Dundee has exceptional creative density, reinforcing the city’s reputation as a compact and productive creative ecosystem with a number of key Creative & Digital Industries strengths.
There is a significant opportunity to now leverage our regional advantage by further prioritising the Creative & Digital Industries to strengthen, sustain and grow the sector.
The contents of this short summary report do not illustrate the vast social impacts, partnerships and multiplier benefits that a vibrant creative sector brings for our city’s residents and visitors.
Investing in our creative ecosystem and infrastructure is essential. Creative freelancers, businesses and cultural organisations are crucial to our future — impacting our quality of life, sense of identity, health & wellbeing, education, tourism and business innovation.
For Creative Dundee this intersection is key to true, long-term inclusive prosperity.
Key Sector Attributes:
Dundee’s leading sector by turnover: generated more total turnover, £353.4M, than any other Scottish Government growth sector in the latest 2022 report. This turnover details the Creative & Digital Industries only, not the much broader Creative Economy.
Grown by nearly 100% from £178.3M in 2008 to £353.4M turnover in 2022; with significant growth post–2020,demonstrating creative and digital resilience during and post COVID.
High levels of employment: 3,530 people are employed within Dundee’s creative sector (2023). This does not capture those jobs outside of the SIC code (Standard Industrial Classification), such as Further and Higher Education staff.
High levels of freelancers, micro businesses and SMEs: of the 245 registered creative businesses based in Dundee (2024), 225 have 0–49 employees and within this 100 have 0 employees. Total numbers of freelancers who file HMRC self assessments are not publicly available so unfortunately are not represented.
Globally recognised Further and Higher Education provision: circa 260 employed and 3,963 students across creative and digital departments within the three academic institutions – data supplied by each institution to Creative Dundee in May 2025.
Dundee’s Creative & Digital Industries generated more total turnover than Financial Services, Energy, Tourism, Life Sciences — traditionally strong sectors.
Dundee’s Creative & Digital Industries generated £240.9M aGVA in 2022.
Self-employment is a defining feature of the Creative Industries, though is often underrepresented in official datasets — 52% of Creative Industries businesses in Scotland have 0 employees (SG, 2023).
Dundee’s Creative Industries employed almost as many people as Aberdeen in 2021 (3,535 vs. 4,020) — despite Aberdeen’s much larger overall population size.
While Glasgow and Edinburgh have higher absolute employment numbers, Dundee’s per capita figures highlight its vibrant and concentrated creative sector.
Dundee Sector Turnover Comparison (2022)
Rank
Sector
Turnover (£m)
1
Creative Industries (incl. Digital)
£353.4
2
Energy (incl. Renewables)
£214.5
3
Financial and Business Services
£193.1
4
Tourism-related Industries
£168.1
5
Life Sciences
£107.9
–
Food and Drink
Not disclosed (likely <£30m based on earlier data)
Dundee Employment by Sector (2023)
Rank
Sector
Employment
1
Tourism-related Industries
6,000
2
Creative Industries (incl. Digital)
3,530
3
Financial and Business Services
3,500
4
Life Sciences
900
5
Energy (incl. Renewables)
500
6
Food and Drink
300
Last updated: June 2025
Creative Dundee centres creative practitioners and communities as powerful catalysts for collective good.www.creativedundee.com
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