Head of finance salary · 2026
What a head of finance earns, between the controller and the finance director
A head of finance earns a median advertised salary of £85,000 in ITJobsWatch’s count of permanent job ads over the six months to 25 September 2026, from 62 quoted salaries. The middle half of those ads ran from £80,000 to £100,000. London ads had a median of £90,000. On Robert Half’s 2026 figures, that sits above a financial controller and below a finance director.
The head of finance salary follows the scope more than the title: who the role reports to, whether it signs off the statutory accounts and whether it faces the board. When you hire a head of finance through us, permanent, part-time, fractional 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
Part-time finance leadership works when scope, access and reporting are agreed at the start. Read it before you decide whether your head of finance seat should be full-time or a few days a week.
15 minutes · video or phone
Book 15 minutes to hire a head of finance
Tell us the scope and the days a week. We come back with Head of Finance 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
On the board · last 3 months
Head of finance jobs on the board
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 Head of Finance brief and we come back with a shortlist of three to five vetted candidates.
01/ the role
What a head of finance does, and what sets the pay
A head of finance runs the finance function day to day: the month-end close, management accounts, budgets and forecasts, cash, the audit and the finance team. In a growing company it is often the most senior finance role, reporting to the managing director or chief executive. In a larger one it usually reports to a finance director or CFO and runs the team underneath them.
Those two versions are paid differently. A head of finance who is the senior finance person in the business, presents to the board and signs off the statutory accounts is doing much of a finance director’s job. One who reports to a finance director and manages the close is closer to a financial controller. Write down which version you are hiring before you set the salary.
ICAEW’s guide to finance careers sets out the ladder the title sits on: finance manager, financial controller, then finance director or CFO as the most senior role in the function. Head of finance is used at more than one of those rungs, which is why the ranges below are wide. For the role in full, see what does a head of finance do.
Qualifications move the number too. In the head of finance ads ITJobsWatch counted, ACCA and CIMA were the qualifications named most often. A chartered accountancy qualification (ACA, ACCA or CIMA) is the usual expectation at this level, although no law requires one.
02/ scope
How to hire a head of finance
1. Decide which head of finance you need
Write down the reporting line, the team, the systems, who signs the statutory accounts and whether the role attends the board. Our head of finance job description gives a template you can copy.
2. Choose the route
A permanent head of finance suits a business that needs its finance function run every day. If the need is senior finance for part of the week, see fractional head of finance jobs. If the brief is board-level financial strategy, fundraising or an exit, it is closer to a finance director: see finance director recruitment. If the gap is the close and the controls, see fractional financial controller jobs.
3. 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 guaranteed base pay from variable pay such as bonuses. Decide whether any of the package rides on results before you make an offer.
4. Assess against the work
Give each candidate the same real task: a review of last quarter’s management accounts, a cash forecast, or a plan for the next audit. Take references from people the candidate reported to, and from people who reported to them.
What we do on a head of finance brief
We recruit permanent, fractional, interim, part-time and temporary finance leaders, and non-executive directors. 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
Head of finance salary against the roles either side
Advertised salaries from ITJobsWatch (permanent job ads it tracks, base pay only) and Robert Half’s 2026 percentiles for the roles either side. Robert Half is a recruiter; its figures are its own projections. Each figure is quoted as its source publishes it.
04/ economics
Salary or day rate: what the seat costs you
A salary is not the whole cost of an employee. Add employer’s National Insurance, the employer’s pension contribution and any bonus or benefits, and agree whether the company pays the professional body subscription.
A day rate does not compare one for one with a salary: a contractor funds their own pension, holidays and the gaps between assignments. Tax status is set by how the engagement runs in practice. Under the off-payroll working rules (IR35), a medium or large client makes the status determination; for a small client outside the public sector, the worker’s own company decides. Our IR35 guide sets out the tests.
For an official cross-check on employee pay, the ONS Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings reports earnings by occupation, although its groups are broader than any one finance title.
05/ vetting
How we vet head of finances
What we undertake on every brief, before a candidate reaches you.
- 01
Qualification screen
Verify Head of Finance 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/ head of finance salary London
Head of finance salary in London: what the London ads show
ITJobsWatch puts the head of finance salary in London at a median of £90,000 across 44 London job ads in the six months to 25 September 2026, against £85,000 for the UK excluding London. The gap is smaller than many expect, because head of finance roles outside London are often the senior finance job in their business.
Smaller regional samples are too thin to quote: most regions had fewer than 20 head of finance ads in the window. Where you are hiring outside London, scope matters more than the postcode. A head of finance who reports to the managing director and faces the board will cost more than one who reports to a finance director, wherever they sit.
For London roles on the board now, see head of finance jobs. For the controller’s pay in London and nationally, see the financial controller salary page.
07/ part time head of finance
Part-time head of finance: paying for the days you need
A part-time head of finance works a set number of days a week, either employed on reduced hours with pro-rata salary or engaged on a day rate as a fractional head of finance. It suits a business that needs its close, cash and reporting run properly but does not have five days of senior finance work.
We have found no verified published day rate for a part-time or fractional head of finance, so we do not print one. We set out the day rate or pro-rata salary for every candidate on the shortlist instead. For the roles and how the engagement works, see fractional head of finance jobs; for board-level finance a few days a week, see part-time CFO jobs.
If the part-time role is employed, the employee has the same rights to holiday, pension and the written statement of terms as a full-time one, pro rata. If it is a contractor through their own company, the IR35 rules above apply.
08/ questions
Head of finance salary FAQ
The questions people ask before bringing in a head of finance.
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.
