Architect: salary in the UK
ONS occupation: Architects (SOC 2451)
About £37,838 a year after tax (England, Wales and Northern Ireland, 2026/27)
median salary a year, full-time, +1.2% on last year
£3,972 a month About £3,153 a month after tax 25 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 £41,993 in 2021 to £47,665 in 2026 (+14%); 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 | £27,675 | £32,565 | £41,993 | £49,108 | x |
| 2022 | £31,333 | £36,981 | £43,463 | £53,236 | x |
| 2023 | £30,148 | £38,469 | £45,895 | £54,380 | x |
| 2024 | £32,000 | £37,989 | £47,833 | £59,721 | x |
| 2025 | £33,745 | £37,365 | £47,096 | £55,466 | x |
| 2026 | x | £38,387 | £47,665 | 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 £47,665 a year and half earn more. That is 17% more than the median for all full-time employees in the UK (£40,911).
Ranked by median, it is number 90 of the 362 occupations with a published figure.
At the median salary, take-home pay after Income Tax and National Insurance is about £3,153 a month in England, Wales or Northern Ireland and £3,071 in Scotland.
Percentiles
| Percentile | Annual | Monthly |
|---|---|---|
| 10th (P10) | x | x |
| 20th | £37,384 | £3,115 |
| 25th (P25) | £38,387 | £3,199 |
| 30th | £41,606 | £3,467 |
| 40th | £44,290 | £3,691 |
| Median (50th) | £47,665 | £3,972 |
| 60th | £50,718 | £4,226 |
| 70th | £57,058 | £4,755 |
| 75th (P75) | x | x |
| 80th | x | x |
| 90th (P90) | x | x |
Men and women
| Median | Mean | Jobs (thousands) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Men | £49,495 | £56,175 | 16 |
| Women | x | £46,756 | x |
Take-home pay at the median
| Where you live | Per year | Per month |
|---|---|---|
| England, Wales, NI | £37,838 | £3,153 |
| Scotland | £36,856 | £3,071 |
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 £48,000
Job titles in this occupation
ONS codes these 10 job titles to SOC 2451 Architects. Pay figures are for the whole occupation, not for each title.
- Architect
- Associate
- Chartered architect
- Formwork designer
- Landscape architect
- Landscape craftsman
- Landscape designer
- Project architect
- Reinforced concrete designer
- Structural designer
Similar occupations
All jobs in Professional occupations
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.