Best Virtual Office Providers for Startups: UK Comparison Guide

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Virtual offices have become more popular among business owners seeking flexibility in operating their companies. With a virtual office, business owners can incorporate and operate their company from the comfort of their home.

Service providers offer virtual offices, and as demand increases, so does the number of service providers. It is often possible for business owners to choose a service provider that offers a cheap virtual office, since every entrepreneur is looking for a cost-saving plan.

Cheap can be expensive. It is essential to look for service providers that offer virtual office services with features that will meet your business needs. This article will highlight the best virtual office providers for startups.

Capital Office

Capital Office provides a full virtual office in London with services that suit startups and established businesses. Their virtual office is situated in a prime location, City Road EC1V, Central London, adding credibility to any business’s brand.

Their virtual offices also come with meeting rooms that can hold up to a maximum of six people. This is convenient for businesses operating remotely/ from the comfort of their home to professionally hold meetings with their customers and business partners. The meeting room prices will depend on the needs of your business.

Their virtual office comes with different features such as;

·         Mail forwarding

·         Registered office

·         Business address

·         Multicurrency bank account

·         Proof of UK address

·         Global courier services

·         Free accounting HMRC consultations

Some of these features are not included in all packages. You can choose a package that may suit your business needs.

Some of the services that come with the virtual office packages include: call answering, company formation, and meeting rooms.

Pricing structure

They offer two plans: individual and combined. The individual package includes;

·         Registered office at £27.99 annually

·         Director’s address at £15.40 annually

·         Virtual business address at £84.00 annually

·         Call answering at £162.00 annually

Combined plans include;

·         Registered office and director’s service address at £34.99 annually

·         Registered office, director’s service, and virtual business address at £100.09 annually

·         Virtual business address and registered office at £94.49 annually

·         Virtual business address and call answering services at £220.50 annually

·         Inclusive of all addresses and call answering at £250.60 annually

Icon Offices

Known for offering high-end virtual office addresses, Icon Offices offers solutions to startups and SMEs to project a strong professional image without long-term leasing of physical office spaces. Catering to global entrepreneurs, Icon Offices has nine business addresses in England, Scotland, and Northern Ireland.

These addresses can legally be used to register a company with Companies House. Apart from the registered office feature, the virtual office address packages also come with;

  • Mail handling
  • Director’s service address
  • Multi-currency bank accounts with £700+ in Cash Rewards
  • Free UK Landline Business VoIP Line

The above features, among other add-on services, which include a free UK landline, UK virtual mobile number, and 24/7 call answering, also include gifts.

Pricing structure

The virtual office services are affordable and come in four packages, i.e, Bronze, Silver, Gold, and Platinum. The packages can be paid quarterly or annually, making it easier for business owners to adjust. Quarterly prices include;

  • Bronze – £12.87
  • Silver – £38.87
  • Gold – £64.87
  • Platinum – £90.87

Servcorp

Servcorp offers virtual office spaces worldwide. They have seven locations across Europe, including the UK, Belgium, Turkey, and France.

They have virtual office locations in London, which include;

·         Devonshire House: One Mayfair Place, London

·         Canary Wharf: 40 Bank Street, London

·         The Leadenhall Building: 122 Leadenhall Street, London

Their virtual office features flexible serviced offices that can be utilised as coworking spaces or meeting rooms. The other features that these virtual offices offer for address use only include;

·         Mail & courier management

·      60 hours each month free in coworking spaces around the world

·         Local phone number with a dedicated receptionist

·      3 free days of private office use away from the home city

·         Secretarial & IT Support

·         Access to Servcorp OneFax (fax-to-email)

·         20% of your spend is credited when you upgrade to a Serviced Office

Pricing structure

They offer several plan types for a virtual office that include several products

·         The virtual office: includes everything but the office at £168/month

·         Address package at £99/month

·         Hot desk at £134/month

·         Dedicated desk in a secure shared space at £400/month

·         Premium virtual office at £450/month

·         Coworking on demand at £50/month

Their virtual office and coworking plans come with the first month free, making it a good strategy to allow them to experience the service value firsthand before committing to a purchase.

The Hoxton Mix

As an AI-powered platform, Horton Mix has an AI agent that organises, digitises, and delivers posts, streamlining the mail process and the documents hub or storage. They offer a virtual office space in Paul Street, London, EC2A, which can be used as a registered office address with Companies House.

Their virtual office comes in one simple plan that comes with several features, such as;

·         Mail scanning service

·         AI-powered mail handling services

·         Digitised and organise

·         One plan, 10-minute setup, monthly cancellation

·         Built-in junk mail filter

They also offer add-on services that enhance the London virtual business address, which include a virtual office phone, meeting rooms, and a director’s service address.

Pricing structure

Their plan costs from £21/ month when paid annually or £24.99 per month when billed monthly. The plan comes with no setup fees.

Alliance virtual office

They offer 35 virtual office spaces in London. Alliance Virtual Office addresses near London include;

·         Holborn

·         London city

·         London Notting Hill

The packages come with several features, which include;

·         A recognised business address

·         Mail handling

·         Front lobby receptionist

·         Business center services

It also comes with add-on services such as a virtual phone & business number, live receptionist, frequent mail forwarding, and private meeting rooms.

Pricing structure

All virtual offices offered by Alliance Virtual Office start from $100/month with no setup fees. The packages include;

·         Platinum plan at $100 /month

·         Platinum plan with a live receptionist at $225 /month

BusinAssist

Known for its international business support, BusinAssist is among the best virtual office providers in the UK for startups. They offer seven virtual office locations in London, Scotland, and Northern Ireland. They include;

London

·         High Street North, East Ham, East London

·         Hatton Garden, Holborn, Central London

·         Tottenham Court Road, Fitzrovia, Central London

·         Mayfair, Oxford Street, London

Scotland

·         Sauchiehall Street, Glasgow

·         Young Street, Edinburgh

Northern Ireland

·         Castle Street, Belfast

They offer prestigious locations for startups that want a professional physical address in the UK, privacy, and a transition from a traditional office without physically being present there. The virtual office acts as;

·         Registered office address: You can register your startup company with the virtual office

·         Director’s service address: To maintain privacy, the director can use the virtual office as their service address and receive correspondence.

·         Marketing address: For marketing purposes, businesses can use the virtual office to receive marketing correspondence from other businesses.

The virtual office comes with several features such as;

·         Optional UK Ltd company incorporation

·         Mail handling services

·         Free UK bank account

·         UK VoIP landline

·         Call answering

·         UK virtual mobile number

Some features/ services come for free depending on the package you choose.

Pricing structure

They offer several packages that are favourable for startups and established businesses. The packages include;

·         Basic at £0.88 / per week inclusive of VAT

·         Standard at £2.31 / per week inclusive of VAT

·         Advanced at £3.85 / per week inclusive of VAT

·         Premium at £5.25 / per week inclusive of VAT

With all these packages, clients can choose to pay quarterly or annually. Annual billing comes with a 10% discount.

These are some of the best virtual office service providers for startups. Depending on the features and the add-on services they offer, businesses need to check their needs to choose a provider that will meet their needs.

The virtual office comes with several benefits, including mail handling, a professional business address, flexibility, scalability, and communication services.  They also come with more flexible contract terms than leasing a commercial office space that is long-term.

Choosing a virtual office is a critical decision; make sure you choose the right service provider to ensure seamless business operations.