National government administrative occupations: average salary and pay in the UK
Full-time national government administrative occupations in the UK earned a median £33,000 in the year to 5 April 2025, according to the ONS Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings (ASHE): 15% less than the £39,039 median for all full-time jobs.
What the figures show
That puts it 228th of 382, in the middle third of occupations.
One in ten full-time jobs paid under £26,637; one in ten paid over £48,304.
Median full-time pay: women £31,861 a year, men £34,309 a year.
ASHE counts roughly 156,000 employee jobs, 85% full-time.
From £26,425 in 2021, the median is up 24.9%, close to the 25.0% for all jobs.
The Annual Population Survey counts 228,700 people in this line of work, 19% 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 | £26,637 | £512.70 | £13.80 | £18,825 | £399.30 | £13.48 |
| 20th percentile | £28,113 | £534.60 | £14.45 | £26,419 | £508.60 | £14.40 |
| 25th percentile | £29,021 | £558.40 | £15.10 | £27,228 | £514.60 | £14.64 |
| 30th percentile | £29,922 | £573.90 | £15.53 | £28,067 | £534.60 | £15.35 |
| 40th percentile | £31,200 | £589.60 | £15.93 | £30,165 | £574.90 | £15.74 |
| Median (50th percentile) | £33,000 | £636.90 | £17.37 | £31,363 | £598.10 | £16.71 |
| 60th percentile | £36,584 | £700.10 | £18.83 | £34,385 | £655.70 | £18.51 |
| 70th percentile | £39,960 | £758.20 | £20.37 | £38,220 | £723.10 | £19.92 |
| 75th percentile | £41,617 | £800.80 | £21.51 | £40,534 | £767.40 | £21.07 |
| 80th percentile | £43,458 | £839.70 | £22.81 | £41,964 | £813.50 | £22.47 |
| 90th percentile | £48,304 | £942.80 | £25.48 | £46,663 | £914.90 | £25.03 |
| Mean | £35,820 | £693.30 | £18.71 | £33,290 | £645.30 | £18.51 |
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 | £26,425 | £514.00 | £13.68 | £23,773 | £468.30 | 279 |
| 2022 revised | £27,710 | £528.30 | £14.14 | £25,466 | £498.60 | 202 |
| 2023 revised | £28,124 | £538.90 | £14.56 | £26,575 | £516.20 | 184 |
| 2024 revised | £30,886 | £566.70 | £15.28 | £28,912 | £565.40 | 184 |
| 2025 provisional | £33,000 | £636.90 | £17.37 | £31,363 | £598.10 | 156 |
National government administrative occupations by region
UK: 228,700 (± 18,600), April 2025 to March 2026. 3 of the 12 regions and nations have samples too small to publish.
| Region or nation | People in employment | 95% confidence interval |
|---|---|---|
| North West | 43,900 | ± 8,000 |
| Yorkshire and the Humber | 24,800* | ± 5,800 |
| Wales | 22,500 | ± 4,200 |
| Northern Ireland | 19,600* | ± 4,500 |
| Scotland | 19,100* | ± 5,000 |
| South East | 17,500* | ± 5,200 |
| West Midlands | 16,300* | ± 5,300 |
| South West | 13,400* | ± 4,200 |
| North East | 12,500* | ± 3,500 |
Annual Population Survey (Nomis)
What national government administrative occupations do
National government administrative occupations undertake a variety of administrative and clerical duties in national government departments, and in local offices of national government departments. (ONS SOC 2020, 4111)
Also covers: administrative assistant (courts of justice), administrative officer (government), civil servant (grades AA, AO & EO), clerk (government), revenue officer (government), adjudication officer, admin assistant, admin clerk, admin officer, administration assistant, administration clerk, administration officer, administrative assistant, administrative officer, appeals officer, assistant collector, assistant examiner and assistant inspector (158 titles in the ONS coding index).
- Assists senior government officers with policy work, external liaison or general administrative work
- Undertakes administrative duties specific to the operation of HM Revenue and Customs offices, Job Centres, Benefits Agency offices and other local offices of national government
- Maintains and updates correspondence, documents, data and other records for storage in files or on computer
- Classifies, sorts and files publications, correspondence etc. in offices and libraries
- Responds to telephone enquiries and other forms of correspondence
- Performs miscellaneous clerical tasks such as proof reading printed material, drafting letters, taking minutes etc
Entry is possible to junior grades within this group with GCSEs/S grades, and/or relevant practical experience higher grades require A levels/H grades or equivalent, although many entrants are graduates. NVQs/SVQs, apprenticeships and professional qualifications are available for certain areas of work.
Related
Administrative occupations: government and related organisations (median £32,084) · Local government administrative occupations · Officers of non-governmental organisations · salary percentile · UK average weekly earnings growth · Median
ASHE Table 14: 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025 · coding index · notes · 15 October 2026