Newspaper and periodical editors: salary in the UK
About £35,770 a year after tax (England, Wales and Northern Ireland, 2026/27)
median salary a year, full-time, +5.6% on last year
£3,733 a month About £2,981 a month after tax 23 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 £38,086 in 2021 to £44,792 in 2026 (+18%); 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 | £30,942 | £38,086 | x | x |
| 2022 | x | £29,341 | £35,517 | x | x |
| 2023 | x | £33,027 | £42,494 | £49,386 | x |
| 2024 | £27,480 | £32,160 | £39,554 | x | x |
| 2025 | £28,224 | £35,446 | £42,429 | x | x |
| 2026 | £31,310 | £36,289 | £44,792 | 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 £44,792 a year and half earn more. That is 9% more than the median for all full-time employees in the UK (£40,911).
One in ten earns less than £31,310.
Ranked by median, it is number 111 of the 362 occupations with a published figure.
The mean (£55,512) is well above the median: a minority in this job earn much more than most.
At the median salary, take-home pay after Income Tax and National Insurance is about £2,981 a month in England, Wales or Northern Ireland and £2,952 in Scotland.
The median for men is £47,482 and for women £42,182, a gap of 11% in men's favour. This compares full-time salaries only and doesn't account for seniority or hours.
Percentiles
| Percentile | Annual | Monthly |
|---|---|---|
| 10th (P10) | £31,310 | £2,609 |
| 20th | £34,570 | £2,881 |
| 25th (P25) | £36,289 | £3,024 |
| 30th | £38,372 | £3,198 |
| 40th | £41,776 | £3,481 |
| Median (50th) | £44,792 | £3,733 |
| 60th | £49,413 | £4,118 |
| 70th | £55,091 | £4,591 |
| 75th (P75) | x | x |
| 80th | x | x |
| 90th (P90) | x | x |
Men and women
| Median | Mean | Jobs (thousands) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Men | £47,482 | £62,347 | 13 |
| Women | £42,182 | £46,837 | 10 |
Take-home pay at the median
| Where you live | Per year | Per month |
|---|---|---|
| England, Wales, NI | £35,770 | £2,981 |
| Scotland | £35,420 | £2,952 |
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 £45,000
Job titles in this occupation
ONS codes these 25 job titles to SOC 2491 Newspaper and periodical editors. Pay figures are for the whole occupation, not for each title.
- Art editor
- Commissioning editor
- Content editor
- Copy editor
- Development editor
- Digital editor
- Editor
- Editorial director
- Editorial executive
- Editorial manager
- Head of Content
- Listings editor
- Magazine editor
- Managing editor
- Multimedia desk editor
- News editor
- Newspaper editor
- Online editor
- Photo editor
- Picture editor
- Production editor
- Publications officer
- Publishing editor
- Sub editor
- Sub-editor
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.