Charity Salaries 2026: What Recruiters Need to Know

The CharityJob Salary Report 2026 reveals a market in transition: a reduced number of roles, rising candidate demand and a variety of shifting expectations that are reshaping recruitment strategies. If you’re hiring in today’s market, understanding charity salary trends in context is key to attracting and retaining the right talent. To answer some of your questions, we’ve analysed salaries and recruitment trends from more than 55,000 jobs posted on our site in 2025.

Our latest data shows how the charity job market is evolving within the wider employment context. So, whether you’re advertising, creating new roles or planning a hiring strategy, understanding these nuances can help you make better-informed decisions.

A candidate-rich market

In 2025, we saw an 18% reduction in the number of roles posted, mirroring wider economic pressures and tighter organisational budgets affecting the UK employment market as a whole. Candidate demand increased dramatically, with a 37% rise in clicks on ‘Apply’. This represents an average of 69 applications per role.

For employers, a recruiter-led market doesn’t necessarily mean easier hiring, because increased volume doesn’t always mean increased suitability, and competition for experienced or specialised talent remains strong. Candidates with experience can be equally cautious – they too are aware of the current market dynamics and the risk associated with moving organisations.

Charity salaries experienced modest growth

Despite market pressures, pay has continued to increase, albeit more slowly than in the private sector. The median salary across the sector rose 3% from 2024, to £36,000. Roles in London offered a median salary of £38,757, a 21% premium over roles outside the capital. However, salaries outside London grew faster (up 6%), continuing to indicate that regional opportunities are becoming more financially competitive.

Median salaries increased across all charity sizes from 2024 to 2025. Small charities had the largest salary increase of 3% and the highest median salary of £36,000.

Despite fewer roles being posted, median salaries were broadly stable across experience levels, with one notable exception: director and CEO roles saw a slight decrease, with median pay falling by 2%.

Entry-level charity salaries: a growing risk area

Our data also showed that in 2025, 33.9% of full-time/annualised entry-level and junior roles in London paid below the London Living Wage, and 32.8% of entry-level and junior roles outside London paid below the UK Living Wage. These proportions have risen year-on-year, signalling an ever-greater share of junior roles in the sector are now paid below the real ‘Living Wage’. This presents a potential challenge for recruiters: attracting early-career talent may become increasingly difficult, particularly as affordability pressures grow.

Flexibility as a key differentiator

Hybrid working remains dominant and the most popular way of working. Accounting for 51% of roles, hybrid positions also offer the highest median salary (£39,500) and the strongest growth.

Remote roles were the most in demand from candidates, with more than seven times the number of clicks on ‘Apply’ than for on-site roles and four times more than for hybrid roles. The average number of clicks on ‘Apply’ for remote roles was 231, suggesting a strong preference for remote and flexible work in the sector.

Trends in demand

All job categories saw a decline in vacancies, with the sharpest drops in HR and admin roles. However, there was overall salary growth across job categories, with some noteworthy mentions:

• HR roles experienced the biggest rise (+11%).
• Fundraising and business services also saw healthy growth.
• Finance roles remained the highest paid overall with a median salary of £48,000.
• Admin and support roles remained the lowest paid, each with median salaries of £30,000.

At the same time, a 5% increase in volunteer roles suggests charities may be relying more on unpaid support to help maintain services, particularly in the face of budget constraints and reduced hiring. This shift could indicate a growing need to supplement paid roles with volunteer support as organisations navigate financial pressures.

Volunteers may help sustain delivery in the short term but it also raises important questions about long-term capacity and workforce sustainability. The trend regarding the Living Wage within entry-level roles may also underline the influence that technological advancements, such as AI, are having on the sector. Therefore, the successful integration of relevant technologies could help to save time and make efficiencies, representing one potential solution to the ongoing service challenges that charities face.  

For a sector built on purpose and impact, there are important questions around continued long-term sustainability and retaining the best talent. Organisations that can review and improve processes, integrate technology (such as AI) in the right way, and attract quality entry-level candidates may gain both an immediate and long-term competitive advantage in developing future talent pipelines.  

Get the full picture and make more informed decisions about charity salaries

Purchase the CharityJob Salary Report 2026 for deeper insight into:

• Detailed salary breakdowns by category, seniority and workplace type,
• Charity salary benchmarking across roles and regions,
• Shifts in candidate demand and application trends,
• Changing expectations around flexibility and benefits,
• Equal opportunities and candidate demographic data,
• How this could impact your recruitment strategy.