The national news brand with the highest reported circulation in the United Kingdom was the Daily Mail in August 2021, with a circulation of 925.55 thousand. The Sun tends to have the highest circulation in the UK but figures beyond March 2020 were not available, though the source noted that in March 2020 The Sun's circulation amounted to just over 1.2 million in that month. The Sun on Sunday also had a circulation of over one million at that time. In terms of daily newspaper circulation in the UK (excluding those which did not provide figures) the Daily Mail ranked first, following by the Mail on Sunday.
Online newspaper readership
The newspaper industry is having to make major readjustments to accommodate digital readership. Physical paper sales have been falling as consumers increasingly turn to online news outlets. Data on the monthly reach of national newspapers revealed that smartphones are the most popular platform for newspaper consumption across all major news brands, though free paper Metro had the highest print reach thanks to its regular distribution across London.
Journalists
Despite the fall in newspaper circulation, the number of journalists in the UK is climbing. In 2020, over 100 thousand journalists and newspaper and periodical editors were employed in the United Kingdom, the highest number recorded since 2010.
Circulation of national newspapers in the United Kingdom (UK) in August 2021
(in 1,000 copies)
Figures have been rounded.
Figures for The Sun, The Sun on Sunday, The Sunday Times, The Daily Telegraph, and The Sunday Telegraph were not provided in the source's most recent reporting.
Figures for June 2018 and April 2019 can be found in the Excel archive.
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Press Gazette. (September 20, 2021). Circulation of national newspapers in the United Kingdom (UK) in August 2021 (in 1,000 copies) [Graph]. In Statista. Retrieved January 22, 2022, from https://www.statista.com/statistics/529060/uk-newspaper-market-by-circulation/
Press Gazette. "Circulation of national newspapers in the United Kingdom (UK) in August 2021 (in 1,000 copies)." Chart. September 20, 2021. Statista. Accessed January 22, 2022. https://www.statista.com/statistics/529060/uk-newspaper-market-by-circulation/
Press Gazette. (2021). Circulation of national newspapers in the United Kingdom (UK) in August 2021 (in 1,000 copies). Statista. Statista Inc.. Accessed: January 22, 2022. https://www.statista.com/statistics/529060/uk-newspaper-market-by-circulation/
Press Gazette. "Circulation of National Newspapers in The United Kingdom (Uk) in August 2021 (in 1,000 Copies)." Statista, Statista Inc., 20 Sep 2021, https://www.statista.com/statistics/529060/uk-newspaper-market-by-circulation/
Press Gazette, Circulation of national newspapers in the United Kingdom (UK) in August 2021 (in 1,000 copies) Statista, https://www.statista.com/statistics/529060/uk-newspaper-market-by-circulation/ (last visited January 22, 2022)
