| APM Salary and Market Trends Survey 2025
Research report in association with YouGov
Welcome to the ninth
APM Salary and Market Trends Survey.
Launched in 2015, the research has provided APM, its members and everyone else interested in the profession with invaluable data on important salary trends within project management and its future outlook. It takes a bird’s-eye view of the attitudes and opinions of project managers on the key issues affecting their working lives, both current and future.
What’s the story for 2025?
The average salary for a project professional has increased by just over 10% since 2023, from £47,500 to £52,500, with pay expected to continue rising. This is the first time the average salary has risen since pre-COVID-19 times. What’s more, project managers are feeling optimistic about their own careers and the future prospects of the organisations they work for. Project professionals aren’t just feeling confident – they are behaving confidently too, as the uptick in salaries shows.
National investment by the UK government in infrastructure projects to drive economic growth has created demand for project managers, and the project profession is reaping the benefits. However, the survey finds that confidence is shaky in the UK government’s ability to deliver projects over the next five years, so there is work to be done in bolstering best practice and the increased professionalisation of those working in these areas.
What’s impressive is the high level of job satisfaction felt by project professionals, with 80% of respondents saying they are satisfied with their current role. It’s good to see that positive things are happening, despite this not necessarily happening elsewhere. It’s interesting to note that when the country enters difficult times, APM typically sees a growth in membership and qualifications, because individuals view it as a good time to retrain and network.
“The optimism is quite striking, both from organisations and individuals, and we’re starting to see that reflected in actual salaries”
Professor Adam Boddison OBE, CEO, APM
The number of people taking the APM Project Fundamentals Qualification and the APM Project Management Qualification is booming, with more than 50% of respondents holding one of these qualifications. The PRINCE2 qualification, meanwhile, continues to lose traction. The pace of growth in the number of Chartered Project Professionals is significant, albeit starting from a small number.
For the first time, the survey asked project managers about AI and the impact it is having on their work. Nearly half said their organisation was using it for the automation of routine tasks, enhanced data-driven decision-making and additional insight gathering, but more widespread use is being hindered by a lack of understanding about its benefits and a fear of data breaches.
When it comes to the issue of sustainability, there is room for improvement within the profession. While 86% of organisations have policies in place, fewer than half actually see any impact from them. Some organisations are clearly engaged in greenwashing and box-ticking exercises, and are not putting the resources or strategic emphasis in place to make sustainability happen in practice. This is a question of governance for the profession, with boards needing to ask the right questions and a need for leaders who can drive a strategy forward. There is much more to do.
Work also needs to be done when it comes to the gender pay gap. Compared to the 2023 survey, the pay gap in average salary between men and women has increased from 24% to 35% in 2025. While this clearly isn’t good news, drilling down into the data, it’s evident that while the distribution of male pay has remained largely the same, the distribution of female pay is shifting upwards. The crossover point at which men now get paid more than women has increased from £53,000 to £63,000. While progress is frustratingly slow, something is starting to happen now. What’s critical in tackling the issue is to focus on roles, not just salaries. The profession needs to seriously step up.
The salary survey was conducted by global research company YouGov, which undertook a quantitative survey of project professionals using an online interview administered to subscribers in our database. Fieldwork was conducted between 8 October 2024 and 7 November 2024. The sample size was 3,868 project professionals, which is significantly higher than for the 2023 survey.
Respondents included APM members (67%) and non-members. Just over half (58%) were male, and 41% were female. Just 6% of respondents were aged 18–24 years; 27% were aged 25–34 years; 30% were aged 35–44 years; 23% were aged 45–54 years; and 12% were aged 55–64 years. Nearly 80% of respondents were in permanent employment.
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