Which UK Police Force Pays the Most?

Take-home: 2026/27 income tax, National Insurance and the member pension contribution, no student loan or other deductions. BTP, CNC and PSNI pension rates are assumed (see take-home pay). England and Wales points are the official 2025/26 figures plus 3.5%, rounded to the pound; some adverts show £1 more.

Regional job pages list the forces in each area and whether they are recruiting: start from police jobs in England and Wales. In Wales all four forces (Dyfed-Powys, Gwent, North Wales and South Wales) pay the national scale with no location payment.

Why the Met tops the table

Three payments stack up for a new Met constable. Each one is set out below for 2026/27.

• Point 2, not point 1. Since 1 April 2025 a chief officer can assign all new constables to point 2 to meet local recruitment needs (Annex F, Circular 003/2025). The Met's release of 12 October 2026 promises "a starting salary of more than £43,000". On point 1 a Met recruit would get £42,334, below that figure, so the Met is using point 2. That is worth £1,354 a year.
• London Weighting. Part of pay for every officer in the Met and City of London, so it counts towards your pension.
• London Allowance. A separate allowance with a national maximum of £6,819. The Commissioner sets the rate up to that figure. It is not pensionable.

The Met also has the largest intake of any force. For the routes, the stages and its own final interview, read how to join the Met Police and check whether it is recruiting on your route on Met Police jobs.

City of London Police pays the same London Weighting and can pay the same London Allowance. We have not seen it confirm whether it starts recruits on point 1 or point 2, so we show it on point 1 (£42,334). If it uses point 2, it would match the Met.

On basic pay alone, Police Scotland's top point (£54,597) ranks 1st of 48, ahead of the England and Wales point 7 (£52,015). Years to the top assume one pay point a year with satisfactory performance. In England and Wales that is six years from point 1 or five from point 2.

The PSNI: the transitional allowance

PSNI officer pay is recommended by the Police Remuneration Review Body under a separate Northern Ireland remit. Student officers appointed after 1 September 2025 start on point 1, £31,163 and every officer also receives the Northern Ireland Transitional Allowance, £4,283 from 1 September 2025. Together that is £35,446, which is why the PSNI describes the starting package as over £35k.

These are 2025/26 figures. The Department of Justice asked the PRRB for a 2026/27 PSNI recommendation in February 2026 and no 2026/27 PSNI award had been published when we checked on 21 October 2026. Expect the figures to rise when it is. The PSNI recruits in campaigns; read how to join the PSNI.

Because the dates differ, the gap between nations moves during the year. Police Scotland's rise lands in April and England and Wales's in September, so for five months each year Scotland is a full award ahead. For how the England and Wales process works, see how the police pay award is decided and the 2026/27 police pay rise.

• Pension contributions. Officers in the England and Wales police scheme pay 12.88% of pensionable pay at this level (from 1 April 2026). MOD Police officers are in the Civil Service alpha scheme at 4.6%. That alone is worth well over £100 a month in take-home at the start, though the police scheme builds a bigger pension.
• CNC and PSNI rates. CNC officers pay 8.2% into the UKAEA Combined Pension Scheme (due to move to alpha; the date has been delayed). PSNI officers pay 13.66% under £60,000 into the Police Pension Scheme (NI) 2015, on basic pay only: the Northern Ireland Transitional Allowance is taxable but not pensionable.
• What we assumed. BTP officers are in the CARE section of the BTP Force Superannuation Fund, which does not publish its member rate, so BTP is estimated at the England and Wales police rates. BTP pays every four weeks, so its monthly figure is an equivalent, not a payslip.
• Non-pensionable allowances. The London Allowance and South East Allowance carry no pension contribution, so more of each pound reaches your account than of basic pay.

Your own figure depends on your student loan, Federation subscription and any overtime. The police salary calculator works it out for England and Wales and the Police Scotland salary calculator for Scotland.

Allowances are maxima

Every figure above that says "up to" includes an allowance at its maximum rate. Only London Weighting is paid at a fixed national rate.

• South East Allowance, higher rate (up to £3,105): Essex Police, Hertfordshire Constabulary, Kent Police, Surrey Police and Thames Valley Police.
• South East Allowance, lower rate (up to £2,070): Bedfordshire Police, Hampshire and Isle of Wight Constabulary and Sussex Police.
• London Allowance (up to £6,819): the Met and City of London Police.
• Kent and Essex: the PRRB's 2026 report (para 4.146) recorded evidence from the NPCC that these forces no longer pay the full South East Allowance. Their real figure is likely to be below £35,360.

The 2026/27 South East rates (£3,105 and £2,070) are confirmed by Thames Valley Police's own pay page and by Police Now's Hampshire and Isle of Wight job description, which gives £34,326: point 1 (£32,256 in the Home Office's rounding) plus £2,070. On our data, rounded to the pound, Hampshire is up to £34,325. The details are in London Weighting and the South East Allowance explained.

Five pay questions to ask a force

Adverts often give a single starting figure. These questions get you the rest and a recruitment team or a Federation rep can usually answer them.

1. Which pay point do new recruits start on? Point 1 is £32,255 and point 2 is £33,609. Since April 2025 a force can choose point 2 for all recruits.
2. Does the starting figure include an allowance? If so, which one and is it paid at the full rate? London and South East allowances are set locally up to a maximum.
3. Does the allowance change if I am posted elsewhere? This matters for BTP, the CNC and MOD Police, where allowances follow the station or site.
4. When does my first increment come? Usually a year after appointment. Separately, the 2026/27 rates apply from 1 September 2026.
5. Which pension scheme will I join and what will I pay? The answer changes your take-home by more than many allowances do.

If you are applying to a force in England and Wales, the next hurdle after choosing is the same everywhere: the National Sift. Read police starting salary by force 2026 for the point 1 and point 2 detail, then plan your application.

What is not included

• Overtime, unsocial hours and on-call pay. They vary by role and shift pattern, not by force.
• Site-specific CNC and MOD Police allowances beyond London pay, such as the Garlogie location allowance or priority posting allowances.
• Police Scotland Islands Allowances, which apply on some islands only.
• Point 2 starts we have not confirmed. Only the Met (from its own figure) and BTP (from its advert) are shown on point 2. City of London Police and every other force are shown on point 1. If a force tells you it starts recruits on point 2, add £1,354.
• The PSNI's 2026/27 award, not published on 21 October 2026.
• BTP's pension member rate, which the BTP Force Superannuation Fund does not publish; BTP's take-home figure is an estimate.

Frequently asked questions