Interim CTO salary · day rates and what they add up to
What an interim CTO earns, by the day and by the assignment
An interim CTO salary is a day rate, not a salary.
Exec Capital’s 2026 technology salary guide publishes £800–£1,800 a day for an interim CTO.
Job ads quote less: ITJobsWatch puts the median advertised contract CTO rate at £630 a day, on 14 ads over the six months to 5 October 2026.
An interim works full-time for a fixed term, paid only for the days worked, with no pension, holiday pay or bonus from the client.
When you hire an interim CTO through us, we send a shortlist of 3–5, each with 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 interim CTO
Tell us the scope and the days a week. We come back with Interim CTO 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
Interim CTO jobs on the board
No Interim CTO roles on the board in the last three months. Showing interim executive roles instead.
- InterimSyndicatedInterim Chief Executive Officer (Women's Health Charity)
Verity (PMOS UK) · United Kingdom
Rate not stated3 d/wk - InterimSyndicatedInterim Finance Director
Pragmatic Semiconductor · Cambridge
est £1,400/day5 d/wk - InterimSyndicatedInterim Finance Director
Juro · United Kingdom
£800–£1,000/dayUnited Kingdom - InterimExclusiveInterim Chief Operating Officer
Confidential client (Fractional Quest mandate) · London
Rate not stated5 d/wk
Interim CTO and technology leadership roles on the board
Fractional recruitment works differently from a permanent search — shorter, scoped by days a week, and priced on the engagement. Send a Interim CTO brief and we come back with a shortlist of three to five vetted candidates.
01/ the role
How an interim is paid, by the day, for a fixed term
An interim CTO runs the technology function full-time for a set period: through a vacancy, a platform migration, a turnaround or the run-up to a sale.
The client pays a day rate for each day worked.
There is no salary, no paid holiday and no employer pension, and the assignment ends when the work does.
Most interims work through their own limited company.
The Institute of Interim Management’s 2026 survey found that the day rate is still the main way interims are paid, with fixed-term contracts second.
Across all functions, it puts the average assignment at 10.0 months and the average gap between assignments at 3.2 months.
That gap is why a day rate looks high against a salary.
An interim funds their own pension, holidays, insurance and the months between assignments from the days they bill.
02/ scope
What sets the day rate
The mandate
Exec Capital’s executive guide says straightforward cover during a permanent search sits at the lower end of each band, and transformation, turnaround or post-acquisition work at the top.
Across the C-suite it publishes £600–£800 a day for smaller or less complex mandates and £1,500–£3,500 for FTSE or major crisis and turnaround assignments.
Scale and sector
A large estate, a regulated sector or a live security problem pushes the rate up.
A hands-on delivery role in a smaller business sits nearer the bottom of the band.
IR35 status
In the IIM’s 2026 survey, across all functions, interims outside IR35 averaged £949 a day and those inside £830.
Status is decided by how the engagement runs in practice, contract by contract.
Under the off-payroll working rules, a medium or large client makes the determination; for a small client outside the public sector, the interim’s own company decides.
How the role is advertised
Contract ads with CTO in the title are a thin sample.
ITJobsWatch counted 14 with a day rate over six months, at a median of £630; the same six months of 2025 had a median of £900.
A CTO title in a contract ad can cover a hands-on role as well as a board-level mandate, so read the brief, not the title.
03/ rates
Interim, fractional and permanent day rates side by side
Published day-rate bands for a CTO, each with its source. The full-time band is a salary divided by 220 working days — our arithmetic.
Published UK day-rate bands · £ a day
- Fractional£1,000–£1,600Leadership Services 2026
- Interim£800–£1,800Exec Capital 2026
- Permanent, per day£545–£916Robert Half 2026 salary ÷ 220 days
The permanent band is the published salary ÷ 220 working days — our arithmetic, for comparison only.
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 · 4 roles · interim executive
Engagement
- Interim4
Seat
- Finance director2
- CEO1
- COO1
Days a week
- Stated in the posting3
- Not stated1
Day rate
- Verified rate1
- Estimated (est)1
- Rate not stated2
Work arrangement (as the job feed classifies it)
- Remote1
- Hybrid1
- On-site1
- Not classified1
Newest posting on the board: 18 Sept 2026.
Postings per week on this board, last 90 days
4 postings on this board in the last 90 days, counted by the week each was published.
05/ rates by stage
Interim CTO salary day rates by source
What an interim Chief Technology Officer is paid by the day, each figure as its source publishes it. Exec Capital is a search firm publishing planning bands; ITJobsWatch counts rates quoted in contract IT job ads; the IIM surveys interim managers across every function.
06/ rates by commitment
What the day rate adds up to
Gross billings at Exec Capital’s £800–£1,800 interim CTO band, before tax, company costs and unpaid gaps. Our arithmetic, for comparison only: an interim is not paid a salary, and few bill every working day.
07/ economics
Day rate to total cost: what the client pays
Outside IR35, the client pays the day rate and, where an agency is involved, its margin.
There is no employer’s National Insurance, pension or holiday pay to add, and no notice period beyond what the contract sets.
Inside IR35, the fee-payer deducts income tax and National Insurance as if the interim were employed, and pays employer’s National Insurance on top: 15% above £5,000 a year for 2026 to 2027 (HMRC rates and thresholds).
Use HMRC’s CEST tool on the specific engagement, and see our IR35 guide for the tests.
08/ vetting
How we vet interim CTOs
What we undertake on every brief, before a candidate reaches you.
- 01
Qualification screen
Verify Interim CTO 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
09/ interim cto day rate
Interim CTO day rate: where a mandate lands in the band
Exec Capital’s 2026 interim CTO day rate runs from £800 to £1,800.
Exec Capital says cover while you search for a permanent hire sits at the lower end, and transformation, turnaround or post-acquisition work at the top.
For the whole interim market, the IIM’s 2026 survey averages £907 a day, and £1,004 in the private sector.
It is not a CTO rate, but it shows where a technology mandate sits against interim work in general.
The Institute of Interim Management is the professional body for interim managers.
10/ interim chief technology officer salary
Interim chief technology officer salary against a permanent salary
An interim chief technology officer salary is best compared on a full year.
At Exec Capital’s band, 148 billed days, the IIM’s 2026 average, comes to £118,400–£266,400 in gross billings (our arithmetic).
Robert Half’s 2026 median permanent CTO salary is £160,500 in base pay, before bonus, pension and equity.
The two are not like for like.
The interim’s figure has to cover pension, holidays, insurance and the gaps between assignments.
The permanent figure comes with employer’s National Insurance, benefits and notice on the employer’s side.
For permanent pay in full, see CTO salary.
11/ other routes
Interim or fractional: full-time cover or part of the week
An interim covers the whole week for a fixed term.
A fractional CTO works part of the week, often for longer, on a day rate or a retainer; see fractional CTO salary for that route.
For the role and when it fits, see interim CTO.
For open roles and how to hire, see interim CTO jobs.
12/ questions
Interim CTO salary FAQ
The questions people ask before bringing in an interim CTO.
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.
