Care workers and home carers: average salary and pay in the UK
Full-time care workers and home carers in the UK earned a median £27,468 in the year to 5 April 2025, according to the ONS Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings (ASHE): 30% less than the £39,039 median for all full-time jobs.
What the figures show
It is in the lowest-paid third of the 382 occupations (54th from the bottom).
One in ten full-time jobs paid under £17,938; one in ten paid over £38,265.
Median full-time pay: women £26,842 a year, men £28,874 a year.
About 53% of the roughly 697,000 employee jobs are full-time.
Since 2021 the median has risen 35.1% (from £20,332), faster than the 25.0% for all jobs.
The Annual Population Survey counts 894,400 people in this line of work, 13% of them in North West.
Pay distribution, 2025 provisional
| Gross pay | Full-time, annual | Full-time, weekly | Full-time, hourly | All, annual | All, weekly | All, hourly |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10th percentile | £17,938 | £443.30 | £12.24 | £6,429 | £151.00 | £12.21 |
| 20th percentile | £21,433 | £474.60 | £12.50 | £11,425 | £249.30 | £12.50 |
| 25th percentile | £22,798 | £492.80 | £12.60 | £13,341 | £280.60 | £12.60 |
| 30th percentile | £23,821 | £507.40 | £12.71 | £15,027 | £318.60 | £12.70 |
| 40th percentile | £25,606 | £541.10 | £13.00 | £18,398 | £394.30 | £13.02 |
| Median (50th percentile) | £27,468 | £579.20 | £13.43 | £21,487 | £457.60 | £13.47 |
| 60th percentile | £29,349 | £615.30 | £13.94 | £24,276 | £508.00 | £14.03 |
| 70th percentile | £31,420 | £661.10 | £14.68 | £27,044 | £568.80 | £14.81 |
| 75th percentile | £32,493 | £693.20 | £15.24 | £28,556 | £598.10 | £15.36 |
| 80th percentile | £33,884 | £730.90 | £15.93 | £30,080 | £633.70 | £16.04 |
| 90th percentile | £38,265 | £834.50 | £18.24 | £34,529 | £745.00 | £18.45 |
| Mean | £27,577 | £614.00 | £14.41 | £21,240 | £455.00 | £14.54 |
Pay since 2021
| ASHE year | Full-time, annual median | Full-time, weekly median | Full-time, hourly median | All, annual median | All, weekly median | Jobs (thousands, indicative) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 revised | £20,332 | £414.00 | £10.05 | £16,076 | £328.10 | 668 |
| 2022 revised | £21,527 | £446.50 | £10.98 | £16,552 | £342.40 | 610 |
| 2023 revised | £23,398 | £490.50 | £11.89 | £17,827 | £374.70 | 601 |
| 2024 revised | £25,545 | £533.50 | £12.69 | £19,753 | £422.80 | 610 |
| 2025 provisional | £27,468 | £579.20 | £13.43 | £21,487 | £457.60 | 697 |
Care workers and home carers by region
UK: 894,400 (± 36,700), April 2025 to March 2026.
| Region or nation | People in employment | 95% confidence interval |
|---|---|---|
| North West | 112,300 | ± 12,800 |
| Scotland | 101,900 | ± 11,500 |
| South East | 96,600 | ± 12,300 |
| West Midlands | 94,700 | ± 12,700 |
| South West | 76,400 | ± 10,000 |
| Yorkshire and the Humber | 75,800 | ± 10,200 |
| London | 73,900 | ± 14,000 |
| East of England | 69,700 | ± 11,400 |
| East Midlands | 66,800 | ± 10,800 |
| Wales | 53,400 | ± 6,500 |
| North East | 45,600 | ± 6,700 |
| Northern Ireland | 27,200 | ± 5,300 |
Annual Population Survey (Nomis)
What care workers and home carers do
Care workers and home carers attend to the personal needs and comforts of children, the elderly, the infirm and others with care and support needs (‘service users’) within residential care establishments, day care establishments or in their own homes. (ONS SOC 2020, 6135)
Also covers: care assistant, carer, child care worker, home care assistant, home carer, support worker (nursing home), activities coordinator, activity coordinator, activity organiser, autism practitioner, care aid, care aide, care attendant, care enabler, care giver, care visitor, carer-personal assistant and charge attendant (104 titles in the ONS coding index).
- Assists and enables service users to dress, undress, wash, use the toilet and bathe
- Serves meals to service users at table or in bed, and assists with feeding if required
- Assists with service users’ overall comfort and wellbeing
- Provides interest and activities to stimulate and engage the service user
- Helps with daily activities such as letter writing, paying bills, collecting benefits
- Undertakes light cleaning and domestic duties including meal preparation as required
There are no formal academic entry requirements. In most cases workers will be required to register with the appropriate statutory body which involves satisfying the registration criteria. This would normally include holding or working towards the appropriate qualification for the job. Entrants must typically be 18 years old and have experience of working in a care environment. Both Off and on-the-job training is available. A wide range of qualifications including NVQs/SVQs covering various aspects of care are available. Background checks including a DBS check are likely to be required.
Related
Caring personal services (median £28,513) · Houseparents and residential wardens · Senior care workers · salary percentile · UK average weekly earnings growth · Median
ASHE Table 14: 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025 · coding index · notes · 15 October 2026