30 Best Architecture and Design Firms in London

London is a city constantly reinvents itself, and its top architects have always been at the forefront of the latest architectural innovations.

Architizer Editors Architizer Editors

These annual rankings were last updated on September 13th, 2024. Want to see your firm on next year’s list? Continue reading for more on how you can improve your studio’s ranking.

London is a city that has been forced to redevelop constantly. Like many cities, it has accrued layers of history. However, events like the Great Fire and The Blitz have also torn holes in the urban fabric, necessitating moments of reflection and rethinking. Nowadays, Georgian, Regency and Victorian architecture are intermingled with hulking Brutalist structures, curving glass façades and anonymous steel giants.

Nowadays, the city remains home to preeminent architectural schools such as UCL’s Bartlett School of Architecture. In addition, London’s galleries and museums nurture a design culture with thought-provoking exhibitions about space and society, including the ever-popular Serpentine Pavilion. Meanwhile, as a global metropolis, the British city’s diversity is one of its great strengths, becoming home to a bevy of heavyweight firms and up-and-coming studios whose names are known locally and abroad.

With so many architecture firms to choose from, it’s challenging for clients to identify the industry leaders that will be an ideal fit for their project needs. Fortunately, Architizer is able to provide guidance on the top design firms in London, United Kingdom based on more than a decade of data and industry knowledge.

How are these architecture firms ranked?

The following ranking has been created according to key statistics that demonstrate each firm’s level of architectural excellence. The following metrics have been accumulated to establish each architecture firm’s ranking, in order of priority:

  • The number of A+Awards won (2013 to 2024)
  • The number of A+Awards finalists (2013 to 2024)
  • The number of projects selected as “Project of the Day” (2009 to 2024)
  • The number of projects selected as “Featured Project” (2009 to 2024)
  • The number of projects uploaded to Architizer (2009 to 2024)

Each of these metrics is explained in more detail at the foot of this article. This ranking list will be updated annually, taking into account new achievements of London, United Kingdom architecture firms throughout the year.

Without further ado, here are the 30 best architecture firms in London, United Kingdom:


30. Allford Hall Monaghan Morris

© Allford Hall Monaghan Morris

© Allford Hall Monaghan Morris

At Allford Hall Monaghan Morris we make buildings that are satisfying to use and beautiful to look at; an architecture that is defined by the experience of users who should be able to understand and use each building with ease and enjoyment.

We design very different buildings, for very different people to use in very different ways and, since our early days in the late 1980s, we have grown from four to over one hundred and fifty people and our budgets from a few thousand to tens of millions of pounds.

Through our wide range of projects we search for the opportunities in every site, budget and programme and pursue a pragmatic, analytical and collaborative working method to produce a responsive, intelligent and delightful architecture.

Some of Allford Hall Monaghan Morris’s most prominent projects include:

The following statistics helped Allford Hall Monaghan Morris achieve 30th place in the 30 Best Architecture Firms in London, United Kingdom:

A+Awards Finalist 2
Featured Projects 4
Total Projects 16

29. David Chipperfield Architects

© David Chipperfield Architects

© David Chipperfield Architects

David Chipperfield Architects was founded in 1985 and has offices in London, Berlin, Milan and Shanghai. The practice works internationally on cultural, residential and commercial projects providing full architectural and interior design, master planning, product and furniture design services for both public and private sectors. Our diverse built portfolio includes museums and galleries, libraries, apartments, private houses, hotels, offices, master plans, and retail facilities. David Chipperfield Architects has won more then fifty national and international competitions and many international awards and citations for design excellence.

Some of David Chipperfield Architects’s most prominent projects include:

The following statistics helped David Chipperfield Architects achieve 29th place in the 30 Best Architecture Firms in London, United Kingdom:

Featured Projects 4
Total Projects 8

28. Jestico + Whiles

© Jestico + Whiles

© Jestico + Whiles

Jestico + Whiles is an award winning architecture and interior design practice with offices in London and Prague. At the forefront of innovation and design excellence, the practice has won over one hundred national and international awards. We have proven expertise for excellent and sustainable designs across a wide range of sectors, including universities, schools, hotels, housing, cultural facilities, offices, transport infrastructure and retail, many within schemes involving major urban regeneration, refurbishment of historic buildings or low energy designs.

Some of Jestico + Whiles’s most prominent projects include:

The following statistics helped Jestico + Whiles achieve 28th place in the 30 Best Architecture Firms in London, United Kingdom:

Featured Projects 4
Total Projects 8

27. Eldridge London

© Nicholas Guttridge

© Nicholas Guttridge

London architectural practice Eldridge Smerin was established in 1998 and has since relaunched as Eldridge London. Architect Nick Eldridge’s vision continues to inspire the design and material quality of the practice’s recent projects in the UK and abroad defined by a series of cutting-edge houses including the Stirling Prize nominated Lawns project and the House in Highgate Cemetery.

The practice has also completed a number of high profile retail, commercial and cultural projects including interiors for Selfridges Birmingham, Villa Moda Kuwait, O2’s Mobile Applications Development Centre, the Design Council Headquarters, The Business and Intellectual Property Centre and a restaurant at the British Library and the Globe Theatre’s Sackler Studios.

The practice demonstrates a consistent approach to producing intelligent and unique solutions to specific client briefs and often constrained budgets with an unerring attention to detail from concept through to completion.

Some of Eldridge London’s most prominent projects include:

The following statistics helped Eldridge London achieve 27th place in the 30 Best Architecture Firms in London, United Kingdom:

A+Awards Finalist 1
Featured Projects 4
Total Projects 6

26. FORM studio (previously FORM design architecture)

© FORM studio (previously FORM design architecture)

© FORM studio (previously FORM design architecture)

Architecture has the power to transform environments and quality of life.

FORM studio aims to create places that can be inhabited and experienced by people in a natural and instinctive way. Enjoyable places with a tranquil sense of simplicity, which create a supportive and uplifting backdrop for life.

Individual solutions are developed for our clients which are an intelligent, inventive and sustainable response to the complex matrix of issues that shapes each project. Solutions with a lucidity and apparent simplicity which belie their underlying complexity.

Listening, analysis, discussion and clarification are at the heart of an inclusive approach that recognises the fact that some of the best ideas are generated in the space between people rather than by individuals.

Some of FORM studio (previously FORM design architecture)’s most prominent projects include:

The following statistics helped FORM studio (previously FORM design architecture) achieve 26th place in the 30 Best Architecture Firms in London, United Kingdom:

A+Awards Winner 1
A+Awards Finalist 1
Featured Projects 4
Total Projects 7

25. Studio Octopi

© Studio Octopi

© Studio Octopi

Studio Octopi is an award winning architecture practice based in central London, UK.

Some of Studio Octopi’s most prominent projects include:

The following statistics helped Studio Octopi achieve 25th place in the 30 Best Architecture Firms in London, United Kingdom:

Featured Projects 5
Total Projects 11

24. WilkinsonEyre

© WilkinsonEyre

© WilkinsonEyre

WilkinsonEyre is one of the world’s leading architectural practices with a portfolio of national and international award-winning projects. Since our inception in 1983, we have built a portfolio of bold, beautiful, intelligent architecture in sectors as diverse as culture, sport and leisure, education, infrastructure, residential, office and large-scale masterplanning. Project highlights include the Guangzhou International Finance Center – one of the tallest buildings in the world, the giant, cooled conservatories for Singapore’s Gardens by the Bay, the new Mary Rose Museum in Portsmouth, the refurbishment of the New Bodleian Library for the University of Oxford and the acclaimed temporary structure of the London 2012 Olympic Games Basketball Arena. Our work is based on an informed use of technology and materials and combines a commitment to the spirit of the new with an awareness of context.

Some of WilkinsonEyre’s most prominent projects include:

The following statistics helped WilkinsonEyre achieve 24th place in the 30 Best Architecture Firms in London, United Kingdom:

Featured Projects 5
Total Projects 21

23. Sheppard Robson Architects

© Sheppard Robson Architects

© Sheppard Robson Architects

The practice’s work is underpinned by fully integrating a sustainable design methodology that balances efficiency and performance with form.
In the practice’s 75-year history, Sheppard Robson has designed award-winning architecture, interior design and masterplanning projects around the world, building a strong reputation across numerous typologies – including office, education, residential, healthcare, science and retail projects.

From our head office in London and studios in Manchester, Glasgow and Abu Dhabi, the founding principles of innovation and sustainability continue to shape the work of the practice and its interior design group (ID:SR), reinterpreted and enlivened by the creative talent of our designers. The work of the practice benefits from an ability to have a constructive dialogue with clients and end-users, as well as collaborating closely with other members of the project team throughout the design and delivery of a project.

Some of Sheppard Robson Architects’s most prominent projects include:

The following statistics helped Sheppard Robson Architects achieve 23rd place in the 30 Best Architecture Firms in London, United Kingdom:

A+Awards Finalist 1
Featured Projects 5
Total Projects 10

22. 6a architects

© Johan Dehlin

© Johan Dehlin

6a architects was founded by Tom Emerson and Stephanie Macdonald in 2001. They are best known for their contemporary art galleries, educational buildings, artists’ studios and residential projects, often in sensitive historic environments. 6a architects rose to prominence with the completion of two critically acclaimed public art galleries, Raven Row (2009), which won a RIBA Award in 2011, and the expanded South London Gallery (2010). Recently completed projects include a new 68-room hall of residence at Churchill College, Cambridge (2016), which garnered a RIBA Regional East Award (2017), and a new studio complex for photographer Juergen Teller (2016), which was winner of both RIBA London Building of the Year (2017) and a RIBA National Award (2017).

Some of 6a architects’s most prominent projects include:

The following statistics helped 6a architects achieve 22nd place in the 30 Best Architecture Firms in London, United Kingdom:

A+Awards Finalist 2
Featured Projects 5
Total Projects 6

21. Foster Lomas

London based studio specialising in craft and collaboration to create bespoke architecture and interior design.

Unique to the practice is the pursuit of an architecture which is imaginatively responsive to site and place, whether an urban project or a rural retreat. We carefully craft buildings which are the result of working directly with leading structural engineers, artisans and craftsmen creating buildings which will remain relevant, sustainable and timeless.

Since we established Foster Lomas Architects in 2005 we have developed a broad palette of work from urban penthouses to rural residential houses within heritage landscape areas, which have led to expertise in developing a uniquely sensitive and innovative approach.

Some of Foster Lomas’s most prominent projects include:

The following statistics helped Foster Lomas achieve 21st place in the 30 Best Architecture Firms in London, United Kingdom:

A+Awards Finalist 2
Featured Projects 5
Total Projects 12

20. Carl Turner Architects

© Carl Turner Architects

© Carl Turner Architects

Carl trained at the Royal College of Art, gaining a first class honours degree and a RIBA Bronze Medal (runner-up) before undertaking an MA at the Royal College of Art in London.The RCA provided a foundation for collaboration and working across platforms with an integrated approach; Carl sees his approach to design and construction as an extension of his time there as a ‘maker’.User-focused design was embedded as a founding principle for practice, through a two year research post for the Helen Hamlyn Research Centre at the RCA, investigating new strategies for wayfinding for BAA plc at Heathrow’s Terminal 5.After working for Norman Foster on the Citibank Tower (Canary Wharf), and Penoyre and Prasad on various community-based projects, Carl formed a partnership (TurnerCastle).

Some of Carl Turner Architects’s most prominent projects include:

The following statistics helped Carl Turner Architects achieve 20th place in the 30 Best Architecture Firms in London, United Kingdom:

Featured Projects 5
Total Projects 5

19. Atelier Chang Ltd

© Kyungsub Shin

© Kyungsub Shin

Atelier Chang is an international design praxis based in South Kensington, London and Zurich since 2011. Our design philosophy is to create innovative design through focusing on the unembellished basics – basics of nature, social behaviour, and urban phenomena. To achieve this absolute simplicity of content through impactful forms takes extra effort in researching the context, a devotion to material and technology, and active interaction with other industries. Currently we work on projects in Asia and Europe at multiple scales of design, covering master plans, architecture, interior design, installations, and products.

Some of Atelier Chang Ltd’s most prominent projects include:

The following statistics helped Atelier Chang Ltd achieve 19th place in the 30 Best Architecture Firms in London, United Kingdom:

A+Awards Winner 2
Featured Projects 3
Total Projects 4

18. Levitt Bernstein

© Phil Boorman

© Phil Boorman

As architects, landscape architects and urban designers, Levitt Bernstein creates award winning buildings, living landscapes and thriving urban spaces, using inventive design to solve real life challenges. Putting people at the heart of our work, each of our projects is different but the driving force behind every one is the desire to create an environment that is beautiful, sustainable and functional.

Some of Levitt Bernstein’s most prominent projects include:

The following statistics helped Levitt Bernstein achieve 18th place in the 30 Best Architecture Firms in London, United Kingdom:

Featured Projects 6
Total Projects 10

17. Architects of Invention

© Architects of Invention

© Architects of Invention

Architects of Invention (AI) is an award winning international partnership practicing contemporary architecture, urbanism, and design led by Nikoloz Japaridze. To accommodate a range of projects throughout the world, AI maintains offices in London and Tbilisi. Since its establishment in 2010 AI has completed 10 buildings in 10 years and produced more than 100 projects and collaborations.

The practice has good international experience contributing to project in Chile, Switzerland, Germany, Canary Islands, Seychelles, India, Russia, China, Czech Republic, France, UK and Georgia. AI has successfully collaborated with many international clients and consultants. Its core consultants’ teams are established in the UK as well as in Georgia.

Some of Architects of Invention’s most prominent projects include:

The following statistics helped Architects of Invention achieve 17th place in the 30 Best Architecture Firms in London, United Kingdom:

Featured Projects 6
Total Projects 17

16. Hawkins\Brown

© Hawkins\Brown

© Hawkins\Brown

The first time someone decided to mix sweet and salty popcorn, their guests must have been horrified. Minutes later though they would be guzzling the lot. That’s the thing about new combinations – you have to be a bit odd to consider them in the first place, but when they pay off you’re left wondering how you managed before they existed.

Admittedly, this isn’t a usual sort of About page for an architectural practice, but we’re not a usual sort of practice. We believe that projects come alive through uncommon combinations of ideas and people. In fact, we think that’s the only way they really come alive at all.

Some of Hawkins\Brown’s most prominent projects include:

The following statistics helped HawkinsBrown achieve 16th place in the 30 Best Architecture Firms in London, United Kingdom:

A+Awards Winner 1
Featured Projects 6
Total Projects 19

15. Bennetts Associates

© Bennetts Associates

© Bennetts Associates

Bennetts Associates creates sustainable and enduring architecture. As one of the UK’s leading practices, their diverse portfolio has been celebrated with more than 150 awards over 30 years and covers education, cultural and workplace projects in both the public and private sector, ranging from masterplans to small historic buildings. They are an employee-owned trust of 70 people with studios in London, Edinburgh and Manchester, and have recently earned Building Design’s Higher Education Architect of the Year 2019 Award.

Bennetts Associates also leads in their field in sustainability – in April 2019 they became the world’s first architects to secure Science Based Target approval and commit to the UN’s Climate Neutral Now campaign.

Some of Bennetts Associates’s most prominent projects include:

The following statistics helped Bennetts Associates achieve 15th place in the 30 Best Architecture Firms in London, United Kingdom:

A+Awards Winner 1
A+Awards Finalist 2
Featured Projects 4
Total Projects 19

14. Buckley Gray Yeoman

© Dirk Lindner

© Dirk Lindner

Formed in 1997, Buckley Gray Yeoman is an award-winning architecture and design practice based in Shoreditch, London. Directed by Matt Yeoman and Paul White, the firm provides pragmatic and deliverable solutions to complex design issues. Founded on the premise that outstanding results require careful planning and an intuitive approach, Buckley Gray Yeoman’s designs adapt and respond to the context of each project to create intelligent and enduring architecture. The practice’s work is driven by the needs and ambitions of its clients.

Some of Buckley Gray Yeoman’s most prominent projects include:

The following statistics helped Buckley Gray Yeoman achieve 14th place in the 30 Best Architecture Firms in London, United Kingdom:

A+Awards Winner 1
A+Awards Finalist 3
Featured Projects 4
Total Projects 10

13. AL_A

© Francisco Nogueira / Architectural Photography

© Francisco Nogueira / Architectural Photography

Architecture studio AL_A was founded in 2009 by the RIBA Stirling Prize-winning architect Amanda Levete with directors Ho-Yin Ng, Alice Dietsch and Maximiliano Arrocet.

Their designs are conceived not just as buildings, but as urban propositions. Spaces that promote reciprocity between nature and neighbourhood; projects that express the identity of an institution, reflect the ambitions of a place, and hold the dreams of a community.

Recently completed projects include an undergraduate and outreach centre for Wadham College at the University of Oxford and a new centre for the cancer care charity Maggie’s within the grounds of University College Hospital in Southampton.

Some of AL_A’s most prominent projects include:

The following statistics helped AL_A achieve 13th place in the 30 Best Architecture Firms in London, United Kingdom:

A+Awards Winner 1
Featured Projects 6
Total Projects 10

12. Studio Seilern Architects

© Philip Vile

© Philip Vile

Studio Seilern Architects is a London based international creative practice established in 2006 by Christina Seilern with the intent of producing exceptional architecture that lasts, working across geographies, building sizes and typologies. Our diverse portfolio of built work spans the UK, Europe and Africa.

While we tackle a diversity of projects, it is our conscious decision to keep working on the smaller and larger scales both simultaneously and continuously: from new build to restoration works. Irrespective of size or context, each project we undertake informs another. The smaller scale keeps our pencils sharp on questions of intricate detailing and the unraveling of the human condition both on the living and working fronts.

Some of Studio Seilern Architects’s most prominent projects include:

The following statistics helped Studio Seilern Architects achieve 12th place in the 30 Best Architecture Firms in London, United Kingdom:

A+Awards Winner 1
A+Awards Finalist 3
Featured Projects 5
Total Projects 9

11. Steyn Studio

© DOOK Photography

© DOOK Photography

Steyn Studio is a collaborative architecture practice. We believe that design has the power to solve problems, inspire, and improve lives and work hard everyday to realise this ambition. We always aim to do this honestly and with the freedom to creatively explore meaningful design solutions. Designs that make a real difference to the end-user and the client; culturally and commercially.

Some of Steyn Studio’s most prominent projects include:

The following statistics helped Steyn Studio achieve 11th place in the 30 Best Architecture Firms in London, United Kingdom:

A+Awards Winner 4
Featured Projects 4
Total Projects 4

10. Hopkins Architects

Copyright 2007 Paul Tyagi - © Hopkins Architects

Copyright 2007 Paul Tyagi - © Hopkins Architects

Hopkins Architects is an international architectural practice with studios in London and Dubai. Led by its five Principals, the practice’s work is rooted in clear and logical design thinking, a deep understanding of the potential of materials and craft, and consideration of context. A consistent and rigorous approach has resulted in a portfolio of ground-breaking, beautiful and functional buildings across Europe, the US and Asia which have added tangible value for both clients and users.

The practice has designed and delivered a portfolio of renowned, award-winning projects, including Portcullis House at Westminster and the London 2012 Olympic Velodrome.

Some of Hopkins Architects’s most prominent projects include:

The following statistics helped Hopkins Architects achieve 10th place in the 30 Best Architecture Firms in London, United Kingdom:

A+Awards Winner 1
A+Awards Finalist 1
Featured Projects 8
Total Projects 18

9. Haworth Tompkins

Photo: Philip Vile - © Haworth Tompkins

Photo: Philip Vile - © Haworth Tompkins

Haworth Tompkins is an award-winning British architectural studio united by a commitment to integrity, intellectual quality and the art of making beautiful buildings. Founded in 1991 by Graham Haworth and Steve Tompkins, the rapidly-growing London-based studio consists of 70 people, and specialises in bespoke buildings in the public, cultural, private and financial sectors. Acclaimed projects include the Everyman Theatre, winner of the RIBA Stirling Prize in 2014, Young Vic Theatre, Royal College of Art campus in Battersea, Coin Street housing development and the London Library, for which they received the prestigious American Institute of Architect’s Excellence in Design award. The studio is currently working on a number of highly anticipated schemes including the Theatre Royal Drury Lane, Fish Island Village, Bristol Old Vic and Kingston University.

Some of Haworth Tompkins’s most prominent projects include:

The following statistics helped Haworth Tompkins achieve 9th place in the 30 Best Architecture Firms in London, United Kingdom:

A+Awards Finalist 2
Featured Projects 9
Total Projects 10

8. Allies and Morrison

© Nicholas Guttridge

© Nicholas Guttridge

We are architects and urbanists. We strive to design beautiful buildings that have long life and can adapt over the generations. We also shape enduring places whether new pieces of city or settlements at any scale. All our projects are concerned with the crafting of every detail and an appreciation for the uniqueness of each context.

As architects, we are known for the rigour of our technical delivery, a commitment to quality, to embedded environmental performance. As urbanists, we are known for developing plans that are flexible and pragmatic, inspirational in vision, responsive to the local climate and character. Based in London and Cambridge, we come from around the world and our diversity is one of our fundamental strengths.

Some of Allies and Morrison’s most prominent projects include:

The following statistics helped Allies and Morrison achieve 8th place in the 30 Best Architecture Firms in London, United Kingdom:

A+Awards Winner 1
A+Awards Finalist 4
Featured Projects 7
Total Projects 24

7. bureau de change

© bureau de change

© bureau de change

Bureau de Change is an award winning architecture practice founded by architects Katerina Dionysopoulou and Billy Mavropoulos. Its work is a direct product of the founders’ upbringing, passions and experiences – combining the pragmatism and formality of their architectural training with a desire to bring a sense of theatre, playfulness and innovation to the design of spaces, products and environments. The result is a studio where rigorous thinking and analysis are brought to life through prototyping, testing and making.

Some of bureau de change’s most prominent projects include:

The following statistics helped bureau de change achieve 7th place in the 30 Best Architecture Firms in London, United Kingdom:

A+Awards Winner 1
Featured Projects 10
Total Projects 20

6. Alison Brooks Architects

© Alison Brooks Architects

© Alison Brooks Architects

Founded in 1996, Alison Brooks Architects has developed an international reputation for delivering design excellence and innovation in projects ranging from urban regeneration, masterplanning, public buildings for the arts, higher education and housing.

ABA’s award-winning architecture is born from our intensive research into the cultural, social and environmental contexts of each project. Our approach enables us to develop pioneering solutions for our buildings and urban schemes, each with a distinct identity and authenticity. Combined with rigorous attention to detail, ABA’s buildings have proved to satisfy our client’s expectations and positively impact the urban realm.

Our approach has led ABA to be recognised with both national and international awards including Architect of the Year Award 2012 and Housing Architect of the Year 2012.

Some of Alison Brooks Architects’s most prominent projects include:

The following statistics helped Alison Brooks Architects achieve 6th place in the 30 Best Architecture Firms in London, United Kingdom:

A+Awards Winner 3
A+Awards Finalist 3
Featured Projects 6
Total Projects 8

5. Squire and Partners

© Squire and Partners

© Squire and Partners

Squire & Partners is an architecture and design practice with experience spanning four decades, earning it an international reputation for architecture informed by the history and culture of where it is placed. Their award winning portfolio, for some of the world’s leading developers, includes masterplans, private and affordable residential, workspace, retail, education and public buildings.

In addition, the practice has a series of dedicated teams for modelmaking, computer generated imaging, illustration, graphics and an established interior design department, which has created a number of bespoke product ranges.

Squire & Partners’ approach responds to the unique heritage and context of each site, considering established street patterns, scale and proportions, to create timeless architecture rooted in its location.

Some of Squire and Partners’s most prominent projects include:

The following statistics helped Squire and Partners achieve 5th place in the 30 Best Architecture Firms in London, United Kingdom:

A+Awards Finalist 2
Featured Projects 9
Total Projects 49

4. Adjaye Associates

© Adjaye Associates

© Adjaye Associates

Since establishing Adjaye Associates in 2000, Sir David Adjaye OBE has crafted a global team that is multicultural and stimulated by the broadest possible cultural discourse. The practice has studios in Accra, London, and New York with work spanning the globe. Adjaye Associates’ most well-known commission to date, the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture (NMAAHC), opened in 2016 on the National Mall in Washington DC and was named “Cultural Event of the Year” by The New York Times.

Further projects range in scale from private houses, bespoke furniture collections, product design, exhibitions, and temporary pavilions to major arts centers, civic buildings, and master plans.

Some of Adjaye Associates’s most prominent projects include:

The following statistics helped Adjaye Associates achieve 4th place in the 30 Best Architecture Firms in London, United Kingdom:

A+Awards Winner 6
A+Awards Finalist 2
Featured Projects 16
Total Projects 37

3. Heatherwick Studio

© Hufton+Crow Photography

© Hufton+Crow Photography

Heatherwick Studio is a team of 180 problem solvers dedicated to making the physical world around us better for everyone.
Based out of our combined workshop and design studio in Central London, we create buildings, spaces, master-plans, objects and infrastructure. Focusing on large scale projects in cities all over the world, we prioritise those with the greatest positive social impact.

Working as practical inventors with no signature style, our motivation is to design soulful and interesting places which embrace and celebrate the complexities of the real world. The approach driving everything is to lead from human experience rather than any fixed design dogma.

The studio’s completed projects include a number of internationally celebrated buildings, including the award-winning Learning Hub at Singapore’s Nanyang Technological University and the UK Pavilion at the Shanghai World Expo 2010. The studio is currently working on 30 live projects in ten countries.

Some of Heatherwick Studio’s most prominent projects include:

The following statistics helped Heatherwick Studio achieve 3rd place in the 30 Best Architecture Firms in London, United Kingdom:

A+Awards Winner 11
A+Awards Finalist 2
Featured Projects 12
Total Projects 14

2. Foster + Partners

© Foster + Partners

© Foster + Partners

Foster + Partners is a global studio for sustainable architecture, engineering, urbanism and industrial design, founded by Norman Foster in 1967. Since then, he, and the team around him, have established an international practice with a worldwide reputation. With offices across the globe, we work as a single studio that is both ethnically and culturally diverse.

Some of Foster + Partners’s most prominent projects include:

The following statistics helped Foster + Partners achieve 2nd place in the 30 Best Architecture Firms in London, United Kingdom:

A+Awards Winner 9
A+Awards Finalist 10
Featured Projects 37
Total Projects 94

1. Zaha Hadid Architects

© Zaha Hadid Architects

© Zaha Hadid Architects

Internationally renowned architecture firm Zaha Hadid Architects works at all scales and in all sectors to create transformative cultural, corporate, residential and other spaces that work in synchronicity with their surroundings.

Some of Zaha Hadid Architects’s most prominent projects include:

The following statistics helped Zaha Hadid Architects achieve 1st place in the 30 Best Architecture Firms in London, United Kingdom:

A+Awards Winner 17
A+Awards Finalist 14
Featured Projects 44
Total Projects 68

Why Should I Trust Architizer’s Ranking?

With more than 30,000 architecture firms and over 130,000 projects within its database, Architizer is proud to host the world’s largest online community of architects and building product manufacturers. Its celebrated A+Awards program is also the largest celebration of architecture and building products, with more than 400 jurors and hundreds of thousands of public votes helping to recognize the world’s best architecture each year.

Architizer also powers firm directories for a number of AIA (American Institute of Architects) Chapters nationwide, including the official directory of architecture firms for AIA New York.

An example of a project page on Architizer with Project Award Badges highlighted

A Guide to Project Awards

The blue “+” badge denotes that a project has won a prestigious A+Award as described above. Hovering over the badge reveals details of the award, including award category, year, and whether the project won the jury or popular choice award.

The orange Project of the Day and yellow Featured Project badges are awarded by Architizer’s Editorial team, and are selected based on a number of factors. The following factors increase a project’s likelihood of being featured or awarded Project of the Day status:

  • Project completed within the last 3 years
  • A well written, concise project description of at least 3 paragraphs
  • Architectural design with a high level of both functional and aesthetic value
  • High quality, in focus photographs
  • At least 8 photographs of both the interior and exterior of the building
  • Inclusion of architectural drawings and renderings
  • Inclusion of construction photographs

There are 7 Projects of the Day each week and a further 31 Featured Projects. Each Project of the Day is published on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram Stories, while each Featured Project is published on Facebook. Each Project of the Day also features in Architizer’s Weekly Projects Newsletter and shared with 170,000 subscribers.

 


 

We’re constantly look for the world’s best architects to join our community. If you would like to understand more about this ranking list and learn how your firm can achieve a presence on it, please don’t hesitate to reach out to us at editorial@architizer.com.

Read more articles by Architizer
The Smoking Fire , plate VI (of 16) from the series The Imaginary Prisons

What if the World Built All the Paper Architecture Proposals?

Most paper proposals are not impossible. As Lebbeus Wood put it, "Architecture is always constrained by the reality of technology."

Should AI Become a Mandatory Part of the Architecture School Curriculum?

Four different university programs have already introduced AI into their curricula — some in the mos t unexpected ways possible.

+