Footwear and leather working trades salary in the UK
The median full-time salary for footwear and leather working trades in the UK is £25,357 (ONS, 2025). After tax and National Insurance at 2026/27 rates that is about £1,815 a month.
Pay range for footwear and leather working trades
This is the ONS occupation group "Footwear and leather working trades" (SOC 2020 code 5412). ONS figures for 2025 show that ONS published only the median, so half earn less than £25,357 and half earn more.
| Point in the pay range | Gross a year | Gross a month | Take-home a year | Take-home a month |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10th percentile | Not published | Not published | Not published | Not published |
| 25th percentile | Not published | Not published | Not published | Not published |
| Median (50th percentile) | £25,357 | £2,113 | £21,777 | £1,815 |
| 75th percentile | Not published | Not published | Not published | Not published |
| 90th percentile | Not published | Not published | Not published | Not published |
Take-home at England, Wales and Northern Ireland rates. Not published means ONS did not publish that figure because the estimate is not reliable enough. ONS rates the median for footwear and leather working trades as acceptable, so use it with caution: its sampling error (coefficient of variation) is 11%.
Where footwear and leather working trades rank
The median for footwear and leather working trades ranks 339th of 362 occupations on this site, in the bottom quarter, and 51st of 52 in skilled trades occupations. It is £13,682 (35.0%) lower than the UK median of £39,039 for all full-time employee jobs. ONS change on the previous year: the median for footwear and leather working trades fell 8.2%, while the UK median for all full-time jobs rose 4.3%. 92 of 358 occupations had a change this large in either direction. ONS figures for one occupation come from a sample, so they can move a lot from one year to the next.
Jobs with the nearest medians: Elementary cleaning occupations n.e.c. (£25,780), Dental nurses (£25,742), Higher level teaching assistants (£25,434), Other elementary services occupations n.e.c. (£25,344), Housekeepers and related occupations (£25,335) and Animal care services occupations n.e.c. (£25,067).
How spread out pay is
ONS did not publish the 25th or 75th percentiles for footwear and leather working trades, so we cannot show how spread out their pay is.
The mean for footwear and leather working trades (total pay divided by the number of employees) is £27,238, which is £1,881 (7.4%) higher than the median. When the mean is above the median, a smaller number of higher salaries are pulling the average up. For all UK full-time jobs the mean is 24.3% above the median, so the gap for footwear and leather working trades is smaller.
Footwear and leather working trades and related jobs
Among these 4 jobs in the same or nearby ONS occupation groups, this one has the lowest median. The highest median among them is £33,019 (printers) and the lowest £25,357 (footwear and leather working trades).
| Job | SOC code | Median salary | Take-home a month |
|---|---|---|---|
| Printers | 5422 | £33,019 | £2,274 |
| Upholsterers | 5411 | £27,909 | £1,968 |
| Textiles, garments and related trades n.e.c. | 5419 | £26,573 | £1,888 |
| Footwear and leather working trades | 5412 | £25,357 | £1,815 |
Take-home pay against all jobs
At the median, footwear and leather working trades take home about £1,815 a month, against £2,636 on the UK median for all jobs. Scotland has its own income tax bands, so take-home pay on the same salary is different there.
| Group | Median a year | Take-home a month | Take-home a month in Scotland |
|---|---|---|---|
| Footwear and leather working trades | £25,357 | £1,815 | £1,818 |
| All full-time employee jobs, UK | £39,039 | £2,636 | £2,631 |
Related pages
All jobs in the Skilled trades occupations table, average salary by area, the take home pay calculator, salary to hourly calculator and pay rise calculator.
How this is worked out
Pay: ONS Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings (ASHE), 2025 provisional, SOC 2020 unit group 5412. Take-home: 2026/27 rates, tax code 1257L, no pension or student loan. How to read these figures.
Sources
- ASHE Table 14: earnings by occupation (4-digit SOC), 2025 provisional (ONS)
- ASHE Table 7: earnings by place of work, local authority, 2025 provisional (ONS)
- SOC 2020 Volume 1: structure and descriptions of unit groups (ONS)
- Income Tax rates and Personal Allowances (GOV.UK)
- Scottish Income Tax (GOV.UK)
- National Insurance: how much you pay (GOV.UK)
Figures checked on 12 October 2026. ONS plans to publish its next ASHE figures on 22 October 2026. Read how we calculate or tell us about a mistake.
Frequently asked questions
On the median full-time salary of £25,357, take-home pay is about £1,815 a month (£21,777 a year) after 2026/27 income tax and National Insurance, with tax code 1257L and no pension or student loan. In Scotland, where income tax is different, it is about £1,818 a month.
Only the median for 2025: half of full-time employees in this group earn less than £25,357 and half earn more. ONS did not publish the other points in the range because those estimates are not reliable enough.
No. The median for footwear and leather working trades is £25,357, which is £13,682 (35.0%) lower than the UK median of £39,039 for all full-time employee jobs (ONS, 2025). It ranks 339th of 362 occupations on this site.