Taylor Swift, Charli XCX, Bruce Springsteen, Sam Fender and Dua
Lipa helped lure a record 23.5 million music tourists to concerts
and festivals in the UK in 2024, a new report from UK Music
reveals.
Music tourists spent a record £10 billion in 2024 - a 26%
increase on the 2023 total spend of £8 billion, according to UK
Music's Hometown Glory report published today (July 1) -
which you can read here.
UK Music, the collective voice of the UK music industry,
published the research to show the value of concerts and
festivals to the economy in each of the UK's nations and regions
and outlined in its report the vital importance of helping the
music industry continue to grow everywhere.
In 2024, a record 23.5 million music tourists - up 23% on 2023's
total of 19.2 million - enjoyed live music concerts and festivals
in the UK. Of the 23.5 million total, 21.9 million were music
tourists from the UK – a 21% rise on 2023. A total of 1.6 million
visitors last year were overseas music tourists - up 62% on the
2023 total of one million.
Taylor Swift's Eras Tour helped drive the 2024 figures to a new
high with legions of overseas tourists coming to the UK to see
the stars and enjoy concerts and festivals including Glastonbury,
Download and Boardmasters.
Charli XCX, who had a breakthrough year with her album BRAT,
stepped up to arenas for the first time in 2024. Other
iconic acts swelling the number of music tourists included Sam
Fender, Olivia Rodrigo, Chappell Roan, Girls Aloud, The Killers,
Doja Cat, Foo Fighters, Burna Boy and Bruce Springsteen. This
year's Oasis Live '25 Tour starting on July 4 will hopefully
continue the success story.
Music tourists supported 72,000 full-time equivalent jobs in the
live music sector in 2024 - up 16% on the 2023 total of 62,000.
The jobs are a key part of the wider music eco-system that also
includes the UK's world class music studios, record labels, music
publishers and other music businesses. [See notes to editors
for explanation of figures, and definitions of domestic and
international music tourists.]
Music tourism spending is made up of £5.1 billion spent
directly by music tourists attending concerts and festivals in
the UK, including the cost of a ticket, on-site spend, travel,
accommodation, and meals while travelling to events. A
further £4.9 billion was spent indirectly through the
value chain, including costs such as fencing and security or a
restaurant paying for ingredients.
The Hometown Glory report builds on UK Music's work
looking at regional economic trends and provides new
insights and strategies to grow music scenes and industries at a
local level across the country.
The report outlines how music has the power to regenerate places,
support skilled employment, and promote the UK's global cultural
leadership. It argues that supporting local music can be a key
tool in strengthening communities and driving local and national
pride, while simultaneously providing the support the music
industry needs to thrive.
Local music ecosystems stimulate the economy by boosting
footfall, powering the hospitality and retail sectors, and
creating vibrant places that attract residents, visitors, and
investment. They also provide vital opportunities for those
looking to enter the industry to learn their craft.
However, the UK music industry faces a number of significant
challenges that jeopardise its world-leading status including the
rising cost of touring in the UK and overseas, the threat of more
closures to grassroots music venues and the cost-of-living crisis
facing many music fans.
According to the Association of Independent Festivals' 2025
Festival Forecast Report, 250 festivals ceased to operate between
2019 and June 2025. The new research identified 592 music
festivals in the UK in 2025, of which 360 are green field
festivals and 232 are single venue or multi-venue
festivals.
Culture Secretary said:
"These numbers show just how powerful the UK is as a home for
live music - attracting the biggest acts, drawing in millions of
fans, and giving a real boost to local economies through tourism
and jobs. Whether it's a massive stadium show or a packed-out
local venue, music is bringing people together and making a huge
difference.
“We're incredibly proud of our music industry. It's one of our
greatest exports, it inspires young people everywhere, and it's
part of who we are as a country. That's why we announced a £30
million Music Growth Package last week - to support emerging
talent, protect the venues that give them a start, and make sure
our music scene keeps growing and reaching new
heights."
UK Music Chief Executive Tom Kiehl said:
“In 2024, our fantastic UK music industry pulled in 23.5 million
music tourists who spent £10 billion to see their favourite acts
and performers right across the UK.
“But while music generates huge benefits for our local areas,
there remain a number of challenges facing our sector such as the
rising cost of touring for artists and the threat of closure
looming over venues, studios and other music spaces.
“From Lands' End to John O'Groats, all communities have the
potential for thriving and diverse music sectors and can offer
something unique. At a time when Government is seeking growth, it
is crucial to empower local leaders to make this happen to help
boost our artists, creators, venues, studios and music
businesses.
“The Local Music Action Charter, launched in this report, will
embolden local actors, particularly in the face of change and
disruption, to support sustained growth, and enable those that
form part of our local music industries to truly fulfil their
potential.”
Councillor Liz Green, Chair of the Local Government
Association's Culture, Tourism and Sport Board, said:
“These record-breaking figures show just how important live music
is — not just for our local economies, but for the happiness of
our communities. Councils up and down the country are proud to
back the artists, venues and festivals that bring people together
and put our towns and cities on the map.
“UK Music's Hometown Glory report is a timely
reminder that investing in local music isn't just good sense -
it's a way to boost pride in place and breathe new life into our
high streets. We're committed to working with local partners to
make sure music continues to thrive in every corner of the
UK.”
As well as the economic benefits of music, UK
Music's Hometown Glory report also reveals
just how important live music is to people and their
wellbeing. Polling of more than 2,000 people carried out
by Whitestone Insight and commissioned by UK Music
found:
- 42% of those questioned say it was important to them to have
access to music events within reasonable distance of where they
live. The figure is equivalent to more than 22m adults.
- Six in ten (59%) feel that 'Local music should be better
supported by the council'. A similar proportion (60%) agree
that 'Empty or underused spaces in my town should be opened up
for music and cultural use'.
- Music is also widely seen as regenerative, with 62% who agree
'Music, nightlife, and music spaces (e.g. recording studios)
should be part of how we bring life back to the high street'.
- Coordinating public services is important to people too -
with 50% of all adults saying that ‘I'd be more likely to go to
music events if public transport matched event times better',
including 38% of over-75s.
- Seven in ten (69%) agree that 'If new homes are built near a
music venue, it should be the responsibility of the builder to
make sure noise isn't a problem, not the venue's job to change or
close'.
END
Notes to editors:
For further information please contact:
Vincent Moss
Director Of Communications
M: 07718 585333
E: vincent.moss@ukmusic.org
Daniel Gumble
Head Of Communications
M:07792 027978
E: daniel.gumble@ukmusic.org
For images of Tom Kiehl please contact Vincent or
Daniel.
A domestic music tourist is defined as those who are travelling
from within the UK to see live music events, provided they
travelled more than three times an average commute for that
region. The distance varies region by UK region. A foreign
music tourist is someone who has travelled from outside the UK to
attend an event in the UK.
Music tourism spending consists of the money spent directly by
music tourists attending concerts and festivals in the UK,
including the cost of a ticket, on-site spend like food and
drinks, venue parking and camping fees, travel, accommodation,
and meals while travelling to events. It also includes money
spent indirectly through the value chain, including costs such as
fencing and security or a restaurant paying for ingredients.
The event attendance numbers represent the total number of visits
to live events made in 2024. Please note that an individual may
visit more than one region while travelling to the same event and
visit more than one event per year.
All figures are analysed by Oxford Economics, a leader in global
economic forecasting and quantitative analysis. While UK
Music collects data from the industry, all figures are
estimations and are subject to revision.
The spend figures referred to in the media release are revenues
(excluding VAT) supported by music tourism.
Employment from music tourism captures jobs sustained by music
tourism and is measured in terms of full-time equivalency.
Report data methodology: UK Music's methodology for this report
remained unchanged. However, we work continually with our
partners to improve data quality. In 2024, there was a
significant improvement in the data we received, which
resulted in us capturing a larger share of the live market in
addition to any growth that actually took place. It is important
to note that we are reporting music tourism revenues as opposed
to live music revenues and there was a notable increase in music
tourism, particularly stadium tours by Taylor Swift, Bruce
Springsteen and others which attracted significantly greater
numbers of foreign tourists. The UK's world-leading festival
scene also continued to draw in music tourists from far and
wide.
Polling methodology: Whitestone interviewed 2,112 GB adults
online between 6th and 8th June 2025. Data were weighted to be
representative of all adults. Whitestone is a member of the
British Polling Council and abides by its rules. The full
polling findings can be found here.
The Local Government Association (LGA): The LGA is the national
membership body for local authorities and works on behalf of its
member councils to support, promote and improve local
government.
