Occupational therapists: average salary and pay in the UK
Full-time occupational therapists in the UK earned a median £44,040 in the year to 5 April 2025, according to the ONS Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings (ASHE): £5,001 above the all-jobs median of £39,039.
What the figures show
That ranks 102nd of 382 occupations on this measure.
The middle half of full-time jobs paid between £36,615 and £49,167.
Median full-time pay: women £42,525 a year, men £48,203 a year.
About 63% of the roughly 49,000 employee jobs are full-time.
Since 2021 the median has risen 30.8% (from £33,676), faster than the 25.0% for all jobs.
The Annual Population Survey counts 56,000 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10th percentile | £31,395 | £601.00 | £16.04 | £22,400 | £453.00 | £16.53 |
| 20th percentile | £34,822 | £699.20 | £18.72 | £26,992 | £550.30 | £19.09 |
| 25th percentile | £36,615 | £715.60 | £19.09 | £29,424 | £574.40 | £20.15 |
| 30th percentile | £37,235 | £727.50 | £19.76 | £30,970 | £607.20 | £20.50 |
| 40th percentile | £39,665 | £763.20 | £20.88 | £33,931 | £689.40 | £22.66 |
| Median (50th percentile) | £44,040 | £856.00 | £22.99 | £37,201 | £733.00 | £23.05 |
| 60th percentile | £45,995 | £868.70 | £23.60 | £41,121 | £780.10 | £23.77 |
| 70th percentile | £48,216 | £925.90 | £24.81 | £45,099 | £861.70 | £24.96 |
| 75th percentile | £49,167 | £935.50 | £25.21 | £46,309 | £874.60 | £25.66 |
| 80th percentile | £50,633 | £993.10 | £26.62 | £48,242 | £926.60 | £26.89 |
| Mean | £43,164 | £832.90 | £22.48 | £37,503 | £730.20 | £22.83 |
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 | £33,676 | £688.50 | £19.29 | £28,974 | £601.10 | 37 |
| 2022 revised | £34,571 | £711.20 | £19.27 | £30,671 | £632.60 | 38 |
| 2023 revised | £37,356 | £777.90 | £20.76 | £33,131 | £655.90 | 42 |
| 2024 revised | £40,147 | £796.30 | £21.78 | £35,727 | £690.10 | 43 |
| 2025 provisional | £44,040 | £856.00 | £22.99 | £37,201 | £733.00 | 49 |
Occupational therapists by region
UK: 56,000 (± 9,200), April 2025 to March 2026.
Annual Population Survey (Nomis)
What occupational therapists do
Occupational therapists work with people who have a physical or learning disability or mental illness, actively engaging them in purposeful activities in order to maximise self-confidence, independent functioning and well-being. (ONS SOC 2020, 2222)
Also covers: community occupational therapist, occupational therapist and paediatric occupational therapist.
- Considers the physical, psychological and social needs of a patient that may result from illness, injury, congenital condition or lifestyle problems
- Devises, designs, initiates and monitors carefully selected and graded treatments and activities as part of the assessment and intervention process
- Liaises with a wide variety of other professionals in planning and reviewing ongoing treatments
- Trains students and supervises the work of occupational therapy assistants
- Makes home visits to clients, families and carers to organise support and rehabilitation and assist them to deal and cope with disability
- Counsels clients in ways to promote a healthy lifestyle, prevention of illness and/or preparation for coping with increasing stages of illness
Entrants usually possess A levels/H grades, an HND/HNC, a BTEC/SQA award or equivalent qualifications followed by training on an approved degree scheme necessary for state registration as an occupational therapist. There is a minimum age limit of 18 years to enter training.
Related
Therapy professionals (median £43,240) · Physiotherapists · Speech and language therapists · salary percentile · UK average weekly earnings growth · Median
ASHE Table 14: 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025 · coding index · notes · 15 October 2026