What Qweb does

QWeb Ltd is a UK-based full-service digital agency headquartered at Mabgate Business Centre in Leeds, founded in February 2013 by Ric Grant. The company provides website design and development (with a specialty in bespoke ecommerce and online ordering systems for apparel and merchandise suppliers), mobile game development, app development, managed web hosting on Rackspace infrastructure, email hosting with multi-layered spam filtering, and email marketing campaigns. Its primary customer base is small independent UK businesses and startups, supplemented by other digital agencies that use its hosting services.

The company's technology stack is anchored in PHP-based web development with an in-house QFlex content management system, Solar2D/Lua for game development, and custom Linux server management tooling. Proprietary products include the Qiso isometric game engine plugin (sold via the solar2dplugins.com marketplace), QFlex Invisible Captcha and QFlex Invisible Landing Captcha (browser-verification security tools), two free Android games (Greedy Monkey, Lights Out), a public Currency Exchange Rates API, and an ASN Lookup API. The in-development Argentauria MMORPG is positioned as a future flagship project.

Revenue is generated through a mix of project-based professional services (web, game, app design), recurring managed services (hosting, email hosting), subscription-style products (email marketing, APIs), and product sales (game plugins, marketplace revenue). QWeb is bootstrapped with no external funding, operates with 1-10 employees, and explicitly markets a no-AI, human-written-code positioning as a differentiator from AI-assisted competitors.

Name

Qweb

Legal name

QWeb Ltd

Website

https://qweb.co.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

2013

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

QWeb Ltd is a Leeds-based full-service digital agency providing website design, mobile game and app development, managed hosting, email, and APIs primarily to UK small businesses, with proprietary tools including QFlex CMS, QFlex Invisible Captcha, and the Qiso Solar2D engine plugin.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Leeds

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Operations, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Web Design & Development: Website design, development, and redesign services including ecommerce development with bespoke online ordering systems, logo and brand design. Core service offering with project-based pricing.
2. Game Development: Mobile game development services and game engine plugins/tools. Company also develops and publishes its own games available on Android Play Store.
3. App Development: Mobile app design and development services for apps requiring offline functionality, GPS access, camera features, or 3D/AR capabilities.
4. Managed Web Hosting: Managed hosting services including server setup, migration, maintenance, security, monitoring, CDN integration, and ongoing server management. Available even for websites not built by QWeb.
5. Email Hosting: Email hosting services with IMAP/POP3 support, individual mailbox capacities, web-based email interface, security and anti-spam mechanisms including Virus detection, Spamhaus, Barracuda DNSBL, SpamAssassin, and Fail2Ban.
6. Email Marketing (Mailshots): Email campaign design and reusable template creation with subscriber list management, GDPR compliance, and campaign analytics (open/click through rates).
7. Public APIs: Currency exchange rates API and ASN lookup API available through apis.qweb.co.uk for developers.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

QWeb Ltd is a full-service digital agency that designs and develops websites (with a specialty in ecommerce and bespoke online ordering systems for apparel and merchandise suppliers), mobile games, and mobile/tablet applications. The agency also provides managed web hosting and email hosting on Rackspace infrastructure, email marketing services (Mailshots), and operates the QFlex content management system internally. Alongside client services, QWeb develops and publishes its own free mobile games (Greedy Monkey, Lights Out) on the Android Play Store and sells the Qiso isometric game engine plugin via the solar2dplugins.com marketplace.

Product overview

Qweb is a full-service digital agency based in Leeds, Yorkshire, offering a portfolio of web and game design/development services. Their core offerings include website design and development (with specialization in ecommerce and bespoke online ordering systems), game development for mobile platforms, and app development. Supporting services include managed web hosting (as a Rackspace partner), email hosting with advanced spam filtering, email marketing campaigns, and their proprietary QFlex content management system. They also develop and sell original games (Greedy Monkey, Lights Out) and game engine plugins (Qiso for Solar2D). Their public APIs include a currency exchange rates API and ASN lookup API. The company was founded in February 2013 and operates from Mabgate Business Centre in Leeds.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• QFlex: Invisible captcha mechanic for protecting forms from rogue submissions and brute-force attempts.
• Qiso
• Argentauria
• Greedy Monkey
• Lights Out
• Trunkbot
• solar2dplugins.com

Products and services

• Website Design and Development Full-service website design and development for UK small and independent businesses, with a specialty in ecommerce and bespoke online ordering systems for apparel and merchandise suppliers. Includes logo and brand design services and ongoing support.
• Game Design and Development Mobile game design and development services using the Solar2D (Lua) framework, including collaboration with game developers, custom sprite and 3D model creation, and publishing support for the Android Play Store.
• App Development Mobile and tablet application design and development leveraging device hardware capabilities such as GPS, cameras, sensors, and offline functionality, including 3D and AR applications for visually complex requirements.
• Managed Web Hosting Managed web hosting with server setup, migration, security, monitoring, backup, CDN integration, and ongoing management on Rackspace data centre infrastructure. Available for both QWeb-built sites and websites built by other parties.
• Email Hosting Professional email hosting with IMAP and POP3 support, individual mailbox capacities, webmail access, and multi-layered spam and virus protection integrating Spamhaus DNSBL, Barracuda DNSBL, SpamAssassin, and Fail2Ban.
• Mailshots and Newsletters Email marketing campaign design and management with reusable branded templates, subscriber list management, open and click-through analytics, and GDPR-compliant practices for client marketing campaigns.
• Qiso Isometric Tilemap Engine An isometric tilemap engine plugin for Solar2D (formerly Corona SDK), sold via the solar2dplugins.com marketplace to mobile game developers building isometric games.
• Greedy Monkey A free children's game developed and published by QWeb on the Android Play Store.
• Lights Out A free children's game developed and published by QWeb on the Android Play Store.
• Currency Exchange Rates API Public API providing currency exchange rate data, available to developers via the apis.qweb.co.uk console; originally launched in 2015 and rebuilt in 2025.
• ASN Lookup API Public API for looking up Autonomous System Number (ASN) information associated with IP addresses, used internally by QWeb's firewall scripts and offered to external developers.

Quantifiable outcome

• Nearly 250 websites hosted across 5 servers for their own clients and partner agencies
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers10 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

Yes

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration4 records

Feature8 records

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• RackspacecoreTechnology or IntegrationRackspace is QWeb's infrastructure partner. All of QWeb's servers are set up at Rackspace data centres backed by their hardware and network level support. QWeb manages servers from an operating system and software level while Rackspace provides the underlying infrastructure. QWeb also helps clients set up their own Rackspace Cloud accounts for hosting.
• Solar2DminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerQWeb helped rebrand Corona SDK to Solar2D and built solar2dplugins.com marketplace for the Solar2D developer community. They developed Qiso isometric tilemap engine plugin and a 3D engine foundation for Solar2D.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves4 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Netmatters: UK-based full-service digital agency offering web development, custom software, and app development for SMBs. Comparable multi-disciplinary agency model, similar UK SMB customer focus, and overlapping service menu including bespoke web and software builds.
• Cyber-Duck: UK digital agency specialising in UX design, web development, and digital transformation. Overlaps directly with QWeb on web design/development, brand work, and end-to-end digital project delivery for SME and enterprise clients.
• Studio Graphene: London-based digital agency building web apps, mobile apps, and design-led products. Direct overlap with QWeb's app development, web development, and custom product build services for growth-stage and enterprise clients.
• Apadmi: UK mobile app development agency covering iOS, Android, and connected experiences. Comparable to QWeb's app development line, particularly around GPS, camera, and offline-capable mobile applications.
• Waracle: UK mobile app development and digital product agency with offices across the country. Directly comparable on the mobile app design and development leg of QWeb's service portfolio, including complex enterprise apps.
• Kyan: UK digital agency offering web, mobile, and custom software engineering. Comparable in being a multi-disciplinary agency serving UK clients with bespoke digital builds and ongoing support.
• The Distance: York-based digital agency providing web, app, and software development with an emphasis on long-term client partnerships. Mirrors QWeb's full-service, relationship-led agency model and UK SMB/enterprise focus.
• Createful: UK digital agency offering web design, development, branding, and digital strategy. Directly comparable to QWeb's brand and website design services for small and growing UK businesses.
• Cloudways: Managed cloud hosting platform targeting agencies and SMBs. Overlaps with QWeb's managed hosting offering and the white-label agency hosting dynamic that is central to QWeb's infrastructure business.
• Kinsta: Premium managed hosting provider with a strong agency partner programme. Competes with QWeb's managed hosting service for agency and SMB clients seeking bundled server management and performance optimisation.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• GitHubgithub.com/qwebltd
• Xx.com/qwebuk
• Facebookfacebook.com/QWebUK
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/qweb-ltd

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Qweb