The 10 highest marketing salary increases for the year ahead

In our 2026 UK Salary & Recruiting Trends guide, we received insights from over 250 employers and employees in the marketing industry, offering a comprehensive picture of salaries, recruiting trends and candidate expectations. Our latest data gives rise to three crucial questions:

• How have marketing salaries changed over the past year?
• Which top jobs in marketing are seeing above-average increases?
• How can employers secure top marketing talent?

Marketing salaries

Our survey data reveals that two-thirds (67%) of employers increased marketing salaries in the past year, and the same proportion are expecting pay rises in the year ahead. Salaries across the industry rose by an average of 2.5%, an increase from 1.7% last year and higher than the average of 2.2% across all sectors. Notably though, only 43% of marketing employers awarded performance-related bonuses over the past 12 months, dropping from 50% last year. Salary satisfaction has also fallen, with 42% now dissatisfied compared to 35% last year.

As almost two-thirds (65%) of marketing professionals plan on moving jobs in the year ahead, it’s imperative that employers offer an attractive salary to mitigate concerns about staff retention.

Skills in demand

With 93% of marketing employers suffering skills shortages, the hiring arena remains a tight one, especially since 74% are planning on hiring in the year ahead – only a slight drop from the 76% who said the same the year prior.

When hiring, 72% of employers said they would be inclined to hire individuals who lack some of the required skills, intending to upskill them on the job. Marketing professionals would prefer this to be facilitated by employers offering funding for external courses (52%), structured career development paths with skill-building milestones (32%), and access to online learning platforms (27%).

Along with the ever-evolving nature of today’s workplaces, there’s a greater call for more transferable core marketing skills that support business agility. Being a strong communicator with good interpersonal skills will always be a priority, but it’s clear that employers also value marketing professionals who are willing to adopt change and have the ability to upskill.

Top UK marketing salary increases

The average marketing salary rose by 2.5% over the last year. Our salary data shows that some areas have seen more significant salary uplifts, with the highest increases in the public sector (3.7%), events (2.8%) and PR/internal communications (2.6%).

Although not the highest paid jobs in marketing overall, our list of top jobs have seen the biggest percentage increases in remuneration over the past 12 months.

Top 10 UK marketing pay rises:

1. Engagement/stakeholder officer (public sector)
2. External communications manager (public sector)
3. Digital marketing executive (public sector)
4. Marketing manager (public sector)
5. Press/media officer/assistant (public sector)
6. Internal communications manager (public sector)
7. Content designer (public sector)
8. Head of products
9. PR executive
10. Digital marketing manager (public sector)

Marketing salaries: next steps for your business

Widespread skills shortages will mean that employers need to have an appealing offering in order to attract and retain top talent. However, differentiating your organisation in a tight hiring market will require more than just a competitive salary. Beyond salary, those working in permanent roles prioritise a good work atmosphere (48%), the benefits package (46%) and remote working options (37%). Meanwhile, the top three benefits most important to them are additional annual leave days, flexible working, and extra days off for wellbeing.

For contractors considering a new assignment, they put the greatest weight on company culture (47%), work-life balance (47%) and challenging projects (32%). However, in terms of the benefits package, financial perks seem to be in high demand, with travel and expense reimbursement, paid time off, and retirement contributions being rated as the most important to contractors.

To secure the best marketing talent – whether that be permanent employees or contractors – the onus is on organisations to provide a balance between competitive pay and fulfilling workplace environments that allow marketers to make a difference.

For a comprehensive look at salaries across the entire marketing industry, along with exclusive employer insights, download our 2026 UK Salary and Recruiting Trends guide.