Social Worker Salary in the United Kingdom
The median Social Worker salary in the United Kingdom is £42,708, with most packages landing between £35,841 and £54,862. This benchmark is a official wage benchmark; sign in to compare your exact pay against the percentile bands.
Pay percentiles
Official wage dataGross annual, local currency.
See your strike price
This band is the market. Your strike price is the number to ask for, built from your own CV. Free.
Per hour and per month
| 25th percentile | Median (p50) | 75th percentile | Top 10% (p90) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Per hour | £17.23 | £20.53 | £23.51 | £26.38 |
| Per month | £2,987 | £3,559 | £4,076 | £4,572 |
Converted from the annual figure at 2080 working hours a year.
Salary by seniority
Estimated| Junior | £26,000 | -40% |
| Mid-level | £38,000 | -12% |
| Senior | £53,000 | +25% |
| Lead / Exec | £75,000 | +75% |
Total compensation
Benefits are worth about £5,000 a year on top of cash pay.
Where this pay goes furthest
The same package, in local cost-of-living terms, across markets.
- India₹616,000
- Portugal€20,000
- Greece€24,000
- PolandPLN 111,000
- Italy€29,000
- Japan¥5,055,000
How we calculate this
These figures place a Social Worker's pay against percentile bands (p25 to p90) in the United Kingdom. Where national occupation data is thin, we model from regional wage references and label it as such; we never present an estimate as official. Figures are gross annual, rounded.
Where this figure comes from
- Occupation as published
- Social workers (SOC 2461)
- Reference period
- 2025-04
- The percentiles are exactly as published by the source.
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
Frequently asked questions
Is £42,708 a good salary for a Social Worker in the United Kingdom?
£42,708 is the median, so it sits at the centre of the market. Earning above £48,907 puts you in the top quartile; below £35,841, there is room to negotiate.
How much does a senior Social Worker earn in the United Kingdom?
A senior Social Worker earns around £53,000, against £26,000 early in the career. Seniority bands are estimated from the overall median.
What is the total compensation for a Social Worker in the United Kingdom?
On top of base pay, benefits are worth about £5,000 a year. Bonus and equity vary by employer and sector.
How is this Social Worker salary benchmark calculated?
We place your package against percentile bands for the role and country, from official wage data where available and regional references otherwise, always labeled.