Fractional executive assistant salary · the permanent salary, pro-rata

What a fractional executive assistant earns, pro-rata of the permanent salary

No independent UK source publishes a fractional executive assistant day rate.

The figures here are the permanent executive assistant salary from Robert Half spread across working days — our arithmetic, a pro-rata floor for comparison, not a market rate.

Robert Half’s 2026 median for a permanent executive assistant is £50,250 nationally and £68,250 in London.

Over 220 working days the national median is about £230 a day, or about £30 an hour over 1,650 working hours, and one day a week for 46 weeks comes to £10,580 (our arithmetic).

A fractional executive assistant salary is what the days they sell add up to, at the rate they quote.

When you hire a fractional executive assistant through us, we send a shortlist of 3–5, each with day rate, availability and IR35 position set out.

Brief us on a fractional executive assistant →See the roles

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

£50,250

Permanent EA, median · range £38,500–£64,500, national

Robert Half, 2026

£230

Day equivalent of the median · £50,250 ÷ 220 working days

Our arithmetic

£10,580

One day a week, 46 weeks · £230 × 46, a pro-rata floor

Our arithmetic

3–5

Shortlist · with day rate, availability and IR35 set out

15 minutes · video or phone

Book 15 minutes to hire a fractional executive assistant

Tell us the scope and the days a week. We come back with Fractional 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

Prefer email? Use the booking page →

Pick a day that suits · live availability

Open the booking calendar →

On the board · last 3 months

Fractional Executive assistant jobs on the board

0 Fractional Executive assistant · 9 fractional executive

No Fractional Executive assistant roles on the board in the last three months. Showing fractional executive roles instead.

Browse every role on the board →

Executive assistant roles on the board

Fractional recruiting starts with the brief, not the CV pile. Send a Fractional Executive Assistant brief and we come back with a shortlist of three to five candidates, each through five-stage vetting.

01/ the role

How a fractional executive assistant is paid, and why this page shows a pro-rata floor

A fractional executive assistant supports one or more leaders for set days or hours a week: the diary, the inbox, travel, board papers and the follow-up after meetings.

The National Careers Service sets out the routes into the role, from a degree to an apprenticeship.

An EA is often engaged by the hour, so this page shows an hourly equivalent too.

A fractional executive assistant invoices a day rate, or a monthly retainer for set days a week.

There is no salary, bonus, holiday pay or employer pension behind it.

We looked for an independent source for that day rate: a salary survey, a professional body, an official statistic.

None publishes one for this seat.

The figures offered online come from providers’ own price lists, US-dollar marketplaces or pages that quote each other, and we do not use them.

So this page starts from the figure that is sourced: the permanent salary.

Spread across 220 working days, it gives a day equivalent: what the salary pays for each working day, before the employer’s costs.

It is a floor for comparison.

It is not what a fractional executive assistant charges, and we make no claim about whether quotes come in above or below it.

02/ scope

How to hire a fractional executive assistant

1. Count the days the work needs

List what the EA must cover: whose diary, which inbox, the board cycle, the travel.

Then estimate the hours or days a week it takes.

A leader who needs cover every morning needs a different arrangement from one who needs two full days.

The work sets the hours; the hours set the bill.

2. Ask for the quote in writing

Ask each candidate for the day rate, the days a week, the notice period on both sides and whether the rate is before VAT.

Ask what happens to a day not used in a month.

Then set the quote beside the pro-rata figures below: they show what the same days would cost as a share of a permanent salary.

3. Settle IR35 before the start

If your business is medium or large, you make the IR35 status determination for the engagement and give the person your reasons (HMRC).

Settle it before you agree the rate, because it changes how the fees are taxed.

What we do on a fractional brief

We recruit fractional, interim, part-time, temporary and permanent executive assistants.

We send a shortlist of 3–5, each with day rate, availability and IR35 position set out, and every candidate goes through our five-stage vetting first.

To start, see hire an executive assistant; roles on the board are on executive assistant jobs.

03/ the week

How a week divides.

Part of a week is the point of the model: the days you buy are yours, the rest of the week goes to other clients. Move the days a week and the week redraws.

Days a week for your company2 days

Your companyAnother clientA third client

Mon

Tue

Wed

Thu

Fri

Illustration only: one way a fractional executive assistant’s week can divide at 2 days a week for you. Each block is half a day.

04/ the board

What the board holds.

A read of the roles on the board on this page, counted as they stand: how each is engaged, whether the posting gives the days and the rate, and where the work happens.

On this board, last 90 days · 9 roles · fractional executive

Engagement

Fractional9

Seat

CFO3
CHRO1
General counsel1
HRD1
CISO1
Other1
Other seats1

Days a week

Stated in the posting4
Not stated5

Day rate

Verified rate1
Estimated (est)4
Rate not stated4

Work arrangement (as the job feed classifies it)

Remote2
Hybrid5
On-site2

Newest posting on the board: 6 Oct 2026.

Postings per week on this board, last 90 days

9 postings on this board in the last 90 days, counted by the week each was published.

05/ the route

Fractional, interim or permanent?

Four taps. The answer names the route for the seat and the page that covers it.

How much of the week does the work fill?

Is there a fixed end or a programme?

Does the seat sit on the board for years?

Is the need now, or can it wait for a search?

The route · Fractional

A fractional executive assistant.

The work fills part of the week, so buy the days it needs.

A fractional executive assistant holds the seat on agreed days for as long as the seat is needed, and works for other clients on the rest.

The fractional executive assistant route Talk it through

06/ rates by stage

Fractional executive assistant salary the permanent salary, pro-rata

Robert Half’s 2026 permanent base salaries for an executive assistant, national and London. Each is divided by 220 working days and rounded to the nearest £10; the yearly columns multiply that day equivalent by 1, 2 and 3 days a week for 46 weeks. Every figure after the salary is our arithmetic: a pro-rata floor for comparison, not a market rate for fractional work. Robert Half is a recruiter.

Permanent salary pointBase salaryDay equivalent (÷ 220, our arithmetic)1 day a week × 46 (our arithmetic)2 days a week × 46 (our arithmetic)3 days a week × 46 (our arithmetic)Salary source

EA, national, low end of range£38,500£180£8,280£16,560£24,840Robert Half, 2026

EA, national, median£50,250£230£10,580£21,160£31,740Robert Half, 2026

EA, national, high end of range£64,500£290£13,340£26,680£40,020Robert Half, 2026

EA, London, low end of range£52,250£240£11,040£22,080£33,120Robert Half, 2026

EA, London, median£68,250£310£14,260£28,520£42,780Robert Half, 2026

EA, London, high end of range£87,750£400£18,400£36,800£55,200Robert Half, 2026

07/ rates by commitment

Fractional EA salary as an hourly equivalent

An EA is often engaged by the hour, so this table divides the same Robert Half permanent salaries by 1,650 working hours (220 days of 7.5 hours) and rounds to the nearest £1. Our arithmetic: a pro-rata floor for comparison, not a market rate.

Permanent salary pointBase salaryHourly equivalent (÷ 1,650, our arithmetic)Salary source

EA, national, low end of range£38,500£23Robert Half, 2026

EA, national, median£50,250£30Robert Half, 2026

EA, national, high end of range£64,500£39Robert Half, 2026

EA, London, low end of range£52,250£32Robert Half, 2026

EA, London, median£68,250£41Robert Half, 2026

EA, London, high end of range£87,750£53Robert Half, 2026

08/ economics

What a day rate leaves out, and what to check in a quote

Tax status is decided by how the engagement runs, not by the title or the contract wording alone.

Under the off-payroll working rules (IR35), a medium or large client makes the status determination; for a small private-sector client, the worker’s own company decides.

The rules apply contract by contract, and HMRC’s CEST tool gives its view on one engagement.

Employment status in employment law can differ from status for tax.

Our IR35 guide sets out the tests.

If the person’s company is registered for VAT, VAT is added to the day rate on the invoice.

Ask whether each quote is before or after VAT, so you compare like with like.

A day rate paid to someone’s own company carries no salary, holiday pay or employer pension.

A salary does.

Under automatic enrolment the employer pays at least 3% into a workplace pension on qualifying earnings, and employer’s National Insurance is 15% on earnings above £5,000 a year (HMRC rates and thresholds).

The pro-rata figures on this page are base salary only, before any of that.

There is a third route: employ the person part-time on a salary.

A part-time employee must not be treated less favourably than a comparable full-time one, and some benefits are applied pro rata (GOV.UK).

One day in five of the £50,250 median is £10,050 a year (our arithmetic), before the employer’s costs.

09/ vetting

How we vet fractional executive assistants

What we undertake on every brief, before a candidate reaches you.

01
Qualification screen
Verify Fractional 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

10/ fractional executive assistant day rate

Fractional executive assistant day rate: what a quote should show

There is no published fractional executive assistant day rate we can cite, so the rate is whatever each candidate quotes.

On the permanent figures, the day equivalent runs from £180 to £290 nationally, and £310 on the London median (our arithmetic).

Use it to read a quote, not to set one.

A quote is comparable when it states the day rate, the days a week, the notice on both sides, whether VAT is added and whether expenses are billed on top.

Ask for all five in writing before you compare two candidates.

For your own position, try the rate calculator: put in the quoted rate and the days, and it gives the month and the year.

11/ fractional ea hourly rate

Fractional EA hourly rate: the salary by the hour

No independent source publishes a fractional EA hourly rate either.

Divided by 1,650 working hours (220 days of 7.5 hours), Robert Half’s permanent EA salaries come to £23–£39 an hour nationally, with the £50,250 median at £30, and £41 an hour on the £68,250 London median (our arithmetic, nearest £1).

An EA employed part-time on a salary is paid pro rata to the hours.

Every employee has the right to request flexible working, including fewer hours or set days, from their first day.

For the employed route, see part-time executive assistant; for a remote EA, see hire a virtual executive assistant.

12/ the other routes

Permanent, interim or fractional: three ways to pay for the seat

A permanent salary buys an EA every day; see executive assistant salary for the benchmarks this page divides.

Temporary and interim cover is paid by the hour or the day; see interim executive assistant salary.

A fractional EA is paid only for the hours or days bought.

13/ questions

Fractional executive assistant salary FAQ

The questions people ask before bringing in a fractional executive assistant.

Fractional executive assistant pay is a day rate or monthly retainer, not a salary, and no independent source publishes it for this seat. As a floor for comparison, Robert Half’s £50,250 median for a permanent executive assistant comes to about £230 a day over 220 working days, or £10,580 a year for one day a week over 46 weeks (our arithmetic).

Whatever the person quotes: we know of no independent survey or official source that publishes one. On Robert Half’s permanent figures, the day equivalent runs from £180 to £290 nationally, and £310 on the London median (salary ÷ 220 working days, our arithmetic). That is a pro-rata floor, not a market rate.

The day rate the person quotes, times the days a week, times the weeks. For comparison, the £50,250 permanent median comes to £10,580 a year at one day a week, £21,160 at two and £31,740 at three, over 46 weeks (our arithmetic). Add VAT if their company is registered. We send a shortlist of 3–5, each with day rate, availability and IR35 position set out, so you compare real quotes.

We take the permanent base salary from Robert Half, divide it by 220 working days and round to the nearest £10. That day equivalent is multiplied by 1, 2 or 3 days a week for 46 weeks. Every step is our arithmetic, and it is base salary only: no employer’s National Insurance, pension or benefits.

Robert Half’s 2026 London median for a permanent executive assistant is £68,250. Over 220 working days that is about £310 a day, or about £41 an hour, and £14,260 a year for one day a week over 46 weeks (our arithmetic). The London range runs from £52,250 to £87,750.

Whatever the EA quotes: no independent source publishes one. Divided by 1,650 working hours, Robert Half’s £50,250 permanent median comes to about £30 an hour, and its £68,250 London median to about £41 (our arithmetic). That is a pro-rata floor, not a market rate.

It depends on how the engagement runs. A medium or large client makes the status determination; a small private-sector client leaves it to the person’s own company (HMRC). It is set contract by contract, so one person can have engagements on both sides.

Count the hours or days the work needs, ask every candidate for the quote in writing, and settle IR35 before the start. The steps are on hire 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.

Book a call →Submit a brief