Top 10 Outsourced IT Providers in the UK for 2026
A look at the best outsourced IT and managed service providers in the UK for small and mid-sized businesses, plus an alternative worth considering.
The UK managed IT market is packed with providers, from national operations to specialist firms focused on specific regions or industries. Choosing the right one matters, because switching IT providers is painful and expensive.
Here are nine of the most established outsourced IT providers serving small and mid-sized businesses in the UK right now, plus one alternative if the traditional MSP model doesn't fit your setup.
1. Littlefish
Littlefish is one of the UK's most recognised managed IT and cyber security providers. They offer 24/7 service desk support, infrastructure management, and modern workplace solutions. They serve over a million users and have won multiple industry awards for service quality.
Best for: Mid-sized organisations that need a proven, large-scale UK support partner.
2. Air IT
Air IT (formerly merged with Netstar) is a national MSP delivering IT support, cloud solutions, and cybersecurity. They hold strong security accreditations and focus on personalised support tailored to individual business needs. They have offices across England.
Best for: SMEs that want a nationally present MSP with strong security credentials.
3. SysGroup
SysGroup is a publicly traded technology solutions provider focused on the UK mid-market. They combine managed IT services, cloud hosting, connectivity, and AI-driven data solutions. With offices across six UK cities, they have broad geographic coverage.
Best for: Mid-market companies that want a publicly accountable, established provider.
4. Texaport
Texaport provides fully managed IT support, cybersecurity services (including Cyber Essentials accreditation), and managed networks. They offer 24/7 monitoring with offices in London, Manchester, Glasgow, and Edinburgh.
Best for: UK businesses with distributed teams across multiple cities.
5. Lucidica
Lucidica is a London-based provider offering bespoke managed IT packages for small businesses. Their services include on-site and remote support, cloud storage, cybersecurity, and Microsoft 365 management. They're known for flexible contracts and a thorough onboarding process.
Best for: London-based small businesses that want a hands-on, local IT partner.
6. Zenzero
Zenzero has over 15 years of experience providing managed IT services to small businesses across the UK. They focus on straightforward solutions, 24/7 support, and practical advice suited to the realities of running a smaller organisation.
Best for: Small businesses that want no-nonsense IT support without enterprise complexity.
7. Syntax IT Support
Syntax is a London-based specialist serving small and medium-sized UK businesses. They cover network design, hardware and software support, cloud services, and cybersecurity at competitive rates. Their focus is reliability and approachability.
Best for: SMEs in London looking for cost-effective, responsive IT support.
8. Stripe OLT
Stripe OLT has been recognised as a Top 32 Scale-Up by Business Leader and won SME Security Solution of the Year at the 2025 Computing Security Excellence Awards. They provide outsourced IT support and cybersecurity services aimed at growing businesses.
Best for: Scale-ups and fast-growing companies that need IT and security to keep pace.
9. Integral IT
Integral IT is a North Yorkshire-based provider delivering IT support, consultancy, cloud storage, and infrastructure services across Yorkshire and beyond. They focus on affordability and practical solutions for small business clients.
Best for: Businesses in the North of England looking for a regional IT partner.
10. An alternative: ITcontractor.co
Every provider above follows the traditional MSP model: ticket queues, per-device or per-user pricing, and a team of rotating technicians. That model was built for companies with offices, servers, and local networks.
But the way UK businesses operate has changed. If your team is remote-first, runs on cloud tools, and has between 10 and 200 people, a fractional IT contractor might be a better fit.
ITcontractor.co works differently. Instead of raising tickets with a shared support queue, you get a dedicated IT professional embedded in your team. They know your stack, work in your Slack or Teams, and handle everything from onboarding to security reviews and compliance questionnaires.
No per-device pricing. No hidden fees. No vendor lock-in.
The fractional model works well when:
- Your team is fully remote or distributed across the UK (or internationally)
- Your infrastructure is cloud-based (Google Workspace, Microsoft 365, SaaS tools)
- You need proactive IT management, not just reactive ticket resolution
- You want one person who knows your environment inside out
If that sounds like your setup, book a free call and we can talk through whether it's the right fit.