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Gross Value Added (GVA) for the creative industries was £1,595 million in 2023, representing 2.8% of Northern Ireland’s total GVA.
In 2024, employment in the creative industries accounted for 44,000 jobs, representing 4.9% of total employment in Northern Ireland.
In 2025, there were 3,805 creative business sites in Northern Ireland, accounting for 4.0% of all business sites in Northern Ireland.
Introduction
The creative industries were defined by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) in the 2001 Creative Industries Mapping Document as ‘those industries which have their origin in individual creativity, skill and talent and which have a potential for wealth and job creation through the generation and exploitation of intellectual property’.
Based on this definition, DCMS determined which occupations and industries should be considered creative. These were determined on the basis of creative intensity:
- Through consultation a list of creative occupations was identified.
- The proportion of creative jobs in each industry was calculated (the creative intensity).
- Industries with creative intensity above a specified threshold are considered creative industries.
The creative industries are emerging as one of the fastest growing and increasingly important sectors of the economy. The Department for Communities plays a key role in supporting and nurturing the creative industries across the region, primarily through the work of the Arts Council and Northern Ireland Screen. The Department is also committed to harnessing the catalytic potential of Northern Ireland’s creative and cultural infrastructure to inspire new collaborations, initiatives and innovation.
Gross Value Added (2023)
Gross Value Added (GVA) for the creative industries was £1,595 million in 2023, representing 2.8% of Northern Ireland’s total GVA.
The following trend findings report the real-terms growth, GVA figures are in chained volume measures and adjusted for inflation (2022 prices). GVA for the creative industries fell by 1.8% between 2022 and 2023 (£1,566 million to £1,538 million), compared with a 1.5% growth for total GVA. Overall, GVA for the creative industries has generally increased over the trend period from 2010 to 2023.
Creative Industries Subsectors - GVA - NI
Among the creative industries subsectors, ‘IT, software and computer services’ was the largest component of the Creative Industries by GVA (£1,033 million). This has been consistently the case throughout the trend period, with ‘IT, software and computer services’ generally increasing from 2010 to 2023.
Taking into account inflation, the largest percentage increase in GVA from 2022 to 2023 was in the ‘Museums, galleries and libraries’ subsector (12.5%), followed by ‘Design and designer fashion’ which increased by 10.2%.
The largest percentage decrease in GVA from 2022 to 2023 was the ‘Publishing’ subsector which fell by 21.9%.
| Unit: £m | 2022 | 2023 | % Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Advertising and marketing | 87 | 83 | -4.6% |
| Architecture | 65 | 68 | 4.6% |
| Crafts |
|
|
NA% |
| Design and designer fashion | 49 | 54 | 10.2% |
| Film, TV, video, radio and photography | 185 | 182 | -1.6% |
| IT, software and computer services | 1,008 | 993 | -1.5% |
| Museums, galleries and libraries | 16 | 18 | 12.5% |
| Music, performing and visual arts | 75 | 70 | -6.7% |
| Publishing | 64 | 50 | -21.9% |
| Creative Industries Total | 1,566 | 1,538 | -1.8% |
Employment (2024)
In 2024, employment in the creative industries accounted for 44,000 jobs, representing 4.9% of total employment in Northern Ireland. This proportion of all jobs has remained steady at 3-5% throughout the trend period 2011-2024.
The number of jobs in the creative industries in 2024 increased by 14% compared with 2023, while employment in Northern Ireland increased by 2%.
Creative Industries Subsectors - Employment
Within the creative industries subsectors, ‘IT software and computer services’ provided the largest level of employment with 21,000 jobs in 2024.
Business sites (2025)
In 2025, there were 3,805 creative business sites in Northern Ireland, accounting for 4.0% of all business sites in Northern Ireland. The number of creative business sites has increased by 3% when compared to 2024.
Creative Industries Subsectors - Businesses
Among the creative industries subsectors, ‘IT software and computer services’ had the largest number of business sites in NI in 2025 (1,435). The greatest increase in the number of business sites from 2024 to 2025 was in the ‘Publishing’ and ‘Advertising and marketing’ subsectors (both 8%).
‘Museums, galleries and libraries’ subsector saw the largest decrease from 2024 and 2025, from 160 business sites to 155 over the period.
| Businesses | 2024 | 2025 | % change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Advertising and marketing | 300 | 325 | 8% |
| Architecture | 420 | 420 | 0% |
| Crafts | 15 | 15 | 0% |
| Design and designer fashion | 355 | 375 | 6% |
| Film, TV, video, radio and photography | 500 | 520 | 4% |
| IT, software and computer services | 1,420 | 1,435 | 1% |
| Museums, galleries and libraries | 160 | 155 | -3% |
| Music, performing and visual arts | 395 | 420 | 6% |
| Publishing | 130 | 140 | 8% |
| Creative Industries Total | 3,695 | 3,805 | 3% |
Definitions and technical notes
The Department for Communities (DfC) is the government lead on the creative industries in Northern Ireland. This publication covers gross value added (GVA) expressed in current prices (not taking into account inflation), gross value added expressed in chained volume measures (adjusted for inflation), employment and number of business sites in the creative sector.
Economic estimates data sources: The estimates in the publication are sourced from the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) Economic Estimates official statistics reports published in July, August and November 2025.
GVA estimates source: Sectors Economic Estimates: Regional GVA 2023.
Employment estimates source: Economic Estimates: Employment January 2024 to December 2024 for DCMS Sectors.
Business site estimates source: DCMS Economic Estimates: Business Demographics, 2025.
Notes:
- GVA estimates for 2010-2022 were revised by DCMS in July 2025.
- For GVA, current prices are used to report current sector estimates and chained volume measures (adjusted for inflation, 2022 prices) for comparisons over time.
- For GVA, there is increased uncertainty in regional estimates, particularly for smaller sectors and subsectors, for the years 2019 and 2020 and to a lesser extent 2021. This is due to smaller than usual sample size collection for those years and therefore results that are less certain.
- DCMS advise using employment figures with caution. Further information can be found on the DCMS website: Economic Estimates: Employment January 2024 to December 2024 for DCMS Sectors.
Technical and quality assurance reports:
Gross Value Added (GVA) has been estimated for businesses within the Creative Industries using approximate GVA (aGVA) from the Annual Business Survey (ABS) and Office for National Statistics (ONS) regional Gross Value Added balanced tables. Further information is available from DCMS Regional GVA technical and quality assurance report.
Employment data is obtained from the Labour Force Survey (LFS) which forms part of the Annual Population Survey (APS). Further information is available from DCMS Employment technical and quality assurance report.
The Inter-Departmental Business Register (IDBR) snapshots give the number of businesses (enterprises) at the 4-digit Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) level. The relevant codes are then aggregated to produce estimates for each DCMS sector. Businesses are defined as any enterprise held on the IDBR. Meanwhile, business sites are defined as any local units held on the IDBR. Further information is available from DCMS Business demographics technical and quality assurance report.
Definitions:
Gross Value Added (GVA) - GVA measures the contribution to the economy of each individual producer, industry or sector in the UK. It is used in the estimation of gross domestic product (GDP). The GVA estimates in this release have been produced to provide a ONS Regional GVA consistent estimate of GVA for Creative Industries Sectors.
Creative Businesses - A business is defined as any enterprise held on the Inter Departmental Business Register (IDBR). A business is held on the IDBR if it is registered for Value Added Tax (VAT) with HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC), registered for a Pay As You Earn (PAYE) scheme with HMRC or an incorporated business registered at Companies House. A business site (local unit) represents an individual site (for example a factory or shop) in a business (enterprise). Further information is available from Creative Industries Economic Estimates Methodology.
Creative Employment - Employment estimates are made up of all first and second jobs in each of the Creative Industries sectors. The jobs are included if they are in a Creative Industries sector, regardless of the occupation. For example, human resources in an advertising firm would be counted as being in the Creative Industries, despite the occupation not being creative.
The Standard Industrial Classification SIC 2007 - The Standard Industrial Classification is a means of classifying businesses according to the type of economic activity that they are engaged in.
Official Statistics - Our statistical practice is regulated by the Office for Statistics Regulation (OSR). OSR sets the standards of trustworthiness, quality and value in the Code of Practice for Statistics that all producers of official statistics should adhere to. Contact us directly with any comments about how we meet these standards - email:analyticsdivision@communities-ni.gov.uk. Alternatively, you can contact OSR by emailing regulation@statistics.gov.uk or via the OSR website.