Senior police officers: salary in the UK
About £51,490 a year after tax (England, Wales and Northern Ireland, 2026/27)
median salary a year, full-time, +5.6% on last year
£5,881 a month About £4,291 a month after tax 15 thousand full-time jobs
Gross pay before tax, including bonuses, commission and overtime. Not included: benefits in kind such as a company car. About the data
Pay range
The dark part is the middle half of full-time employees (25% to 75%); the light bar runs from 10% to 90%. ONS doesn't publish the highest or lowest salary, and x means a figure wasn't published.
Pay by year
The median went from £58,872 in 2021 to £70,573 in 2026 (+20%); for all full-time employees in the UK it changed by +31% over the same years.
Figures by year
| P10 | P25 | Median | P75 | P90 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | x | £55,779 | £58,872 | x | x |
| 2022 | x | £54,463 | £58,890 | x | x |
| 2023 | x | £55,587 | £59,060 | x | x |
| 2024 | x | £60,827 | £63,990 | x | x |
| 2025 | x | £64,424 | £66,828 | x | x |
| 2026 | x | x | £70,573 | x | x |
ONS figures for each year, not adjusted for inflation. Years before 2021 used a different occupation classification, so they can't be compared. Earlier years are ONS's revised figures; the latest is provisional.
Half of full-time employees in this occupation earn less than £70,573 a year and half earn more. That is 73% more than the median for all full-time employees in the UK (£40,911).
Ranked by median, it is number 12 of the 362 occupations with a published figure.
At the median salary, take-home pay after Income Tax and National Insurance is about £4,291 a month in England, Wales or Northern Ireland and £4,127 in Scotland.
The median for men is £72,382 and for women £67,692, a gap of 6% in men's favour. This compares full-time salaries only and doesn't account for seniority or hours.
Percentiles
| Percentile | Annual | Monthly |
|---|---|---|
| 10th (P10) | x | x |
| 20th | x | x |
| 25th (P25) | x | x |
| 30th | £67,860 | £5,655 |
| 40th | £68,523 | £5,710 |
| Median (50th) | £70,573 | £5,881 |
| 60th | £72,520 | £6,043 |
| 70th | x | x |
| 75th (P75) | x | x |
| 80th | x | x |
| 90th (P90) | x | x |
Men and women
| Median | Mean | Jobs (thousands) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Men | £72,382 | £79,070 | x |
| Women | £67,692 | £67,138 | x |
Take-home pay at the median
| Where you live | Per year | Per month |
|---|---|---|
| England, Wales, NI | £51,490 | £4,291 |
| Scotland | £49,528 | £4,127 |
After Income Tax and National Insurance for 2026 to 2027, with the standard tax code and no pension or student loan. Work out your own take-home pay · Take-home pay on £71,000
Job titles in this occupation
ONS codes these 16 job titles to SOC 1162 Senior police officers. Pay figures are for the whole occupation, not for each title.
- Assistant chief constable
- Chief constable
- Chief inspector
- Chief superintendent
- Cid officer
- Commander
- Commissioner
- Deputy chief constable
- Detective inspector
- Divisional inspector
- Inspector
- Police chief superintendent
- Police inspector
- Police superintendent
- Sub-inspector
- Superintendent
Similar occupations
All jobs in Managers, directors and senior officials
Source: ONS, Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings 2026 provisional, Table 14.7a (full-time employees, gross annual pay, UK, tax year ending 5 April 2026). Provisional figures may be revised.