Responsibilities
Dispense medicines where the post involves pharmacy, hospital or GP-practice work. · Give advice about prescriptions, drug dosages, risks, and medication storage and use.
Official pay data
Pharmacy salary guide
Updated 15 October 2026
Salary guide
What pharmacy roles pay
Official annual estimates for the whole country, mapped to the closest published occupation.
United Kingdom · gross annual earnings estimate
25th percentile
£44,891
Median
£53,772
75th percentile
£62,344
This ASHE benchmark covers full-time employee jobs, not self-employed income or part-time jobs. ASHE gross earnings include basic pay, overtime, incentive pay such as bonuses and commissions, shift premiums, and other cash pay. They are before deductions, exclude payments in kind, and are not take-home pay or the whole benefits package. Compare the benchmark with an offer on the same working-hours and annual-pay basis.
This is a country-level occupation benchmark, not a local offer estimate. Pay can differ by location, employer, duties, and working pattern.
Source: ONS, 2025-04-30. Mapped to Pharmacists; the occupation is broader than the page role. Figures are estimates, not advertised salaries.
Quick interpretation
This Pharmacy guide uses the national benchmark for Pharmacists. It is a useful comparison for pharmacist employee roles because pharmacists may dispense medicines and advise on prescriptions, dosages, risks and medication use. The benchmark is broader than a hospital-only job description, so match an offer against its actual setting and duties.
Benchmark fit
Why this benchmark applies to Pharmacy
The national benchmark is for Pharmacists (2251) in full-time employee jobs. It fits a Pharmacy guide when the role is a pharmacist post, but it does not turn every pharmacy-related job into an equivalent pharmacist role.
Overlapping responsibilities
- A pharmacist may dispense medicines in a pharmacy, hospital or GP practice.
- A pharmacist may advise on prescriptions, dosages, risks, and how to use and store medication.
What the occupation combines
- The benchmark covers the occupation titled Pharmacists, rather than a single pharmacy setting.
Hospital pharmacist information applies to hospital pharmacy and does not establish the full scope of every pharmacist role, including community and industrial settings.
Role scope
What Pharmacy work usually includes
Pharmacist work can include supplying medicines and giving people information about their prescriptions and medication use.
Typical outputs
Dispensed medicines where this forms part of the pharmacist's post. · Clear guidance on prescriptions, dosages, risks, and the safe use and storage of medication.
Work settings
Pharmacies · Hospitals · GP practices
Hospital pharmacist
A hospital pharmacist profile describes hospital pharmacy work; it does not define every pharmacist role across the UK.
Read the range
Three points, one pay distribution
When comparing pharmacist offers, read the job description first: a post centred on dispensing medicines and medication advice can be compared with the national pharmacist benchmark, while a hospital-specific description should not be treated as the standard scope for every pharmacist role.
25th percentile
One quarter of employees earn below this figure.
Median
Half of employees earn below this figure and half above it; it is not the arithmetic midpoint of the displayed range.
75th percentile
One quarter of employees earn above this figure.
Location
Regional salary benchmarks
Supplementary regional medians are available for selected UK regions, including London, Scotland, Wales and English regions.
| Region | 25th percentile | Median | 75th percentile |
|---|---|---|---|
| East | Not published | £59,928 | Not published |
| East Midlands | Not published | £52,145 | Not published |
| London | Not published | £56,451 | Not published |
| North East | Not published | £48,841 | Not published |
| North West | Not published | £54,178 | Not published |
| Scotland | Not published | £62,325 | Not published |
| South East | Not published | £45,801 | Not published |
| South West | Not published | £44,254 | Not published |
| Wales | Not published | £53,260 | Not published |
| West Midlands | Not published | £56,855 | Not published |
| Yorkshire and The Humber | Not published | £48,886 | Not published |
Use the national benchmark as a comparison point, not a local offer estimate: pay can differ by location, employer, duties and working pattern.
Beyond salary
Salary versus total compensation
Compare the offer on the same annual-pay and working-hours basis as the benchmark. Establish what is fixed pay, which cash payments depend on overtime, shifts, commission or bonuses, and which benefits sit outside cash pay.
Basic pay and conditional cash payments
Ask whether the stated figure is basic pay and whether overtime, incentive pay, shift premiums or other cash pay are conditional, guaranteed, or separate.
Working hours and annual pay basis
Compare hours, contract pattern and annual pay on the same basis before judging how an offer sits against the benchmark.
Benefits and deductions
Check pension, health cover, leave and any equity terms separately if offered. Gross earnings are before deductions and do not represent take-home pay or the full benefits package.
Offer review
How to evaluate your Pharmacy offer
- Confirm whether the quoted figure is annual gross pay and what working hours it covers.A like-for-like comparison needs the same working-hours and annual-pay basis.
- Ask which overtime, shift premiums, bonuses, commission or other cash payments are included in the figure.The benchmark's gross earnings can include these cash payments as well as basic pay.
- Request the terms of any pension, health cover, leave or equity separately.Payments in kind and the wider benefits package are not the same as gross earnings.
- Check whether the post is a pharmacist role and which setting and duties it covers.The benchmark is for Pharmacists, while dispensing and medication-advice work may take place in a pharmacy, hospital or GP practice.
Questions
Pharmacy salary FAQs
Source
About this salary benchmark
Source: ONS, 2025-04-30. The figures cover Pharmacists (2251) and full time employee jobs. Updated 15 October 2026. This broad occupation benchmark may not match every Pharmacy vacancy.
Put the benchmark to work
Build your Pharmacy CV for the roles you want.
Use the salary range as context. Tailor your CV around the experience that supports your target level.