Air-conditioning and refrigeration installers and repairers: salary in the UK
About £33,903 a year after tax (England, Wales and Northern Ireland, 2026/27)
median salary a year, full-time, +2.5% on last year
£3,517 a month About £2,825 a month after tax 7 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 £34,943 in 2021 to £42,199 in 2026 (+21%); 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 | x | £34,943 | x | x |
| 2022 | x | x | £36,405 | x | x |
| 2023 | x | x | £40,548 | x | x |
| 2024 | x | x | £41,055 | x | x |
| 2025 | x | £37,019 | £41,188 | x | x |
| 2026 | x | £35,633 | £42,199 | 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 £42,199 a year and half earn more. That is 3% more than the median for all full-time employees in the UK (£40,911).
Ranked by median, it is number 128 of the 362 occupations with a published figure.
At the median salary, take-home pay after Income Tax and National Insurance is about £2,825 a month in England, Wales or Northern Ireland and £2,818 in Scotland.
Percentiles
| Percentile | Annual | Monthly |
|---|---|---|
| 10th (P10) | x | x |
| 20th | £34,836 | £2,903 |
| 25th (P25) | £35,633 | £2,969 |
| 30th | £37,411 | £3,118 |
| 40th | £39,169 | £3,264 |
| Median (50th) | £42,199 | £3,517 |
| 60th | £46,248 | £3,854 |
| 70th | £50,752 | £4,229 |
| 75th (P75) | x | x |
| 80th | x | x |
| 90th (P90) | x | x |
Men and women
| Median | Mean | Jobs (thousands) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Men | £42,199 | £44,717 | 7 |
| Women | x | x | : |
Take-home pay at the median
| Where you live | Per year | Per month |
|---|---|---|
| England, Wales, NI | £33,903 | £2,825 |
| Scotland | £33,815 | £2,818 |
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 £42,000
Job titles in this occupation
ONS codes these 12 job titles to SOC 5225 Air-conditioning and refrigeration installers and repairers. Pay figures are for the whole occupation, not for each title.
- Air conditioning engineer
- Air conditioning fitter
- Air conditioning installer
- Air conditioning technician
- Refrigerating engineer
- Refrigeration engineer
- Refrigeration mechanic
- Refrigeration repair engineer
- Refrigeration service engineer
- Refrigeration technician
- Refrigerator maker
- Service engineer
Similar occupations
All jobs in Skilled trades 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.