Builder: salary in the UK
ONS occupation: Construction and building trades n.e.c. (SOC 5319)
About £29,886 a year after tax (England, Wales and Northern Ireland, 2026/27)
median salary a year, full-time, +4.1% on last year
£3,052 a month About £2,491 a month after tax 35 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 £26,400 in 2021 to £36,620 in 2026 (+39%); 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 | £19,313 | £22,401 | £26,400 | £32,549 | x |
| 2022 | £20,571 | £23,263 | £28,482 | £33,012 | x |
| 2023 | £21,186 | £25,821 | £31,350 | £36,340 | x |
| 2024 | £22,688 | £27,284 | £33,613 | £43,186 | x |
| 2025 | £23,755 | £28,239 | £35,178 | £45,484 | x |
| 2026 | £25,256 | £29,961 | £36,620 | £46,831 | 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 £36,620 a year and half earn more. That is 10% less than the median for all full-time employees in the UK (£40,911).
The middle half earn between £29,961 and £46,831; one in ten earns less than £25,256.
Ranked by median, it is number 187 of the 362 occupations with a published figure.
At the median salary, take-home pay after Income Tax and National Insurance is about £2,491 a month in England, Wales or Northern Ireland and £2,488 in Scotland.
Percentiles
| Percentile | Annual | Monthly |
|---|---|---|
| 10th (P10) | £25,256 | £2,105 |
| 20th | £28,726 | £2,394 |
| 25th (P25) | £29,961 | £2,497 |
| 30th | £30,712 | £2,559 |
| 40th | £33,631 | £2,803 |
| Median (50th) | £36,620 | £3,052 |
| 60th | £41,054 | £3,421 |
| 70th | £44,981 | £3,748 |
| 75th (P75) | £46,831 | £3,903 |
| 80th | x | x |
| 90th (P90) | x | x |
Men and women
| Median | Mean | Jobs (thousands) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Men | £37,591 | £42,288 | 32 |
| Women | x | £33,895 | x |
Take-home pay at the median
| Where you live | Per year | Per month |
|---|---|---|
| England, Wales, NI | £29,886 | £2,491 |
| Scotland | £29,855 | £2,488 |
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 £37,000
Job titles in this occupation
ONS codes these 78 job titles to SOC 5319 Construction and building trades n.e.c.. Pay figures are for the whole occupation, not for each title.
- Abseiler
- Acoustic engineer
- Acoustician
- Acoustics engineer
- Bar bender
- Bar bender and fixer
- Box builder
- Builder
- Builder and contractor
- Builder and decorator
- Builder and joiner
- Builder's contractor
- Building contractor
- Building manager
- Building officer
- Buildings officer
- Chimney hand
- Civil engineer
- Commercial diver
- Concrete technician
- Construction engineer
- Contractor builder
- Curtain waller
- Diamond driller
- Diver
- Drainage surveyor
- Estate dealer
- Estate developer
- Estate superintendent
- Fabric engineer
- Fence erector
- Fence installer
- Fencer
- Fencing contractor
- Fencing erector
- Fireplace builder
- Fireplace fitter
- Fireplace fixer
- Frogman
- Garage builder
- General builder
- General craftsman
- Grate fixer
- House builder
- Irrigation engineer
- Jobbing builder
- Life support technician
- Lightning conductor engineer
- Maintenance builder
- Maintenance engineer
- Maintenance fitter
- Maintenance manager
- Maintenance technician
- Master builder
- Multi trader
- Noise control engineer
- Playground installer
- Property developer
- Property maintenance manager
- Property renovator
Show all 78 titles
- Reinforcement fixer
- Remotely operated vehicle supervisor
- Rope access technician
- Rov pilot
- Rov supervisor
- Shed erector
- Sound proofer
- Steel bender
- Steel fixer
- Steel fixer and bender
- Steeple jack
- Steeple peter
- Steeplejack
- Steeplepeter
- Submersible operator
- Submersible pilot
- Swimming pool engineer
- Underpinner
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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.