Reading through full-year results, one has to wonder why the market has been so concerned about the impact of AI on Rightmove. It almost seems a little unfair.
Rightmove remains the UK’s number 1 property portal and is producing steady revenue and profit growth amid the launch of new AI-powered services as part of a wider strategic push to open up more revenue channels.
The UK property market remains slow, so for Rightmove to produce the results it has this morning, it’s certainly doing something right and serves as a reminder as to why it has been the subject of takeover interest in recent years.
Rightmove has reported a solid set of full-year results for 2025, with revenue up 9% to £425.1m and underlying operating profit also rising 9% to £297.7m, maintaining its hefty 70% margin.
The UK’s dominant property portal saw growth driven largely by agents and developers upgrading to premium packages. Its top-tier “Optimiser Edge” product now counts 35% of independent estate agents as subscribers, up from 31% a year earlier, while a new “Ascend” package for housebuilders attracted 28% of developments within months of its May launch.
More than half of independent agents exceeded their package commitment on additional products — a clear sign that the platform is finding new ways to extract value from its existing customer base.
Average revenue per advertiser rose 6% to £1,621, with agency ARPA up £90 to £1,530 and New Homes ARPA climbing £148 to £2,135. Total membership edged up 1% to 19,272, helped by record levels of new agent formation as falling mortgage rates encouraged fresh entrants into the market.
“Operationally, Rightmove remains an enviable machine. A 70% underlying margin, 89% share of time spent, and traffic that is overwhelmingly direct and organic give Rightmove a moat that most digital businesses can only dream of,” said Mark Crouch, market analyst for eToro.
“Revenue up 9%, profits up double digits, and strategic growth areas expanding 25% underline that agents are still paying for premium positioning.”
The company’s strategic growth bets are starting to pay off. Mortgages revenue surged 46% to £6.8m, Rental Services jumped 35% to £7.1m, and Commercial Property grew 13% to £15.3m. Combined, these three areas delivered £29.1m, up 25% on last year, though they still represent a relatively small slice of group revenue. It will be interesting to see how these areas progress over the coming year.
Earnings per share rose 15% to 28.1p, and the company announced a £90m share buyback alongside a final dividend of roughly £50m. Total cash returned to shareholders hit £219.7m, up 21% year on year.
On the consumer side, Rightmove’s grip on the market looks as firm as ever, with 89% share of time on Comscore at year-end and over 85% of traffic arriving directly or organically. The platform clocked 16.8 billion minutes of usage across the year.
AI featured prominently throughout the results, with 31 live AI initiatives now running across the business. Its new AI-powered Online Agent Valuation tool has seen the fastest product uptake in the company’s history. Rightmove has also struck a multi-year deal with Google Cloud to accelerate its data and AI capabilities.
Looking ahead, management flagged that 2026 will see stepped-up investment in consumer and partner innovation, AI-driven operations, and new growth areas.