Managers in transport and distribution: average salary and pay in the UK
Full-time managers in transport and distribution in the UK earned a median £47,504 in the year to 5 April 2025, according to the ONS Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings (ASHE): 22% more than the £39,039 median for all full-time jobs.
What the figures show
That ranks 74th of 382 occupations on this measure.
The middle half of full-time jobs paid between £38,009 and £63,027.
Median full-time pay: women £47,725 a year, men £47,399 a year.
ASHE counts roughly 70,000 employee jobs, 93% full-time.
From £38,702 in 2021, the median is up 22.7%, close to the 25.0% for all jobs.
The Annual Population Survey counts 85,500 people in this line of work, 13% of them in South East.
Pay distribution, 2025 provisional
| Gross pay | Full-time, annual | Full-time, weekly | Full-time, hourly | All, annual | All, weekly | All, hourly |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10th percentile | £30,113 | £629.60 | £15.63 | £26,527 | £551.90 | £14.67 |
| 20th percentile | £35,550 | £695.30 | £17.48 | £33,792 | £670.80 | £17.28 |
| 25th percentile | £38,009 | £747.50 | £18.25 | £36,669 | £702.50 | £18.00 |
| 30th percentile | £39,892 | £767.60 | £19.23 | £38,656 | £749.60 | £18.96 |
| 40th percentile | £43,060 | £842.60 | £20.64 | £41,768 | £813.20 | £20.45 |
| Median (50th percentile) | £47,504 | £905.60 | £22.26 | £46,734 | £884.30 | £22.11 |
| 60th percentile | £51,461 | £981.60 | £24.01 | £50,883 | £958.20 | £23.99 |
| 70th percentile | £58,207 | £1,080.00 | £27.42 | £56,365 | £1,064.10 | £27.31 |
| 75th percentile | £63,027 | £1,143.40 | £29.04 | £61,408 | £1,121.50 | £28.99 |
| 80th percentile | £67,389* | £1,248.10 | £30.99 | £66,781* | £1,204.80 | £30.94 |
| Mean | £52,572 | £1,009.00 | £25.18 | £51,700 | £977.00 | £25.30 |
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 | £38,702 | £738.70 | £18.00 | £37,739 | £721.70 | 67 |
| 2022 revised | £40,796 | £775.10 | £18.54 | £39,941 | £767.10 | 63 |
| 2023 revised | £41,826 | £810.40 | £20.04 | £40,923 | £786.50 | 68 |
| 2024 revised | £44,915 | £846.00 | £21.01 | £44,096 | £830.80 | 69 |
| 2025 provisional | £47,504 | £905.60 | £22.26 | £46,734 | £884.30 | 70 |
Managers in transport and distribution by region
UK: 85,500 (± 11,300), April 2025 to March 2026. 11 of the 12 regions and nations have samples too small to publish.
| Region or nation | People in employment | 95% confidence interval |
|---|---|---|
| South East | 10,800* | ± 4,100 |
Annual Population Survey (Nomis)
What managers in transport and distribution do
Managers in transport and distribution plan, organise, and co-ordinate the activities and resources necessary for the safe, efficient and economic movement of passengers and freight by road, rail, sea and air transport. (ONS SOC 2020, 1241)
Also covers: distribution service manager, fleet manager, operations manager (transport), shipping manager, transport manager, airport manager, area manager, berthing manager, berthing master, branch manager, chartering manager, collections manager, crew manager, delivery manager, despatch manager, district manager, divisional manager and dock master (69 titles in the ONS coding index).
- Plans the optimum utilisation of staff and operating equipment, and co-ordinates maintenance activities to ensure least possible disruption to services
- Co-ordinates the transportation of passengers, the movement, handling and storage of freight in transit, and reviews space utilisation, staffing and distribution expenditure to determine future distribution policies
- Ensures that regulations regarding hours of work, the licensing of crews and transport equipment, the operational safety and efficiency of equipment, the insurance of vehicles and other statutory regulations are complied with
- Ensures that harbour channels and berths are maintained and liaises with ship owners, crew, customs officials, dock and harbour staff to arrange entry, berthing and servicing of ships
- Supervises day-to-day activities in a railway station
- Arranges for maintenance of airport runways and buildings, liaises with fuel and catering crews to ensure adequate supplies and resolves any complaints and problems raised by airport users
Candidates are recruited with a variety of academic qualifications and/or with relevant experience. Entrants to management trainee schemes offered by larger companies will require GCSEs/S grades, A levels/H grades, a degree or other equivalent qualifications. Off and on-the-job training is provided. Professional qualifications are available and may be required for some roles. NVQs/SVQs in a number of relevant areas including supply chain and operations management are available at levels 2, 3, 4 and 5.
Related
Managers in logistics, warehousing and transport (median £41,197) · Managers in storage and warehousing · Managers in logistics · salary percentile · UK average weekly earnings growth · Median
ASHE Table 14: 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025 · coding index · notes · 15 October 2026