Graphic Designer Salary in South East
Official ONS earnings for South East.
Median salary — South East
£30,521
gross, per year, all employees
▲ 10.8% change on the previous year
Mean
£28,456
What a typical graphic designer takes home
On the median of £30,521, 2026/27 tax year, England, Wales and Northern Ireland rates, no pension or student loan.
Take-home a month
£2,125
Take-home a year
£25,495
Income Tax
£3,590
National Insurance
£1,436
What most graphic designers actually earn
Half of graphic designers across the UK earn between £25,778 and £38,814. Earning above £38,814 puts you in the top quarter of the profession.
This range is UK-wide — ONS publishes no regional breakdown of the spread for this occupation.
The full pay range
Each bar is the salary at that percentile — the 25th means a quarter of graphic designers earn less than this.
Where this figure comes from
- ONS occupation group
- Graphic and multimedia designers
- SOC 2020 code
- 2142
- Measure
- Gross annual pay, all employees
- Edition
- ONS Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings, 2025 provisional
ONS publishes a sampling error of 15.0% 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.
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.
Graphic Designer salary FAQs
What is the average Graphic Designer salary in South East?
The median is £30,521 a year and the mean is £28,456, 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 graphic designer earn per hour?
Across the UK the median hourly rate is £17.38 excluding overtime. ASHE publishes hourly pay by occupation nationally only, so there is no separate rate for South East.
What is a good Graphic Designer salary?
Half of graphic designers earn between £25,778 and £38,814. Anything above £38,814 is in the top quarter for the role.
What is the starting salary for a graphic designer?
ASHE does not record experience, so there is no official starting salary. What it does show is that the lowest-paid 10% of graphic designers earn under £19,900 and the lowest quarter under £25,778 — the range a new entrant is most likely to be offered.
Do graphic designers in South East earn more than the UK average?
The median in South East is £30,521 against £31,236 across the UK, 2.3% lower. ONS marks the South East figure as imprecise, so treat the gap as indicative.
Has graphic designer pay gone up in the last year?
ASHE puts the year-on-year change in the median at +10.8% for this occupation in South East. That compares the latest survey with the one before it and is not adjusted for inflation.
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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