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UK Graduate Salaries
- The average graduate salary in 2025 is £31,000, ranging from £22,000 to approximately £43,000*, according to Glassdoor.com.
- Estimated additional pay (i.e., discretionary bonuses) is £4,906.
- According to the Times Top 100, median graduate income increased marginally last year to £34,000.
How do graduate salaries differ by region?
HESA’s Graduate Outcomes data indicates significant differences in reported salaries among graduates fifteen months after graduating. The average annual wage of those working in London was £6,296 higher than that of graduates working in Wales.
A note on affordability
- Having a higher salary does not always mean more purchasing power for graduates.
- According to Prospects Luminate, the North East of England has the lowest (and therefore most affordable) ratio of median house price to median gross annual earnings (4.93).
- Comparatively, London has a ratio of 12.66.
- To put this into perspective, a recent graduate earning an average salary in London may need to work 2.6 times as long as a graduate earning an average wage in the North East of England in order to buy a house.
Highest-Paying Industries
- While there are some disagreements about the way in which graduate industries are grouped, The Institute of Student Employers (ISE) identifies the legal industry as the highest paying industry (£43,508), followed by Finance and Professional Services (£36,492), and Digital and IT (£34,475).
- According to the Times Top 100, 1 in 6 of the top 100 employers pay graduate employees £50,000 or more.