Executive assistant salary · 2026
What an executive assistant earns, by level and by region
An executive assistant earns a median salary of £50,250 across the UK on Robert Half’s 2026 figures, with £38,500 at the 25th percentile and £64,500 at the 75th. In London the same guide gives £68,250 at the median. Experience, the seniority of the leader supported and the size of the organisation move the number.
When you hire an executive assistant through us, permanent, part-time, temporary or fractional, we send a shortlist of 3–5, each with pay or day rate, availability and IR35 position set out.
How a brief runswhat we undertake
- 01Brief30-MINUTE SCOPING CALLDay 0
- 02Shortlist of 3–5VETTED · RATE BENCHMARK · IR35After the brief
- 03InterviewsYOU MEET THE SHORTLISTYour diary
- 04Scoped startFIRST-MONTH OUTCOMES AGREEDYou set the date
- 05Fractional, interim and permanentIR35 POSITION SET OUTOn every brief
Shortlist3–5
15 minutes · video or phone
Book 15 minutes to hire an executive assistant
Tell us the scope and the days a week. We come back with Executive Assistant candidates, their day rates and availability.
- 0115 minutes, video or phone
- 02We scope the role and the days a week
- 03A shortlist of 3–5 after the call
- 04Fractional, interim and permanent briefs
Pick a day that suits · live availability
Live roles · last 3 months
Live Executive assistant jobs
No live Executive assistant roles in the last three months. Showing live fractional executive roles instead.
- FractionalSyndicated
Fractional CISO (Contract / Project Based)
Cambridge Spark · United Kingdom
est £1,500/day2 d/wk - FractionalSyndicated
Head of Medical Compliance, Governance & Diligence (Fractional)
CNX Therapeutics Ltd · Greater London
est £1,000/dayGreater London - FractionalSyndicated
Head of Applied Legal – AI Product (Fractional)
Stealth Startup · London
est £1,600/day2 d/wk - FractionalSyndicated
Fractional Product Practice Leader - 9 Month Contract
Tails.com · London
est £1,000/day2 d/wk - FractionalSyndicated
Fractional CPO
Log my Care · City of London
est £3,250/day3 d/wk - FractionalSyndicated
Fractional Finance Directors
PWF Associates Limited · Manchester
est £750/dayManchester - FractionalSyndicated
Fractional legal counsel
Nifina · London
est £750/dayLondon - FractionalExclusive
Fractional COO
Confidential client (Fractional Quest mandate) · London
Rate n/aLondon - FractionalSyndicated
Fractional Financial Controller
MarcoPolo Learning · City of Westminster
est £750/day2 d/wk
Live executive assistant and support roles
Fractional recruitment works differently from a permanent search — shorter, scoped by days a week, and priced on the engagement. Send a Executive Assistant brief and we come back with a shortlist of three to five vetted candidates.
01/ the role
What an executive assistant does, and what sets the pay
An executive assistant supports one senior leader, sometimes a small leadership team. The National Careers Service lists the work: organising complex diaries and using judgement to prioritise, managing projects with other teams, researching and summarising information for senior managers, planning board meetings, events and travel, and handling sensitive information. Our guide to what an executive assistant does covers the role in full.
Four things set the salary. Experience, which is how Robert Half defines its percentiles. The seniority of the leader supported: an EA to a chief executive or a board is paid more than one supporting a department head. The size of the organisation: Robert Walters notes that larger organisations with more complex operations often pay more. And location: every source on this page puts London above the rest of the country.
For an official cross-check, the ONS Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings reports employee earnings by occupation. Its occupation groups are broader than the EA title, so it is a check on the recruiters’ figures, not a replacement for them.
02/ scope
How to hire an executive assistant at the right salary
1. Price the leader, not the title
Write down who the EA will support, what they will own and how many days you need. An EA who runs a chief executive’s diary, board papers and investor meetings sits at the top of the band; one covering a team’s diaries and travel sits lower.
2. Set the whole package
Salary is the start. An employer also pays employer’s National Insurance and must enrol eligible staff in a workplace pension and contribute. The CIPD’s introduction to reward separates fixed base pay from variable pay such as bonuses, which is not guaranteed. Decide what, if anything, is variable before you make an offer.
3. Check before the start date
For an employee, you must check their right to work before they start. Take references yourself, ideally from the leaders the candidate supported.
4. Choose the contract
Permanent, part-time, temporary and fractional EAs are priced differently: a salary for an employee, a day or hourly rate for a contractor. To hire an executive assistant in London on any of those terms, see executive assistant recruitment in London. For part-week or remote support, see fractional and virtual EA support.
What we do on an EA brief
We send a shortlist of 3–5 executive assistants, each with pay or day rate, availability and IR35 position set out. Every candidate goes through our five-stage vetting first, so you see the pay before the first interview.
03/ rates by stage
Executive assistant salary by region and source
Published 2026 salary figures for permanent executive assistants. Every figure is a recruiter’s published range or percentile, named in the table. Robert Half reports percentiles; Robert Walters and Morgan McKinley report ranges.
04/ economics
Part-time, fractional or virtual: when a full salary is not the answer
Not every leader needs a full-time EA. A part-time EA is an employee on fewer hours. GOV.UK says part-time workers must not be treated less favourably than comparable full-time workers, with some benefits applied pro rata. All employees can request flexible working from their first day, so a full-time EA may ask to cut their days.
A fractional EA supports a leader for part of the week, often alongside other clients, and is usually paid a day rate. Where they work through their own company, the off-payroll working rules (IR35) may apply. Status is decided by how the engagement runs in practice, and a medium or large client makes the determination. Our IR35 guide sets out the tests.
We do not publish a day rate here: no source we have verified gives one for a fractional EA. To hire a fractional executive assistant, see fractional and virtual EA support. For live fractional EA and PA roles, see fractional EA jobs.
05/ vetting
How we vet executive assistants
What we undertake on every brief, before a candidate reaches you.
- 01
Qualification screen
Verify Executive Assistant tenure, sector context and stage fit.
SOURCING - 02
Mandate fit
Match to your situation — stage, board dynamics, timing.
MATCHING - 03
Reference deep-dive
We take references ourselves, from recent past clients — real outcomes, not titles.
VERIFY - 04
Shortlist
Three to five candidates with day rate, availability and IR35 position set out.
SHORTLIST OF 3–5
06/ london
Executive assistant salary in London: what three sources show
The executive assistant salary London employers pay sits well above the UK figures. Robert Half’s 2026 London figures are £52,250 at the 25th percentile, £68,250 at the 50th and £87,750 at the 75th, against £38,500, £50,250 and £64,500 across the UK.
Robert Walters’ 2026 survey puts London EA salaries at £40,000 to £75,000, the widest range of its four regions. Morgan McKinley’s 2026 guide gives an average of £50,000 to £60,000 for London. The sources measure different things, percentiles in one case and ranges in the others, so compare like with like.
Sector matters as much as the postcode. A London EA supporting a chief executive in financial services or law is paid differently from one supporting a founder at a start-up. To hire an EA in the capital, see executive assistant recruitment in London; for senior support roles at younger companies, see London startup jobs.
07/ by level
Executive assistant salary by level: junior, experienced and senior
Robert Half ties each point in its range to a level of experience, which makes its figures the clearest guide to executive assistant salary by level. The 25th percentile describes a candidate with little or no prior experience in the position who is still developing the skills. The 50th describes average experience and most of the necessary skills. The 75th describes above-average experience, most or all of the skills, and possibly specialised qualifications.
On that basis, the UK figures read £38,500 for a candidate new to the role, £50,250 for average experience and £64,500 for above-average experience. In London the same three levels read £52,250, £68,250 and £87,750. Robert Half publishes these as percentiles of pay, not as fixed grades.
Titles vary. Many EAs start as a personal assistant or administrator; the National Careers Service notes that, with experience, an EA can work for a more senior manager or move to a larger organisation. Our guide to how to become an executive assistant covers the route.
08/ questions
Executive assistant salary FAQ
The questions people ask before bringing in an executive assistant.
Book 15 minutes · shortlist of 3–5
Bring the brief. We architect the team.
A shortlist of 3–5 with day rate, availability and IR35 position set out, after five-stage vetting.
