Author: salary in the UK
ONS occupation: Authors, writers and translators (SOC 3412)
About £33,220 a year after tax (England, Wales and Northern Ireland, 2026/27)
median salary a year, full-time, +4.9% on last year
£3,438 a month About £2,768 a month after tax 17 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 £31,451 in 2021 to £41,250 in 2026 (+31%); 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 | £26,044 | £31,451 | x | x |
| 2022 | x | x | £30,226 | x | x |
| 2023 | x | £28,646 | £33,816 | x | x |
| 2024 | x | £29,830 | £36,105 | x | x |
| 2025 | x | £32,027 | £39,331 | x | x |
| 2026 | £27,528 | £33,584 | £41,250 | 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 £41,250 a year and half earn more. That is about the same as the median for all full-time employees in the UK (£40,911).
One in ten earns less than £27,528.
Ranked by median, it is number 141 of the 362 occupations with a published figure.
The mean (£50,582) 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 £2,768 a month in England, Wales or Northern Ireland and £2,762 in Scotland.
The median for men is £41,914 and for women £37,649, a gap of 10% in men's favour. This compares full-time salaries only and doesn't account for seniority or hours.
Percentiles
| Percentile | Annual | Monthly |
|---|---|---|
| 10th (P10) | £27,528 | £2,294 |
| 20th | £31,245 | £2,604 |
| 25th (P25) | £33,584 | £2,799 |
| 30th | £34,293 | £2,858 |
| 40th | £38,155 | £3,180 |
| Median (50th) | £41,250 | £3,438 |
| 60th | £43,924 | £3,660 |
| 70th | £48,224 | £4,019 |
| 75th (P75) | x | x |
| 80th | x | x |
| 90th (P90) | x | x |
Men and women
| Median | Mean | Jobs (thousands) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Men | £41,914 | £48,773 | 8 |
| Women | £37,649 | £52,293 | 9 |
Take-home pay at the median
| Where you live | Per year | Per month |
|---|---|---|
| England, Wales, NI | £33,220 | £2,768 |
| Scotland | £33,142 | £2,762 |
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 £41,000
Job titles in this occupation
ONS codes these 66 job titles to SOC 3412 Authors, writers and translators. Pay figures are for the whole occupation, not for each title.
- Audio describer
- Author
- Bibliographer
- Biographer
- Blogger
- Book editor
- British sign language interpreter
- BSL interpreter
- Cartographic editor
- Commissioning editor
- Communicator for the deaf
- Copy writer
- Copywriter
- Corporate communications writer
- Creative writer
- Digital copywriter
- Dramatist
- Editor
- Editor-in-chief
- Editorial assistant
- Editorial consultant
- Freelance writer
- Interpreter
- Interpreter and translator
- Language consultant
- Lexicographer
- Linguist
- Lip reader
- Literary adviser
- Literary agent
- Literary reader
- Logger
- Lyric writer
- Managing editor
- Medical copywriter
- Medical writer
- Novelist
- Playwright
- Poet
- Public service interpreter
- Publications manager
- Publisher's reader
- Publishing consultant
- Report writer
- Sales editor
- Screen writer
- Screenwriter
- Script writer
- Senior reports writer
- Senior technical writer
- Specialist writer
- Specifications writer
- Speechwriter
- Subtitle writer
- Subtitler
- Technical author
- Technical compiler
- Technical editor
- Technical publications manager
- Technical translator
Show all 66 titles
- Technical writer
- Translator
- Translator and interpreter
- Travel writer
- Writer
- Writer and creator
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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.