Plumber Salary in South East
Official ONS earnings for South East, covering 10,000 jobs.
Median salary — South East
£40,033
gross, per year, all employees
▲ 0.9% change on the previous year
Mean
£38,264
Jobs measured
10,000
What a typical plumber takes home
On the median of £40,033, 2026/27 tax year, England, Wales and Northern Ireland rates, no pension or student loan.
Take-home a month
£2,695
Take-home a year
£32,343
Income Tax
£5,493
National Insurance
£2,197
What most plumbers actually earn
Half of plumbers in South East earn between £29,160 and £46,350. Earning above £46,350 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 “Construction and Building Trades” group in South East.
The full pay range
Each bar is the salary at that percentile — the 25th means a quarter of plumbers earn less than this.
Where this figure comes from
- ONS occupation group
- Plumbers & heating and ventilating installers and repairers
- SOC 2020 code
- 5315
- Measure
- Gross annual pay, all employees
- Edition
- ONS Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings, 2026 provisional
ONS publishes a sampling error of 10.1% 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 “plumber” as its own category. These figures are for the wider group “Plumbers & heating and ventilating installers and repairers”, which includes this role alongside others. ONS group also covers heating and ventilating installers.
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.
Plumber salary FAQs
What is the average Plumber salary in South East?
The median is £40,033 a year and the mean is £38,264, 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 plumber earn per hour?
Across the UK the median hourly rate is £18.70 excluding overtime, or £18.95 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 Plumber salary?
Half of plumbers earn between £29,160 and £46,350. Anything above £46,350 is in the top quarter for the role.
What is the starting salary for a plumber?
ASHE does not record experience, so there is no official starting salary. What it does show is that the lowest-paid 10% of plumbers earn under £16,776 and the lowest quarter under £29,160 — the range a new entrant is most likely to be offered.
Do plumbers in South East earn more than the UK average?
The median in South East is £40,033 against £37,794 across the UK, 5.9% higher. ONS marks the South East figure as imprecise, so treat the gap as indicative.
Has plumber pay gone up in the last year?
ASHE puts the year-on-year change in the median at +0.9% for this occupation in South East. That compares the latest survey with the one before it and is not adjusted for inflation.
How many plumbers are there in South East?
ASHE counts around 10,000 employee jobs in “Plumbers & heating and ventilating installers and repairers” (SOC 5315) 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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