The music is just there when you go into most British bars. Something to keep the quiet. Ten years ago, someone planted speakers over a radio station that no one chose to play. You may receive a shrug if you ask the landlord about it. Ask them about the Tuesday quiz, the food, and the draft lines, and you will receive honest responses. It’s not the playlist. It is regarded as wallpaper, and British pub owners are losing a lot of money as a result of this indifference.
It is very shocking how different the study on music is from what the majority of landlords actually do with it. Every three decibel rise above 75dB was associated with a 9.2 percent faster rate of beer consumption, according to a 2017 study that followed 342 customers over the course of eight weeks in six London pubs. Customers referred to the setting as “lively” or “fun” without ever relating the volume to the speed at which they placed their orders. The study’s principal investigator, Dr. Lena Torres of University College London, described it as perceptual narrowing: noisy surroundings cause brain reactions that lessen inhibitory control. Without knowing why, people drink more quickly.
| Category | Detail |
|---|---|
| Industry | UK Pub and Bar Sector |
| Market Value (2025) | £24.9 billion |
| Total UK Pubs (2025) | ~44,650 |
| Pubs Lost Since 2000 | ~16,150 |
| Annual Closures (current rate) | ~350 per year |
| Daily Revenue Uplift (music) | Up to £667/day at weekends (PRS for Music data) |
| Licensing Body | PPL PRS Ltd (TheMusicLicence) |
| Key Research Institution | University College London (Dr Lena Torres, 2017) |
| Leading Music Services | Startle Music, BeeBox Systems, MAV Music, Auracle Sound |
| Staff Productivity Uplift | 81% work faster with background music |
Observing pub culture from the outside, it seems that landlords think patrons are too preoccupied to pay attention to the music. That is nearly exactly in reverse. The reason background music is so effective is that no one is aware of it. In their well known wine shop study, Adrian North and David Hargreaves demonstrated this. They found that French wine outsold German wine by a significant margin when French music was playing above, while 86% of consumers denied the music had any influence on their decision. The fundamental idea is unconscious influence. Customers are still influenced by the bar owner who plays a random Spotify playlist. They’re just not doing it well.
Tempo is what is missed in this discussion. According to Ronald Milliman‘s 1986 study published in the Journal of Marketing, slow tempo music kept patrons at their seats for an average of 56 minutes as opposed to 45 minutes when fast tempo music was playing. A playlist change alone resulted in a 40% boost in drink revenue roughly three extra drinks per table due to the additional eleven minutes. By carefully considering whether the afternoon background music is moving at 70 BPM or 110 BPM, a bar that serves 100 covers a day might potentially add tens of thousands of pounds yearly. This is something that most pubs never consider.
It’s difficult to ignore how much of this depends on professional attention as opposed to informal delegation. Despite making up only 25% of all sites, large managed pub groups, which currently own a 51% market value share, frequently employ expert curation services. These don’t cost much. For services like BeeBox Systems and Startle Music, monthly subscriptions cost between £30 and £100. For a mid size venue, the return might be an extra £36,000 in revenue each year, according to conservative calculations. Most independent landlords let the person working the shift handle the music. A 19 year old may occasionally add that to their own playlist. Occasionally, it’s a radio station with consecutive advertisements for furniture.
A layer of danger is added by the legal aspect, which many operators have quietly normalized. It is against copyright to play Spotify at a pub. A personal Apple Music account is also played via the speakers. Commercial use is covered by the PPL PRS MusicLicence, which is completely affordable. Enforcement measures have led to court ordered fees, injunctions, and, in documented cases, orders for venues to completely cease playing music. A nightclub that was discovered to be without a PPL license might be fined up to £10,000 for contempt of court. This is a silent but real risk for the great majority of bars that just moved to a streaming subscription in order to save money.
There is the issue of fit in addition to legality. According to research published by Modern Restaurant Management, random popular tunes actually *reduced* sales by 4.3 percent when compared to quiet, whereas brand aligned playlists increased overall sales by 9.1 percent. It is quantifiably worse to listen to the incorrect music than to listen to none at all. Pub owners’ perspective on the issue should be recalibrated as a result. It has nothing to do with whether or not to play. The issue is whether the music being played is in line with the pub’s identity or subtly undermining it.
This is further honed by live music. According to data from CGA and Rostar, the pub’s “drop off window” roughly 7 to 9 p.m., when patrons would normally leave is extended by organized live music events that take place every Friday or Saturday and are appropriately advertised. Well managed live music events keep attendees for an extra two to three hours. Due to post match acoustic concerts, patrons at one location close to a Premier League stadium stayed long after the final whistle. It is a true commercial uplift. Barely 15 to 20 percent of pubs presently do this properly, as noted by Rostar’s Marland Barsby. The others don’t consider it a weekly driver, but rather an infrequent gesture.
Since 2000, the UK pub industry has lost more than 16,000 locations. Numerous energy costs, an increase in the minimum wage, a decrease in company rates, and changing drinking patterns among younger populations are the factors. The playlist is one of the least expensive and least utilized levers in a field where every action counts. According to a poll, 91% of patrons favor bars with music. 61% of respondents claim that music influences their travel decisions. When they enjoy what they’re hearing, 79% of them remain longer. These consequences are not insignificant. The majority of landlords are ignoring these structural business advantages.
Whether the bar industry as a whole will change its perspective on music is still up for debate. The proof has been accessible for many years. The technology is cheap and easy to use. Despite its flaws, the licensing system is manageable. The understanding that the playlist is a business choice with quantifiable financial repercussions rather than aesthetic background noise is what’s lacking. Pubs that have adopted this change are witnessing an increase in their earnings. Whether they are paying attention or not, those who haven’t may not yet realize what they’re missing, but they miss it every day.
i) https://www.beeboxsystems.co.uk/the-benefits-of-profiled-background-music-for-uk-pubs-in-2025/
ii) https://www.restaurantonline.co.uk/Article/2012/03/21/How-to-play-music-effectively-and-legally-in-your-hospitality-business/
iii) https://northernlifemagazine.co.uk/why-background-music-matters-for-local-shops-cafes-and-restaurants/
iv) https://mavmusic.co.uk/background-music-pubs-bars/