Working from home
The best-paid jobs you can usually do from home
The best-paid jobs that are commonly done from home are in senior management, IT, finance and consultancy. For the 15 groups below, the ONS median for full-time employees in 2025 runs from £50,062 (chartered and certified accountants) to £94,135a year (marketing, sales and advertising directors). ONS does not split pay by where people work, and most of these jobs are hybrid rather than fully remote.
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.
Well-paid jobs where home working is common
All 15 are desk-based jobs in the two ONS major groups with the most home working: managers and directors, where 60% worked at home for part or all of the week in April to June 2026, and professionals, where 59% did. The UK median for all full-time jobs is £39,039.
| Job | Median pay | Middle half earn | How people get in |
|---|---|---|---|
| Marketing, sales or advertising directorONS group 1132: Marketing, sales and advertising directors | £94,135 | £65,527 to £134,962 | 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. |
| IT directorONS group 1137: Information technology directors | £91,671 | £69,515 to £119,408 | There are no pre-set entry requirements although candidates usually possess a degree or equivalent qualification together with substantial, relevant work experience. |
| Finance director or financial managerONS group 1131: Financial managers and directors | £76,447 | £50,000 to £120,417 | 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. |
| IT business analyst, architect or systems designerONS group 2133: IT business analysts, architects and systems designers | £60,288 | £45,860 to £81,932 | Entrants usually possess a degree or equivalent qualification, although entry with other academic qualifications and/or significant relevant experience is possible. |
| Project manager (business and finance)ONS group 2440: Business and financial project management professionals | £59,834 | £46,399 to £77,568 | Entry may be via a degree or postgraduate qualification in project management or a subject relevant to the particular sector or via significant relevant work experience in that sector.Apprenticeship in England: Associate project manager (level 4, typically 18 months) |
| IT project managerONS group 2131: IT project managers | £58,373 | £41,423 to £74,823 | Entrants usually possess a degree or equivalent qualification, although entry with other academic qualifications and/or significant relevant experience is possible.Apprenticeship in England: Associate project manager (level 4, typically 18 months) |
| HR manager or directorONS group 1136: Human resource managers and directors | £57,529 | £43,676 to £78,677 | There are no pre-set entry standards, although entry is most common with a degree or equivalent qualification.Apprenticeship in England: People professional (level 5, typically 22 months) |
| Software developer or engineerONS group 2134: Programmers and software development professionals | £56,914 | £42,289 to £75,794 | Entrants usually possess a degree or equivalent qualification, although entry with other academic qualifications and/or significant relevant experience is possible.Apprenticeship in England: Software development technician (level 3, typically 18 months) |
| IT or product managerONS group 2132: IT managers | £56,438 | £44,372 to £73,901 | Entrants usually possess a degree or equivalent qualification, although entry with other academic qualifications and/or significant relevant experience is possible. |
| Cyber security professionalONS group 2135: Cyber security professionals | £54,647 | £42,761 to £71,808 | Entrants usually possess a degree or equivalent qualification, although entry with other academic qualifications and/or significant relevant experience is possible.Apprenticeship in England: Cyber security technologist (2021) (level 4, typically 24 months) |
| Marketing or commercial managerONS group 2432: Marketing and commercial managers | £53,703 | £39,645 to £69,510 | There are no pre-set academic entry requirements.Apprenticeship in England: Marketing manager (level 6, typically 24 months) |
| Actuary, economist, statistician or data scientistONS group 2433: Actuaries, economists and statisticians | £53,342 | £41,906 to £74,372 | Entry is most common with a relevant degree or equivalent qualification.Apprenticeship in England: Data scientist (integrated degree) (level 6, typically 36 months) |
| Management consultant or business analystONS group 2431: Management consultants and business analysts | £53,295 | £40,202 to £70,977 | Entry is most common with a degree or equivalent qualification but is possible with other academic qualifications.Apprenticeship in England: Business analyst (level 4, typically 18 months) |
| Compliance or quality assurance managerONS group 2482: Quality assurance and regulatory professionals | £50,083 | £37,854 to £67,255 | Entry normally requires a degree or equivalent qualification with relevant experience.Apprenticeship in England: Compliance and risk officer (level 3, typically 15 months) |
| Chartered or certified accountantONS group 2421: Chartered and certified accountants | £50,062 | £38,696 to £68,056 | Entrants usually possess a degree or equivalent qualification.Apprenticeship in England: Professional accounting technician (level 4, typically 18 months) |
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.
Entry text: 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.
Apprenticeships: Skills England, apprenticeship standards approved for delivery. England only. Checked 28 September 2026.
Source: ONS, Public opinions and social trends, Great Britain: working arrangements by personal characteristics, 1 April to 28 June 2026, published .
What the figures can and cannot tell you
- There is no official “remote pay” figure. The ONS Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings does not record whether people work from home, so it cannot show whether the same job pays more or less when done remotely. Any site quoting a UK “remote premium” should name its source.
- Hybrid is the norm, even at the top. In April to June 2026, 41% of managers and directors were hybrid and 19% worked only from home. Among professionals the split was 41% and 18%.
- Higher earners are far more likely to work from home. ONS found that 45% of workers earning £50,000 or more were hybrid working in January to March 2025, compared with 8% of those earning under £20,000 (ONS, June 2025).
- Medians are not starting salaries. They cover employees who have been in the same job for more than a year, and several of these groups are senior roles people reach after years in a related job.
- They are UK-wide and exclude the self-employed. Pay differs by region, and contractors who work through their own company are not counted. For working for yourself, see our freelance guide.
How people get there from another career
The ONS descriptions in the table show two main routes in: a relevant degree, or significant experience in related work. The director roles generally need substantial experience, and ONS notes that internal promotion into management is possible.
- Move within your field first. If you already work in finance, HR, marketing or operations, a remote-friendly manager or analyst role in the same field is often a shorter step than retraining for a new one.
- Use a paid apprenticeship where one exists. In England, several of these jobs have an apprenticeship route listed in the table, such as associate project manager (level 4) and people professional (level 5). You are paid while you train, but check the pay: the apprentice minimum wage is £8.00 an hour from April 2026 for apprentices under 19 or in their first year, against £12.71 for workers aged 21 and over.
- Ask about remote working before you apply, not after. A well-paid role advertised as hybrid will usually expect set office days, so ask how many. Once you are in the job, you have the right to request flexible working from day one, but your employer can refuse for business reasons.
If you are starting with little experience, the entry-level home jobs guide is a better place to begin.
Common questions
What is the highest-paying job you can do from home in the UK?
ONS does not publish pay by where people work, so no official source can answer this exactly. Among desk-based jobs where home and hybrid working is common, the highest 2025 median for full-time employees was £94,135 for marketing, sales and advertising directors. These are senior roles that people usually reach after years in a related job.
Do remote jobs pay more than office jobs?
There is no official UK figure comparing pay for the same job done at home and in an office. ONS does show that home working is more common among higher earners: 45% of workers earning £50,000 or more were hybrid working in January to March 2025, against 8% of those earning under £20,000. That reflects the kind of jobs that can be done from home, not a premium for working remotely.
Are these jobs fully remote?
Mostly not. In ONS's survey for April to June 2026, 19% of managers and directors worked only from home and 41% were hybrid. For professionals it was 18% and 41%. Expect most well-paid remote adverts to ask for some office days.
How much does a remote software developer earn in the UK?
The ONS median for full-time programmers and software development professionals was £56,914 in 2025, and the middle half earned between £42,289 and £75,794. That covers all employees in the group, whether they work at home or in an office, and leaves out contractors who work for themselves.