Social and humanities scientists: salary in the UK
About £36,522 a year after tax (England, Wales and Northern Ireland, 2026/27)
median salary a year, full-time, +5.8% on last year
£3,820 a month About £3,044 a month after tax 11 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 £32,789 in 2021 to £45,837 in 2026 (+40%); 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 | £28,569 | £32,789 | x | x |
| 2022 | x | x | £34,595 | x | x |
| 2023 | x | £25,104 | £35,828 | x | x |
| 2024 | x | £28,014 | £40,395 | x | x |
| 2025 | x | £30,060 | £43,310 | x | x |
| 2026 | x | £32,056 | £45,837 | 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 £45,837 a year and half earn more. That is 12% more than the median for all full-time employees in the UK (£40,911).
Ranked by median, it is number 101 of the 362 occupations with a published figure.
At the median salary, take-home pay after Income Tax and National Insurance is about £3,044 a month in England, Wales or Northern Ireland and £2,995 in Scotland.
Percentiles
| Percentile | Annual | Monthly |
|---|---|---|
| 10th (P10) | x | x |
| 20th | £29,986 | £2,499 |
| 25th (P25) | £32,056 | £2,671 |
| 30th | £35,504 | £2,959 |
| 40th | £39,872 | £3,323 |
| Median (50th) | £45,837 | £3,820 |
| 60th | £48,268 | £4,022 |
| 70th | £51,371 | £4,281 |
| 75th (P75) | x | x |
| 80th | x | x |
| 90th (P90) | x | x |
Men and women
| Median | Mean | Jobs (thousands) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Men | x | £44,352 | x |
| Women | £43,702 | £46,725 | x |
Take-home pay at the median
| Where you live | Per year | Per month |
|---|---|---|
| England, Wales, NI | £36,522 | £3,044 |
| Scotland | £35,942 | £2,995 |
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 £46,000
Job titles in this occupation
ONS codes these 50 job titles to SOC 2115 Social and humanities scientists. Pay figures are for the whole occupation, not for each title.
- Anthropologist
- Antiquary
- Archaeological officer
- Archaeological surveyor
- Archaeologist
- Archaeologist site assistant
- Assistant social survey officer
- Behavioural scientist
- Criminologist
- Egyptologist
- Epidemiologist
- Ethnologist
- Ethnomusicologist
- Etymologist
- Genealogist
- Geographer
- Geographical information systems officer
- Gis consultant
- Gis manager
- Gis officer
- Historian
- Historical researcher
- Palaeographist
- Parliamentary case worker
- Parliamentary caseworker
- Parliamentary researcher
- Philologist
- Philosopher
- Policy researcher
- Political research officer
- Political researcher
- Political scientist
- Polygraph examiner
- Principal social survey officer
- Public health analyst
- Research assistant
- Research associate
- Research officer
- Research worker
- Researcher
- Senior geographical information systems analyst
- Senior geospatial analyst
- Senior gis analyst
- Senior social survey officer
- Social researcher
- Social scientist
- Social survey officer
- Sociologist
- Toponymist
- University research fellow
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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.