Data Scientist Salary
Official ONS earnings for the UK, covering 68,000 jobs.
Median salary
£38,107
gross, per year, all employees
▲ 11.7% change on the previous year
Full-time only
£38,572
Mean
£43,586
Jobs measured
68,000
What a typical data scientist takes home
On the median of £38,107, 2026/27 tax year, England, Wales and Northern Ireland rates, no pension or student loan.
Take-home a month
£2,580
Take-home a year
£30,957
Income Tax
£5,107
National Insurance
£2,043
What most data scientists actually earn
Half of data scientists earn between £30,000 and £46,152. Earning above £46,152 puts you in the top quarter of the profession.
The full pay range
Each bar is the salary at that percentile — the 25th means a quarter of data scientists earn less than this.
Data Scientist salary by region
10 of 11 GB regions have a published figure for this occupation.
| Region | Median | Mean |
|---|---|---|
| West Midlands | £44,172 | £44,263 |
| London | £42,850 | £52,893 |
| North East | £38,225 | £38,671 |
| Wales | £35,806 | £35,629 |
| East | £35,643 | — |
| South East | £34,490 | £38,106 |
| South West | £33,928 | £34,448 |
| North West | £33,871 | £35,682 |
| Yorkshire and The Humber | £31,193 | £35,660 |
| East Midlands | £30,950 | £31,738 |
Where this figure comes from
- ONS occupation group
- Data analysts
- SOC 2020 code
- 3544
- Measure
- Gross annual pay, all employees
- Edition
- ONS Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings, 2025 provisional
ONS doesn't measure “data scientist” as its own category. These figures are for the wider group “Data analysts”, which includes this role alongside others. ONS has no separate data scientist group; 3544 Data analysts is the closest.
Source: Office for National Statistics, Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Figures are estimates from a survey of PAYE jobs and are not financial advice.
Data Scientist salary FAQs
What is the average Data Scientist salary in the UK?
The median is £38,107 a year and the mean is £43,586, according to the ONS Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings. Those cover all employees; full-time employees alone have a median of £38,572.
How much does a data scientist earn per hour?
Across the UK the median hourly rate is £20.48 excluding overtime, or £20.55 for full-time employees. ASHE publishes hourly pay by occupation nationally only.
What is a good Data Scientist salary?
Half of data scientists earn between £30,000 and £46,152. Anything above £46,152 is in the top quarter for the role.
What is the starting salary for a data scientist?
ASHE does not record experience, so there is no official starting salary. What it does show is that the lowest-paid 10% of data scientists earn under £24,513 and the lowest quarter under £30,000 — the range a new entrant is most likely to be offered.
Has data scientist pay gone up in the last year?
ASHE puts the year-on-year change in the median at +11.7% for this occupation in the UK. That compares the latest survey with the one before it and is not adjusted for inflation.
How many data scientists are there in the UK?
ASHE counts around 68,000 employee jobs in “Data analysts” (SOC 3544) in the UK. Self-employed work is not included.
Is this figure official?
Yes. It comes from the ONS Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings, an accredited official statistic based on employer PAYE records.
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