Police Pay UK:
Salary & Earnings

Police pay is not a single figure, but a complex intersection of national pay scales, regional modifiers, and performance-based increments.

For a Police Constable in the United Kingdom, the core financial journey is defined by seven pay increments. A new recruit typically enters at approximately £29,907, progressing annually until they reach the top tier of £48,231. This "headline" salary, however, is rarely the whole story. In many metropolitan forces, allowances such as London Weighting (£3,144) can significantly boost gross income, ensuring officers in high-cost areas can maintain a standard of living.

The backbone of modern policing flexibility is overtime. Regulated by Regulation 26, overtime multipliers—ranging from 1.33x for extensions of duty to 2.0x for public holiday recalls—provide essential financial flexibility for officers willing to work beyond their rostered shifts. Yet, for many, this extra income feels heavily diminished by higher marginal tax rates and significant pension deductions, which currently sit between 12.44% and 13.44% for most serving officers.

Furthermore, the economic context of policing has shifted dramatically. Our real-terms analysis shows that while recent pay awards—like the 4.2% increase for 2025/26—are welcome, they follow over a decade of pay freezes and caps that have left purchasing power well below 2010 levels. This erosion directly impacts mortgage affordability, making entry-level property ownership a significant challenge for new joiners in the South East.

Each year, the Police Remuneration Review Body (PRRB) performs an annual assessment, balancing force recruitment needs against public spending constraints. This editorial hub provides the data, tools, and regulation-based context needed to understand the mechanics of this process and more importantly, exactly how much money lands in your bank account every month.