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Average Product Development Engineer Salary in United Kingdom for 2026

A product development engineer in United Kingdom earns about 66,400 GBP a year. That's 5% roughly in line with the national average of 69,700 GBP.

Pay ranges widely from country to country and from role to role. The lowest reported salaries in United Kingdom sit around 33,300 GBP a year, while the very top stretches to 105,800 GBP. Everything on this page is in British pound (GBP, symbol £), which lets you compare numbers like-for-like without worrying about exchange rates.

The numbers here are pulled together from official government wage data, large independent salary surveys, and aggregated worker-reported pay. Most reported salaries include the benefits that are common in United Kingdom, such as housing or transport allowances, which is worth keeping in mind if you're comparing against a country where those are usually paid on top.

To turn a gross salary in United Kingdom into a take-home figure, use our United Kingdom salary after tax calculator, which works the latest tax brackets and contributions through the math for you.

How much does a product development engineer make in United Kingdom?

Average salary
66,400 GBP
5,533 GBP per month
Lowest reported
33,300 GBP
2,775 GBP per month
Highest reported
105,800 GBP
8,816 GBP per month

A typical product development engineer working in United Kingdom brings home around 5,533 GBP a month before tax. Entry-level pay starts near 33,300 GBP, and the top of the ladder reaches roughly 105,800 GBP for the most experienced and specialised people in the role.

The wide gap between low end and top end reflects how much pay can vary inside the same job title. A junior product development engineer working at a small local employer earns very different money from a senior at a multinational. Skills, employer, city and years in the seat all push the number around. For a cross-country comparison, see the product development engineer salary in Guernsey or Jersey, both of which pay in the same currency.

How product development engineer pay ranges in United Kingdom

A good way to think about salary in United Kingdom is to look at the distribution rather than the headline average. Half of all product development engineers in United Kingdom earn less than 68,400 GBP a year, and the other half earn more. That middle number is the median, and it is usually more useful than the average for answering "is my pay normal here".

Looking at the quartiles fills in the picture. A quarter of earners take home less than 46,400 GBP (the 25th percentile), and a quarter clear 87,900 GBP (the 75th percentile). The middle 50% of product development engineers sit somewhere inside that band, which is where the typical reader of this page probably lives.

The very lowest reported salaries sit around 33,300 GBP. The highest stretch to 105,800 GBP, though only a small fraction of earners ever reach that level. If you are deciding whether your own offer or current pay is reasonable, work out which of those four bands you would fall into and use that as your reference point.

33,300
Low
68,400
Median
105,800
High
46,400
25th
87,900
75th
The middle 50% sit between the 25th and 75th percentile Tails are the lowest and highest reported All figures in GBP

Product development engineer pay by experience in United Kingdom

Years of experience is the single biggest lever on pay for a product development engineer in United Kingdom, ahead of education and almost any other single factor. The longer you have been in the role, the more your employer can trust you to handle complexity, mentor others and act independently, all of which command higher pay. The chart below shows how the typical product development engineer salary changes as you move through the career ladder.

  • 0-2 Years
    40,900 GBP
  • 2-5 Years
    +26% from previous
    51,600 GBP
  • 5-10 Years
    +38% from previous
    71,200 GBP
  • 10-15 Years
    +23% from previous
    87,400 GBP
  • 15-20 Years
    +5% from previous
    91,600 GBP
  • 20+ Years
    +9% from previous
    100,200 GBP

The single largest jump on the ladder is from 2 - 5 Years to 5 - 10 Years, where pay rises by about 38%. That is the point at which a product development engineer typically goes from "competent in the role" to "the person other people in the team learn from", and the market pays well for that step.

Product development engineer pay by education in United Kingdom

Education sits alongside experience as one of the biggest factors driving product development engineer pay in United Kingdom. Higher qualifications consistently pull higher salaries, but the size of the gap tends to be smallest at junior levels and widens as people move up. Two people in the same role with the same years of experience but different degrees can end up earning very different money once they reach mid-career.

Below is the average product development engineer salary in United Kingdom broken down by the highest level of education a worker has completed.

  • Bachelor's Degree
    49,400 GBP
  • Master's Degree
    +62% from previous
    80,200 GBP

Product development engineer gender pay gap in United Kingdom

The gender pay gap is a stubborn feature of almost every labour market, and United Kingdom is no exception. Male product development engineers in United Kingdom earn an average of 68,500 GBP a year, while female product development engineers earn around 66,700 GBP. That works out to a 3% gap in favour of men, even when comparing people doing the same work.

A pay gap of this size has a real long-term cost. Over a typical thirty-year career it can add up to several years of pay, and it compounds through pensions, retirement contributions and bonus-linked stock. Some of the gap is explained by women being more likely to work part-time, take career breaks, or be steered toward lower-paying specialisations. Some of it is straightforward unequal pay for the same job, which is harder to defend.

Product Development Engineer gender pay gap

3%

Men earn this much more than women on average in United Kingdom.

Men 68,500 GBP
Women 66,700 GBP

Pay raises for a product development engineer in United Kingdom

Most countries hand out at least some kind of pay raise every year, typically when an employee's contract is reviewed or as a cost-of-living adjustment to keep wages roughly in step with inflation. The rhythm and size of those raises varies hugely between industries.

A typical worker doing this role in United Kingdom sees a raise of about 12% every 16 months, which works out to roughly 9% on an annual basis. That figure is the typical underlying rate; in years where inflation runs high you can usually expect a bit more, and in flat-economy years a bit less.

Across all jobs in United Kingdom, the national average raise is around 9% every 15 months.

By industry

Industries with the highest pay raises in United Kingdom:

  • Banking
  • Energy
  • Information Technology
  • Healthcare
  • Travel
  • Construction
  • Education

By experience level

Experienced workers tend to see larger raises. Retaining a senior is cheaper than replacing them, so employers fight harder for them.

  • Junior Level
    3% - 5%
  • Mid-Career
  • Senior Level
  • Top Management

Product development engineer bonus rates in United Kingdom

Bonuses are the other half of total compensation, and they vary a lot between jobs and industries. Some roles are paid almost entirely in base salary; others lean heavily on bonus structures tied to revenue, project completion or company performance. Whether a job pays a bonus, how big it is, and how often it lands all factor into whether the headline salary is actually a good offer.

58%

58% of product development engineers in United Kingdom reported a bonus of some kind in the past twelve months. That makes a product development engineer a moderate-bonus role overall, which is useful context when you're weighing up a job offer where the base is below market.

Among those who did receive a bonus, the size of the payment varied substantially. Reported bonuses ranged from 3% to 6% of base salary. The remaining 42% of product development engineers reported no bonus at all over the same period.

Which careers pay bonuses in United Kingdom

Revenue-facing roles tend to pay the biggest bonuses. Operational and support roles tend toward smaller, more predictable ones.

  • Finance
  • Architecture
  • Sales
  • Business Development
  • Marketing / Advertising
  • Information Technology
  • Healthcare
  • Insurance
  • Customer Service
  • Human Resources
  • Construction
  • Transport
  • Hospitality

Product development engineer: public vs private sector pay

Public-sector pay in United Kingdom is about 7% more than private-sector pay for similar work. The private sector typically offers stronger upside and bigger bonuses; the public sector typically offers better benefits and stability.

Public vs private pay gap

6%

Public-sector workers earn this much more than private-sector workers in United Kingdom on average.

Public sector 72,700 GBP
Private sector 68,200 GBP

Product development engineer salary by city and region in United Kingdom

Product development engineer pay is not even across United Kingdom. The chart below shows the highest-paying cities and regions in the dataset, followed by the full location table.

  • England
  • Scotland
  • London
  • Manchester
  • Glasgow
  • Coventry
  • Sheffield
  • Bristol
  • Leeds
  • Edinburgh
LocationTypeAverageMedianRange
EnglandRegion127,700 GBP130,500 GBP60,600-195,500 GBP
ScotlandRegion90,600 GBP96,500 GBP43,500-142,300 GBP
LondonCity78,700 GBP87,300 GBP34,800-127,700 GBP
ManchesterCity77,400 GBP69,700 GBP41,100-116,400 GBP
GlasgowCity77,400 GBP68,200 GBP41,900-114,900 GBP
CoventryCity77,400 GBP77,400 GBP36,700-115,600 GBP
SheffieldCity76,000 GBP76,800 GBP37,100-115,600 GBP
BristolCity75,900 GBP78,900 GBP38,100-118,900 GBP
LeedsCity75,900 GBP68,500 GBP40,700-114,300 GBP
EdinburghCity75,500 GBP79,600 GBP33,300-117,100 GBP
BirminghamCity73,700 GBP80,400 GBP34,000-118,900 GBP
Kingston upon HullCity73,500 GBP79,700 GBP33,000-115,600 GBP
NewcastleCity72,400 GBP68,800 GBP34,900-109,700 GBP
CardiffCity72,400 GBP71,900 GBP35,400-111,700 GBP
LeicesterCity72,400 GBP67,800 GBP39,500-111,700 GBP
SomersetCity71,700 GBP76,800 GBP33,300-116,400 GBP
BrightonCity71,400 GBP73,100 GBP35,600-114,600 GBP
DerbyCity71,400 GBP73,800 GBP33,600-114,600 GBP
PlymouthCity70,900 GBP70,900 GBP33,800-109,000 GBP
PeterboroughCity70,800 GBP66,900 GBP35,000-107,300 GBP
SouthamptonCity70,100 GBP70,500 GBP31,700-109,000 GBP
LiverpoolCity69,800 GBP74,100 GBP33,000-112,700 GBP
DundeeCity69,400 GBP71,700 GBP33,500-107,700 GBP
NottinghamCity69,400 GBP72,000 GBP32,600-109,700 GBP
WolverhamptonCity69,200 GBP73,300 GBP31,400-108,200 GBP
BradfordCity68,800 GBP67,000 GBP37,300-105,800 GBP
SwanseaCity68,300 GBP68,100 GBP36,000-109,000 GBP
OxfordCity68,200 GBP66,000 GBP39,500-105,800 GBP
BelfastCity68,100 GBP68,300 GBP35,500-107,700 GBP
HartlepoolCity67,800 GBP65,700 GBP30,700-102,700 GBP
PortsmouthCity67,600 GBP71,800 GBP30,800-105,800 GBP
WalesRegion66,000 GBP63,500 GBP33,600-100,300 GBP
ExeterCity66,000 GBP60,100 GBP35,300-99,100 GBP
DerryCity65,900 GBP71,000 GBP30,200-105,800 GBP
StirlingCity65,900 GBP69,700 GBP30,600-102,700 GBP
YorkCity65,800 GBP63,100 GBP34,400-99,700 GBP
ArmaghCity65,800 GBP64,900 GBP33,500-103,600 GBP
LincolnCity65,200 GBP65,200 GBP33,200-100,100 GBP
AberdeenCity64,800 GBP65,200 GBP32,600-100,700 GBP
NewryCity64,800 GBP60,800 GBP34,000-98,700 GBP
CambridgeCity64,600 GBP68,900 GBP30,800-103,600 GBP
NewportCity64,100 GBP70,100 GBP27,300-99,700 GBP
LisburnCity63,900 GBP59,700 GBP34,000-97,200 GBP
SalisburyCity63,900 GBP63,200 GBP33,200-96,500 GBP
PooleCity63,700 GBP67,900 GBP29,400-100,700 GBP
GloucesterCity63,700 GBP62,500 GBP32,200-96,600 GBP
NorwichCity62,300 GBP63,500 GBP29,600-98,900 GBP
WellsCity62,100 GBP62,100 GBP29,100-93,300 GBP
DurhamCity61,700 GBP68,900 GBP29,900-100,400 GBP
AbingdonCity61,300 GBP61,300 GBP30,800-93,900 GBP
InvernessCity60,900 GBP58,100 GBP30,000-88,700 GBP
RiponCity60,600 GBP56,600 GBP32,300-95,000 GBP
WinchesterCity60,600 GBP64,800 GBP29,200-98,800 GBP
ChesterCity60,200 GBP58,700 GBP30,200-92,100 GBP
BangorCity59,800 GBP59,800 GBP30,800-92,300 GBP
StromnessCity59,500 GBP64,500 GBP26,200-95,000 GBP
WakefieldCity59,200 GBP56,800 GBP30,000-92,000 GBP
St DavidsCity58,800 GBP55,200 GBP31,800-92,300 GBP
TruroCity58,500 GBP52,300 GBP30,200-85,800 GBP
CanterburyCity58,000 GBP54,700 GBP31,700-91,000 GBP
StrontianCity57,100 GBP55,200 GBP29,600-86,100 GBP
Northern IrelandRegion56,600 GBP51,900 GBP32,200-88,600 GBP
KirkwallCity55,200 GBP55,200 GBP29,000-85,700 GBP

Product Development Engineer in United Kingdom: FAQs

  • How much does a product development engineer make per month in United Kingdom?

    A product development engineer in United Kingdom earns about 5,533 GBP a month before tax, based on an annual average of 66,400 GBP.

  • What's the salary range for a product development engineer in United Kingdom?

    Entry-level product development engineers in United Kingdom start near 33,300 GBP. Top-end pay reaches around 105,800 GBP. The middle 50% of earners sit between 46,400 and 87,900 GBP.

  • Is the median product development engineer salary in United Kingdom higher or lower than the average?

    The median is 68,400 GBP, higher than the average of 66,400 GBP. Half of product development engineers in United Kingdom earn below the median, half earn above it.

  • What's the gender pay gap for product development engineers in United Kingdom?

    Men working as a product development engineer in United Kingdom earn around 3% more than women on average (68,500 vs 66,700 GBP a year).

  • Do product development engineers in United Kingdom get bonuses?

    About 58% of product development engineers in United Kingdom reported a bonus in the past 12 months. Reported bonuses ranged from 3% to 6% of base salary.

  • Do product development engineers earn more in the public or private sector in United Kingdom?

    In United Kingdom, the public sector pays a product development engineer about 7% more on average. Public-sector pay tends to be steadier; private-sector pay tends to offer bigger upside.

  • How often do product development engineers in United Kingdom get a pay raise?

    A product development engineer in United Kingdom sees a raise of around 12% every 16 months, equivalent to roughly 9% a year.