows how households are funding the work.

• The average UK homeowner is set to spend £865 on outdoor projects in 2026, up from £798 in 2025 - a £67 per-homeowner rise that adds up to a £1 billion boost for the sector.
• Overall home and garden spending in 2026 is forecast at £3,071 per homeowner, up from £3,047 in 2025, with outdoor improvements driving almost all of the increase.
• In 2025, UK homeowners spent 25% more on home and garden improvements (£3,047) than on holidays abroad (£2,438), and more than double what they spent on cars (£1,633).
• Homeowners aged 25-34 spent £5,045 on home and garden in 2025 and plan to spend £5,111 in 2026, almost three times the £1,671 planned by over-55s.
• Among 25-34 year olds, outdoor spend alone reaches £1,352 in 2026, more than three times the £431 planned by over-55s.
• Higher-earning homeowners plan to raise home and garden budgets by £1,139 in 2026, while lower-income households plan to cut spending by £144.
• 43% of 25-34 year olds postponed or scaled back a holiday in 2025 to fund home improvements, compared with 26% of the general population.
• 32% of UK homeowners used a credit card to fund home and garden projects, with 14% using finance or payment plans and 6% using buy-now-pay-later.
• Among 25-34 year old homeowners, 45% used credit cards and 33% used finance or payment plans to fund home improvements.

Garden Furniture Market

Furniture is the biggest single line in most outdoor budgets, and the market is growing faster than inflation. These figures track its value, growth rate and the buying intentions behind it.

• The UK outdoor furniture market was valued at USD 2.34 billion in 2024 and is projected to reach USD 3.71 billion by 2033, a CAGR of 5.28%.
• In 2025, 59% of UK consumers planned to buy new outdoor furniture or accessories for their space.
• 45% of UK consumers agree their garden should work as hard as any room in the house.
• UK searches for 'modular outdoor sofa' and 'rattan garden furniture' have each risen 20% over five years, reflecting demand for premium, flexible lounging setups.
• 44% of 25-34 year olds rank luxury outdoor features such as hot tubs or outdoor kitchens among their top three garden priorities for 2026.

Garden Centre Retail

Garden centres offer the clearest week-by-week read on consumer demand, and the recent record shows a sector shaped heavily by weather. The data covers full-year 2025 results and the more cautious start to 2026.

Full-Year 2025 Performance

A warm spring pushed 2025 sales well ahead of the two previous years, before the lead narrowed as the year went on. These figures show the scale of the uplift and where growth concentrated.

• UK garden centres finished 2025 with sales value 9% ahead of 2024 and 10% ahead of 2023, built on a strong spring that narrowed across the year.
• Sales growth of 9% in 2025 ran well ahead of the 3.5% inflation rate, delivering real-terms growth for the sector.
• Spring 2025 recorded 653 hours of sunshine versus 377 hours in spring 2024, driving a 23% year-on-year rise in garden centre sales in March 2025.
• Gardening categories surged 31% in March 2025 versus March 2024, with garden features and structures up 44%, bedding plants up 40% and plant care up 40%.
• The average garden centre transaction in March 2025 was £29.36 excluding VAT, up 6% year-on-year.
• Garden centre café and restaurant sales rose 7% in December 2025 versus December 2024.
• Christmas products made up 24% of December 2025 garden centre sales, more than all garden and gardening categories combined.
• The number of garden centres changing hands rose 29% in 2025 versus 2024, signalling renewed investor confidence.
• The UK has an estimated 1,500 garden centres and retail nurseries, drawing an estimated 203 million visits in 2024.
• 68% of UK adults visit a garden centre at least once a year.

2026 Trading Conditions

Early 2026 returned to more typical trading after the record spring, with growth slowing but staying positive. The numbers below track the year-on-year movement and the cost pressures squeezing margins.

• UK garden centre sales rose 4% by value in February 2026 versus February 2025, a 5% year-to-date lead over 2025 and 6% over 2024.
• In March 2026, sales fell 4% against March 2025 but stayed 18% ahead of March 2024, reflecting more typical trading after the record spring.
• Many UK garden centres now need sales increases of 10 to 15% just to hold prior-year profit margins, as minimum wage and national insurance costs rise.

Gardening Participation and Behaviour

Gardening reaches a larger share of the population than most mainstream leisure activities, and the reasons people give are increasingly about wellbeing. These figures cover who gardens, how often and what they get from it.

• 41 million people garden at least monthly when including 4-17 year olds, roughly 60% of the UK population.
• 34 million UK adults garden at least monthly, though fewer than a quarter (24%, about 12.7 million) call themselves gardeners.
• 60% of UK children garden at least monthly, around 7 million children.
• In 2024, 55% of UK adults gardened as a hobby, equivalent to 18.1 million people.
• Gardening outranks concerts (24%), cinema (29%) and sport or exercise (26%) as a hobby among UK adults.
• 77% of British adults, some 44 million people, have access to a private garden; 58% of them (about 26 million) use it to grow plants, trees and flowers.
• 31% of British adults grow their own herbs, fruit and vegetables outdoors.
• 48% of UK gardeners work on their garden at least weekly, with a further third doing so several times a month.
• In 2025, 77% of UK gardeners increased their garden budgets.
• 83% of British adults believe gardens benefit their state of mind, 79% their physical health and 91% the environment.
• 77% of domestic gardeners credit gardening with better mental health, 76% with physical health and 44% with social wellbeing.
• 52% of domestic gardeners actively gardened to support wildlife in the past year.
• 81% of UK gardeners say their garden gives them more joy and pride than their home's interior.

Allotments and Community Gardening

Demand for growing space now far outstrips supply, forcing councils to shrink plots and rethink how they allocate them. The data shows the length of waiting lists and how local authorities are responding.

• 63% of local authorities report average allotment waiting times of more than 18 months.
• 76% of local authorities have created smaller allotment plots to manage waiting lists, a 12% increase since 2022.
• 37% of local authorities now manage more than 30 allotment sites, up from 27% in 2019.
• 57% of local authorities now include allotment protection and provision policies in their Local Plans.
• 80% of councils have set aside wildlife areas on allotment sites, with pollinator-friendly planting promotion up 15% since 2023.
• 8.5 million people in the UK have no access to a garden of their own, sustaining demand for community growing space.
• More than a quarter of community gardens run on annual budgets under £500, and fewer than 3% of community garden groups own their land.

Outdoor Improvement Projects and Features

Outdoor spending is spreading well beyond furniture into hard landscaping, cooking, wellness features and standalone structures. These figures size each category and show which features homeowners are prioritising.

Decking and Paving

Hard surfaces now cover a large share of UK gardens, with paving and low-maintenance materials replacing lawn. These numbers show how far the shift has gone and which materials are rising fastest.

• The UK decking materials market was valued at £174 million in 2025 at manufacturers' selling prices.
• 42% of UK adults have replaced or plan to replace lawn with lower-maintenance hard surfaces such as paving or gravel.
• 42% of residential garden space is now paved, with 55% of front gardens and 36% of back gardens under hard surfaces.
• The UK has 18 million square metres of artificial grass across managed green spaces, including 7.5 million square metres in private gardens.
• UK searches for outdoor porcelain tiles are up over 650%, one of the fastest-rising garden material categories.

BBQ and Outdoor Cooking

Outdoor cooking has grown from the occasional barbecue into fitted kitchens and dedicated dining zones. The figures below size the grill and outdoor kitchen markets and gauge homeowner intent.

• The UK barbecue grill market is worth USD 360.28 million in 2026 and is projected to reach USD 423.58 million by 2031, a CAGR of 3.32%.
• The UK outdoor kitchen market is projected to reach USD 2.69 billion by 2033, a CAGR of 9.8% and the fastest growth of any outdoor living segment.
• 34% of UK adults plan to add an outdoor dining zone with a dedicated cooking area in 2026.

Hot Tubs and Wellness Features

Wellness has become a distinct outdoor category, spanning hot tubs, saunas and quiet retreat zones. These figures track market value and how far demand skews toward higher earners.

• The UK hot tub market reached USD 223.41 million in 2024 and is projected to reach USD 333.89 million by 2034, a CAGR of 4.10%.
• 8% of UK homeowners rank hot tubs or plunge pools among their top three garden priorities for 2026, rising to 1 in 9 among those earning £50,271+.
• 18% of UK adults want a dedicated wellness or chill zone, including egg chairs, water features and outdoor saunas.

Garden Rooms and Outdoor Structures

Garden rooms have shifted from summerhouses to year-round, insulated spaces used as offices and studios. The data covers market value, growth rates and changing design specifications.

• The UK garden room market was worth around £266 million in 2024 and is forecast to grow 5.8% a year to 2030.
• The global garden room market is valued at around USD 2.71 billion in 2025 and is expected to reach USD 4.38 billion by 2032, a 7.1% growth rate.
• 64% of new garden structures now feature sliding doors, reflecting demand for year-round indoor-outdoor connectivity.
• 16% of UK homeowners rank garden rooms among their top three garden priorities for 2026.

Outdoor Heating and Fire Pits

Heating extends the usable garden season into cooler months, and fire pits have become a social centrepiece. These numbers size the market and show how it fits wider entertaining trends.

• The UK outdoor heating and fire pits market was valued at USD 1.2 billion in 2024 and is forecast to reach USD 2 billion by 2033.
• The UK fire pits segment alone is projected to reach USD 738 million by 2033, a CAGR of 7.3% from 2026.
• 23% of UK adults want a dedicated social or party zone with a bar, fire pit and modular sofas.

Sustainability and Eco Gardening

Environmental concern now shapes buying decisions and planting choices, with drought and flooding pushing gardeners toward resilient designs. The figures below show how eco priorities translate into behaviour and the wider environmental value of gardens.

• 61% of UK consumers avoid excess packaging when buying gardening products, and 40% will pay more for eco-friendly options.
• 46% of UK adults say sustainable garden design matters more to them than before.
• 54% of UK gardeners now prioritise low-maintenance and drought-tolerant plants, adapting to hotter, drier summers.
• 69% of UK gardeners would reduce lawn area to add more flowers or vegetables.
• 37% of gardeners plan to build raised beds and 34% plan to adopt water-efficient techniques in 2026.
• UK domestic gardens contain over 50 million trees and support more than half of Britain's butterfly, amphibian and reptile populations.
• UK gardens store an estimated 158 million tonnes of carbon across 959,800 hectares, equal to 4.6% of UK land area.

Consumer Attitudes and Design Trends

How people think about their gardens has shifted toward treating outdoor space as an extra room, shaped increasingly by television and social feeds. These figures cover design attitudes, media influence and where homeowners plan to spend.

Garden Zoning and Outdoor Living Concepts

Zoning has become the dominant design idea, splitting gardens into areas for cooking, relaxing and entertaining. The numbers below show how widely the approach has spread and what is holding some people back.

• 55% of UK adults have created or plan to create distinct zones in their outdoor space.
• 61% of UK adults say a well-designed garden makes a house feel bigger, and 33% are more interested in an outdoor 'room' than a traditional garden.
• 40% of UK adults host at home more often in 2026 because it is cheaper than going out.
• 44% of Brits say relaxing is how they most want to use their garden in 2026, the top garden aspiration.
• 57% of UK adults say cold and rainy weather is the biggest barrier to using their garden more.
• 30% of Brits feel self-conscious about their garden when hosting, rising to 42% among Gen Z.
• Gen Z are twice as likely as other age groups to say their garden furniture is not 'Instagram-worthy' enough.

TV and Social Media Influence

Television and social platforms now feed directly into buying decisions, from plants to furniture. These figures measure how far media shapes what homeowners choose.

• 39% of UK adults say TV and social media changed how they think about garden design in the past year.
• 31% of UK adults have bought a garden item after seeing something similar on a TV show.
• 25% of UK adults say social media now shapes how they approach their outdoor space.
• 67% of UK gardeners have bought plants after spotting them on social media or in gardening videos.

Top Garden Investment Priorities (2026)

Asked where their money will go, homeowners rank planting and lighting above structural work. The data ranks the priorities and the garden styles people are chasing.

• Trees, plants and hedges are the top garden priority for 27% of UK homeowners in 2026, ahead of lighting and landscaping at 26%.
• Fencing and security ranks third at 23%, followed by decking and patio at 19% and greenhouses and veg gardens at 18%.
• 37% of UK homeowners are prioritising family-friendly gardens in 2026, the most popular style.
• Modern minimalist design appeals to 24% of homeowners, cottagecore to 19% and eco or wild styles to 19%.
• 28% of UK adults want a grow-your-own zone and 24% want a dedicated wildlife zone with bird boxes and wildflower patches.

Gardens and Property Value

A garden now carries real weight in how buyers value a home, and a neglected one can cost sellers at the negotiating table. These figures put numbers on the premium a good garden adds and the penalty a poor one brings.

• 65% of UK adults say a well-maintained garden increases a property's value, and 48% rate it as important as the kitchen.
• 42% of buyers say an unkempt garden would make them reconsider a purchase entirely.
• 53% of UK buyers would negotiate harder on price if a garden needed work, with the most common deduction 4-5% of the asking price (£11,680-£14,600 at the average UK house price of £292,000).
• South-facing gardens command a 7.1% price premium in England, equal to £20,689 at the average house price of £291,445.
• 81% of UK homeowners avoided their garden during summer 2026 because of extreme heat, raising questions over the value of south-facing plots.
• A maintained garden can add an average of 13% to a UK property's value, equal to £36,766 at the average house price of £285,009.
• Only 16% of Brits say they are investing savings into upgrading their garden or outdoor space.
• 29% of UK buyers would pay up to £5,000 more for a home with a professionally landscaped, ready-to-use garden.
• Three garden features rank among UK homebuyers' top ten non-negotiables: private outdoor space (24%), a well-maintained garden (19%) and a patio or decking area (12%).
• Privacy from neighbours is the single garden feature that most increases desirability, cited by 43% of buyers.

Economic Contribution of Horticulture

Beyond household spending, gardening and landscaping form a sizable part of the national economy and land area. The figures below size the sector's contribution to GDP, employment and the environment.

• Environmental horticulture and landscaping contributed an estimated £38 billion to UK GDP in 2023 and supported 722,000 jobs.
• The sector is projected to reach £51.2 billion in GDP by 2030 and 763,000 jobs, more than the UK aerospace industry.
• Environmental horticulture generates an estimated £6.6 billion in tourism-related gross value added.
• An estimated 50,000 life years are saved each year through air pollution removal by UK green spaces.
• UK gardens cover 4.6% of the country's land area, three times the size of all UK national nature reserves combined.
• Great Britain has 25.8 million gardens covering 959,800 hectares, of which 20.6 million are domestic.
• Garden provision varies by city: 41% of London's area is garden, versus 27% of Cardiff, 25% of Edinburgh and 19% of Leeds.

2026 Outlook

The year ahead points to continued growth concentrated in outdoor kitchens, entertaining and climate-resilient design. These figures pull together the forecasts and behavioural shifts likely to shape the market through 2026.

• Total UK home and garden improvement spending is forecast at £47 billion in 2026, with gardens ranked the third most invested area of the home.
• Outdoor kitchens are the fastest-growing outdoor living segment, forecast to reach USD 2.69 billion by 2033 at a 9.8% CAGR.
• With 81% of homeowners avoiding their garden during the 2026 heatwave, the industry is turning to shade, permeable surfaces and climate-resilient planting.
• With 40% of UK adults hosting at home to save money, outdoor entertaining - fire pits, outdoor kitchens and modular seating - is set to stay a key growth driver.

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