Battle · 6 companies
Cinema chains
Blockbuster, or straight to streaming?
Vue leads on 3 of the five measures that matter most: turnover, pre-tax profit, profit margin, growth and net assets. Vue is the biggest by turnover at £313m, against £211m at Odeon. Cineworld keeps the most of every £100 it takes, £20.93 as pre-tax profit.
The year ends are up to 12 months apart, so this compares each company's most recent filing rather than the same twelve months. Everyman and Picturehouse file group accounts that include subsidiaries; Cineworld, Vue and Showcase file for a single company, which flatters the groups on size.
Accounts compared: Cineworld to Dec 2024 · Odeon to Dec 2024 · Vue to Nov 2025 · Everyman to Jan 2026 · Picturehouse to Dec 2024 · Showcase to Jan 2025
The Numbers
| # | Company | Turnover | Change | Pre-tax profit | Margin | Employees | Pay per head | Turnover per head | Net assets | Bank and cash | Accounts to | Basis |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | VueVue Entertainment Limited | £313m | +9.2% | £39m | 12.3% | 3,503 | £12,000 | £89,000 | £399m | £10m | Nov 2025 | Single company |
| 2 | OdeonOdeon Cinemas Limited | £211m | +0.4% | -£48m | -22.6% | 2,783 | £21,000 | £76,000 | -£16m | £32m | Dec 2024 | n/d |
| 3 | EverymanEveryman Media Group PLC | £117m | +8.8% | -£10m | -8.7% | 1,834 | £20,000 | £64,000 | £27m | £8m | Jan 2026 | Group |
| 4 | CineworldCineworld Cinemas Limited | £110m | -1.7% | £23m | 20.9% | 1,584 | £25,000 | £70,000 | -£16m | £34m | Dec 2024 | Single company |
| 5 | ShowcaseHarbor Lights Entertainment (UK) Limited | £90m | -2.8% | -£1.9m | -2.1% | 1,161 | £15,000 | £77,000 | -£70m | £10m | Jan 2025 | Single company |
| 6 | PicturehousePicturehouse Cinemas Limited | £43m | +12.8% | -£10m | -23.4% | 695 | £23,000 | £62,000 | -£43m | £5m | Dec 2024 | Group |
Ranked by turnover. Click any column to sort. The leader on each measure is highlighted. Movements are against each company's own prior year. Pre-tax profit is filed except where marked (est.).
Category winners
The Takeaway
- Cineworld converts the most of its turnover. Of every £100, £20.93 reaches pre-tax profit, against a loss of £23.43 at Picturehouse.
- Vue is the largest on the top line, £313m of turnover, 1.5x Odeon's £211m.
- Picturehouse is growing fastest, turnover +12.8% on its own prior year. Cineworld and Showcase went backwards.
- Vue is the biggest employer with 3,503 people; Cineworld pays the most per head, an average staff cost of about £25,000.
- Vue has the largest balance sheet, net assets of £399m, while Cineworld holds the most cash at £34m.
Who keeps the most of every £100 of sales?
Cineworld keeps the most: £20.93 of every £100 of turnover becomes pre-tax profit. Picturehouse does worst, losing £23.43.
Financing bites hardest at Cineworld: £16.96 of every £100 goes on interest.
Every profit figure here is the one the company filed.
The chart splits each company's turnover into £100: what goes on people, on interest and on everything else, and what is left as profit.
Out of every £100 of turnover
Each column is £100 of that company's own turnover, so companies of any size compare on one scale; the figures are pounds out of each £100, not millions. Companies run from the best margin to the worst. Payroll is staff costs, financing is interest paid, other running costs are everything else, and profit is pre-tax profit, filed or estimated as marked in the table. A loss is not an extra cost: it is the part of the costs that runs past the £100 line, marked with a red bracket. Hover over any segment for its figure.
Who is the biggest, and does the comparison hold?
By turnover the order is Vue (£313m), Odeon (£211m), Everyman (£117m), Cineworld (£110m), Showcase (£90m), Picturehouse (£43m).
By headcount, Vue leads with 3,503 employees.
The comparison holds with the dates stated plainly: Cineworld to Dec 2024, Odeon to Dec 2024, Vue to Nov 2025, Everyman to Jan 2026, Picturehouse to Dec 2024, Showcase to Jan 2025. The bases differ: group accounts include the businesses a company owns, single-company accounts do not.
Turnover on the latest filing
Who is growing fastest?
Picturehouse grew fastest, turnover +12.8% on its own prior year, ahead of Vue (+9.2%), Everyman (+8.8%), Odeon (+0.4%), Cineworld (-1.7%), Showcase (-2.8%).
Turnover change on each company's own prior year
Who employs the most, who pays the most, and who brings in the most per head?
Vue employs the most, 3,503 people, against 2,783 at Odeon.
Cineworld has the highest average staff cost, about £25,000 a head; Vue the lowest, about £12,000.
Vue brings in the most turnover per employee, about £89,000, against £62,000 at Picturehouse. It says as much about the business model as the workforce: a marketplace or a wholesaler needs far fewer people per pound than a restaurant or a gym.
Cineworld
1,584
employees, about £25,000 pay a head, £70,000 turnover a head, -6.9% on the year
Odeon
2,783
employees, about £21,000 pay a head, £76,000 turnover a head, -1.6% on the year
Vue
3,503
employees, about £12,000 pay a head, £89,000 turnover a head, +12.5% on the year
Everyman
1,834
employees, about £20,000 pay a head, £64,000 turnover a head, +12.7% on the year
Picturehouse
695
employees, about £23,000 pay a head, £62,000 turnover a head, +5.3% on the year
Showcase
1,161
employees, about £15,000 pay a head, £77,000 turnover a head, -9.3% on the year
Who owns each one?
Ownership as recorded on the Companies House register of people with significant control, in the bands the register uses.
Held by Cineworld Cinemas Holdings Limited
A company recorded as a person with significant control. 4 outstanding charges on the register.
Who owns Cineworld →
Odeon Cinemas Limited · 01854132Held by Odeon Cinemas Holdings Limited
A company recorded as a person with significant control. 2 outstanding charges on the register.
Who owns Odeon →
Vue Entertainment Limited · 04699504Held by Vue Entertainment Holdings (Uk) Limited
A company recorded as a person with significant control. 5 outstanding charges on the register.
Who owns Vue →
Everyman Media Group PLC · 08684079Owned by its shareholders
Listed on the London Stock Exchange, so no single controller appears on the register. 1 outstanding charge on the register.
Who owns Everyman →
Picturehouse Cinemas Limited · 02310403Held by Cineworld Holdings Limited
A company recorded as a person with significant control. 3 outstanding charges on the register.
Who owns Picturehouse →
Harbor Lights Entertainment (UK) Limited · 02141131Held by David Ferris Ellison
An individual recorded as a person with significant control.
Who owns Showcase →
What does the full ledger show?
| Measure | Cineworld | Odeon | Vue | Everyman | Picturehouse | Showcase |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Registered name | CINEWORLD CINEMAS LIMITED | ODEON CINEMAS LIMITED | VUE ENTERTAINMENT LIMITED | EVERYMAN MEDIA GROUP PLC | PICTUREHOUSE CINEMAS LIMITED | HARBOR LIGHTS ENTERTAINMENT (UK) LIMITED |
| Company number | 01915767 | 01854132 | 04699504 | 08684079 | 02310403 | 02141131 |
| Incorporated | 1985 | 1984 | 2003 | 2013 | 1988 | 1987 |
| Accounts filed | 24 February 2026 | 19 September 2025 | 4 July 2026 | 3 June 2026 | 10 March 2026 | 6 October 2025 |
| Turnover, prior year | £112m | £210m | £287m | £107m | £38m | £93m |
| Pre-tax profit, prior year | -£693m | -£59m | £20m | -£10m | -£2m | -£13m |
| Staff costs | £40m | £58m | £41m | £36m | £16m | £18m |
| Payroll share of turnover | 36.3% | 27.5% | 13.0% | 31.1% | 36.6% | 19.5% |
| Employees, prior year | 1,702 | 2,827 | 3,115 | 1,628 | 660 | 1,280 |
| Dividends paid | n/d | n/d | n/d | n/d | n/d | n/d |
| Charges outstanding | 4 | 2 | 5 | 1 | 3 | 0 |
A figure the filing does not disclose is shown as n/d; a zero in a filing is treated as not disclosed. Rounding: below £0.1m in thousands, £0.1m to £2m to one decimal place, above that to the nearest million.
Cinema chains: common questions
Who is the biggest of Cineworld, Odeon, Vue, Everyman, Picturehouse or Showcase?
Vue, with turnover of £313m in the year to November 2025.
Which makes the most profit?
Vue: £39m pre-tax in the year to November 2025.
Which employs the most people?
Vue, with 3,503 employees in its latest accounts.
Cineworld or Odeon: which is bigger?
Odeon, with turnover of £211m against £110m at Cineworld on their latest filings. On margin, Cineworld keeps more of each £100 as pre-tax profit. The full head to head is in the VS Series. Read the VS page →
Cineworld or Vue: which is bigger?
Vue, with turnover of £313m against £110m at Cineworld on their latest filings. On margin, Cineworld keeps more of each £100 as pre-tax profit.
Cineworld or Everyman: which is bigger?
Everyman, with turnover of £117m against £110m at Cineworld on their latest filings. On margin, Cineworld keeps more of each £100 as pre-tax profit.
Cineworld or Picturehouse: which is bigger?
Cineworld, with turnover of £110m against £43m at Picturehouse on their latest filings. On margin, Cineworld keeps more of each £100 as pre-tax profit.
Cineworld or Showcase: which is bigger?
Cineworld, with turnover of £110m against £90m at Showcase on their latest filings. On margin, Cineworld keeps more of each £100 as pre-tax profit.
Odeon or Vue: which is bigger?
Vue, with turnover of £313m against £211m at Odeon on their latest filings. On margin, Vue keeps more of each £100 as pre-tax profit.
Odeon or Everyman: which is bigger?
Odeon, with turnover of £211m against £117m at Everyman on their latest filings. On margin, Everyman keeps more of each £100 as pre-tax profit.
Odeon or Picturehouse: which is bigger?
Odeon, with turnover of £211m against £43m at Picturehouse on their latest filings. On margin, Odeon keeps more of each £100 as pre-tax profit.
Odeon or Showcase: which is bigger?
Odeon, with turnover of £211m against £90m at Showcase on their latest filings. On margin, Showcase keeps more of each £100 as pre-tax profit.
Vue or Everyman: which is bigger?
Vue, with turnover of £313m against £117m at Everyman on their latest filings. On margin, Vue keeps more of each £100 as pre-tax profit.
Vue or Picturehouse: which is bigger?
Vue, with turnover of £313m against £43m at Picturehouse on their latest filings. On margin, Vue keeps more of each £100 as pre-tax profit.
Vue or Showcase: which is bigger?
Vue, with turnover of £313m against £90m at Showcase on their latest filings. On margin, Vue keeps more of each £100 as pre-tax profit.
Everyman or Picturehouse: which is bigger?
Everyman, with turnover of £117m against £43m at Picturehouse on their latest filings. On margin, Everyman keeps more of each £100 as pre-tax profit.
Everyman or Showcase: which is bigger?
Everyman, with turnover of £117m against £90m at Showcase on their latest filings. On margin, Showcase keeps more of each £100 as pre-tax profit.
Picturehouse or Showcase: which is bigger?
Showcase, with turnover of £90m against £43m at Picturehouse on their latest filings. On margin, Showcase keeps more of each £100 as pre-tax profit.
Where do these figures come from?
Each company's latest accounts filed at Companies House. Each links to its full Spark Intel profile, which names the filing it comes from.
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