Design occupations n.e.c.: salary in the UK
About £35,092 a year after tax (England, Wales and Northern Ireland, 2026/27)
median salary a year, full-time, +9.7% on last year
£3,654 a month About £2,924 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 £28,886 in 2021 to £43,850 in 2026 (+52%); 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 | £24,985 | £28,886 | x | x |
| 2022 | x | £25,500 | £30,122 | x | x |
| 2023 | x | x | £38,574 | x | x |
| 2024 | £25,330 | £29,824 | £39,358 | x | x |
| 2025 | £27,560 | £32,640 | £39,956 | x | x |
| 2026 | £27,815 | £34,996 | £43,850 | 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 £43,850 a year and half earn more. That is 7% more than the median for all full-time employees in the UK (£40,911).
One in ten earns less than £27,815.
Ranked by median, it is number 119 of the 362 occupations with a published figure.
The mean (£60,290) 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 £2,924 a month in England, Wales or Northern Ireland and £2,912 in Scotland.
The median for men is £45,641 and for women £41,247, 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) | £27,815 | £2,318 |
| 20th | £33,114 | £2,760 |
| 25th (P25) | £34,996 | £2,916 |
| 30th | £35,619 | £2,968 |
| 40th | £40,000 | £3,333 |
| Median (50th) | £43,850 | £3,654 |
| 60th | £48,975 | £4,081 |
| 70th | £52,760 | £4,397 |
| 75th (P75) | x | x |
| 80th | x | x |
| 90th (P90) | x | x |
Men and women
| Median | Mean | Jobs (thousands) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Men | £45,641 | x | 11 |
| Women | £41,247 | £50,907 | 6 |
Take-home pay at the median
| Where you live | Per year | Per month |
|---|---|---|
| England, Wales, NI | £35,092 | £2,924 |
| Scotland | £34,949 | £2,912 |
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 £44,000
Job titles in this occupation
ONS codes these 48 job titles to SOC 3429 Design occupations n.e.c.. Pay figures are for the whole occupation, not for each title.
- Art handler
- Audio artist
- Audio designer
- Body designer
- Book designer
- Card designer
- Ceramic designer
- Cloth designer
- Colour stylist
- Commercial designer
- Craft designer
- Design assistant
- Design consultant
- Designer
- Display manager
- Games designer
- Generative design specialist
- Glass designer
- Industrial designer
- Instrument designer
- Instrumentation designer
- Lithographic designer
- Make-up artist
- Make-up designer
- Metalwork designer
- Packaging consultant
- Packaging designer
- Packaging technologist
- Pottery designer
- Printer's designer
- Product designer
- Product developer
- Production designer
- Scenic carpenter
- Set builder
- Set designer
- Set dresser
- Sound designer
- Stage designer
- Studio assistant
- Stylist
- Toy designer
- Visual display manager
- Visual merchandise designer
- Visual merchandise manager
- Visual merchandiser
- Visual merchandising manager
- Window designer
Similar occupations
All jobs in Associate 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.