An increase in free bulk distribution helped The Times grow its overall circulation year on year in April, according to ABC.
The daily recorded the largest year-on-year rise for April at 2 per cent, climbing to 445,700 copies. The figure includes 82,200 bulk sales, up by 15,000 year on year. Paid-for sales (excluding bulks) fell 1.7 per cent.
The Financial Times saw a circulation increase of 0.6 per cent on the same period last year to 197,000, also due to an increase in bulks which now stand at 22,000.
The biggest fall in circulation came from the Daily Star on Sunday, which is down 20 per cent year-on-year to 252,800 (down from 316,000).
Trinity Mirror also saw substantial year-on-year decline in circulation across its national titles:
- The Sunday Mirror fell by 18 per cent year-on-year to 585,000 copies (down from 709,400)
- The Sunday People was down 16 per cent year-on-year to 228,000 copies (from 272,000)
- The Daily Mirror dropped by 13 per cent to 687,000 (down from 785,700)
Free daily the Metro saw its UK distribution climb by 10 per cent year-on-year to 1.4m copies, narrowing the gap on Britain’s best-selling daily newspaper, The Sun, which was down 6 per cent year-on-year to 1.6m.
The Mail on Sunday was down 10 per cent year-on-year, compared to 6 per cent for the Daily Mail.
The Guardian’s circulation fell by 9 per cent year-on-year.
In Scotland, the Sunday Mail, Sunday Post and Daily Record all recorded double-digit year-on-year drops in circulation. The Mail was down 14 per cent, the Post by 21 per cent and the Record by 13 per cent.
| Publication | Circulation (April 2017) | Month-on-month % change | Year-on-year % change | Bulks |
| The Sun | 1,617,152 | 0.93 | -5.78 | 97,843 |
| Metro (free) | 1,480,110 | 0.06 | 9.83 | |
| Daily Mail | 1,454,073 | 0.77 | -5.91 | 63,994 |
| The Sun on Sunday | 1,358,336 | -0.23 | -3.9 | 97,818 |
| The Mail on Sunday | 1,238,512 | -0.78 | -9.92 | 60,529 |
| London Evening Standard | 878,290 | -2.56 | -2.43 | |
| The Sunday Times | 779,785 | -1.24 | -2.19 | 86,172 |
| Daily Mirror | 687,000 | -0.76 | -12.56 | 23,695 |
| Sunday Mirror | 585,054 | -3.12 | -17.54 | 24,000 |
| The Daily Telegraph | 467,601 | 1.52 | -6.19 | 45,142 |
| The Times | 445,737 | 1.13 | 2.07 | 82,200 |
| Daily Star | 437,949 | 0.23 | -14.67 | |
| Daily Express | 386,297 | -0.11 | -7.88 | |
| The Sunday Telegraph | 354,815 | -0.37 | -4.25 | 34,325 |
| Sunday Express | 335,426 | 0.36 | -8.12 | |
| i | 263,826 | -0.55 | -7.25 | 55,810 |
| Daily Star – Sunday | 252,805 | 1.4 | -20.06 | |
| Sunday People | 228,024 | -1.88 | -16.17 | 7,000 |
| Financial Times | 197,037 | 3.68 | 0.57 | 22,054 |
| The Observer | 181,483 | 1.27 | -6.48 | |
| Sunday Mail | 159,880 | -0.78 | -14.47 | |
| The Guardian | 154,010 | 0.38 | -9.1 | |
| Daily Record | 149,892 | -1.73 | -13.4 | |
| Sunday Post | 138,533 | -2.27 | -12.41 | 522 |
| City AM (free) | 90,555 | -0.56 | -6.15 |
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