Pick your occupation for an in-depth, plain-English payslip guide, or a quick checker with ONS pay bands and 2026/27 take-home figures. Built for the people whose payslips are hardest to read.
195 UK occupations covered.
Comprehensive, hand-written guides for 50 UK roles with the most confusing payslips. Each one walks through the pay framework, every payslip line, the pension scheme, the deductions and the errors worth checking, for the 2026/27 tax year.
Agenda for Change bands, the NHS Pension contribution tiers, unsocial-hours enhancements and the professional registration fees that show up on clinical payslips.
Median pay around £52,000 · payslip explained line by line
Median pay around £37,000 · payslip explained line by line
Median pay around £57,500 · payslip explained line by line
Median pay around £40,000 · payslip explained line by line
Median pay around £38,500 · payslip explained line by line
Median pay around £44,000 · payslip explained line by line
Median pay around £43,500 · payslip explained line by line
Median pay around £38,500 · payslip explained line by line
Median pay around £45,800 · payslip explained line by line
Median pay around £26,200 · payslip explained line by line
Median pay around £25,300 · payslip explained line by line
Median pay around £29,000 · payslip explained line by line
Median pay around £40,500 · payslip explained line by line
Median pay around £38,500 · payslip explained line by line
Median pay around £28,500 · payslip explained line by line
Median pay around £25,300 · payslip explained line by line
Median pay around £42,000 · payslip explained line by line
Median pay around £36,500 · payslip explained line by line
Median pay around £35,100 · payslip explained line by line
Median pay around £44,500 · payslip explained line by line
Median pay around £41,000 · payslip explained line by line
Median pay around £23,400 · payslip explained line by line
Term-time-only pay, the NJC Green Book pay spine, the Teachers Pension and Local Government Pension schemes, and the support-staff allowances that confuse so many school payslips.
Median pay around £17,500 · payslip explained line by line
Median pay around £27,300 · payslip explained line by line
Median pay around £23,500 · payslip explained line by line
Median pay around £55,000 · payslip explained line by line
Median pay around £14,500 · payslip explained line by line
Median pay around £36,500 · payslip explained line by line
Median pay around £28,600 · payslip explained line by line
Median pay around £26,900 · payslip explained line by line
Median pay around £13,200 · payslip explained line by line
Median pay around £31,000 · payslip explained line by line
Median pay around £38,500 · payslip explained line by line
Median pay around £27,700 · payslip explained line by line
Median pay around £25,600 · payslip explained line by line
Median pay around £31,500 · payslip explained line by line
Median pay around £23,800 · payslip explained line by line
Civil Service alpha pensions, HMPPS pay bands, police-staff pay scales and the shift and unsocial-hours payments that drive take-home in these roles.
Median pay around £35,500 · payslip explained line by line
Median pay around £25,500 · payslip explained line by line
Median pay around £23,400 · payslip explained line by line
Median pay around £32,700 · payslip explained line by line
Median pay around £27,500 · payslip explained line by line
Median pay around £28,500 · payslip explained line by line
Median pay around £36,800 · payslip explained line by line
Median pay around £36,500 · payslip explained line by line
Median pay around £28,000 · payslip explained line by line
Median pay around £24,800 · payslip explained line by line
National Minimum Wage rules, shift premia, rolled-up holiday pay, agency and umbrella arrangements, and the pay elements worth checking on every shift.
ONS ASHE 2024 salary bands and 2026/27 take-home figures for hundreds more UK occupations.
NHS Agenda for Change, GMC-registered doctors, dental and pharmacy roles. Watch unsocial-hours uplift, pension tier banding and HCAS.
Median £37,200 · tax code 1257L
Median £43,900 · tax code 1257L
Median £109,300 · tax code 1257L (often tapered above £100k)
Median £39,800 · tax code 1257L
Median £23,400 · tax code 1257L
Median £51,500 · tax code 1257L
Median £24,500 · tax code 1257L
Median £75,000 · tax code 1257L (employed only)
Median £50,800 · tax code 1257L
Median £95,000 · tax code 1257L (often tapered above £100k)
Median £24,169 · tax code 1257L
Median £25,674 · tax code 1257L
Median £27,898 · tax code 1257L
Median £30,420 · tax code 1257L
Median £37,338 · tax code 1257L
Median £46,148 · tax code 1257L
Median £53,755 · tax code 1257L
Median £62,215 · tax code 1257L
Median £73,150 · tax code K-prefix
Median £85,602 · tax code K-prefix
Median £99,891 · tax code K-prefix
Median £128,400 · tax code 1257L (typically tapered above £100k)
Median £124,800 · tax code 1257L (typically tapered or K-coded above £100k)
Median £122,700 · tax code 1257L (often tapered above £100k)
Median £118,600 · tax code 1257L
Median £117,400 · tax code 1257L
Median £119,800 · tax code 1257L
Median £126,200 · tax code 1257L (typically tapered above £100k)
Median £125,600 · tax code 1257L (typically tapered above £100k)
Median £134,200 · tax code 1257L (typically tapered or K-coded above £100k)
Median £121,800 · tax code 1257L
Median £116,900 · tax code 1257L
Median £123,400 · tax code 1257L (typically tapered above £100k)
School Teachers Pay and Conditions Document, plus Teachers Pension at 9.6%. TLR allowances appear separately on most teacher payslips.
Median £39,200 · tax code 1257L
Median £41,200 · tax code 1257L
Median £31,650 · tax code 1257L
Median £43,607 · tax code 1257L
Median £45,646 · tax code 1257L
Median £49,084 · tax code 1257L
Median £52,502 · tax code 1257L
Median £75,675 · tax code 1257L or K-prefix
Median £41,997 · tax code 1257L
Median £53,353 · tax code 1257L
Median £65,814 · tax code 1257L
Median £82,150 · tax code 1257L
Median £107,300 · tax code 1257L (typically tapered above £100k)
Federated police pay, firefighter competent rates and ambulance Band 5/6. Heavy reliance on regional weighting and shift premia.
Median £45,100 · tax code 1257L
Median £38,400 · tax code 1257L
Median £32,700 · tax code 1257L
Median £49,215 · tax code 1257L
Median £60,339 · tax code 1257L
Median £67,086 · tax code 1257L
Median £78,516 · tax code 1257L or K-prefix
Median £28,265 · tax code 1257L
Median £31,527 · tax code 1257L
Median £37,675 · tax code 1257L
Civil Service, local government and social work. Alpha pension, NJC pay spines and tiered employee contributions dominate.
Median £42,100 · tax code 1257L
Median £34,900 · tax code 1257L
Median £25,500 · tax code 1257L
Median £30,100 · tax code 1257L
Median £36,300 · tax code 1257L
Median £43,900 · tax code 1257L
Median £56,400 · tax code 1257L
Median £73,600 · tax code 1257L
Median £80,000 · tax code K-prefix
Median £25,822 · tax code 1257L
Median £35,835 · tax code 1257L
Median £41,030 · tax code 1257L
Median £47,169 · tax code 1257L
Median £53,117 · tax code 1257L
Median £56,700 · tax code 1257L
Median £60,948 · tax code 1257L
Median £32,287 · tax code 1257L
Median £41,030 · tax code 1257L
Median £50,500 · tax code 1257L
Median £24,404 · tax code 1257L
Median £26,409 · tax code 1257L
Median £29,093 · tax code 1257L
Median £31,586 · tax code 1257L
Median £33,945 · tax code 1257L
Median £38,223 · tax code 1257L
Median £43,421 · tax code 1257L
Median £49,764 · tax code 1257L
Median £24,023 · tax code 1257L
Median £30,584 · tax code 1257L
Median £40,860 · tax code 1257L
Median £48,114 · tax code 1257L
Median £54,504 · tax code 1257L
Median £32,287 · tax code 1257L
Median £41,030 · tax code 1257L
Median £56,500 · tax code 1257L
Median £72,500 · tax code 1257L
Median £30,584 · tax code 1257L
Median £39,400 · tax code 1257L
Median £48,114 · tax code 1257L
Median £54,504 · tax code 1257L
Median £63,000 · tax code 1257L
Median £26,023 · tax code 1257L
Median £35,500 · tax code 1257L
Median £44,100 · tax code 1257L
Accountancy, law and consulting. Heavy bonus weighting plus professional subscriptions reimbursed via P11D.
Median £49,100 · tax code 1257L
Median £62,500 · tax code 1257L (K-coded post-bonus at City firms)
Median £78,000 · tax code 1257L (employed only)
Median £45,800 · tax code 1257L
Median £52,800 · tax code 1257L
Median £65,500 · tax code 1257L
Median £58,200 · tax code 1257L
Median £28,500 · tax code 1257L
Median £29,800 · tax code 1257L
Median £51,200 · tax code 1257L
Banking, insurance and broking. Deferred stock, clawback clauses and bonus-driven tax-code recalcs are routine.
Median £42,100 · tax code 1257L
Median £65,000 · tax code 1257L (K-coded after bonus)
Median £145,000 · tax code 0T or BR after first job (no allowance)
Median £38,500 · tax code 1257L
Median £45,000 · tax code 1257L
Software, data and platform roles. Equity comp on quarterly vest cadence drives K-coded tax codes.
Civils, mechanical and aerospace engineering. Site allowances, security clearance pay and SMART pension are common.
Electrical, plumbing, carpentry, welding and construction. CIS for subcontractors and JIB/CIJC rates for PAYE staff.
Median £38,500 · tax code 1257L (CIS subcontractors see UTR-coded deductions)
Median £36,800 · tax code 1257L
Median £33,500 · tax code 1257L (or CIS 20%)
Median £31,200 · tax code 1257L (CIS 20% for subcontractors)
Median £36,400 · tax code 1257L (umbrella often shows employer NI passed through)
HGV, bus, train and aviation. Per-diem and night-out scale rates, plus rest-day working uplifts at TOCs.
Median £38,600 · tax code 1257L
Median £32,100 · tax code 1257L
Median £65,000 · tax code 1257L
Median £88,200 · tax code 1257L (often K-coded at senior captain due to flying pay accrual)
Median £27,600 · tax code 1257L
Median £35,200 · tax code 1257L
Shop floor, kitchens and bars. NLW/NMW basic, tronc tip-sharing rules and shift premia define take-home.
Marketing, sales and recruitment. OTE-heavy roles with monthly or quarterly commission cycles.
Hair, beauty, fitness and cleaning. Mix of NMW PAYE, commission top-ups and self-employed chair-rental models.
Salary estimates: ONS Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings (ASHE) 2024, full-time gross annual pay by SOC 2020 occupation. Figures rounded to nearest £100.