Which UK industry sector has the highest median salary?

Financial and Insurance Activities is the UK's highest-paying sector, with a full-time median gross annual salary of £58,488 (Gera Sector Pay Gap Index: +49.8%). Electricity & Gas Supply is second at £55,469, and Information & Communication is third at £52,264. Figures are real ONS ASHE 2025 provisional estimates, April 2025 reference period.

What is the average UK salary across all industries in 2025?

The UK median gross annual pay for full-time employees across all industries and services was £39,039 in April 2025, according to the ONS Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings (ASHE Table 4.7a). This is the benchmark the Gera Sector Pay Gap Index uses to compare each sector (GSPGI = 0 → pays the all-industry average).

Which UK sectors pay below the national average?

Accommodation & Food Services (£28,687, GSPGI −26.5%), Agriculture & Forestry (£32,784, GSPGI −16.0%), Arts, Entertainment & Recreation (£32,871, GSPGI −15.8%) are among the lowest-paying sectors relative to the UK all-industry median of £39,039. A negative GSPGI means the sector's full-time median is below the all-industry benchmark. Real ONS ASHE data.

What is the Gera Sector Pay Gap Index (GSPGI)?

The Gera Sector Pay Gap Index (GSPGI) measures how far each SIC 2007 industry section's full-time median pay deviates from the UK all-industry median (£39,039, April 2025). Formula: GSPGI = (sectorMedian − ukAllMedian) / ukAllMedian × 100. A GSPGI of +20% means a sector pays 20% above the all-industry benchmark; −10% means 10% below. Every input is a real published ONS ASHE figure (OGL v3.0). Methodology: https://gerajobs.com/salary/sector-pay/methodology.

How do UK industry salaries vary by region?

Regional pay varies significantly within sectors. London consistently pays above the national sector median — in Finance & Insurance (SIC K), London's full-time median is £91,666 versus the UK Finance median of £58,488. The regional gap is computed as (regionMedian − ukSectorMedian) / ukSectorMedian × 100, using real ONS ASHE Table 5.7a figures. Only cells ONS publishes without suppression (CV ≤ 20%) are shown.

GeraJobs / Salary data / Salary by sector

UK Salary by Industry Sector — Gera Sector Pay Gap Index

How much does each UK industry sector pay — and how does it compare to the national average and to other regions? The Gera Sector Pay Gap Index (GSPGI) measures each SIC 2007 section against the UK all-industry median, computed transparently from real ONS Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings (ASHE, April 2025).

Which UK industry sector pays the most, and how does pay vary by region?

As of April 2025 (ONS ASHE), the highest-paying UK sector for full-time workers is Finance & Insurance at a UK median of £58,488, and the lowest is Accommodation & Food Services at £28,687, versus the all-industry median of £39,039. The Gera Sector Pay Gap Index (GSPGI) measures each sector relative to the UK all-industry benchmark. GeraJobs re-dates this annually on ONS ASHE release.

Source:Office for National Statistics — Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings (ASHE) — ASHE Table 4.7a (annual pay gross, 2-digit SIC, Full-Time) + ASHE Table 5.7a (annual pay gross, region × 2-digit SIC, Full-Time)·As of April 2025 (provisional) · updated annually · last refreshed 23 October 2025

Gera Sector Pay Gap Index

How far each UK industry sector's full-time median deviates from the UK all-industry median (£39,039, April 2025). GSPGI = (sectorMedian − ukAllMedian) / ukAllMedian × 100.

How this is calculated

Finance & Insurance +49.8% · Accommodation & Food Services -26.5%

UK industry sectors ranked by median pay

Rank	Sector (SIC 2007)	UK median (full-time)	Gera GSPGI	Regions
#1	Finance & InsuranceSIC K	£58,488	+49.8%	10
#2	Electricity & Gas SupplySIC D	£55,469	+42.1%	7
#3	Information & CommunicationSIC J	£52,264	+33.9%	11
#4	Mining & QuarryingSIC B	£50,943	+30.5%	5
#5	Professional & Scientific ServicesSIC M	£46,208	+18.4%	11
#6	ConstructionSIC F	£43,100	+10.4%	11
#7	Public Administration & DefenceSIC O	£40,879	+4.7%	11
#8	Water & Waste ManagementSIC E	£40,738	+4.4%	10
#9	Transport & StorageSIC H	£40,056	+2.6%	11
#10	EducationSIC P	£39,999	+2.5%	11
#11	ManufacturingSIC C	£38,956	-0.2%	11
#12	Real EstateSIC L	£36,565	-6.3%	11
#13	Admin & Support ServicesSIC N	£36,109	-7.5%	11
#14	Health & Social WorkSIC Q	£35,744	-8.4%	11
#15	Other ServicesSIC S	£33,537	-14.1%	11
#16	Wholesale & Retail TradeSIC G	£33,158	-15.1%	11
#17	Arts, Entertainment & RecreationSIC R	£32,871	-15.8%	11
#18	Agriculture & ForestrySIC A	£32,784	-16.0%	10
#19	Accommodation & Food ServicesSIC I	£28,687	-26.5%	11

GSPGI = (sectorMedian − ukAllMedian) / ukAllMedian × 100. UK all-industry median: £39,039 (ONS ASHE April 2025). Cells with ONS CV > 20% are suppressed and excluded. Full-time employees only.

Sector Pay Benchmarker

Select an industry and optionally a UK region to see real ONS median pay vs the UK benchmark.

Industry sector (SIC 2007)

UK region (optional)

UK Finance & Insurance median

£58,488

Full-time, April 2025 · ONS ASHE Table 4.7a

Gera Sector Pay Gap Index

+49.8%

vs UK all-industry median £39,039

Sector rank

#1 / 19

By UK full-time median pay

Browse Finance & Insurance jobs

Source: ONS Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings (ASHE), Table 4.7a (UK) + Table 5.7a (regional), full-time employees, April 2025 provisional (OGL v3.0). Only cells ONS publishes without suppression (CV ≤ 20%) are shown. Gera Sector Pay Gap Index = (sectorMedian − ukAllMedian) / ukAllMedian × 100.

UK salary by sector — FAQ

Which UK industry sector has the highest median salary?: Financial and Insurance Activities is the UK's highest-paying sector, with a full-time median gross annual salary of £58,488 (Gera Sector Pay Gap Index: +49.8%). Electricity & Gas Supply is second at £55,469, and Information & Communication is third at £52,264. Figures are real ONS ASHE 2025 provisional estimates, April 2025 reference period.
What is the average UK salary across all industries in 2025?: The UK median gross annual pay for full-time employees across all industries and services was £39,039 in April 2025, according to the ONS Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings (ASHE Table 4.7a). This is the benchmark the Gera Sector Pay Gap Index uses to compare each sector (GSPGI = 0 → pays the all-industry average).
Which UK sectors pay below the national average?: Accommodation & Food Services (£28,687, GSPGI −26.5%), Agriculture & Forestry (£32,784, GSPGI −16.0%), Arts, Entertainment & Recreation (£32,871, GSPGI −15.8%) are among the lowest-paying sectors relative to the UK all-industry median of £39,039. A negative GSPGI means the sector's full-time median is below the all-industry benchmark. Real ONS ASHE data.
What is the Gera Sector Pay Gap Index (GSPGI)?: The Gera Sector Pay Gap Index (GSPGI) measures how far each SIC 2007 industry section's full-time median pay deviates from the UK all-industry median (£39,039, April 2025). Formula: GSPGI = (sectorMedian − ukAllMedian) / ukAllMedian × 100. A GSPGI of +20% means a sector pays 20% above the all-industry benchmark; −10% means 10% below. Every input is a real published ONS ASHE figure (OGL v3.0). Methodology: https://gerajobs.com/salary/sector-pay/methodology.
How do UK industry salaries vary by region?: Regional pay varies significantly within sectors. London consistently pays above the national sector median — in Finance & Insurance (SIC K), London's full-time median is £91,666 versus the UK Finance median of £58,488. The regional gap is computed as (regionMedian − ukSectorMedian) / ukSectorMedian × 100, using real ONS ASHE Table 5.7a figures. Only cells ONS publishes without suppression (CV ≤ 20%) are shown.

How the Gera Sector Pay Gap Index is calculated

For each SIC 2007 section S, the GSPGI is computed as:GSPGI(S) = (ukMedian(S) − ukAllMedian) / ukAllMedian × 100where ukMedian(S) is the UK full-time median for section S from ONS ASHE Table 4.7a, and ukAllMedian = £39,039 is the UK all-industry full-time median (ONS ASHE Table 4.7a, April 2025). Regional pay gaps use (regionMedian − ukMedian) / ukMedian × 100 from ONS ASHE Table 5.7a. Only ONS cells published without suppression (CV ≤ 20%) are included. No figure is modelled, interpolated, or invented.

Sources: ASHE Table 4.7a (annual pay gross, 2-digit SIC, Full-Time), ASHE Table 5.7a (annual pay gross, region × 2-digit SIC, Full-Time). April 2025 reference period. Released 2025-10-23. Licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0 (OGL v3).

Get the Gera Sector Pay Gap Index when ONS refreshes ASHE

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Related on GeraJobs

UK Salary by Occupation — median pay for every ONS occupation (SOC 2020), with per-region figures.
Gera Pay Index — UK salary by region — how far each UK region pays above or below the national average.
UK job vacancies by sector — how tight is the labour market in each industry?
Browse jobs with salary ranges — roles hiring now.

Sources: Office for National Statistics — Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings (ASHE), ASHE Table 4.7a (annual pay gross, 2-digit SIC, Full-Time) + ASHE Table 5.7a (annual pay gross, region × 2-digit SIC, Full-Time). April 2025 (provisional) reference period. Released 2025-10-23. Licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. The Gera Sector Pay Gap Index is computed by GeraJobs from these figures; no figure is modelled or interpolated.