Project manager salary UK 2026: business, financial and programme roles
This guide covers business and financial project managers. IT, engineering and construction project managers use different occupation data. The ONS median is £59,834, with a £73,542 simple average and estimated monthly take-home shown below.
What ONS actually measured for project managers
The £30.09 hourly figure is published directly by ONS; it is not £59,834 divided by an assumed working week. The annual-pay table represents about 271,000 full-time employee jobs for this occupation.
Compared with the UK: The £59,834 occupation median is about 53% above the overall UK full-time median of £39,039.
Source: PayPrecise analysis of ONS ASHE 2025 provisional occupation data. Methodology and assumptions.
How to read the official project manager salary figure
Project manager is a broad job title. This page uses the ONS group for business and financial project management professionals, not IT, engineering or construction project managers, which have separate occupation codes.
The distinction makes the comparison more useful. The midpoint is £59,834, while the higher simple average shows that senior programmes and high-responsibility roles pull earnings upwards. Sector, budget, delivery risk, certification and contractor status can all change an offer.
Project manager is a broad search term, but this page uses the specific ONS group for business and financial project management professionals. IT and construction project managers have separate occupation classifications. Match the sector first, then compare budget, delivery risk, team and programme complexity.
Which project management jobs this figure covers
Use this guide for business and financial project management roles. Check a different occupation for IT, engineering or construction projects.
Good fit for this page
- Business transformation, financial and commercial project management roles
- Programme and project professionals mapping to SOC 2440
- Gross employee earnings for business and financial project management professionals
Use a different comparison for
- IT project managers, engineering project managers or construction project managers automatically
- Project coordinators or administrators compared as the same level
- Contract day rates and consultancy revenue treated as permanent salary
Lower, typical and higher project manager pay
£17,734 separates the median from the published 75th percentile. Two salaries inside that band can still be far apart, so the ladder alone cannot place your own pay or show the after-tax gap to the next point.
- Lower-middle pay25th percentile£46,399
- Typical payMedian£59,834
- Higher pay75th percentile£77,568
Moving from the median to the published 75th percentile is £17,734 gross a year, or about £857 more a month after standard tax and employee National Insurance.
For Business and financial project management professionals, published ONS pay runs from £59,834 at typical pay to £77,568 for the better-paid quarter. Enter your salary to see where you sit, what salary to target next, and what moving up could add after tax.
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ONS ASHE 2025 provisional · Business and financial project management professionals · published pay points shown above. Your personal position is estimated between published points.
Official project manager salary points used in this guide
See the published salary points
| Pay point | Annual salary | How to read it |
|---|---|---|
| 25th percentile | £46,399 | Below the occupation midpoint |
| Median | £59,834 | The published midpoint |
| 75th percentile | £77,568 | Above the occupation midpoint |
| Mean average | £73,542 | Simple average, affected by high salaries |
The paid report estimates a position using the verified occupation data. It does not claim an exact ranking of every worker.
Project manager salary per month and after tax
At the £59,834 occupation median, gross pay is about £4,986 a month. A standard 2026/27 estimate gives take-home pay of about £3,772 a month after tax and employee National Insurance. The simple average is shown separately where ONS published it.
The estimate uses the standard Personal Allowance, Income Tax bands for England, Wales and Northern Ireland, and employee National Insurance. It does not include pension, student loan, salary sacrifice or a different tax code. Scottish Income Tax is different.
Typical project manager salary and the wider pay range
The median is £59,834, between a lower-middle point of £46,399 and an upper-middle point of £77,568. The simple average is £73,542, lifted by higher-paid senior and programme roles within business and financial project management.
The range reflects different programme sizes, industries and levels of accountability. A project manager delivering a contained internal change and a programme lead responsible for a major transformation should not be compared by title alone.
Junior, senior and programme manager salaries
Project titles overlap. The useful comparison is the budget, risk, team and decisions attached to the work.
Junior project manager salary
ONS does not publish a fixed junior starting salary in this table. The £46,399 lower-middle point covers the whole business and financial project management occupation.
Senior project manager salary
Senior roles may own larger budgets, multiple workstreams, suppliers and executive reporting. The upper-middle point of £77,568 provides context, but seniority is not defined by title alone.
Programme manager salary
Programme managers often coordinate several related projects and benefits. The ONS group can include senior programme work, but it does not publish a separate programme manager figure.
Useful next step: compare this role with the salary percentile calculator, or unpaid overtime calculator.
What usually changes project manager pay
Project manager pay follows delivery scale, risk and specialist context.
Sector and project type
Financial services, government, transformation, regulation and commercial change can have different labour markets.
Budget and delivery risk
Larger budgets, critical deadlines, dependencies and public or regulatory consequences increase responsibility.
Experience and certification
Proven delivery and qualifications such as APM, PRINCE2 or Agile credentials can support progression, but results matter more than certificates alone.
Programme, suppliers and people
Managing multiple workstreams, external suppliers and senior stakeholders can move the role above a standard project position.
Project work, qualifications and progression
The National Careers Service says business project managers plan tasks and organise people and resources so work is completed on time and within budget. Entry can come through a degree, apprenticeship, professional training or progression from project support.
Typical work includes defining scope, planning, budgets, risk, supplier coordination, reporting and resolving problems. The role may involve travel or additional hours around major deadlines.
Progression can lead to senior project manager, programme manager, portfolio leadership, consulting or operational management. Those routes help explain the long upper part of the salary range.
Pay progression is usually driven by the size and difficulty of work delivered. Moving from one project to a programme or portfolio can add responsibility for dependencies, governance and several teams. Qualifications can help demonstrate a method, but employers normally place more weight on evidence of delivery, judgement and stakeholder leadership.
What to check in a project manager offer
A project manager offer should describe the delivery responsibility, not only the title.
- Which sector, project type, budget, deadline and outcomes are you accountable for?
- How many workstreams, suppliers and team members sit under the role?
- Is bonus tied to delivery, and are overtime or travel expectations clear?
- Does the role provide training, certification and a route into programme or portfolio work?
Where the salary and industry information comes from
The pay figures are from the Office for National Statistics Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings, Table 14, 2025 provisional edition. They cover full-time employee jobs and do not cover self-employed people. Annual gross pay can include overtime, incentive pay, shift premiums and cash allowances reported through payroll, so it should not be read as guaranteed basic salary.
| Official job group | Business and financial project management professionals. The everyday page title is narrower than the official group. |
|---|---|
| Quality | ONS marks this full-time estimate as precise. In plain English, this is one of the more dependable estimates in the occupation table. |
| Jobs in the estimate | About 271,000 full-time employee jobs |
| Career and role source | National Careers Service: Business project manager Role scope, entry routes, duties and progression. View source |
Where the verified source extract leaves a salary point blank, this page leaves it blank too. A missing upper point is never filled with an estimate.
View the ONS salary tableCheck the 2026/27 tax and NI figuresCompare all 412 occupations
Project manager salary questions
What is the average project manager salary in the UK?
The ONS median for business and financial project management professionals is £59,834. The simple average is £73,542, but this guide does not cover IT, engineering or construction project managers.
How much is a project manager salary per month after tax?
At the £59,834 median, gross pay is about £4,986 per month and a standard 2026/27 estimate gives about £3,772 after Income Tax and employee National Insurance, before pension or other deductions.
What is a junior project manager salary?
ONS does not publish a fixed junior salary in this table. The £46,399 lower-middle point covers the whole business and financial project management occupation.
What is a senior project manager salary?
The upper-middle published point is £77,568. A senior role may sit around or above that level depending on programme scale, sector, budget and risk.
Does this page include IT project managers?
No. IT project managers have a separate ONS occupation code. This page uses business and financial project management professionals.
Is £59,834 a good project manager salary?
It is 53% above the UK full-time median and is the official midpoint for this project management group. The project scope and sector determine whether it is competitive.
What is a project manager salary in London?
This page uses UK-wide data and does not claim a London-only figure. Compare the national range with the sector, project scale, bonus and working pattern.
What is the difference between a project manager and programme manager?
A project manager normally owns one defined piece of work. A programme manager coordinates several related projects and their combined outcomes, risks and dependencies. Programme roles can pay more, but the employer's scope should be checked.
Do PRINCE2, APM, PMP or Agile qualifications increase project manager pay?
They can improve credibility and access to roles, especially when an employer asks for them. They do not guarantee a pay rise. Sector knowledge, delivery record, budget size and responsibility usually have greater influence.