Teacher Salary
Official ONS earnings for the UK, covering 1,266,000 jobs.
Median salary
£42,660
gross, per year, all employees
Part-time work is common in this occupation, so the figure above sits 10.9% below the £47,328 median for people working full-time.
▲ 5.8% change on the previous year
Full-time only
£47,328
Part-time only
£23,395
Mean
£41,577
Jobs measured
1,266,000
What a typical teacher takes home
On the full-time median of £47,328, 2026/27 tax year, England, Wales and Northern Ireland rates, no pension or student loan.
Take-home a month
£3,133
Take-home a year
£37,596
Income Tax
£6,952
National Insurance
£2,781
What most teachers actually earn
Half of teachers earn between £30,034 and £51,776. Earning above £51,776 puts you in the top quarter of the profession.
The full pay range
Each bar is the salary at that percentile — the 25th means a quarter of teachers earn less than this.
Teacher salary by region
11 of 11 GB regions have a published figure for this occupation.
| Region | Median | Mean |
|---|---|---|
| Scotland | £47,574 | £43,841 |
| London | £46,945 | £45,934 |
| Wales | £46,623 | £43,846 |
| North East | £43,590 | £42,190 |
| North West | £42,864 | £42,196 |
| West Midlands | £41,460 | £39,639 |
| South West | £40,075 | £39,492 |
| South East | £39,935 | £39,540 |
| Yorkshire and The Humber | £39,823 | £39,970 |
| East | £39,688 | £39,658 |
| East Midlands | £38,991 | £38,411 |
Where this figure comes from
- ONS occupation group
- Teaching Professionals
- SOC 2020 code
- 231
- Measure
- Gross annual pay, all employees
- Edition
- ONS Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings, 2025 provisional
ONS doesn't measure “teacher” as its own category. These figures are for the wider group “Teaching Professionals”, which includes this role alongside others. 3-digit group spanning primary, secondary and further education.
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.
Teacher salary FAQs
What is the average Teacher salary in the UK?
The median is £42,660 a year and the mean is £41,577, according to the ONS Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings. Those cover all employees; full-time employees alone have a median of £47,328 and part-time employees £23,395.
How much does a teacher earn per hour?
Across the UK the median hourly rate is £28.78 excluding overtime, or £28.69 for full-time employees. ASHE publishes hourly pay by occupation nationally only.
What is a good Teacher salary?
Half of teachers earn between £30,034 and £51,776. Anything above £51,776 is in the top quarter for the role.
What is the starting salary for a teacher?
ASHE does not record experience, so there is no official starting salary. What it does show is that the lowest-paid 10% of teachers earn under £16,845 and the lowest quarter under £30,034 — the range a new entrant is most likely to be offered.
How much do the highest-paid teachers earn?
The top 10% of teachers earn more than £62,935 a year, and the top quarter more than £51,776. ASHE does not publish figures above the 90th percentile.
Which part of the UK pays teachers the most?
Scotland, at a median of £47,574, is the highest of the 11 GB regions with a precise ONS estimate; East Midlands is the lowest at £38,991. Regions where ONS marks the figure as imprecise are not ranked.
Has teacher pay gone up in the last year?
ASHE puts the year-on-year change in the median at +5.8% for this occupation in the UK. That compares the latest survey with the one before it and is not adjusted for inflation.
How many teachers are there in the UK?
ASHE counts around 1,266,000 employee jobs in “Teaching Professionals” (SOC 231) 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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