Solicitor salary in the UK
ONS data for April 2025 · Page updated
Solicitors and lawyers have a high median and the widest pay spread of the professions on these pages: the gap between the 25th and 75th percentiles is very large, driven by the difference between City firms and high-street, regional and in-house roles.
- Median full-time pay
- £56,977
- 25th percentile
- £42,015
- 75th percentile
- £77,509
- Change on a year earlier
- +10.7%
How pay is spread
Line: 10th to 90th percentile. Bar: the middle half of earners (25th to 75th). Mark and label: median. Where ONS doesn't publish the 90th percentile, the line stops at the highest published point.
| Full-time annual pay | Solicitor | All UK jobs |
|---|---|---|
| 10th percentile | £29,279 | £23,990 |
| 25th percentile | £42,015 | £29,262 |
| Median | £56,977 | £39,039 |
| 75th percentile | £77,509 | £54,009 |
| 90th percentile | – | £76,903 |
| Mean | £73,424 | £48,512 |
– ONS doesn't publish this figure because the sample is too small to be reliable.
ONS classifies this role as “Solicitors and lawyers” (SOC 2020 code 2412). Figures cover full-time employees across the whole UK, at every level of seniority, so a senior role in London or at a large employer will usually sit above the median. Pay by region for individual occupations isn't published reliably at city level.
What solicitors can negotiate
PQE drives the band. Most firms pay by years of post-qualification experience. Make sure all your relevant experience is counted, including time at other firms or in-house, before you negotiate within the band.
Billable hours change the real rate. A higher salary with a much higher billable-hours target may pay less per hour worked. Ask for the target, how bonus links to it, and what happens if you miss it.
Moving in-house. In-house roles often pay less base salary but offer better hours, bonus and pension. Compare on total compensation; see total compensation in the UK.
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Other roles
Source: Office for National Statistics, Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings 2025 (provisional), Table 14.7a (occupation, SOC 2020). Gross annual pay for full-time employee jobs, April 2025. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. See how we use this data.