Pay
The highest-paid jobs in the UK
The best-paid occupation group in the UK is chief executives and senior officials, with a median of £99,944a year for full-time employees in the latest ONS figures. Only 18 of the 382 groups ONS publishes have a median of £60,000 or more, and none reaches £100,000. The UK median for full-time work is £39,039a year.
Updated
Source: ONS, Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings 2025 (provisional), Table 14.7a, published . Median gross annual pay for full-time employee jobs in the UK, tax year ending 5 April 2025. Figures are for whole SOC 2020 occupation groups and exclude the self-employed.
The 30 highest-paid occupations in the UK
Ranked by median gross annual pay for full-time employees. The quarter columns show the spread: a quarter of people in the group earn less than the lower figure and a quarter earn more than the upper one. ONS does not publish a figure it considers unreliable, so some cells are blank.
| Rank | Occupation group | Median | Lower quarter | Upper quarter | Jobs (000s) | ONS reliability |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Chief executives and senior officials (1111) | £99,944 | £63,161 | £151,903 | 112 | Reasonably precise |
| 2 | Marketing, sales and advertising directors (1132) | £94,135 | £65,527 | £134,962 | 200 | Precise |
| 3 | Specialist medical practitioners and consultants (2212) | £92,847 | £67,335 | £136,100 | 142 | Precise |
| 4 | Information technology directors (1137) | £91,671 | £69,515 | £119,408 | 56 | Reasonably precise |
| 5 | Directors in logistics, warehousing and transport (1140) | £83,447 | £59,976 | n/a | 10 | Acceptable |
| 6 | Aircraft pilots and air traffic controllers (3511) | £82,746 | £61,511 | n/a | 9 | Acceptable |
| 7 | Financial managers and directors (1131) | £76,447 | £50,000 | £120,417 | 353 | Precise |
| 8 | Train and tram drivers (8231) | £76,327 | £68,924 | £83,129 | 24 | Precise |
| 9 | Functional managers and directors n.e.c. (1139) | £75,711 | £54,692 | £104,802 | 114 | Reasonably precise |
| 10 | Public relations and communications directors (1133) | £72,887 | £59,788 | n/a | n/a | n/a |
| 11 | Head teachers and principals (2321) | £72,192 | £59,307 | £83,623 | 48 | Precise |
| 12 | Senior police officers (1162) | £66,690 | £64,166 | n/a | 13 | Precise |
| 13 | Rail and rolling stock builders and repairers (5236) | £64,322 | n/a | n/a | n/a | Acceptable |
| 14 | Production managers and directors in mining and energy (1123) | £63,241 | £48,898 | n/a | 10 | Acceptable |
| 15 | Health services and public health managers and directors (1171) | £61,573 | £48,613 | £80,002 | 49 | Precise |
| 16 | Financial and accounting technicians (3533) | £60,575 | £36,907 | £76,303 | 26 | Acceptable |
| 17 | Electrical engineers (2123) | £60,303 | £43,003 | £73,899 | 34 | Reasonably precise |
| 18 | IT business analysts, architects and systems designers (2133) | £60,288 | £45,860 | £81,932 | 163 | Precise |
| 19 | Business and financial project management professionals (2440) | £59,834 | £46,399 | £77,568 | 271 | Precise |
| 20 | Production managers and directors in manufacturing (1121) | £58,640 | £42,885 | £85,000 | 406 | Precise |
| 21 | IT project managers (2131) | £58,373 | £41,423 | £74,823 | 29 | Reasonably precise |
| 22 | Clinical psychologists (2225) | £58,366 | £38,468 | n/a | 9 | Acceptable |
| 23 | Business, research and administrative professionals n.e.c. (2439) | £58,341 | £44,939 | £68,194 | 74 | Precise |
| 24 | Purchasing managers and directors (1134) | £58,005 | £44,801 | £82,749 | 54 | Reasonably precise |
| 25 | Sales accounts and business development managers (3556) | £57,625 | £43,049 | £79,598 | 392 | Precise |
| 26 | Human resource managers and directors (1136) | £57,529 | £43,676 | £78,677 | 152 | Precise |
| 27 | Rail transport operatives (8234) | £57,088 | £42,815 | £72,157 | 15 | Reasonably precise |
| 28 | Solicitors and lawyers (2412) | £56,977 | £42,015 | £77,509 | 106 | Precise |
| 29 | Programmers and software development professionals (2134) | £56,914 | £42,289 | £75,794 | 343 | Precise |
| 30 | Brokers (3531) | £56,689 | £39,461 | n/a | 17 | Acceptable |
Source: ONS, Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings 2025 (provisional), Table 14.7a, published . Median gross annual pay for full-time employee jobs in the UK, tax year ending 5 April 2025. Figures are for whole SOC 2020 occupation groups and exclude the self-employed.
How many jobs pay £60k, £70k, £80k or £100k?
| Median of at least | Occupation groups |
|---|---|
| £60,000 | 18 |
| £70,000 | 11 |
| £80,000 | 6 |
| £100,000 | 0 |
Source: ONS, Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings 2025 (provisional), Table 14.7a, published . Median gross annual pay for full-time employee jobs in the UK, tax year ending 5 April 2025. Figures are for whole SOC 2020 occupation groups and exclude the self-employed.
Looked at another way, across every full-time employee job in the UK, 80% paid less than £59,083 and 90% paid less than £76,903 in the tax year to April 2025. A salary of £60,000 or more puts you in the top fifth of full-time employee jobs.
How people get into the ten best-paid occupations
In the ONS's own words, from its description of each occupation group.
1. Chief executives and senior officials (£99,944)
Entry may be by appointment or internal promotion, as appropriate, and is usually based on relevant experience although candidates may also require academic or professional qualifications for some posts.
2. Marketing, sales and advertising directors (£94,135)
Entry is generally via career progression from related occupations (e.g. marketing manager, advertising accounts manager, sales manager), although in practice most will hold a degree.
3. Specialist medical practitioners and consultants (£92,847)
Entrants require a university degree from a medical school recognised by the General Medical Council followed by two years of pre-registration training as a house officer, and further postgraduate training in a chosen speciality.
4. Information technology directors (£91,671)
There are no pre-set entry requirements although candidates usually possess a degree or equivalent qualification together with substantial, relevant work experience. A variety of professional and postgraduate qualifications is available.
5. Directors in logistics, warehousing and transport (£83,447)
Candidates are recruited with a variety of academic qualifications and/or with relevant experience.
6. Aircraft pilots and air traffic controllers (£82,746)
Entrants with GCSEs/S grades and A levels/H grades, a BTEC/ SQA award or equivalent qualification can apply for an airline sponsorship.
7. Financial managers and directors (£76,447)
Entry is most common with a relevant degree or equivalent qualification, although it is possible with A levels/H grades, S/NVQ levels 4 and 5. Those with higher qualifications may obtain accelerated training.
8. Train and tram drivers (£76,327)
There are no formal academic requirements. Entrants must pass a series of tests and a medical examination. Age restrictions apply in some areas of work. Good hearing, good eyesight and normal colour vision are required.
9. Functional managers and directors n.e.c. (£75,711)
Entry standards will vary according to the specific function and requirements of the organisation concerned, as will options for training off and on-the-job.
10. Public relations and communications directors (£72,887)
Entry is generally via career progression from related occupations (e.g.
Entry routes: ONS, SOC 2020 Volume 1: structure and descriptions of unit groups. Contains public sector information from ONS SOC 2020 Volume 1 licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
Who is not in the table
- The self-employed. The survey behind these figures covers employees only, so it says nothing about people who work for themselves, including partners who own their business or practice.
- Groups ONS did not publish. ONS suppresses estimates that are unreliable or could identify people. In the 2025 tables that includes dental practitioners and officers in the armed forces. Figures for police officers (sergeant and below) were withdrawn in an ONS correction on 19 December 2025.
Want a well-paid job you can train into without a degree? Our guide to well-paid jobs without a degree shows the apprenticeship or licence route for each, and jobs that pay £50k covers the next band down.
Common questions
What is the highest-paid job in the UK?
In the 2025 ONS figures the occupation group with the highest median full-time pay was chief executives and senior officials (SOC 1111), at £99,944 a year. Specialist medical practitioners and consultants were next among professional jobs at £92,847. These are medians: individual pay in these groups varies widely.
Which jobs pay over £100,000 a year?
No occupation group had a median full-time salary of £100,000 or more in the 2025 ONS figures. In a few groups at least a quarter of full-time employees earned over £100,000: chief executives and senior officials (upper quarter £151,903), marketing, sales and advertising directors (upper quarter £134,962), specialist medical practitioners and consultants (upper quarter £136,100), information technology directors (upper quarter £119,408), financial managers and directors (upper quarter £120,417), functional managers and directors n.e.c. (upper quarter £104,802). Across all full-time employee jobs, 90% paid less than £76,903.
How many jobs pay over £60,000?
18 of the 382 occupation groups ONS publishes had a full-time median of £60,000 or more in 2025, and 11 had one of £70,000 or more. Across all full-time employee jobs, 80% paid less than £59,083.
What is the highest-paid job without a degree?
Among the jobs in our list that do not normally need a degree, the best paid by ONS median are air traffic controller (£82,746), train driver (£76,327), healthcare commissioning manager, health service manager (£61,573). Our guide to well-paid jobs without a degree shows the apprenticeship or licence route for each.
When will the 2026 figures be published?
ONS publishes Employee earnings in the UK: 2026, which includes the new occupation tables, on 22 October 2026 at 9:30am. We will update this table when it is out.