UK property portals compared: Rightmove, Zoopla, OnTheMarket and PrimeLocation

The UK property search market is dominated by four main portals: Rightmove, Zoopla, OnTheMarket, and PrimeLocation. Most buyers and renters use Rightmove as their default and occasionally check Zoopla. OnTheMarket and PrimeLocation are used less frequently, but can surface listings that do not appear elsewhere. This guide explains what each portal covers, what it does well, and when it makes sense to check more than one.

If you are also searching for property in France or Spain alongside your UK search, the picture changes significantly. The French and Spanish portal markets are more fragmented, duplication is worse, and no single tool exists on those markets to match what Rightmove provides in the UK. More on that at the end.

Last updated: May 2026.

The UK portal market: fewer players, one dominant force

How many property portals are there in the UK?

The UK has four significant national portals: Rightmove, Zoopla, OnTheMarket, and PrimeLocation. The market is considerably less fragmented than France or Spain, where five to six major portals each carry a meaningful share of listings.

The UK reached its current structure through consolidation. Rightmove launched in 2000 and established early dominance. Zoopla launched in 2007 and grew to a credible second position. Attempts to build a third major platform have faced the structural challenge that Rightmove's traffic advantage is self-reinforcing: agents subscribe because buyers go there, and buyers go there because agents subscribe.

Rightmove carries listings from approximately 80 percent of UK estate agents and holds over 900,000 active listings at any given time. It is the highest-traffic property website in the UK by a significant margin. Not being listed on Rightmove is a meaningful commercial disadvantage for any estate agent or landlord.

Zoopla is the clear second portal, covering around 60 percent of agents. It has particular strength in the rental market and is the most useful portal for researching sold prices. OnTheMarket, launched in 2015 and now owned by US real estate data company CoStar Group, is a genuine third option with a growing number of exclusive listings. PrimeLocation shares Zoopla's database and is positioned slightly more upmarket.

Rightmove

Is Rightmove the best property portal in the UK?

Rightmove is the most comprehensive UK property portal by listing volume and traffic. For most buyers and renters, it is the single most important portal to have alerts set up on.

Rightmove launched in 2000 as a joint venture between four of the UK's largest estate agency networks. It went public in 2006 and has since established a dominant position in the market that no competitor has seriously threatened. Its scale creates a feedback loop: agents list on Rightmove because that is where the buyers are, and buyers go to Rightmove because that is where the listings are.

What does Rightmove offer that other portals don't?

Rightmove's primary advantage is breadth. With over 900,000 active listings and around 80 percent of UK estate agents represented, it is the closest the UK market has to a comprehensive single source of property listings. If a property is listed by a professional estate agent in the UK, it is almost certainly on Rightmove.

The platform's search and alert functionality is well developed. Buyers and renters can set alerts for specific postcodes, draw custom search areas on a map, filter by property type, number of bedrooms, price, and additional features such as garden, parking, or chain-free status. Alert frequency can be set to instant, daily, or weekly. Rightmove's mobile app is widely used and well regarded.

Sold price data is available for every UK address that has recorded a Land Registry transaction, which makes it useful for understanding what properties in a given street or postcode have actually sold for, not just what they are currently listed at.

What are Rightmove's limitations?

Rightmove does not carry private listings from sellers who are not using an estate agent. It also has no exclusive arrangement with any portal for new-build developers, though most developers list there. The platform's dominance means agents pay relatively high subscription fees, and some smaller or regional agencies have explored alternatives. In practice, these are edge cases: the vast majority of professionally listed properties in the UK appear on Rightmove.

Zoopla

How does Zoopla compare to Rightmove?

Zoopla covers fewer listings than Rightmove but offers stronger sold price data and a more detailed rental market picture. It is the most useful second portal to monitor after Rightmove.

Zoopla launched in 2007 and grew by acquiring competitor portals including PrimeLocation, Findaproperty, and Globrix. It was acquired by private equity firm Silver Lake in 2018 and is no longer publicly listed. Zoopla covers around 60 percent of UK estate agents and maintains a strong position in the rental market, where it has historically attracted a broader range of letting agents than some competitors.

What is Zoopla best for?

Zoopla has the most useful sold price data tools of any UK portal. Its "Zed-Index" provides average property values at postcode level, and its sold price history for individual addresses goes back further than Rightmove's equivalent. For buyers doing research before making an offer, Zoopla's valuation and market analysis tools are more developed.

In the rental market, Zoopla tends to have strong coverage of private landlords and smaller letting agencies that may not also list on Rightmove. If you are renting rather than buying, running alerts on both Rightmove and Zoopla gives you a more complete picture than either alone.

Does Zoopla have properties that Rightmove doesn't?

Yes, though the overlap is high. Most professional estate agents list on both Rightmove and Zoopla simultaneously, so the majority of listings appear on both portals. Some smaller letting agencies or private landlords who subscribe to Zoopla but not Rightmove will produce Zoopla-exclusive listings. These are a minority of total listings but are worth monitoring if you are in a competitive market.

OnTheMarket

What is OnTheMarket and is it worth using?

OnTheMarket launched in 2015 as an industry-backed alternative to Rightmove and Zoopla. It has grown to become a genuine third portal and carries a number of exclusive or early-access listings. It is worth monitoring alongside Rightmove and Zoopla.

OnTheMarket was founded by a consortium of UK estate agencies with the explicit goal of challenging the Rightmove and Zoopla duopoly. At launch, it operated an "one other portal" rule: member agents could only list on one of Rightmove or Zoopla in addition to OnTheMarket. This rule was controversial and limited adoption. It was relaxed in 2023, allowing member agents to list on all three portals simultaneously, which led to a significant increase in listings.

OnTheMarket listed on the London Stock Exchange and was subsequently acquired by CoStar Group, a major US real estate data company, in 2023. CoStar's backing provides substantial resources for product development and marketing.

Does OnTheMarket have listings that Rightmove doesn't?

Yes. Some of OnTheMarket's member agents upload new listings to OnTheMarket before they go live on Rightmove or Zoopla, giving OnTheMarket subscribers a brief window of early access. This "first to market" feature was a selling point from launch and remains relevant for buyers in competitive markets where new listings attract multiple offers quickly.

Following the relaxation of the one-portal rule in 2023, most OnTheMarket agents now list on Rightmove and Zoopla as well, which reduces the exclusive listing advantage. However, the brief time delay between OnTheMarket and Rightmove publication means that setting up OnTheMarket alerts can still give you a head start on new listings in fast-moving markets.

PrimeLocation

Is PrimeLocation a separate portal from Zoopla?

PrimeLocation shares Zoopla's database. The listings on PrimeLocation are drawn from the same pool as Zoopla. If a property is on PrimeLocation, it is also on Zoopla.

PrimeLocation was acquired by Zoopla in 2012. It operates as a distinct brand with a slightly more upmarket positioning and a design that emphasises higher-end residential properties. In practice, it uses the same listings data and is not a separate source of properties. Setting up a PrimeLocation alert is functionally equivalent to setting up a Zoopla alert for the same criteria.

When should I use PrimeLocation?

PrimeLocation is not necessary if you already monitor Zoopla. The main reason to use it is if you prefer its interface or if you are searching in a premium segment where the PrimeLocation positioning makes its search results feel more relevant. For most UK property searches, it does not add coverage that Zoopla does not already provide.

UK portals at a glance

The table below summarises the key differences between the four main UK portals.

The duplicate problem in the UK

Do I get duplicate alerts in the UK too?

Yes, though the problem is less severe than in France or Spain. Most UK estate agents list on both Rightmove and Zoopla simultaneously, so a single property can generate alerts from two portals at the same time. If you also have OnTheMarket alerts, you may receive three emails for the same property.

UK searchers who have used both Rightmove and Zoopla are already familiar with this: you set up matching alerts on both platforms, and when a new property appears, both portals email you within minutes of each other. It is mildly inconvenient rather than a serious problem.

The UK market is structurally better suited to managing this than France or Spain because there are fewer significant portals. Two or three duplicate emails from one property is manageable. Four to six duplicate emails, which is routine in the French market, is a different experience.

Is the UK republishing problem as common as in France?

Republishing, where an agent deletes and reposts a listing to reset its position in search results, happens in the UK but is less systematic than in France. Rightmove and Zoopla have policies against artificial republishing, and the consequences for agents are more significant than on French portals where the practice is routine. It occurs, but it is not as embedded a feature of the market as it is in France.

If you are also searching in France or Spain

Does the UK portal model apply in France and Spain?

No. The French and Spanish property portal markets work differently, and the duplication problem is significantly worse.

In France, there is no single portal with Rightmove's dominant position. Five major portals each carry a significant share of listings: SeLoger, LeBonCoin, PAP, BienIci, and Logic-Immo. Most professional agencies publish on at least three or four of them simultaneously. Where a UK buyer might receive two alert emails for one property (from Rightmove and Zoopla), a buyer searching in France can receive four or five for the same flat.

Spain follows a similar pattern. Idealista is the most widely used portal, but most agencies also publish on Fotocasa, Pisos.com, and Habitaclia. Three to four alert emails for a single listing is common.

FeedImmo was built for this problem. It currently supports French and Spanish portals: SeLoger, LeBonCoin, PAP, Idealista, Fotocasa, and Habitaclia. If you are searching in France or Spain alongside your UK search, FeedImmo aggregates your portal alerts into a single feed and removes the duplicates, so you see each property once.

The portals themselves have no incentive to solve the duplication problem. Their commercial model is built on listing volume and agent subscriptions. Deduplication reduces apparent listing volume. FeedImmo works at the alert inbox level rather than requiring any change to how the portals operate: you connect your existing alerts, and FeedImmo handles the deduplication.

FAQ

Which UK property portal has the most listings?

Rightmove has the most listings of any UK property portal, with over 900,000 active listings and coverage of approximately 80 percent of UK estate agents. It is the starting point for the vast majority of UK property searches.

Should I use both Rightmove and Zoopla?

Yes, particularly for renting. Most estate agents list on both, so the majority of listings appear on both portals. Zoopla has stronger sold price research tools and tends to cover some letting agents that do not also list on Rightmove. For buying, Rightmove alone covers most of the market. For renting, using both gives more complete coverage.

Is OnTheMarket worth setting up alerts on?

Yes, if you are searching in a competitive market where new listings attract multiple enquiries quickly. OnTheMarket's "first to market" feature means some listings appear there before they go live on Rightmove or Zoopla. The time window is often short, but in fast-moving markets such as London, Bristol, or Edinburgh, a few hours can make a difference.

Is PrimeLocation the same as Zoopla?

PrimeLocation shares Zoopla's listings database. A property listed on PrimeLocation also appears on Zoopla. If you already have Zoopla alerts set up, you do not need separate PrimeLocation alerts for the same search criteria.

Why did OnTheMarket change its "one other portal" rule?

OnTheMarket originally required member agents to list on only one of Rightmove or Zoopla in addition to OnTheMarket. The rule was designed to force a three-way split in agent listings and reduce Rightmove's dominance. In practice, it slowed OnTheMarket's growth because agents were reluctant to give up their Rightmove listings. The rule was relaxed in 2023, and listing volumes on OnTheMarket increased significantly as agents began listing across all three portals.

Can I find private sale listings (no estate agent) on UK portals?

Rightmove and Zoopla are primarily designed for professional estate agent listings. Some private sellers use platforms such as Tepilo or Purplebricks (which uses agents), or list directly on Rightmove via a fixed-fee listing service. For genuine private sale listings in the UK, specialist platforms outside the main four portals handle this more directly. The volume of private sales is much smaller in the UK than in France, where PAP (Particulier à Particulier) carries a large portion of the market.

I'm also searching in France or Spain. What's different there?

The French and Spanish markets are significantly more fragmented than the UK. France has five major portals (SeLoger, LeBonCoin, PAP, BienIci, Logic-Immo), and Spain has four (Idealista, Fotocasa, Pisos.com, Habitaclia). Most properties in those markets appear on multiple portals simultaneously, producing three to five duplicate alert emails for a single listing. FeedImmo aggregates alerts from the main French and Spanish portals and deduplicates them, giving you a single feed of each property once.

What is CoStar Group and why did it buy OnTheMarket?

CoStar Group is a US-based commercial real estate data and analytics company. It operates major commercial property platforms including CoStar, LoopNet, and Apartments.com in the United States. Its acquisition of OnTheMarket in 2023 was part of a broader strategy to expand into residential property data in UK and European markets. CoStar brings substantial technology and data resources to OnTheMarket, which has accelerated its product development since the acquisition.

Searching in France or Spain? FeedImmo handles the duplication problem

If your property search extends to France or Spain, the cross-portal duplication problem you have in the UK becomes significantly worse. FeedImmo currently supports the main French portals (SeLoger, LeBonCoin, PAP) and Spanish portals (Idealista, Fotocasa, Habitaclia). Connect your existing alert emails, and FeedImmo aggregates them into a single deduplicated feed. No need to change your email address on any portal.

Start with FeedImmo

Related guides

• How to search for property in France: a complete guide
• How to search for property in Spain: a complete guide
• Why the same property keeps appearing in your alerts