Best Companies reveals 2025 leaders in employee engagement – but are UK workplaces improving fast enough? 

Best Companies has released its latest listsof the organisations rated most highly by their own employees – highlighting where staff feel valued, supported and motivated at work. The rankings, published this week, draw on employee feedback across thousands of workplaces and track year-on-year changes in engagement. 

The lists cover large, mid-sized and small companies, as well as sectors and regional categories across the UK. Best Companies uses its b-benchmark score to measure employee sentiment on leadership, wellbeing, communication and opportunities to grow. The highest-ranked employers scored consistently across these areas, with many reporting stronger internal connection and purpose. 

The rankings arrive at a time when UK workforce data paints a mixed picture. Sickness absence is rising, stress levels remain high and many organisations are struggling to rebuild trust after years of disruption. Against that backdrop, the companies recognised by Best Companies offer a snapshot of what employees say is working. 

Best Companies said the lists aim to highlight organisations “getting workplace culture right”, using staff insight rather than external perception. The assessments are based on anonymous survey responses, including questions about wellbeing support, relationships with managers and how much employees feel they belong. 

For employers, the lists can act as a barometer of shifting expectations. Staff increasingly want meaningful wellbeing support and consistent communication, and they expect leaders to act on feedback. Employee voice is now a central indicator of healthy culture, rather than a “nice to have”. 

Many of this year’s top-ranked organisations emphasised flexibility, mental health initiatives and skills development. Several employers also reported bringing wellbeing into core business planning rather than treating it as stand-alone activity. This mirrors wider trends showing that younger employees seek workplaces where wellbeing is integrated into how teams operate. 

For the wider workforce, the results raise questions about the gap between high-performing organisations and those still struggling with retention, burnout and morale. If some employers are managing to create environments where staff feel energised and supported, what is stopping others from doing the same? 

The Well Crowd will continue to track how these rankings evolve and what they reveal about workplace health. The lists highlight pockets of good practice – but also underline how uneven the landscape remains. In a year when stress, sickness absence and workplace dissatisfaction continue to climb, the question for UK organisations is whether they are prepared to learn from the businesses their staff say are getting it right https://www.b.co.uk/the-best-companies-to-work-lists