Planning, process and production technicians: average salary and pay in the UK
Full-time planning, process and production technicians in the UK earned a median £36,895 in the year to 5 April 2025, according to the ONS Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings (ASHE): £2,144 below the all-jobs median of £39,039.
What the figures show
That puts it 171st of 382, in the middle third of occupations.
Median full-time pay: women £34,423 a year, men £38,454 a year.
ASHE counts roughly 57,000 employee jobs, 95% full-time.
Since 2021 it has risen 18.2%, from £31,218, slower than the 25.0% for all jobs.
The Annual Population Survey counts 22,500 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 | £26,494 | £534.30 | £13.66 | £24,792 | £512.50 | £13.60 |
| 20th percentile | £28,646 | £581.40 | £14.90 | £28,027 | £574.90 | £14.82 |
| 25th percentile | £30,081 | £606.20 | £15.59 | £29,067 | £592.10 | £15.54 |
| 30th percentile | £31,346 | £631.20 | £16.12 | £30,259 | £612.50 | £15.99 |
| 40th percentile | £34,605 | £679.30 | £17.37 | £34,110 | £663.10 | £17.30 |
| Median (50th percentile) | £36,895 | £726.80 | £18.85 | £36,062 | £716.90 | £18.76 |
| 60th percentile | £40,468 | £786.50 | £19.98 | £39,784 | £781.00 | £19.95 |
| 70th percentile | £43,498 | £851.10 | £21.45 | £43,108 | £838.50 | £21.41 |
| 75th percentile | – | £904.20 | £22.46 | – | £887.70 | £22.31 |
| 80th percentile | – | £984.00 | £23.98 | – | £969.60 | £23.81 |
| Mean | £41,245 | £795.40 | £20.08 | £40,542 | £777.60 | £20.04 |
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 | £31,218 | £615.50 | £15.37 | £30,741 | £614.70 | 47 |
| 2022 revised | £31,519 | £602.30 | £15.66 | £31,053 | £598.10 | 50 |
| 2023 revised | £34,352 | £681.50 | £17.32 | £34,234 | £675.80 | 57 |
| 2024 revised | £34,796 | £694.00 | £17.08 | £33,890 | £689.70 | 52 |
| 2025 provisional | £36,895 | £726.80 | £18.85 | £36,062 | £716.90 | 57 |
Planning, process and production technicians by region
UK: 22,500 (± 5,800), April 2025 to March 2026.
Annual Population Survey (Nomis)
What planning, process and production technicians do
Planning, process and production technicians perform a variety of technical support functions to assist production, process and planning engineers with production programmes and schedules and with manufacturing and processing procedures in order to ensure accuracy, cost-effectiveness and efficiency (ONS SOC 2020, 3116)
Also covers: process technician, production controller, production planner, production technician, maintenance planner, scheduling technician, technical controller and textile dyeing technician.
- Supports planning and production engineers in assessing existing and alternative production methods
- Works from, and helps implement, professional engineers’ drawings and specifications for equipment and layout, and helps implement modifications required for existing plant machinery/layout
- Works with engineers on production control methods to monitor operational efficiency and helps to eliminate potential hazards and bottlenecks in production
- Liaises with materials buying, storing and controlling departments to ensure a steady flow of supplies
- Supports professional engineers in reviewing safety, quality, accuracy, reliability and contractual requirements
- Supports implementation of plans of sequence of operations and completion dates for each phase of production or processing
Entrants to training usually possess GCSEs/S grades. Vocational training consists either of full-time study for a BTEC/SQA National award followed by two years on-the-job training, or an apprenticeship leading to an NVQ/SVQ at level 3.
Related
Science, engineering and production technicians (median £36,163) · Quality assurance technicians · Building and civil engineering technicians · salary percentile · UK average weekly earnings growth · Median
ASHE Table 14: 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025 · coding index · notes · 15 October 2026