In this article 7 sections
The best free sources of B2B leads in the UK are Companies House for company names, addresses and directors, Google Maps for phone numbers and websites, and LinkedIn for decision makers. Under PECR you may text or email limited companies without consent if you identify yourself and offer an opt-out, but sole traders need consent.
- Companies House is free and official: company name, number, address, SIC code, directors and status, but no phone numbers or emails.
- Google Maps fills the gap with phone numbers and websites for local businesses; in our scans 93% to 99% of businesses had a phone.
- Under PECR, limited companies, LLPs and other corporate subscribers can be emailed or texted without prior consent, as long as you say who you are and give an easy opt-out.
- Sole traders and some partnerships count as individuals: you need their consent or the soft opt-in to email or text them.
- Since February 2026, PECR fines can reach £17.5 million or 4% of global turnover.
UK B2B lead lists are sold everywhere, and most of them are built from the same free sources you can use yourself, then sold months later when a share of the numbers no longer work. If you sell to UK businesses, you can build a fresher list in an afternoon. And because the UK has clear rules on electronic marketing, it also pays to know exactly who you can text, email or WhatsApp, and who you can’t.
Free Source 1: Companies House
Companies House holds the official register of UK companies, and its search service is free with no account needed.
- What you get: company name and number, registered office address, SIC code (the industry), incorporation date, status, and the directors and other officers.
- What you don't: phone numbers, emails or websites.
- Best use: the advanced search filters by SIC code, location, incorporation date and status, which is useful for finding newly formed companies in your sector, a common sign that a business is buying.
Free Source 2: Google Maps
For local businesses such as trades, clinics, salons, restaurants, agencies and retailers, Google Maps is the most up-to-date directory there is, because owners maintain their own listings. Search a business type and town, such as “accountant Manchester”, and each listing shows the phone, website, address and reviews.
Doing it by hand takes about a minute per business. LeadTrapper’s Maps lead scraper collects the whole area for you, district by district, with name, phone, website, address, rating and reviews in one table. In our scans, 93% to 99% of businesses had a phone number; the guide to scraping phone numbers from Google Maps compares the manual, API and scraper routes.
Collect UK business leads free for 14 days
Free Source 3: LinkedIn and Websites
Companies House and Maps give you companies. For the person who buys:
- LinkedIn shows who holds the role, such as "operations director Leeds". The X-ray search method finds profiles from Google without a premium account.
- Company websites often list a general email, and some list the team. The website email finder reads them from a whole list of sites at once.
The PECR Rules for B2B Messages
The Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations (PECR) decide who you may send electronic marketing to. The ICO’s guidance treats “electronic mail” broadly: emails, texts, picture and video messages, in-app messages and direct messages. It doesn’t name WhatsApp, so the safe reading is to treat a WhatsApp message like a text.
| Who you’re messaging | Email, text or WhatsApp marketing | Every message must |
|---|---|---|
| Limited companies, LLPs, Scottish partnerships, public bodies | Allowed without prior consent | Say who you are and give an easy opt-out |
| Sole traders and some partnerships | Only with their consent, or the soft opt-in for your own customers | Say who you are and give an easy opt-out |
- Keep a do-not-contact list. When a company asks you to stop, stop, and keep a record so a later list doesn't bring it back.
- Calls are different. For live marketing calls to businesses, screen numbers against the TPS and CTPS registers first.
- Bigger fines. Since the Data (Use and Access) Act's provisions came into force in February 2026, PECR fines can reach £17.5 million or 4% of global turnover, up from £500,000.
How do you tell a sole trader from a company? Companies House: if a business isn’t on the register, it’s likely a sole trader or partnership, and it needs consent before you send electronic marketing. This is a summary of the ICO’s guidance, not legal advice.
UK GDPR and Your Lead List
PECR covers how you send. UK GDPR covers the data itself, and it applies whenever a detail identifies a person, such as a named email or a director’s mobile. For relevant B2B marketing, legitimate interests is the usual basis, but you must tell people where you got their details, keep only what you need, and stop when they object.
A Simple UK Lead Workflow
- Pick a sector and a town or two, such as "dental practices in Leeds and Bradford".
- Run the search in LeadTrapper's Google Maps scraper and export the list.
- Check the businesses you care most about on Companies House: limited company, or sole trader?
- Run the mobile numbers through Check Numbers with the UK chosen, so 07 numbers become 447 and landlines drop out. Call the landlines instead.
- Write one short, relevant message that says who you are, with an opt-out line. Send limited companies first; get consent from sole traders before messaging them.
For message examples, see the WhatsApp B2B outreach guide; for the full method beyond the UK, the B2B lead generation how-to.
Sources
- ICO. Business-to-business marketing.
- ICO. Guidance on direct marketing using electronic mail.
- GOV.UK. Search the Companies House register.
- Clifford Chance. Key aspects of the Data (Use and Access) Act take effect, February 2026.
The Google Maps scraper is part of LeadTrapper for Windows, which costs $50 a year with a 14-day free trial. LeadTrapper is not affiliated with or endorsed by Google.
Frequently Asked Questions
Companies House lists every UK company free of charge, with address, SIC code and directors. Google Maps adds phone numbers and websites for local businesses, and LinkedIn shows who holds which role. Together they cover most of what paid lead lists sell.
Under PECR, you can send electronic marketing to corporate subscribers, such as limited companies and LLPs, without prior consent, as long as you identify yourself and give a way to opt out. Sole traders and some partnerships are treated as individuals and need consent. The ICO's guidance covers texts and in-app messages; it doesn't name WhatsApp, so treat it the same way. This is not legal advice.
No. Companies House shows the registered office address, SIC codes, officers and filing history, but not phone numbers or emails. For those, use the company's Google Maps listing or its website.
Yes, when the data identifies a person, such as jane.smith@company.co.uk or a director's mobile. Legitimate interests can cover relevant B2B marketing, but you must tell people where you got their details and stop when they object.
About LeadTrapper
LeadTrapper is a Windows app for finding business leads and contacting them on WhatsApp. It collects business contacts from Google Maps, Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, LinkedIn and business websites, checks which numbers are on WhatsApp with its Number Filter, and sends personalised campaigns with automatic delays from one or more WhatsApp accounts. It also has a chatbot, a shared inbox for every account, and Store Orders for online shops. It installs from the Microsoft Store, and the full app is free for 14 days, then $50 a year. Free web tools, browser extensions and a Wix app are listed on the Free Tools page.
Build a UK B2B Lead List in an Afternoon
LeadTrapper's Google Maps scraper collects UK businesses town by town with phone, website and rating, and its email finder reads emails from their websites. $50/year, 14-day free trial.
