Professor Salary in London
Official ONS earnings for London, covering 46,000 jobs.
Median salary — London
£48,841
gross, per year, all employees
▼ 5.7% change on the previous year
Mean
£49,532
Jobs measured
46,000
What a typical professor takes home
On the median of £48,841, 2026/27 tax year, England, Wales and Northern Ireland rates, no pension or student loan.
Take-home a month
£3,224
Take-home a year
£38,685
Income Tax
£7,254
National Insurance
£2,902
What most professors actually earn
Half of professors in London earn between £32,174 and £59,997. Earning above £59,997 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 “Teaching Professionals” group in London.
The full pay range
Each bar is the salary at that percentile — the 25th means a quarter of professors earn less than this.
How London ranks for professor pay
2nd
of 4 GB regions with a published figure
North West tops the table on £50,053 and Scotland sits at the bottom on £48,035. London is £1,212 short of the top.
Ranking compares published regional medians for the same occupation. It says nothing about cost of living — a higher median doesn't survive contact with rent. The cost of living calculator is the honest next step.
Where this figure comes from
- ONS occupation group
- Higher education teaching professionals
- SOC 2020 code
- 2311
- Measure
- Gross annual pay, all employees
- Edition
- ONS Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings, 2025 provisional
ONS doesn't measure “professor” as its own category. These figures are for the wider group “Higher education teaching professionals”, which includes this role alongside others. ONS measures all higher education teaching professionals together, so a professor sits in the same figure as an early-career lecturer.
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.
Professor salary FAQs
What is the average Professor salary in London?
The median is £48,841 a year and the mean is £49,532, 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 professor earn per hour?
Across the UK the median hourly rate is £28.94 excluding overtime, or £29.71 for full-time employees. ASHE publishes hourly pay by occupation nationally only, so there is no separate rate for London.
What is a good Professor salary?
Half of professors earn between £32,174 and £59,997. Anything above £59,997 is in the top quarter for the role.
What is the starting salary for a professor?
ASHE does not record experience, so there is no official starting salary. What it does show is that the lowest-paid 10% of professors earn under £11,894 and the lowest quarter under £32,174 — the range a new entrant is most likely to be offered.
How much do the highest-paid professors earn?
The top 10% of professors earn more than £72,125 a year, and the top quarter more than £59,997. ASHE does not publish figures above the 90th percentile.
Do professors in London earn more than the UK average?
The median in London is £48,841 against £46,494 across the UK, 5.0% higher, which places it 2nd highest of the 4 GB regions with a precise estimate.
Has professor pay gone up in the last year?
ASHE puts the year-on-year change in the median at -5.7% for this occupation in London. That compares the latest survey with the one before it and is not adjusted for inflation.
How many professors are there in London?
ASHE counts around 46,000 employee jobs in “Higher education teaching professionals” (SOC 2311) in London. 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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