Since 2024, Companies House has required every UK company to keep an “appropriate address” as its registered office: one where post comes to the attention of someone acting for the company and delivery can be confirmed. A Royal Mail PO Box, or a similar service, no longer qualifies.
London had about 553,000 businesses registered for VAT, PAYE or both in March 2026, 19.8% of the UK total, and the fastest growth of any region from 2025 to 2026, at 2.6%, according to the Office for National Statistics. A virtual office, or virtual address, gives a business without premises a central London address for post and, if the provider confirms it qualifies, the registered office.
Standard rates for a virtual office in London start at £39.99 for 12 months for a registered office address alone and £120 for 12 months for an address with mail handling, and run to £383 a month for a package in which a receptionist answers calls in the company’s name. This guide compares six addresses from five providers in Mayfair, the City and Shoreditch.
Mayfair
Mayfair sits in W1, between Oxford Street, Regent Street, Piccadilly and Park Lane. For more providers in the district, see the guide for Virtual Office in Mayfair.
W1 Virtual Office, 45 Albemarle Street
What you get: VO Collect gives your business the Albemarle Street address and holds post at the centre for collection. Higher tiers scan it, post it on, or both.
Who it suits: Sole traders in central London often enough to collect post from a Mayfair address.
What it costs: From £20/month, or £220 a year, for address and mail held for collection. Mail scanned or posted: £25 or £30 a month.
Worth knowing: For a business outside central London, the value sits in the scanning or posting tiers, since the entry plan holds letters for collection.
Contact: 020 3858 0704
Learn more: W1 Virtual Office 45 Albemarle Street
Servcorp, One Mayfair Place
What you get: The Address Package includes a Level 1 address, mail and courier management, and an hour a day in the lounge. The Virtual Office adds a receptionist-answered local number, 24/7 voicemail and 60 lounge hours a month.
Who it suits: Firms that want a Mayfair address with a receptionist to answer calls and greet clients.
What it costs: From £200/month for address and mail. Address, mail and call answering: £383/month.
Worth knowing: Both packages are built around the staffed floor and lounge, so a business that only needs somewhere for letters to arrive would use little of either.
Contact: 020 3205 7100
Learn more: Servcorp One Mayfair Place
The City
The City, the Square Mile around Bank, is London’s financial district.
Orega, 70 Gracechurch Street
What you get: MYOREGA Mail gives you the Gracechurch Street address, a reception team that receives your post, mail collection, and call forwarding. Scanning is extra.
Who it suits: Small firms that want a City address with a staffed reception.
What it costs: From £99/month for address and mail. Adding three lounge hours a day and 10% off meeting rooms: from £119/month.
Worth knowing: The Mail plan leaves out the lounge and room discount, so a business planning to work from the centre gets more from the £119 tier.
Contact: 0800 840 5509
Learn more: Orega, 70 Gracechurch Street
Servcorp, The Leadenhall Building
What you get: The Address Package covers the Level 30 address, mail and courier management and an hour a day in the lounge. The Virtual Office adds a receptionist-answered local number, 24/7 voicemail, 60 lounge hours a month and three private office days outside London.
Who it suits: Businesses that want a City address where a receptionist answers calls and meets clients.
What it costs: From £136.80/month for address and mail. Address, mail and call answering: £268/month.
Worth knowing: Call answering sits in the £268 Virtual Office, so a business that wants its phone covered should price that tier.
Contact: 020 3753 5500
Learn more: Servcorp, 122 Leadenhall Street
Shoreditch and Old Street
Shoreditch and Old Street sit just north of the City, around Old Street station.
Capital Office, 124 City Road
What you get: Capital Office, trading online as Your Virtual Office London, sells a Registered Office address for official post (scanned free), a business address that forwards, scans or holds post and parcels, and call answering on a London 020 number.
Who it suits: Owners who want to keep their home address private and add post handling or a phone line only when needed.
What it costs: From £39.99 for 12 months for the Registered Office address alone. Address and mail: £120 for 12 months. Address, mail and call answering: £315 for 12 months.
Worth knowing: The Registered Office product covers official post only, so a business trading from the address gets more from the £120 business address.
Contact: 020 7566 3939
Learn more: Capital Office 124 City Road
The Hoxton Mix, 66 Paul Street
What you get: The Virtual Office London plan gives you the Paul Street address, with letters scanned to your inbox and app within one business day. Originals are kept for 30 days, then destroyed unless forwarded.
Who it suits: Founders outside London or on the move who want to read their post on screen.
What it costs: From £24.99/month, or under £21/month billed annually, for address and mail scanning.
Worth knowing: The plan is built for post, with no call answering or meeting room, and forwarding originals costs postage plus a 50p fee.
Contact: 020 3475 3374
Learn more: The Hoxton Mix, 66 Paul Street
Choosing the right virtual office in London
If the address is mainly for Companies House and official letters, an address-only or address-and-mail plan covers it. Expect identity checks, since address providers must be supervised for anti-money laundering, and ask the provider to confirm the address meets the appropriate address test. A company registered in Scotland or Northern Ireland cannot use a London registered office, since the registered office must be in the part of the UK where the company is registered.
If you run the business from elsewhere, how post reaches you matters more than where it lands: check how originals, parcels and cheques are handled.
If clients ring you, a call answering package puts a receptionist on the line in the company’s name; check the number is local and calls can reach your mobile.
If clients will visit, look for a staffed reception and rooms on site, and ask how rooms are charged. The London virtual office directory lists further addresses across the capital.
