Horticultural trades: average salary and pay in the UK
Full-time horticultural trades in the UK earned a median £27,262 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 (49th from the bottom).
Median full-time pay: women £27,028 a year, men £26,673 a year.
From £21,822 in 2021, the median is up 24.9%, close to the 25.0% for all jobs.
The Annual Population Survey counts 13,700 people in this line of work across the UK.
Pay distribution, 2025 provisional
| Gross pay | Full-time, annual | Full-time, weekly | Full-time, hourly | All, annual | All, weekly | All, hourly |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 25th percentile | – | – | – | – | – | £12.56 |
| 30th percentile | – | – | – | £22,907* | £472.40* | £12.68 |
| 40th percentile | £26,116* | £518.20 | £13.26 | £24,098* | £482.10 | £13.00 |
| Median (50th percentile) | £27,262 | £558.70 | £13.61 | £24,613* | £497.90* | £13.56 |
| 60th percentile | £27,915 | £586.30 | £14.18 | £26,147* | £519.20 | £14.25 |
| 70th percentile | – | – | – | – | £567.80* | £15.00 |
| Mean | £27,439 | £581.90 | £14.38 | £23,693 | £496.30 | £14.31 |
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 | £21,822* | £419.50 | £10.76 | £21,795 | £417.90 | – |
| 2022 revised | – | £440.80 | £11.69 | – | £432.60 | – |
| 2023 revised | £24,037* | £467.80 | £11.87 | £23,177* | £444.60* | – |
| 2024 revised | £25,751* | £508.90* | £13.02 | – | £452.90* | 7* |
| 2025 provisional | £27,262 | £558.70 | £13.61 | £24,613* | £497.90* | 6* |
Horticultural trades by region
UK: 13,700 (± 4,500), April 2025 to March 2026.
Annual Population Survey (Nomis)
What horticultural trades do
Horticultural trades workers intensively cultivate vegetables, plants, fruit, shrubs, trees and flowers in greenhouses, market gardens, nurseries and orchards. (ONS SOC 2020, 5112)
Also covers: grower, horticulturalist, market Gardener, nursery Assistant (agriculture), nurseryman, coffee planter, fruit gardener, gardener's assistant, gardening assistant, head fruitman, horticultural assistant, horticultural technician, interior landscaper, nursery assistant, nursery gardener, rubber planter, seed manufacturer and seed worker (29 titles in the ONS coding index).
- Prepares soil in field, bed or pot by hand or machine
- Mixes soil, composts, fertilisers and/or organic matter and spreads fertiliser and manure
- Sows seeds and bulbs and transplants seedlings
- Propagates plants by taking cuttings and by grafting and budding, applies weed-killer, fungicide and insecticide to control pests and diseases
- Prunes and thins trees and shrubs
- Supports trees by staking and wiring
There are no formal academic entry requirements. NVQs/SVQs in Horticulture are available at levels 1, 2 and 3. Relevant apprenticeships and professional qualifications from the Royal Horticultural Society are also available.
Related
Agricultural and related trades (median £28,980) · Farmers · Gardeners and landscape gardeners · salary percentile · UK average weekly earnings growth · Median
ASHE Table 14: 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025 · coding index · notes · 15 October 2026