Refuse Collector Salary
Official ONS earnings for the UK, covering 18,000 jobs.
Median salary
£29,094
gross, per year, all employees
▲ 5.3% change on the previous year
Full-time only
£29,832
Mean
£29,824
Jobs measured
18,000
What a typical refuse collector takes home
On the median of £29,094, 2026/27 tax year, England, Wales and Northern Ireland rates, no pension or student loan.
Take-home a month
£2,039
Take-home a year
£24,467
Income Tax
£3,305
National Insurance
£1,322
The full pay range
Each bar is the salary at that percentile — the 25th means a quarter of refuse collectors earn less than this.
Refuse Collector salary by region
4 of 11 GB regions have a published figure for this occupation.
| Region | Median | Mean |
|---|---|---|
| Scotland | £29,974 | £32,025 |
| North West | £29,017 | £30,874 |
| East | £28,112 | £28,589 |
| Yorkshire and The Humber | £27,267 | £28,672 |
Where this figure comes from
- ONS occupation group
- Refuse and salvage occupations
- SOC 2020 code
- 9225
- Measure
- Gross annual pay, all employees
- Edition
- ONS Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings, 2026 provisional
ONS publishes a sampling error of 11.0% 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 this region against anywhere else, so this page doesn't.
ONS doesn't measure “refuse collector” as its own category. These figures are for the wider group “Refuse and salvage occupations”, which includes this role alongside others. ONS group covers refuse and salvage occupations.
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.
Refuse Collector salary FAQs
What is the average Refuse Collector salary in the UK?
The median is £29,094 a year and the mean is £29,824, according to the ONS Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings. Those cover all employees; full-time employees alone have a median of £29,832.
How much does a refuse collector earn per hour?
Across the UK the median hourly rate is £14.10 excluding overtime. ASHE publishes hourly pay by occupation nationally only.
Has refuse collector pay gone up in the last year?
ASHE puts the year-on-year change in the median at +5.3% for this occupation in the UK. That compares the latest survey with the one before it and is not adjusted for inflation.
How many refuse collectors are there in the UK?
ASHE counts around 18,000 employee jobs in “Refuse and salvage occupations” (SOC 9225) 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.
Similar roles
Official figures show the market. Your salary shows what employers actually pay.
Add your salary anonymously