Postal workers, mail sorters and messengers salary in the UK
The median full-time salary for postal workers, mail sorters and messengers in the UK is £31,677 (ONS, 2025). After tax and National Insurance at 2026/27 rates that is about £2,194 a month.
Pay range for postal workers, mail sorters and messengers
This is the ONS occupation group "Postal workers, mail sorters and messengers" (SOC 2020 code 9211). ONS figures for 2025 show that one in ten earn less than £24,687, a quarter earn less than £28,292, half earn less than £31,677, a quarter earn more than £36,381 and one in ten earn more than £41,817.
| Point in the pay range | Gross a year | Gross a month | Take-home a year | Take-home a month |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10th percentile | £24,687 | £2,057 | £21,294 | £1,775 |
| 25th percentile | £28,292 | £2,358 | £23,890 | £1,991 |
| Median (50th percentile) | £31,677 | £2,640 | £26,327 | £2,194 |
| 75th percentile | £36,381 | £3,032 | £29,714 | £2,476 |
| 90th percentile | £41,817 | £3,485 | £33,628 | £2,802 |
Take-home at England, Wales and Northern Ireland rates. ONS rates the median for postal workers, mail sorters and messengers as precise: its sampling error (coefficient of variation) is 1.9%. ONS estimates about 86,000 full-time employee jobs in this occupation. ONS says job counts like this are indicative only.
Where postal workers, mail sorters and messengers rank
The median for postal workers, mail sorters and messengers ranks 241st of 362 occupations on this site, in the lower half, and 4th of 29 in elementary occupations. It is £7,362 (18.9%) lower than the UK median of £39,039 for all full-time employee jobs. ONS change on the previous year: the median for postal workers, mail sorters and messengers fell 5.7%, while the UK median for all full-time jobs rose 4.3%.
Jobs with the nearest medians: Vehicle and parts salespersons and advisers (£31,851), Process operatives n.e.c. (£31,717), Restaurant and catering establishment managers and proprietors (£31,692), Hire services managers and proprietors (£31,626), Telephonists (£31,568) and Book-keepers, payroll managers and wages clerks (£31,560).
How spread out pay is
The 90th percentile (£41,817) is 1.7 times the 10th (£24,687). That is a narrower spread than for all UK full-time jobs, where it is 3.2 times. The middle half of full-time postal workers, mail sorters and messengers earn between £28,292 and £36,381, a gap of £8,089, or 25.5% of the median. That is £16,658 narrower than the £24,747 gap for all UK jobs, and the 190th widest of the 223 jobs where ONS published both figures, one of the narrower middle ranges.
The mean for postal workers, mail sorters and messengers (total pay divided by the number of employees) is £32,585, which is £908 (2.9%) 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 postal workers, mail sorters and messengers is smaller.
Postal workers, mail sorters and messengers and related jobs
Among these 4 jobs in the same or nearby ONS occupation groups, this one has the highest median. The highest median among them is £31,677 (postal workers, mail sorters and messengers) and the lowest £24,130 (cleaners and domestics).
| Job | SOC code | Median salary | Take-home a month |
|---|---|---|---|
| Postal workers, mail sorters and messengers | 9211 | £31,677 | £2,194 |
| Street cleaners | 9222 | £27,633 | £1,951 |
| Elementary administration occupations n.e.c. | 9219 | £26,631 | £1,891 |
| Cleaners and domestics | 9223 | £24,130 | £1,741 |
Take-home pay against all jobs
At the median, postal workers, mail sorters and messengers take home about £2,194 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Postal workers, mail sorters and messengers | £31,677 | £2,194 | £2,195 |
| All full-time employee jobs, UK | £39,039 | £2,636 | £2,631 |
Related pages
All jobs in the Elementary 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 9211. 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 £31,677, take-home pay is about £2,194 a month (£26,327 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 £2,195 a month.
ONS figures for full-time jobs (2025) show that one in ten earn less than £24,687, a quarter earn less than £28,292, half earn less than £31,677, a quarter earn more than £36,381 and one in ten earn more than £41,817.
No. The median for postal workers, mail sorters and messengers is £31,677, which is £7,362 (18.9%) lower than the UK median of £39,039 for all full-time employee jobs (ONS, 2025). It ranks 241st of 362 occupations on this site.