Answers · UK 2025/26

What is a solicitor's salary and take-home pay in the UK?

UK solicitors outside London typically earn around £50,000 to £60,000 once qualified, though City firms pay significantly more. On a representative £57,000 salary in 2026/27, take-home pay after Income Tax (£10,232) and National Insurance (£3,150.60) is £43,617.40 a year, or about £3,634.78 a month.

Last updated: 3 July 2026Last reviewed: 3 July 2026How we verify

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Solicitor salaries in the UK vary enormously depending on firm size, location and area of practice, from newly qualified solicitors at regional high street firms earning around £35,000 to £45,000, through mid-sized commercial firm salaries in the high £50,000s to £70,000s, up to City of London and Magic Circle newly qualified salaries that can exceed £100,000. Taking a representative regional or national firm salary of £57,000 for 2026/27: taxable income after the £12,570 Personal Allowance is £44,430, with £37,700 taxed at 20% (£7,540) and the remaining £6,730 at 40% (£2,692), giving total Income Tax of £10,232. National Insurance is 8% up to the £50,270 Upper Earnings Limit (£3,016) plus 2% on the £6,730 above it (£134.60), totalling £3,150.60. Combined deductions of £13,382.60 leave £43,617.40 take-home a year, around £3,634.78 a month. Many solicitors, particularly those working in-house or for smaller firms, also receive a workplace pension via salary sacrifice, which would reduce this take-home figure further but build retirement savings tax-efficiently at the 40% marginal rate. Solicitors qualifying through the Solicitors Qualifying Examination (SQE) route and working during their qualifying work experience are taxed as ordinary employees on whatever salary their employer pays, which can be considerably below the figures typical of a newly qualified role.