Portsmouth has a wide range of established and growing sectors. Manufacturing is extremely important to the city, providing 8% of all employment and accounting for 11% of all revenue. Portsmouth is also renowned for its Naval sector, playing host to two thirds of the Royal Navy's surface fleet. In 2017, two new £3 billion aircraft carriers meant investment worth £120 million for the city's port.

Portsmouth also has a strong aerospace and defence sector, focused around the Airport Industrial Estate, home to names like Airbus and BAE Systems. Already home to a prosperous IT sector, the city is enjoying great growth across digital industries, with employment rising by 33% between 2010 and 2016.