UK R&D Funding
Innovate UK grants, Smart Grants, collaborative R&D competitions and R&D tax reliefs for UK businesses investing in research and development.
248
Programmes
8
Providers in scope
115
Advisor-reviewed
11
Regions covered
Featured
Top programmes in this theme
Advisor-reviewed grants and the highest-quality listings from the live catalogue.
Accelerated Growth Programme
Tailored support and grant funding for high-growth Welsh businesses.
Arts Council Project Grants
Grants for individuals and organisations delivering creative and cultural projects in England.
Enterprise Investment Scheme (EIS)
EIS is the UK's flagship growth-equity tax incentive: companies under 7 years of trading (or knowledge-intensive companies under 10) can raise up to £5m a year and £12m lifetime from individual investors, who receive 30% income tax relief plus CGT and loss-relief benefits.
Innovate UK EDGE (Legacy Advisory Service)
Specialist innovation and scale-up advice for ambitious UK businesses.
Innovate UK Innovation Loans
Loans for late-stage R&D projects with a clear route to commercialisation.
Innovate UK Smart Grants
Funding for game-changing, commercially viable R&D innovation that can significantly impact the UK economy.
Invest NI Grant for R&D
Co-funded grant supporting R&D projects by Northern Ireland businesses.
Invest NI Selective Financial Assistance
Discretionary capital grant from Invest NI to support investment projects in Northern Ireland that create new jobs or improve productivity.
Investors' Relief
Reduced 14% CGT rate on qualifying share disposals to incentivise long-term investment in unlisted companies.
Knowledge Transfer Partnership (KTP)
Part-funded partnership between a business, an academic team and a graduate to deliver a strategic project.
Patent Box
Patent Box lets UK companies elect into a reduced 10% effective corporation-tax rate on profits attributable to qualifying patented inventions and certain other IP rights granted by the UKIPO, EPO or specified EEA equivalents.
R&D Tax Relief
R&D Tax Relief is HMRC's statutory corporation-tax relief for UK companies that take a financial risk in resolving scientific or technological uncertainty. The merged RDEC scheme (accounting periods starting on or after 1 April 2024) gives most companies a 20% above-the-line credit; loss-making R&D-intensive SMEs may instead claim under the ERIS regime at a higher effective rate.
Pathways
Step-by-step funding journeys
Curated pathways that include programmes from this theme.
Innovation Funding Pathway
The UK innovation funding ladder: from free advisory support to consortium-led international R&D.
View pathway →Startup Funding Pathway
How a UK founder typically moves from idea-stage advisory support to their first innovation grant and beyond.
View pathway →Net Zero Pathway
Funding to decarbonise your business operations.
View pathway →Wales Funding Pathway
How Welsh SMEs sequence Business Wales advisory, SMART Cymru and UK-wide innovation funding.
View pathway →Manufacturing Funding Pathway
How UK manufacturers move from digital adoption advisory through to capability investment and consortium R&D.
View pathway →Northern Ireland Funding Pathway
How NI SMEs use Invest NI Innovation Vouchers, R&D Grants and Selective Financial Assistance before progressing to UK-wide funding.
View pathway →Comparisons
Compare programmes
Side-by-side analyses touching this theme.
Horizon Europe vs Innovate UK Funding
European consortium funding and UK national innovation funding answer different questions about scale, partners and timeline.
Compare →Regional Funding vs National Funding
When devolved-nation support is the right first step, and when to compete UK-wide.
Compare →Invest NI vs Innovate UK
How Invest NI R&D Grants and Innovation Vouchers differ from Innovate UK Smart Grants — and how they typically sequence.
Compare →Knowledge Transfer Partnership vs Innovate UK Smart Grants
KTP and Smart Grants both fund innovation but expect different relationships with research, time and people.
Compare →Patent Box vs RDEC
Two HMRC reliefs that often confuse founders — and how they actually interact.
Compare →RDEC vs ERIS (R&D Intensive SME)
The merged R&D regime and the enhanced rate for R&D-intensive SMEs.
Compare →Decision guides
Choose the right route
Editorial guides for picking between programmes in this theme.
How do UK companies move from local support to national innovation funding?
Local growth hubs and national innovation funding sit at different points in the journey. Most companies progress in stages.
Read guide →What funding should UK manufacturers pursue first?
Digital adoption usually precedes own-IP innovation funding. Most manufacturers benefit from sequencing rather than choosing.
Read guide →When should a business move from regional support to Innovate UK?
How to know when devolved-nation funding has done its job and a UK-wide competitive bid is the right next step.
Read guide →When should a UK business pursue Horizon Europe?
Horizon Europe is rarely a first grant. It is the natural next step once UK consortium experience exists and European partners are credible.
Read guide →How should a Northern Ireland SME sequence funding?
A realistic order in which to apply for Invest NI and UK-wide support as an NI-based SME.
Read guide →How should a Welsh SME sequence funding?
A realistic order in which to apply for Welsh and UK-wide support as a Wales-based SME.
Read guide →Providers
Bodies funding this theme
Public bodies and agencies that administer the most programmes in this slice.
Innovate UK
39The UK's national innovation agency, funding business-led innovation through grants and loans.
HMRC
16Administers R&D tax relief, the Patent Box and other tax incentives for UK businesses.
UK Research and Innovation
14UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) is the national funding body for research and innovation, bringing together seven Research Councils, Innovate UK and Research England. UKRI funds discovery research, applied R&D, infrastructure and commercialisation across every sector, with an annual budget of roughly £8bn.
National Institute for Health and Care Research
10Business Wales
6The Welsh Government's business support service, providing grants and advice.
Invest NI
6Northern Ireland's regional economic development agency.
Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council
5UKRI research council funding bioscience research and innovation.
Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council
5UKRI research council funding engineering and physical sciences.
Related themes
Continue exploring
Adjacent UK funding themes worth comparing.