Financial controller salary · 2026
What a financial controller earns, nationally, in London and at group level
A financial controller earns a median salary of £76,750 on Robert Half’s 2026 figures, with £63,000 at the 25th percentile and £92,500 at the 75th. In London the median rises to £104,500. A group financial controller, who runs the numbers across several entities, sits at an £85,000 median nationally and £115,500 in London.
Salary is not the whole cost: employer’s National Insurance, pension and benefits come on top. When you hire a financial controller through us, permanent, fractional, part-time or interim, 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
In the press
FM Magazine (AICPA & CIMA) How to make the fractional CFO-client relationship effective · 20 May 2026
A fractional controller engagement rests on the same things as a fractional CFO’s: agreed scope, real access to systems and people, and a steady rhythm of reporting. Practitioners set out how to get those right.
15 minutes · video or phone
Book 15 minutes to hire a financial controller
Tell us the scope and the days a week. We come back with Financial Controller 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 Financial controller jobs
Live finance leadership roles
Fractional recruitment works differently from a permanent search — shorter, scoped by days a week, and priced on the engagement. Send a Financial Controller brief and we come back with a shortlist of three to five vetted candidates.
01/ the role
What a financial controller does, and what sets the pay
A financial controller owns the numbers and the controls around them: the month-end close, the management accounts, the balance sheet, statutory reporting, the audit and the finance team that does the processing. The finance director or CFO decides what the numbers mean for strategy and funding. The controller makes sure the numbers are right.
That puts the role at the centre of a legal duty. The Companies Act 2006 requires every company to keep adequate accounting records, enough to show and explain its transactions and disclose its financial position with reasonable accuracy at any time. The directors stay responsible for that; the controller is usually the person who makes it true.
Pay follows the size and shape of the job. A group with several entities, a regulated firm, or a business preparing for audit or investment asks for more than a single-entity company with a steady close. Location matters too. Robert Half’s London median for the role is £104,500 against £76,750 nationally, and its group controller band sits above the single-entity one in both places.
02/ scope
How to hire a financial controller
1. Scope the seat
Write down the close timetable you want, the reports the board needs, the systems in place, the number of entities, the size of the team and the audit calendar. Say whether the job is to run a working function or to fix one. The second needs someone who has done it before.
2. Choose the route
A permanent controller suits a business whose close, controls and team fill a full week. If the need is senior ownership of the numbers for part of the week, hire a fractional financial controller. If the seat is empty mid-audit or mid-system change, hire an interim financial controller for a fixed term. If the brief turns out to be strategy, funding and the board rather than control, see finance director recruitment.
3. Check the qualification at source
Most controllers hold ACA, ACCA or CIMA. Confirm it rather than read it from the CV: ICAEW’s member directory shows admittance date and practising certificate, ACCA’s member search finds its members by name, and CIMA’s qualification leads to the CGMA designation. Then ask the candidate to walk through the last month-end close they owned and what they changed.
4. 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. Accountancy Capital’s 2026 report puts a £90,000 permanent controller at roughly £108,000 to the employer once National Insurance, pension and benefits are added, before recruitment cost or notice period.
What we do on a financial controller brief
We recruit permanent, fractional, interim and part-time finance leaders. We send a shortlist of 3–5, each with pay or day rate, availability and IR35 position set out, and every candidate goes through our five-stage vetting first.
03/ rates by stage
Financial controller salary national, London and group
Robert Half’s 2026 percentiles for permanent financial controllers and group financial controllers, with its Finance Director bands for comparison. These are a recruiter’s published starting-salary figures, named in the table.
04/ economics
Fractional, part-time or interim: what a financial controller costs by the day
Not every business needs a controller five days a week. Accountancy Capital’s 2026 report gives fractional controller day rates of £450–£650 in London and the South East and £400–£550 regionally, with £550–£750 and £475–£650 for regulated or complex work. On retainer, one day a week runs £1,800–£2,800 a month in London and £1,600–£2,400 regionally; two days £3,500–£5,500 and £3,200–£4,600.
A day rate does not compare one for one with a salary. An employee brings employer’s National Insurance and pension contributions; a contractor funds their own. Fractional controllers usually work through their own limited company, so IR35 is a live question, decided by how the engagement runs in practice. Under the off-payroll working rules, a medium or large client makes the status determination; a small client outside the public sector leaves it to the worker’s own company. Our IR35 guide sets out the tests.
For the flexible routes in full, see fractional financial controller jobs, part-time financial controller jobs for a set number of days each week, and interim financial controller jobs for full-time cover on a fixed term.
05/ vetting
How we vet financial controllers
What we undertake on every brief, before a candidate reaches you.
- 01
Qualification screen
Verify Financial Controller 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
Financial controller salary in London: the premium over national pay
On Robert Half’s 2026 London figures, the financial controller salary London employers pay runs £85,750 at the 25th percentile, £104,500 at the median and £125,750 at the 75th. Nationally the same points are £63,000, £76,750 and £92,500.
The pattern holds one level up. Robert Half’s 2026 median for a Finance Director is £149,000 in London against £109,500 nationally. Flexible rates follow it too: Accountancy Capital gives fractional controller day rates of £450–£650 in London and the South East against £400–£550 regionally.
For an official cross-check by region, the ONS Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings reports employee earnings by occupation, although its groups are broader than the controller title. Whether the seat is in London or not, the shortlist we send sets out each candidate’s pay or day rate, so you can compare a London hire with a hybrid or regional one on the same page.
07/ group
Group financial controller salary: what several entities add
A group financial controller runs consolidated reporting across several entities or subsidiaries, often with controllers reporting in from each. On Robert Half’s 2026 figures, the group financial controller salary runs £76,250 at the 25th percentile, £85,000 at the median and £106,500 at the 75th nationally. In London it is £103,750, £115,500 and £144,750.
That puts the group band above the single-entity controller at every point, and below the next step up. Robert Half’s 2026 Group Finance Director median is £131,500 nationally. Pay the complexity: the number of entities, currencies and reporting standards, and whether the consolidation already works.
If the group needs strategic finance leadership rather than consolidation, see fractional finance director salary for FD pay and the part-week route, or hire a fractional FD.
08/ questions
Financial controller salary FAQ
The questions people ask before bringing in a financial controller.
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.
