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Average Test Engineer Salary in United Kingdom for 2026

A test engineer in United Kingdom earns about 60,700 GBP a year. That's 13% below 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 29,200 GBP a year, while the very top stretches to 93,600 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 test engineer make in United Kingdom?

Average salary
60,700 GBP
5,058 GBP per month
Lowest reported
29,200 GBP
2,433 GBP per month
Highest reported
93,600 GBP
7,800 GBP per month

A typical test engineer working in United Kingdom brings home around 5,058 GBP a month before tax. Entry-level pay starts near 29,200 GBP, and the top of the ladder reaches roughly 93,600 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 test 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 test engineer salary in Guernsey or Jersey, both of which pay in the same currency.

How test 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 test engineers in United Kingdom earn less than 60,800 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 40,200 GBP (the 25th percentile), and a quarter clear 80,800 GBP (the 75th percentile). The middle 50% of test engineers sit somewhere inside that band, which is where the typical reader of this page probably lives.

The very lowest reported salaries sit around 29,200 GBP. The highest stretch to 93,600 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.

29,200
Low
60,800
Median
93,600
High
40,200
25th
80,800
75th
The middle 50% sit between the 25th and 75th percentile Tails are the lowest and highest reported All figures in GBP

Test engineer pay by experience in United Kingdom

Years of experience is the single biggest lever on pay for a test 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 test engineer salary changes as you move through the career ladder.

  • 0-2 Years
    33,300 GBP
  • 2-5 Years
    +37% from previous
    45,700 GBP
  • 5-10 Years
    +38% from previous
    63,000 GBP
  • 10-15 Years
    +22% from previous
    76,900 GBP
  • 15-20 Years
    +10% from previous
    84,600 GBP
  • 20+ Years
    +6% from previous
    89,800 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 test 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.

Test engineer pay by education in United Kingdom

Education sits alongside experience as one of the biggest factors driving test 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 test engineer salary in United Kingdom broken down by the highest level of education a worker has completed.

  • Bachelor's Degree
    45,000 GBP
  • Master's Degree
    +52% from previous
    68,500 GBP

Test 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 test engineers in United Kingdom earn an average of 60,600 GBP a year, while female test engineers earn around 59,500 GBP. That works out to a 2% 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.

Test Engineer gender pay gap

2%

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

Men 60,600 GBP
Women 59,500 GBP

Pay raises for a test 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 15 months, which works out to roughly 10% 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

Test 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 test engineers in United Kingdom reported a bonus of some kind in the past twelve months. That makes a test 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 test 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

Test 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

Test engineer salary by city and region in United Kingdom

Test 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
  • Glasgow
  • Manchester
  • Sheffield
  • Birmingham
  • Somerset
  • Leeds
  • Bristol
  • London
LocationTypeAverageMedianRange
EnglandRegion125,400 GBP127,700 GBP60,700-191,100 GBP
ScotlandRegion87,900 GBP84,900 GBP46,200-134,700 GBP
GlasgowCity74,500 GBP74,300 GBP33,300-116,400 GBP
ManchesterCity74,000 GBP74,000 GBP36,800-114,600 GBP
SheffieldCity72,400 GBP73,500 GBP36,600-114,600 GBP
BirminghamCity71,700 GBP74,200 GBP32,600-112,700 GBP
SomersetCity71,200 GBP69,700 GBP36,600-107,700 GBP
LeedsCity71,100 GBP72,000 GBP33,500-108,200 GBP
BristolCity71,100 GBP72,800 GBP34,000-109,700 GBP
LondonCity70,900 GBP77,300 GBP31,700-111,700 GBP
BradfordCity70,700 GBP70,700 GBP36,000-111,700 GBP
CardiffCity70,100 GBP67,200 GBP35,300-105,800 GBP
LiverpoolCity69,700 GBP70,800 GBP35,000-109,700 GBP
Kingston upon HullCity69,700 GBP66,000 GBP35,600-105,200 GBP
BelfastCity68,400 GBP68,500 GBP34,000-109,000 GBP
OxfordCity67,000 GBP67,300 GBP30,200-103,600 GBP
AberdeenCity67,000 GBP61,400 GBP33,300-97,300 GBP
YorkCity66,900 GBP66,900 GBP35,100-102,700 GBP
EdinburghCity66,900 GBP63,700 GBP33,300-100,700 GBP
BrightonCity66,400 GBP61,800 GBP35,000-103,600 GBP
CoventryCity66,400 GBP69,400 GBP32,200-107,300 GBP
NewcastleCity66,100 GBP61,500 GBP37,100-102,700 GBP
PortsmouthCity65,900 GBP72,400 GBP28,900-105,200 GBP
LeicesterCity65,900 GBP64,300 GBP35,300-100,700 GBP
SwanseaCity65,400 GBP62,100 GBP37,200-97,300 GBP
SouthamptonCity65,400 GBP63,200 GBP33,000-97,900 GBP
PeterboroughCity65,200 GBP61,600 GBP32,600-99,100 GBP
LincolnCity64,300 GBP66,200 GBP30,800-100,700 GBP
DerbyCity64,300 GBP60,600 GBP30,300-98,800 GBP
PlymouthCity63,800 GBP69,400 GBP29,100-100,700 GBP
PooleCity63,500 GBP64,300 GBP33,300-100,900 GBP
NottinghamCity63,400 GBP59,800 GBP34,000-98,000 GBP
StirlingCity63,100 GBP59,800 GBP31,800-95,400 GBP
WolverhamptonCity62,600 GBP68,100 GBP30,800-100,700 GBP
ExeterCity62,600 GBP62,600 GBP30,100-93,100 GBP
NewportCity62,100 GBP66,900 GBP27,400-97,200 GBP
DerryCity62,100 GBP57,200 GBP31,400-92,100 GBP
DundeeCity61,600 GBP63,900 GBP29,100-96,600 GBP
NewryCity61,400 GBP60,100 GBP32,300-94,300 GBP
ChesterCity60,900 GBP56,800 GBP30,000-92,300 GBP
NorwichCity60,700 GBP60,800 GBP29,200-93,600 GBP
HartlepoolCity60,600 GBP63,500 GBP30,800-97,600 GBP
CanterburyCity60,500 GBP59,900 GBP26,900-91,600 GBP
CambridgeCity59,800 GBP56,100 GBP29,400-88,600 GBP
ArmaghCity58,800 GBP54,500 GBP32,300-92,200 GBP
WalesRegion58,600 GBP51,100 GBP29,400-86,100 GBP
DurhamCity58,600 GBP64,800 GBP25,500-94,500 GBP
LisburnCity58,600 GBP58,500 GBP26,200-87,400 GBP
GloucesterCity58,400 GBP52,300 GBP30,200-87,900 GBP
BangorCity58,100 GBP60,000 GBP27,000-91,000 GBP
WellsCity57,800 GBP58,700 GBP25,800-87,900 GBP
St DavidsCity57,800 GBP58,200 GBP26,400-88,300 GBP
WinchesterCity57,100 GBP55,200 GBP30,800-89,800 GBP
InvernessCity56,800 GBP54,700 GBP31,300-85,700 GBP
AbingdonCity56,600 GBP63,200 GBP28,800-91,600 GBP
RiponCity56,100 GBP56,100 GBP26,100-84,600 GBP
Northern IrelandRegion55,500 GBP59,000 GBP27,300-88,400 GBP
StromnessCity54,700 GBP58,700 GBP25,700-88,400 GBP
TruroCity54,200 GBP57,100 GBP25,800-84,800 GBP
WakefieldCity54,200 GBP52,800 GBP27,300-86,800 GBP
SalisburyCity54,100 GBP51,100 GBP30,800-83,000 GBP
KirkwallCity53,600 GBP58,600 GBP23,600-86,100 GBP
StrontianCity53,300 GBP53,300 GBP27,300-83,300 GBP

Test Engineer in United Kingdom: FAQs

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

    A test engineer in United Kingdom earns about 5,058 GBP a month before tax, based on an annual average of 60,700 GBP.

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

    Entry-level test engineers in United Kingdom start near 29,200 GBP. Top-end pay reaches around 93,600 GBP. The middle 50% of earners sit between 40,200 and 80,800 GBP.

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

    The median is 60,800 GBP, higher than the average of 60,700 GBP. Half of test engineers in United Kingdom earn below the median, half earn above it.

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

    Men working as a test engineer in United Kingdom earn around 2% more than women on average (60,600 vs 59,500 GBP a year).

  • Do test engineers in United Kingdom get bonuses?

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

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

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

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

    A test engineer in United Kingdom sees a raise of around 12% every 15 months, equivalent to roughly 10% a year.