Guardian revenue from paying online readers grew by 17% in the year to March 2026 to reach a new record of £126m.

Overall revenue for Guardian Media Group grew by 2% (£6m) to £282m in the year to the end of March 2026, despite losing around £18m in annual print revenue following the sale of The Observer to Tortoise Media in April 2025. The Guardian said this was a record revenue total for its news operation (Guardian Media Group has made more revenue in the past, but this would have included revenue from former subsidiary businesses).

Revenue growth was mainly driven by the US side of the business, which was up 14% from £55.8m to £63.8m. UK revenue fell from £170.4m to £167.6m in the financial year, likely reflecting the impact of the sale of The Observer to Tortoise Media. Non-UK revenue now makes up 41% of the business.

The Guardian now claims to have 1.4 million recurring paying digital supporters (up 116,000 year on year). It said 500,000 of these (about 36%) are based in the US.

Guardian Media Group chair Charles Gurassa said: “These are an encouraging set of results validating our voluntary supporter, global strategy, and underlining the importance of our commitment to independent and impartial journalism and our willingness to speak truth to power.

“We will continue to invest in high-quality journalism and the technical capability to reach audiences anywhere in the world looking for reliable news and information they can trust.”

The Guardian’s total editorial headcount fell to 865 at the end of March 2026 compared with 913 a year earlier, reflecting the impact of redundancies and staff transfers related to the sale of The Observer.

The endowment fund which pays for The Guardian’s losses grew by £100m to be worth £1.35bn in March 2026.

Losses (defined by The Guardian as net cash outflow) have continued to fall: from £37m in the year to March 2024, to £25m in the year to March 2025, and stood at £17m for the last financial year.

Guardian CEO Anna Bateson said Guardian digital revenue has almost tripled in size over the last decade.

She said: “Strong brand recognition means readers continue to seek out the Guardian directly, even as AI changes the way information is found and consumed….

“More than ever, our staff are focused on producing distinctive, human-centred reporting that people cannot find elsewhere.”

The Guardian’s US operation now comprises 150 journalists, having doubled in the space of three years.

US editor Betsy Reed said: “As Trump and his allies have attacked the free press and some of our peers have bowed to political pressure, we’ve redoubled our commitment to independent journalism that scrutinizes power.”

In its annual report the Guardian noted an expansion of visual journalism and social video to engage with a younger audience via transformation project Project Berger.

Head of Guardian Studios Leah Green said: “Guardian Studios will be at the forefront of creating new generation of Guardian fans by delivering smart, innovative and fun content that people seek out week by week.”

The Telegraph reported that Guardian staff are taking part in an indicative ballot about whether they want to strike in protest against a proposal to increase pay by 3.85%. A Guardian spokesperson described it as “a fair pay increase which is above inflation and compares very favourably with other employers in our sector”.