Research Scientist Salary
Official ONS earnings for the UK, covering 15,000 jobs.
Median salary
£42,463
gross, per year
▲ 5.5% change on the previous year
Mean
£46,506
Jobs measured
15,000
The full pay range
Each bar is the salary at that percentile — the 25th means a quarter of research scientists earn less than this.
Research Scientist salary by region
2 of 11 GB regions have a published figure for this occupation.
Where this figure comes from
- ONS occupation group
- Other researchers, unspecified discipline
- SOC 2020 code
- 2162
- Measure
- Gross annual pay, all employees
- Edition
- ONS Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings, 2025 provisional
ONS doesn't measure “research scientist” as its own category. These figures are for the wider group “Other researchers, unspecified discipline”, which includes this role alongside others.
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.
Research Scientist salary FAQs
What is the average Research Scientist salary in UK?
The median is £42,463 a year and the mean is £46,506, according to the ONS Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings.
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, covering 15,000 jobs in this occupation.
Similar roles
Official figures show the market. Your salary shows what employers actually pay.
Add your salary anonymously