Data Scientist Salary in South East
Official ONS earnings for South East, covering 8,000 jobs.
Median salary — South East
£34,490
gross, per year, all employees
▲ 8.3% change on the previous year
Mean
£38,106
Jobs measured
8,000
What a typical data scientist takes home
On the median of £34,490, 2026/27 tax year, England, Wales and Northern Ireland rates, no pension or student loan.
Take-home a month
£2,363
Take-home a year
£28,352
Income Tax
£4,384
National Insurance
£1,754
What most data scientists actually earn
Half of data scientists in South East earn between £28,420 and £44,004. Earning above £44,004 puts you in the top quarter of the profession.
ONS suppresses the detailed spread for this occupation at regional level, so this range describes the wider “Business Associate Professionals” group in South East.
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 jobs hiring now in South East
Live adverts. Salaries are shown only where the employer states one.
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Senior Data Scientist
Sirius Analysis Limited · Port Solent, Portsmouth
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Expert Data Scientist
bp · Sunbury-On-Thames, Surrey
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Senior Data Scientist
bp · Sunbury-On-Thames, Surrey
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Data Scientist
Habitat Energy · Oxford, Oxfordshire
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Data Scientist£70,000
Datatech · Berkshire, South East England
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 publishes a sampling error of 11.3% for this figure and asks that anything above 10% is treated as imprecise — too few people in this region answered the survey for this occupation. The figure is shown because it is the one ONS published, but it is not firm enough to rank South East against anywhere else, so this page doesn't.
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 South East?
The median is £34,490 a year and the mean is £38,106, according to the ONS Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings. Those cover all employees; ASHE publishes no full-time split at regional level.
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, so there is no separate rate for South East.
What is a good Data Scientist salary?
Half of data scientists earn between £28,420 and £44,004. Anything above £44,004 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 £21,721 and the lowest quarter under £28,420 — the range a new entrant is most likely to be offered.
Do data scientists in South East earn more than the UK average?
The median in South East is £34,490 against £38,107 across the UK, 9.5% lower. ONS marks the South East figure as imprecise, so treat the gap as indicative.
Has data scientist pay gone up in the last year?
ASHE puts the year-on-year change in the median at +8.3% for this occupation in South East. That compares the latest survey with the one before it and is not adjusted for inflation.
How many data scientists are there in South East?
ASHE counts around 8,000 employee jobs in “Data analysts” (SOC 3544) in South East. 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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