Median full-time pay reached £40,911 a year in April 2026, the Office for National Statistics said on 22 October 2026, up 4.5% from £39,157 a year earlier for employees who had stayed in the same job for at least a year.
TL;DR · LAST REVIEWED Median full-time pay reached £40,911 a year in April 2026, the Office for National Statistics said on 22 October 2026, up 4.5% from £39,157 a year earlier for employees who had stayed in the same job for at least a year.
- Median annual full-time pay was £40,911 in April 2026, up 4.5% from £39,157 in April 2025.
- Median full-time weekly pay was £811.20, up 5.8%, and hourly pay excluding overtime was £20.81, up 5.7%.
- Full-time real weekly pay rose 2.7% after CPIH inflation; part-time real pay fell 0.1%.
- Median weekly pay rose 4.9% for all employees and 2.9% for part-time employees.
KEY FACTS
- Median full-time pay: £40,911 a year, April 2026 (+4.5%)
- Weekly: £811.20, up 5.8% from £766.60
- Real terms: +2.7% after CPIH inflation
- Hourly: £20.81 excluding overtime (+5.7%)
- Fastest region: London +8.2%
- Status: Provisional; revised October 2027
Median full-time pay reaches £40,911
Median annual pay for full-time employees was £40,911 in April 2026, according to the Office for National Statistics release Employee earnings in the UK: 2026, published on 22 October 2026. The figure compares with £39,157 in April 2025, a rise of 4.5%. The comparison covers employees who had been in the same job for at least a year, so it tracks pay growth for people who did not change employer or role over the period.
The annual figure is the midpoint of the full-time pay distribution: half of full-time employees earned more than £40,911 and half earned less. Because it follows the same job over 12 months, it isolates pay awards and progression from the effect of people moving into higher or lower paid work. The 4.5% annual increase is the headline measure of how full-time pay moved over the year to April 2026.
Weekly and hourly pay
Median full-time weekly pay was £811.20 in April 2026, up 5.8% from £766.60 a year earlier. Median full-time hourly pay excluding overtime was £20.81, up 5.7% from £19.68. The weekly and hourly measures therefore moved at a similar pace, with the weekly figure slightly ahead of the hourly one over the year.
Across the wider workforce, median weekly pay rose 4.9% for all employees and 2.9% for part-time employees. The gap between the full-time and part-time weekly increases is the central split in the release: full-time weekly pay grew at close to twice the rate recorded for part-time employees, while the all-employee measure sat between the two.
Pay after inflation
Adjusted for CPIH inflation, median full-time weekly pay rose 2.7% in real terms over the year to April 2026. That means the 5.8% cash increase in full-time weekly pay was larger than the rise in consumer prices over the same period, leaving full-time employees with more purchasing power on the median measure.
The picture was different for part-time employees. After CPIH inflation, part-time real pay fell 0.1%, so the 2.9% cash rise in part-time weekly pay was broadly matched by price growth and left real part-time pay marginally lower. The release therefore shows real pay growing for full-time employees and slipping, by a small margin, for part-time employees.
Where pay grew fastest
London had the strongest full-time pay growth of any region or country at 8.2%. The weakest growth was in the East Midlands at 4.0%, followed by the North West at 4.1%. The spread between the fastest and slowest areas was therefore more than 4 percentage points on the full-time measure.
The regional figures describe growth rates rather than pay levels, so the 8.2% London increase and the 4.0% East Midlands increase show how fast median full-time pay moved in each area over the year to April 2026. The East Midlands and North West were the only areas listed with growth below 4.5%, the UK full-time median increase.
What the figures cover
The estimates come from the ONS Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings, which uses an April reference date. The 2026 figures refer to April 2026 and were published on 22 October 2026. The survey covers employee earnings, and the annual median comparison is based on employees in the same job for at least a year.
All 2026 estimates are provisional and will be revised in October 2027. The £40,911 annual median, the £811.20 weekly median, the £20.81 hourly median and the associated growth rates, including the 2.7% real rise for full-time weekly pay and the 0.1% real fall for part-time pay, are therefore subject to revision in the next release.
Source: ONS: Employee earnings in the UK: 2026.
Related coverage on Kael Tripton: Average Salary UK 2026 by Job: From Minimum Wage to £200k+, Average Salary UK by Age 2026: Full Breakdown, Frozen tax thresholds and the 2026/27 tax year: how fiscal drag is shrinking real take-home pay, UK take-home pay guide 2026: how income tax and NI reduce your salary, UK Average Salary by Region: City and Area Guide.
For press offices Kael Tripton reports releases from UK public bodies, operators, regulators and consumer brands, with your images credited and a link to your newsroom. News coverage is an editorial decision and is never paid for. Organisations can separately publish a release in full under their own name, clearly labelled as sponsored. |
RELATED GUIDES
- Average Salary UK 2026 by Job: From Minimum Wage to £200k+
- Average Salary UK by Age 2026: Full Breakdown
- Frozen tax thresholds and the 2026/27 tax year: how fiscal drag is shrinking real take-home pay
- UK take-home pay guide 2026: how income tax and NI reduce your salary
- UK Average Salary by Region: City and Area Guide
DISCLAIMER
This article reports official statistics. It is general information, not financial advice.
Frequently asked questions
What was median full-time pay in April 2026?
Median annual pay for full-time employees was £40,911 in April 2026, up 4.5% from £39,157 in April 2025, for employees in the same job for at least a year.
How much did real pay grow?
Adjusted for CPIH inflation, median full-time weekly pay rose 2.7% in real terms. Part-time real pay fell 0.1%.
What were median weekly and hourly pay?
Median full-time weekly pay was £811.20, up 5.8% from £766.60. Median full-time hourly pay excluding overtime was £20.81, up 5.7% from £19.68.
Where did full-time pay grow fastest and slowest?
London had the strongest full-time pay growth at 8.2%. The East Midlands (4.0%) and North West (4.1%) had the weakest.
Are the figures final?
No. All 2026 estimates are provisional and will be revised in October 2027.
SOURCES
- ONS, Employee earnings in the UK: 2026 (22 October 2026) - accessed 22 October 2026
