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Civil Service salary bands and pay scales 2026 (every grade)

Facts last checked 2 October 2026 · Independent guide, not official advice

Civil Service pay depends on your grade, your department and where you work. Below the Senior Civil Service, each department sets its own pay ranges, so the same grade can pay differently in different places. The salary for every job is shown in its advert.

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The Civil Service grades

From most junior to most senior, the main grades are:

Grade	What it typically involves
Administrative Assistant (AA) / Administrative Officer (AO)	Entry-level and junior roles, usually administrative support or operational delivery. Entry by direct application or apprenticeship.
Executive Officer (EO)	Junior management roles in a team, working under the direction of a team leader.
Higher Executive Officer (HEO)	Middle management: project managers and team leaders. Fast Stream trainees are at this grade.
Senior Executive Officer (SEO)	Mid-level management, often managing teams and projects; may draft briefings for ministers.
Grade 7	Senior manager handling complex work; usually needs several years' experience.
Grade 6	Very senior manager giving expert advice and accountable for delivering a programme of work.
Senior Civil Service (SCS)	Four pay bands: Deputy Director (SCS1), Director (SCS2), Director General (SCS3) and Permanent Secretary (SCS4).

Some jobs, such as many prison and operational roles, use their own pay bands instead.

From live adverts · 11 October 2026

What live adverts are paying. Typical advertised salary by grade, across 1,063 current adverts that list a single grade:

Grade	Middle half of adverts	Median	Adverts
Administrative Assistant	£30,500	£30,500	20
Administrative Officer	£28,000 – £34,900	£34,900	164
Executive Officer	£30,700 – £34,400	£32,100	165
Higher Executive Officer	£36,600 – £41,400	£38,300	193
Senior Executive Officer	£45,900 – £50,000	£47,500	226
Grade 7	£59,800 – £65,600	£62,700	179
Grade 6	£75,000 – £78,700	£75,600	65
SCS Pay Band 1	£86,000 – £101,900	£94,000	38
SCS Pay Band 2	£110,600 – £140,600	£134,400	10
SCS Pay Band 3	£142,500 – £174,500	£150,000	3

Uses the midpoint of each advert's salary range, rounded to the nearest £100. Includes London and national roles. These are advertised salaries, not what current staff earn. Grades with fewer than three adverts are left out.

Who sets Civil Service pay?

Below the Senior Civil Service, departments and agencies have delegated authority to decide pay and conditions for their staff, within a framework set by the government each year. For 2026/27, the guidance caps the increase in each department's pay bill at a maximum of 3.5%. That's a budget limit, not a guaranteed pay rise for every individual: departments decide how to target it.

Senior Civil Service pay is set centrally, following recommendations from the Senior Salaries Review Body. For 2026/27, SCS members received a 2.5% increase to base pay from 1 April 2026.

Senior Civil Service pay bands (2026/27)

Pay band	Minimum	Maximum
Pay Band 1 (Deputy Director)	£86,000	£117,800
Pay Band 1A	£86,000	£128,900
Pay Band 2 (Director)	£105,000	£162,500
Pay Band 3 (Director General)	£135,000	£208,100

Departments must not recruit new staff into Pay Band 1A. Permanent Secretary (Pay Band 4) pay is set individually, based on the role, and has no published band.

London and national pay

Many departments pay more for roles based in London. For example, the Department for Transport publishes separate London and national pay for each grade. There's no single Civil Service-wide London weighting, so check the salary in the specific advert.

Average Civil Service salary

Official Civil Service Statistics put the median salary at £37,820 (31 March 2026), with 75.5% of civil servants at Executive Officer grade or above. The Institute for Government notes that pay differs substantially between departments.

Graduate and early-career pay

The Civil Service Fast Stream currently starts on £31,554, with the potential to reach about £45,000 to £55,000 after the programme. See the Fast Stream guide. Apprenticeships are also available from age 16.

Pay is only part of the package. Employers also contribute 28.97% of pay to the alpha pension: try our Civil Service pension calculator. Adverts also list leave and flexible working. See types of Civil Service jobs for where the vacancies are.

Sources

Rules and pay change. Always check the official source and the job advert. This guide is general information, not legal, careers or immigration advice. Found a mistake? Tell us.