Best Dog-Friendly Workplaces

Dog-Friendly Companies have Happier Employees

According to our analysis, employees are much happier at work if their company allows dogs. Across all types of companies in the UK, the average employee rating is 3.69 out of 5 stars. However, we found that the companies which are dog friendly have an average employee rating of 4.17—nearly half a point higher. On a 5 point scale, this is a meaningful amount.

Best Dog-Friendly Workplaces

To find the best companies that welcome dogs, we scoured UK job sites and employer ratings at Glassdoor to find employers that are:

In total, we identified 65 companies that allow employees to bring dogs and/or have an office dog (i.e., a dog that is in the office most days—great for those who love the company of a dog but don't have one of their own). We then narrowed down the list to those which are highly rated by employees, earning at least 3.5 out of 5.0 stars. Here is the list of the top 25 dog-friendly workplaces in the UK that allow employees to bring their dogs, in alphabetical order:

Benefits of Dogs in the Workplace

It is well documented that exposure to dogs leads to a reduction in stress and increased creativity, making dogs a perfect addition to workplaces to help employees stay happy and productive.

For example, petting a dog releases serotonin, which can help boost creativity by putting you in a calm but energized state. And according to a report from Harvard Medical School interacting with a dog reduces mental stress, which researchers attribute to a reduction in levels of the stress hormone cortisol.

What Types of Jobs Let You to Bring Your Dog to Work?

If you want to bring your dog to work, there are many types of work you can do. In our research we saw job postings in dog-friendly offices ranging from office manager to sales to software developer.

Those wanting to bring their dog to work will find their best bet is a tech startup. According to our research, the majority of companies that allow you to bring your dog to work are small, flexible tech/startup companies with less than 50 employees. In many cases, a company founder has a dog they like to bring to work. A number of dog-friendly tech startups work out of WeWork offices, which allow dogs.

Large companies are not as likely to allow dogs. Out of our list of top 25 dog-friendly companies, only two employ more than 200 people: Design Bridge and UKFast.net. However even these larger companies see the direct benefits of having dogs around.

For example, UKFast CEO Lawrence Jones said: “A year or two ago, we noticed a number of dogs joining us in the office from day to day. They were no trouble, and we quickly realised how much of an energy boost they brought. People light up when they see a pet sleeping under someone’s desk! Whilst it would be easy to assume that dogs become a huge distraction from the work that needs to be done, there is absolutely no doubt in my mind that having them around improves people’s moods and boosts productivity."

Perks for Dogs at Work

It's not uncommon for dog-friendly offices to provide water bowls and treats around the office. Most workplaces are either located near some green space or provide an outdoor courtyard to get some fresh air and stretch your and your dog's legs.

Mother London's badge

In startups with dog-owning founders, dogs are often a highlight of the office. For example, Mother London and Land Insight feature office dogs in videos, Netitude, Twinkl and Fidel have created Instagram accounts for their office dogs, Venture Stream has blogged about their dogs, Impero uses their office dogs to raise money for charity and Mother London even designed a company badge around the founders' dogs.

Some companies prioritise pet health and facilities. For example, Twinkl allows employees to bring pets as long as they're "pawthorised"—checking they're insured and up to date with their jabs. Tailster not only encourages dogs to join in on meetings—even important ones—but they have a sun terrace equipped with fake grass especially for the dogs to do their business.

With an estimated 27% of UK adult's owning a dog and the known benefits of having a four-legged friend in the workplace (e.g., less stress, higher creativity and happier employees), we certainly hope that more and more companies welcome dogs in the future. Even if your workplace doesn't generally allow dogs, perhaps they could give it a try on Bring Your Dog to Work Day on 21 June (which happens to be sponsored by one of the companies that made our top 24 list: Vets-Now).

If you know of any other dog-friendly companies that are also highly rated by their employers, please add them to our comments section below!