How Much Do Tech Jobs Actually Pay in London in 2026?
London tech compensation kept climbing through 2025 and into 2026, driven by FAANG expansion, post-Brexit talent competition, and a clutch of significant scale-up funding rounds. London still trails US tech hubs (San Francisco, Seattle, New York) on absolute base salary, but the gap has narrowed sharply over the past three years, particularly at the senior and staff levels at top-tier employers. A senior engineer at Stripe London now reasonably earns within 15% of their San Francisco counterpart on total comp, once you adjust for tax. That wasn't true in 2022.
This guide gives realistic 2026 salary bands across software engineering, data science, and product management roles in London. Numbers are total compensation (base + cash bonus + equity at typical vesting rates) unless stated otherwise.
Related reading: How to Get a Job in the UK in 2026: The Complete Guide · UK CV vs American Resume: Key Differences Every Job Seeker Must Know · Top UK Graduate Schemes 2026: Best Programmes for International and Domestic Graduates.
Software Engineering Salaries in London 2026
FAANG and US Tech Companies (London Offices)
| Level | Base salary | Total comp (incl. Equity) |
|---|---|---|
| Junior / L3 (0–2 yrs) | £75,000 – £105,000 | £90,000 – £140,000 |
| Mid / L4 (3–5 yrs) | £100,000 – £140,000 | £140,000 – £210,000 |
| Senior / L5 (5–8 yrs) | £135,000 – £180,000 | £200,000 – £320,000 |
| Staff / L6 (8–12 yrs) | £170,000 – £230,000 | £300,000 – £500,000+ |
| Principal / L7+ (12+ yrs) | £200,000+ | £450,000 – £900,000+ |
Companies in this band: Google, Meta, Amazon, Apple, Microsoft, Stripe, Datadog, Snowflake, Databricks, Bloomberg, Palantir, ByteDance.
UK and European Tech Scale-ups
| Level | Base salary | Total comp (incl. Equity) |
|---|---|---|
| Junior | £55,000 – £75,000 | £60,000 – £90,000 |
| Mid | £75,000 – £100,000 | £85,000 – £130,000 |
| Senior | £100,000 – £140,000 | £120,000 – £180,000 |
| Staff | £140,000 – £180,000 | £170,000 – £250,000 |
Companies in this band: Monzo, Revolut, Wise, Starling, Octopus Energy, Cleo, Onfido, Improbable, Darktrace, Quantexa, Multiverse, Genomics England.
Investment Banks and Hedge Funds (Tech Roles)
| Level | Base salary | Total comp (incl. Bonus) |
|---|---|---|
| Junior | £70,000 – £95,000 | £90,000 – £140,000 |
| Mid | £100,000 – £140,000 | £150,000 – £250,000 |
| Senior / VP | £140,000 – £200,000 | £250,000 – £450,000 |
| Director / MD | £200,000 – £300,000 | £500,000 – £1,500,000+ |
Companies in this band: Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan, Morgan Stanley, Citi, Two Sigma, Citadel, Jane Street, Optiver, Jump Trading, G-Research.
Traditional Enterprises (Banks, Telcos, Retailers)
| Level | Base salary | Total comp |
|---|---|---|
| Junior | £40,000 – £55,000 | £42,000 – £58,000 |
| Mid | £55,000 – £80,000 | £58,000 – £88,000 |
| Senior | £80,000 – £110,000 | £88,000 – £125,000 |
| Lead / Principal | £110,000 – £150,000 | £125,000 – £170,000 |
Companies in this band: HSBC UK Tech, Barclays Tech, Lloyds Tech, BT, Vodafone, Tesco Tech, M&S Tech, NHS Digital.
Data Science and Machine Learning Salaries in London 2026
- Junior Data Scientist (FAANG): £85,000–£110,000 base + equity = £100,000–£150,000 total
- Mid Data Scientist (FAANG): £115,000–£150,000 base = £160,000–£230,000 total
- Senior Data Scientist (FAANG): £140,000–£190,000 base = £230,000–£350,000 total
- ML Engineer (top scale-up): £100,000–£160,000 base = £130,000–£220,000 total
- Quant Researcher (top hedge fund): £150,000–£250,000 base + £200,000–£600,000 bonus
- AI Research Scientist (DeepMind, Anthropic, Meta FAIR): £180,000–£350,000 base + £200,000–£700,000 equity
Product Management Salaries in London 2026
- Associate PM (FAANG): £80,000–£105,000 base = £100,000–£140,000 total
- PM (FAANG): £110,000–£150,000 base = £160,000–£240,000 total
- Senior PM (FAANG): £140,000–£190,000 base = £230,000–£380,000 total
- Principal PM (FAANG): £180,000–£250,000 base = £350,000–£600,000 total
- PM at top UK scale-ups (Monzo, Revolut, Wise): £80,000–£140,000 base + significant equity
- PM at traditional UK enterprises: £55,000–£100,000 base, minimal equity
