The UK’s best paid freelance jobs
When weighing up the pros and cons of freelance work, one of the main considerations is pay. So how much do freelancers in your field earn? And which freelance jobs pay the best?
Average freelance day rates in the UK
Freelance management platform YunoJuno compared UK freelancers’ average day rates, focusing on 16 categories within marketing, tech and creative industries.
Across all categories, the average day rate was £368 – but this varied significantly across fields.
| Field | Average day rate |
| Market research | £512 |
| Strategy | £492 |
| Data | £486 |
| UX | £468 |
| QA and testing | £425 |
| Development | £417 |
| Project management | £382 |
| Creative | £377 |
| Film and motion | £370 |
| Photography | £362 |
| Client services | £340 |
| Design | £336 |
| PR | £326 |
| Marketing | £318 |
| Social media | £307 |
| Studio | £281 |
Freelance market research day rates
Typical roles include: Market Research Analyst, Market Research Interviewer and Qualitative Research Assistant
Average day rate: £512
Lowest day rate: £155
Highest day rate: £1,479
Out of all 16 fields, market research roles have the highest average pay. But they also have the largest gap between the highest and lowest day rates – with those at the top end of the scale earning almost ten times as much as those at the lower end.
This shows that knowledge and experience are highly valued, and that more senior market researchers can set significantly higher rates than freelancers who are more junior.
Freelance strategy day rates
Typical roles include: Planner, Brand Strategist and Content Strategist
Average day rate: £492
Lowest day rate: £150
Highest day rate: £1,000
While their average day rates have dropped 6% since 2019, freelance strategists are still better paid than freelancers in most other fields, earning the second highest average day rate.
Freelance data day rates
Typical roles include: Data Scientist, BI Analyst and Data Engineer
Average day rate: £486
Lowest day rate: £250
Highest day rate: £750
Freelancers who work in data have been in increasingly high demand over the last few years, with their rates increasing by 31%. Even those at the lower end of the pay scale earn comparatively well – showing that even less experienced or skilled data freelancers are highly valued.
Freelance UX day rates
Typical roles include: UI Designer, UX Architect and UX Researcher
Average day rate: £468
Lowest day rate: £250
Highest day rate: £700
Within the field of UX, the average day rate sits right in the middle of the highest and lowest rates, which could suggest that there’s an even spread of hiring between junior and senior roles.
Freelance QA and testing day rates
Typical roles include: Quality Analyst, Test Architect and Test Engineer
Average day rate: £425
Lowest day rate: £250
Highest day rate: £850
Freelance development day rates
Typical roles include: Full-stack Developer, Mobile App Developer and JavaScript Developer
Average day rate: £417
Lowest day rate: £200
Highest day rate: £700
Freelance project management day rates
Typical roles include: Programme Manager, Project Manager and Resource Manager
Average day rate: £382
Lowest day rate: £210
Highest day rate: £800
Freelance creative day rates
Typical roles include: Art Director, Creative Director and Copywriter
Average day rate: £377
Lowest day rate: £200
Highest day rate: £613
Freelance film and motion day rates
Typical roles include: Motion Graphics, Videographer and Video Editor
Average day rate: £370
Lowest day rate: £250
Highest day rate: £650
Freelance photography day rates
Typical roles include: Photo Editor, Experiential Photographer and Event Photographer
Average day rate: £362
Lowest day rate: £150
Highest day rate: £1,130
As a whole, photography brings in slightly below average day rates – but the best paid photographers have the second highest day rates of any discipline. So if you’re thinking of becoming a freelance photographer, there’s a lot of scope to increase your rates as you build a portfolio, develop skills and gain experience.
Freelance client services day rates
Typical roles include: Account Director, Account Manager and Client Services Director
Average day rate: £340
Lowest day rate: £200
Highest day rate: £650
Freelance design day rates
Typical roles include: Digital Designer, Graphic Designer and Illustrator
Average day rate: £336
Lowest day rate: £290
Highest day rate: £500
While designers’ average day rate is lower than most other disciplines, their minimum day rate was the highest of all 16 areas. This could suggest that even less experienced designers have highly valued skills – although there’s limited opportunity to increase rates over time.
Freelance PR day rates
Typical roles include: PR Manager, PR Specialist and Relationship Manager
Average day rate: £326
Lowest day rate: £190
Highest day rate: £600
Freelance marketing day rates
Typical roles include: Digital Marketing Consultant, SEO Specialist and Performance Marketing Specialist
Average day rate: £318
Lowest day rate: £120
Highest day rate: £770
Freelance social media day rates
Typical roles include: Community Manager, Social Media Manager and Social Media Analyst
Average day rate: £307
Lowest day rate: £150
Highest day rate: £1,120
Social media has the second lowest average, but the third largest gap between highest and lowest day rates. This low average could imply that junior social media experts are hired more frequently than those who are more senior – but as someone in this field gains experience, they can up their day rate quite significantly.
Freelance studio day rates
Typical roles include: Artworker and Re-toucher
Average day rate: £281
Lowest day rate: £180
Highest day rate: £500
The bad news for studio freelancers? Their average day rate is the lowest of all 16 disciplines, with even the best paid freelancers earning comparatively less than top earners in other fields.
The good news? The average rate has remained roughly the same over the last few years, suggesting that studio work is less lucrative but more stable than other freelance opportunities.
The bigger picture of freelance pay
While day rates can give you some insight into the best paid freelance jobs, there are a few other factors to take into account.
Income vs expenses
Whereas in-house employees are usually provided with everything they need to do their job, freelancers often need to cover their own expenses, such as freelance insurance, equipment and software.
These expenses can vary a lot from discipline to discipline, and high costs could offset a high day rate. So to understand exactly which freelance jobs pay the best, you’ll need to weigh up income and expenses.
Non-working days
Freelancers often have time off between jobs. So while day rates can tell you how much a freelancer earns for the days they actually work, you can only find out their annual income if you also know how many days they work throughout the year.
There are many factors that could contribute to a freelancer’s number of non-working days. If a freelancer works in a high-demand field with a lot of potential jobs or is open to different kinds of work, they might find it easy to jump from job to job without much time off in between.
But freelancers might have more non-working days if they work in a field with fewer jobs, are very specific about the work they’ll accept, need to take sick days or simply want a bit more time off.
Long-term earnings
As we’ve seen above, freelancers in certain fields can significantly increase their rates as they refine their skills and gain experience – while others have less scope for upping their rates.
So when looking at which freelance jobs pay the best, it’s important to consider long-term earning potential, as well as the average pay and starting day rates.
The learning curve
If you’re new to freelancing, it can be difficult to know how much to charge, and undervaluing work is one of the most common mistakes made by freelancers. Learning how to effectively set day rates takes time, so it might be a while before a freelancer is able to maximise their earning potential.
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This content has been created for general information purposes and should not be taken as formal advice. Read our full disclaimer.
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