Data Scientist
Salary in the UK
Real take-home by city — not just gross figures
UK median £51,000
London £68,000 (highest)
Sheffield £44,000 (lowest)
Market Snapshot
Compare cities for data scientists
London vs Manchester
Disposable income delta after rent & bills
Manchester vs Edinburgh
Disposable income delta after rent & bills
London vs Bristol
Disposable income delta after rent & bills
Data Scientist Jobs in the UK
Browse all 1,200+ jobsSenior Backend Engineer
Monzo · London (Hybrid)
Full Stack Developer
Starling Bank · Cardiff
Staff Engineer (Mobile)
Revolut · Remote (UK)
Standard of living by experience level
Focus: London Market Benchmarks
The "London Trap":
Income Retention Comparison
While London offers the highest nominal salaries, the retention of that income after essential cost-of-living (housing, transport, utilities) often falls below regional averages. For data scientists, the sweet spot for wealth building currently sits in Manchester and Edinburgh.
London Retention
14% of gross income
UK Average Retention
38% of gross income
Ready to make the move?
We've hand-picked roles that beat the median UK retention rates.
Software Architect
Sky · Leeds · £95,000
Lead Frontend Engineer
The Hut Group · Manchester · £82,000
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Frequently Asked Questions
What is the average salary for a Data Scientist in the UK?
As of 2025, the median gross annual salary for a Data Scientist in the UK is £51,000. However, this varies significantly based on tech stack, experience, and specific location.
Which UK city pays Data Scientists the most?
London remains the highest-paying city with an average salary of £68,000, followed by Cambridge and Oxford due to their high concentration of research labs and established tech firms.
How do remote roles affect UK salary benchmarks?
Remote roles often offer "national" averages that sit around £60k-£65k, allowing developers to live in lower-cost areas like Sheffield or Glasgow while earning salaries closer to London levels.
What are the highest paying tech stacks in the UK for 2025?
Engineers specialized in Rust, Go, and niche Cloud Infrastructure (AWS/Kubernetes) tend to command 15-20% premiums. AI and Machine Learning Engineers also see significantly higher median salaries reaching £85k+ for mid-level.
Featured Role
Principal Engineer
Zego · London (Remote-first)
Scaling the core insurance platform for the next 10 million users. Tech: Node.js, AWS, Kubernetes.