Advertiser investment in UK creator partnerships is forecast to surpass £1bn for the first time in 2026, reaching £1.2bn, with annual investment set to grow by 26% following another year of strong growth in 2025.
Commissioned by IAB UK and conducted by the Institute for Advertising & Media Statistics (IRM), the research aims to provide the first dedicated measurement of the size and growth of the UK creator partnerships market, establishing a benchmark for a rapidly developing part of digital advertising.
The report draws on an industry survey, interviews and desk research, with its measurement focused on campaigns targeting UK consumers.
Creator partnerships were estimated to add £966m to the UK digital advertising market in 2025, equivalent to around 2.4% of the official £40.5bn adspend figure.
At 20.1%, the category’s growth that year was more than twice the 9.6% figure recorded for digital advertising investment excluding creator partnerships, making it one of the fastest-growing areas of the market.
IAB UK creator and TV+ lead Connie Hawker said: “Creators are an increasingly important part of the advertising ecosystem, but until now we haven’t had a clear picture of the size of the UK market.
“This first-of-its-kind study changes that. Investment is set to pass £1.2bn in 2026, with creator partnerships growing significantly faster than the wider digital ad market. Having a consistent measure gives us an important benchmark for tracking where this fast-growing market goes next.”
We Are Social head of cultural strategy and insight, EMEA, Paul Greenwood added: “For brands, working with creators is increasingly moving from an experimental or tactical part of the media plan to a core part of how they reach and engage audiences.
“The fact that investment is now on course to exceed £1bn reflects what we’re seeing on the ground: brands are becoming more sophisticated in how they work with creators, partnerships are becoming longer-term, and the industry around them is maturing rapidly.”
The IAB findings are reinforced by a new study from Kolsquare, which reveals 93% of UK brands and agencies expect to increase their influencer marketing spending over the next 12 months, up from 81% last year.
The findings mark a sharp shift in confidence since the 2024 analysis, when just 50% of UK brands anticipated budget increases.
Kolsquare’s The Future of Influencer Marketing: The 2026/2027 Outlook, based on a survey of 1,123 marketing decision-makers across Europe, places the UK among the most optimistic markets for influencer investment.
UK brands are also the most likely in Europe to describe influencer marketing as a core growth driver: 38% believe it is, compared with a European average of 31%. Half of UK brands say influencer marketing drives up to a quarter (25%) of their marketing-driven revenue.
Almost a third of UK respondents (31%) expect to increase the number of influencers they work with by at least 50% over the coming year, compared with 22% across Europe. Short-form video is seen as the biggest opportunity by 55% of UK respondents.
One in five UK marketers works with between 250 and 999 influencers each year, and most have between 10,000 to 100,000 followers.
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