Research Scientist Salary
Official ONS earnings for the UK, covering 15,000 jobs.
Median salary
£42,463
gross, per year, all employees
▲ 5.5% change on the previous year
Full-time only
£44,580
Mean
£46,506
Jobs measured
15,000
What a typical research scientist takes home
On the median of £42,463, 2026/27 tax year, England, Wales and Northern Ireland rates, no pension or student loan.
Take-home a month
£2,841
Take-home a year
£34,093
Income Tax
£5,979
National Insurance
£2,391
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. ONS measures a residual group - researchers whose discipline ONS does not record.
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 the UK?
The median is £42,463 a year and the mean is £46,506, according to the ONS Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings. Those cover all employees; full-time employees alone have a median of £44,580.
How much does a research scientist earn per hour?
Across the UK the median hourly rate is £23.54 excluding overtime. ASHE publishes hourly pay by occupation nationally only.
Has research scientist pay gone up in the last year?
ASHE puts the year-on-year change in the median at +5.5% for this occupation in the UK. That compares the latest survey with the one before it and is not adjusted for inflation.
How many research scientists are there in the UK?
ASHE counts around 15,000 employee jobs in “Other researchers, unspecified discipline” (SOC 2162) 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.
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