Virtual office guide
The cheapest virtual office address in the UK: what the price includes
Headline prices for a virtual office address in the UK start at about £10 a month plus VAT. But that usually buys a trading address only. Add the registered office for Companies House, VAT, any setup fee and post handling. Then the real figure is £16 to £50 a month. The city-centre brands charge £65 and up, for lounges and addresses a local business never uses. At the Maggie O'Neill Centre, £20 a month includes the registered office and business address. There's no VAT and no setup fee. Director's Cover is a £10 add-on.
What "cheapest" usually leaves out
A virtual office address has two jobs. One is the business address you put on your website, invoices and letters. The other is the registered office. That's the official address Companies House holds for your company. Many of the cheapest prices cover the first job only. Before you compare monthly prices, check which of these are in the price and which are extra:
- The registered office address. It's often an extra, or a higher tier. The cheap price may be a "trading address" only. You can't use that for Companies House or a business bank account.
- A director's service address. The address shown against you as a director. Without it, your home can stay on the public register, even after the company's registered office changes.
- Post. Some plans only take in official post from Companies House and HMRC. Forwarding other post costs extra for each item. Scanning is on a higher plan.
- A setup fee. A one-off charge of £20 to £50 is common. It's rarely in the headline price.
- An identity check fee. Providers must do anti-money laundering checks. A few charge for them.
- VAT. "From £10" is sometimes £12 once VAT is added. Check if the price shown includes it.
- The contract. The lowest monthly rate is often a year paid in advance. A monthly rolling plan can cost a little more each month. But it costs much less if you only need it for six months.
What a cheap address must still be
Whatever the price, Companies House has the same rules for a registered office:
- An appropriate address. Post sent to the company would reach someone acting for it, and they could acknowledge it.
- A physical address, not a PO box.
- In the right part of the UK. A company registered in England and Wales needs a registered office in England or Wales. Scottish and Northern Irish companies need one in Scotland or Northern Ireland.
- With the provider's permission. You get this with your agreement and their anti-money laundering checks on you.
A building with staff, where real people take in the post, meets all four. Use this test on any price that looks too good. Who, exactly, picks up the letter from HMRC?
Cheapest virtual office addresses compared
These are prices for Liverpool providers, from their own pages as indexed on 13 October 2026. If a page says a price excludes VAT, we show the price with VAT. "Not stated" means the page did not say. Prices change, so check the provider's page before you rely on a figure.
| Provider | Advertised from | What you pay for a registered office, with VAT and setup | What is included | Term |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Maggie O'Neill Centre, Huyton near Liverpool | £20 a month | £20 with the registered office included and no VAT (the centre is a charity and not VAT registered). £30 with a director's service address | Registered office and business address. Collect your post from reception. A building with staff, free parking and coffee. Meeting rooms in the same building. No setup fee, no VAT. | Monthly, one month’s notice |
| Virtually There, Liverpool L1 | £10 a month plus VAT, billed annually | About £19 to £20 a month with VAT for the registered office package (£16 to £17 plus VAT). The £10 price is a trading address only | Trading address and 10 post scans on the entry price. Registered office is an add-on, £7.50 to £8.50 plus VAT. No meeting room hours or coffee listed. No setup fee. | Paid for the year |
| Regus, Liverpool city centre | £65 a month (Business Address) | £65 to £135 a month. VAT not stated on the page | Business address, phone answering and use of lounges around the world. No price on the page for registered office or mail forwarding. | Flexible, says the page |
| Virtual HQ, Rodney Chambers, Liverpool | £36 a month | £48 a month with VAT (£40 plus VAT), plus a £36 setup fee with VAT. Registered office, scanning and phone are extra | Business address. Mail scanning, registered office and telephone services are add-ons. 10% off if paid annually. | Rolling, say comparison sites |
| 54 St James Street, Liverpool | £15.99 a month (Bronze) | Bronze can’t be used for Companies House. Silver and above can, but no price shown. Gold £60, Platinum £85. VAT not stated | Business address on Bronze. Registered office from Silver. Landline number on Gold. | Not stated |
| ABC Offices, Liverpool L6 | £30 a month | £30 for a business address and mail handling. No price for registered office. VAT not stated | Business address and mail handling. An older Gold plan page lists 2 conference room hours a month at £40. | Not stated |
| Your City Office, Rodney Chambers, Liverpool | £19.88 a month (this is the fax-to-email line) | Business Address £49.84 a month. Registered office costs extra. VAT not stated | Statutory post held, or forwarded at postage cost. Other post sent back to sender. | Not stated |
| Mail Boxes Etc., Liverpool L2 | £60 a year for the registered office, including VAT | About £43 a month with VAT. The registered office is an add-on to a mailbox from £460 a year | Mailbox and registered office. Prices include VAT. | 12 months |
Two things stand out. First, the lowest headline prices are trading addresses. Virtually There's £10 and 54 St James Street's Bronze plan can't be used for Companies House. The registered office is an add-on or a higher tier. Second, the entry price is rarely the monthly price. Most of them hide VAT, a setup fee or a year paid up front.
Look at the plans in this list that include the registered office. The Maggie O'Neill Centre's Address Only plan has the lowest monthly price. It has no VAT, no setup fee and a one-month notice period. Add Director's Cover, and your home address comes off the public register completely, for £30 a month. The £40 Virtual Office plan adds unlimited post scanning and two free meeting room hours a month, worth £40.
Paying for perks you will never use
The big-brand virtual offices start at £65 a month in Liverpool. There's a reason for the price. It includes things a small business outside the city centre doesn't need. Part of what you pay is for lounges and buildings in other cities. A plumber in Prescot or a care company in Kirkby will never set foot in them. Part of it is the postcode. A city-centre address doesn't make a Knowsley business easier to find. And when a client does want to meet, you pay to park. The brand name costs money too.
For most small businesses in Merseyside, the real test is simpler. Is it a real building with staff? Will someone you can name tell you when your post arrives? Can you get there and park for free when you need to? Is there a room you can meet a client in? That's what the price should buy. It's what the £20 and £40 plans at the Maggie O'Neill Centre are built around.
How to compare prices properly
Ask every provider the same six questions. Write the answers for each one in its own row. At the end, the cheapest row is rarely the cheapest headline.
- Is the registered office address included, or a separate fee?
- Is a director's service address included? What does it add to the price?
- What happens to post? Is it collected, forwarded for a fee per item, or scanned? What does a scanned letter cost?
- Is there a setup fee, an identity check fee, or VAT on top?
- What is the minimum term? Can you cancel monthly?
- Is it a building with staff that you could visit? Or is it a mailbox at a sorting address?
When the cheapest is not the best value
Official letters go to your registered office. These include Companies House reminders, HMRC penalties and court papers. One missed letter costs more than a year's difference between a £10 plan and a £20 one. So think about who handles the post. How quickly are you told it has arrived? Can you collect it? A provider you can phone and visit is worth a few pounds a month.
At the Maggie O'Neill Centre, your post comes to our own team and is kept securely stored. Hosts are in the building all day. There's free parking outside and meeting rooms down the corridor. The centre is a registered charity, so what you pay funds Maggie's Meals in Knowsley. Clients across the UK choose it for that reason, as much as for the price.
More detail: registered office vs business address, how to keep your home address off Companies House and can a limited company use a virtual office. Or see virtual office plans in Liverpool from £20 a month.