Country edition: UK Beta
UK · Technology

Software engineer

You build apps, websites and systems. You can get in with a degree or an apprenticeship.

See the route Pay by region
Typical UK pay (median)£56,914Programmers and software development professionals, full time, per year
ONS
Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings (ASHE) 2025 provisional, tables 14 and 15Office for National Statistics (ONS)
Checked
9 Oct 2026

Medians for full-time employee jobs. ONS hides estimates it rates unreliable (CV over 20%).

View source
Top 10% earn over£102,860ONS ASHE 2025 (provisional)
Full-time jobs in the UK343,000Employees, rounded by ONS

How to get there

2 routes. University degree · Apprenticeship

University degree Degree

Subjects the National Careers Service lists: computer science, software engineering, IT, maths.

  1. School2 to 3 A levels

    Or equivalent.

    NCS
    Software developer — job profileNational Careers Service (GOV.UK)
    Checked
    9 Oct 2026
    View source

  2. DegreeComputer science or similar

    Software engineering, IT, maths and fintech also count.

    NCS
    Software developer — job profileNational Careers Service (GOV.UK)
    Checked
    9 Oct 2026
    View source

  3. GoalSoftware developer job

    NCS
    Software developer — job profileNational Careers Service (GOV.UK)
    Checked
    9 Oct 2026
    View source

Apprenticeship Work + study

You train on the job with an employer.

  1. Level 3Software Development Technician

    Advanced apprenticeship.

    NCS
    Software developer — job profileNational Careers Service (GOV.UK)
    Checked
    9 Oct 2026
    View source

  2. Level 4Software Developer

    Higher apprenticeship.

    NCS
    Software developer — job profileNational Careers Service (GOV.UK)
    Checked
    9 Oct 2026
    View source

  3. Level 6Digital and Technology Solutions Professional

    Degree apprenticeship: you finish with a degree.

    NCS
    Software developer — job profileNational Careers Service (GOV.UK)
    Checked
    9 Oct 2026
    View source

  4. GoalSoftware developer job

    NCS
    Software developer — job profileNational Careers Service (GOV.UK)
    Checked
    9 Oct 2026
    View source

At school

GCSEs (Years 10–11) and A levels (Years 12–13), or equivalents.

GCSEs
5 GCSEs at grades 9 to 4, including English and maths, for an advanced apprenticeship.
NCS
Software developer — job profileNational Careers Service (GOV.UK)
Checked
9 Oct 2026
View source
A levels
2 to 3 A levels for a degree; 1 or 2 for a foundation degree or HND.
NCS
Software developer — job profileNational Careers Service (GOV.UK)
Checked
9 Oct 2026
View source
UCAS points
An A* = 56 points. Many courses ask for grades instead of points.
UCAS
The new UCAS Tariff: ten things applicants need to knowUCAS
Checked
9 Oct 2026

An A* at A level is worth 56 Tariff points. Only about a third of courses use Tariff points in their entry requirements; most ask for grades.

View source

Pay by region

Pay is in pounds (£) per year, before tax, for full-time employees. ASHE counts employees only, so self-employed people (most barristers, many contractors) are not in these figures.

Programmers and software development professionals SOC 2134

  • UK median £56,914
  • Bottom 25% under £42,289
  • Top 25% over £75,794
Programmers and software development professionals: median full-time pay by UK region, highest first
Region (where people work)Median payJobsHow exact
London£75,29694,000Good
East£60,98927,000Good
North East£56,340—Rough estimate
South West£53,43824,000Good
South East£52,79852,000Good
North West£50,33637,000Good
East Midlands£49,68519,000Good
West Midlands£49,08119,000Good
Scotland£48,93020,000Rough estimate
Wales£48,346—Rough estimate
Yorkshire and The Humber£47,90824,000Rough estimate

Regions where ONS did not publish a reliable figure are left out. "Rough estimate" = ONS rates it CV 10–20%: use it with care.

ONS
ASHE 2025 provisional, table 15: work region by occupation (4-digit SOC 2020)Office for National Statistics (ONS)
Checked
9 Oct 2026

A region is listed only where ONS published a median for that job.

View source

Starting vs experienced (National Careers Service)

  • Software developer: starter £30,000 · experienced £75,000
    NCS
    Software developer — job profileNational Careers Service (GOV.UK)
    Checked
    9 Oct 2026
    View source
Pay: ONS ASHE 2025 (provisional), tables 14 and 15, full-time employees. Routes and rules: the official sites linked on each row, checked 9 Oct 2026. Education Margdarshan does not rank universities or recommend paid courses.