Creative, arts and entertainment activities (SIC division 90)
Division 90 of the UK SIC 2007 list. It holds 4 codes, listed in full below with the number of active UK companies filed under each.
What sits in division 90
Individual creators dominate this division. Code 90030, artistic creation, is used by artists, authors, illustrators and composers trading through limited companies. Code 90010 covers performing arts. Actors, musicians and theatre producers pick it. Behind the stage, 90020 holds support activities: lighting, sound, set construction and stage management. Code 90040 marks the operators of arts venues and facilities. Personal service companies far outnumber real organisations here. That is what happens when performers incorporate for tax and contracting reasons.
Accountants who specialise in entertainment work this division most systematically. They watch new 90010 and 90030 companies, which mean a performer or creator is putting their affairs in order. Specialist insurers, equipment suppliers and hire companies target the production support codes, where firms own kit and premises. Venues under 90040 buy ticketing, bar and event technology. Filing deadlines are a genuinely useful signal here, because creators often neglect admin. Website quality tells you less. Many performers live on social platforms instead, so treat the poor-website filter with care in this division.
How to read a division 90 code
A UK SIC code is five digits and division 90 is the first two of them. Everything filed under 90 shares those digits: all 4 codes below begin 90, then the third digit narrows to a group, the fourth to a class and the fifth to the subclass a company actually picks. Division 90 sits inside section R, arts, entertainment and recreation, which is the broadest tier of the classification. So a code is read left to right, from an industry down to a specific activity.
More on how division 90 codes are built
Companies choose their own codes at incorporation and can change them on any confirmation statement, and Companies House does not check the answer. A company may list up to four. That is worth knowing before you treat any division total as a headcount: the numbers here are what companies said about themselves, on the August 2026 register, and the largest single code in this division is 90030, artistic creation.
Working division 90 as a list
Division 90 holds 4 codes and 93,219 active companies between them. 90030 is the largest at 45 per cent and the top three take 94 per cent, with the rest spread across the remaining 1 code. That is balanced enough that the division is a reasonable unit to work, though the leading code alone will usually give you a cleaner list.
More on working division 90
A caveat that matters more in some divisions than others: a company may register up to four SIC codes, and the figures below count every position, not just the first. A business filed under two codes in this division appears under both. Treat the totals as reach rather than a headcount, and if you need a clean list, filter to companies whose FIRST code sits in the division. Every company you pull carries the Companies House record, the director's name, a verified website and a verified email, and the ones we cannot complete are not charged.
Prospecting this division
Division 90 companies, as leads
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Division 90 questions
Do freelance musicians and actors need a limited company?
No. Plenty work as sole traders. Many still incorporate, either for tax planning or because engagers prefer to contract with a company. Those companies usually register 90010 or 90030. The director chooses the SIC code at incorporation, with no approval process, and can revise it later on a confirmation statement (CS01). A performer who also teaches can add a cultural education code, up to 4 in total.
What is the difference between SIC codes 90010 and 90020?
Code 90010 is for the performers and producers themselves: actors, musicians, dancers and theatre companies. Code 90020 covers the businesses that make a performance possible without appearing on stage. That means lighting, sound, rigging, set building and stage management. The split matters commercially. Firms under 90020 own equipment and buy insurance, finance and crew. Entries under 90010 are mostly personal service companies that spend very little.
Find companies across division 90
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