Fork-lift truck drivers: salary in the UK
About £26,781 a year after tax (England, Wales and Northern Ireland, 2026/27)
median salary a year, full-time, +3.3% on last year
£2,692 a month About £2,232 a month after tax 15 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 £25,204 in 2021 to £32,308 in 2026 (+28%); 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 | £19,295 | £21,846 | £25,204 | £29,857 | x |
| 2022 | £19,483 | £22,773 | £26,376 | £32,356 | x |
| 2023 | x | x | £27,248 | x | x |
| 2024 | £22,404 | £25,525 | £28,949 | £35,744 | x |
| 2025 | £23,923 | £26,540 | £31,269 | £38,907 | x |
| 2026 | £25,235 | £27,342 | £32,308 | £37,612 | 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 £32,308 a year and half earn more. That is 21% less than the median for all full-time employees in the UK (£40,911).
The middle half earn between £27,342 and £37,612; one in ten earns less than £25,235.
Ranked by median, it is number 250 of the 362 occupations with a published figure.
At the median salary, take-home pay after Income Tax and National Insurance is about £2,232 a month in England, Wales or Northern Ireland and £2,233 in Scotland.
Percentiles
| Percentile | Annual | Monthly |
|---|---|---|
| 10th (P10) | £25,235 | £2,103 |
| 20th | £27,011 | £2,251 |
| 25th (P25) | £27,342 | £2,278 |
| 30th | £28,298 | £2,358 |
| 40th | £30,246 | £2,520 |
| Median (50th) | £32,308 | £2,692 |
| 60th | £33,512 | £2,793 |
| 70th | £35,971 | £2,998 |
| 75th (P75) | £37,612 | £3,134 |
| 80th | £39,072 | £3,256 |
| 90th (P90) | x | x |
Men and women
| Median | Mean | Jobs (thousands) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Men | £32,260 | £32,810 | 15 |
| Women | x | £37,378 | x |
Take-home pay at the median
| Where you live | Per year | Per month |
|---|---|---|
| England, Wales, NI | £26,781 | £2,232 |
| Scotland | £26,793 | £2,233 |
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 £32,000
Job titles in this occupation
ONS codes these 29 job titles to SOC 8222 Fork-lift truck drivers. Pay figures are for the whole occupation, not for each title.
- Clamp truck driver
- Driver
- Electric truck driver
- Flt driver
- Fork lift driver
- Fork lift operator
- Fork lift truck driver
- Fork lift truck operator
- Fork lifter
- Fork truck driver
- Fork truck operator
- Fork-lift driver
- Fork-lift operator
- Fork-lift truck driver
- Forklift truck operator
- Hyster
- Hyster driver
- Internal driver
- Power truck driver
- Scale car driver
- Side loader driver
- Side loader operator
- Stacker driver
- Stacker truck driver
- Stacker-driver
- Transport driver
- Truck driver
- Weigh car driver
- Works truck driver
Similar occupations
All jobs in Process, plant and machine operatives
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.