Pay: show the salary, and check it works for you

Why it matters

Pay is the first thing most people want to know, and the thing adverts most often leave out. When the salary is hidden, people apply for jobs they could never afford to take. Both sides then spend weeks finding out what one line in the advert could have said.

For employers

Put a real figure in every advert. A range is fine, and so is a single number. “Competitive”, “market rate” and “DOE” (depending on experience) are not figures.

Keep the range honest. If the top is more than 1.5 times the bottom, the range doesn’t tell anyone much. £45,000 to £65,000 is useful. £30,000 to £120,000 is not. If one role really spans two levels, advertise two roles.

Show base pay on its own. If the job has commission, bonus or on-target earnings, show those separately, so nobody mistakes OTE for salary.

For contract roles, a day rate counts. Say whether the role is inside or outside IR35, because it changes what the rate is worth.

For candidates

Read the pay before you read anything else. If nothing in the range would work for you, don’t apply. You’ll save yourself an interview process that can’t end in a job you’d take.

If the range works, apply knowing that an offer anywhere in it is fair. Where you land depends on the must-haves and how you show them, so aim high in conversation if your experience supports it.

Questions

Does the law require a salary in adverts? Not yet in Great Britain. The government consulted in 2026 on whether adverts should have to show pay. If a legal rule arrives and differs from 1.5×, this commitment will be reviewed. Until then, 1.5× is good practice, not law.

What if pay is negotiable? Then say the range you’d negotiate within. That’s what a range is.