jobfacts

Quantity surveyor

Quantity surveyors — SOC 2020 2453

Quantity surveyors advise on financial and contractual matters relating to, and prepare bills of quantities for, construction projects and provide other support functions concerning the financing and materials required for building projects.

Also calledQuantity surveying technicianTaker-offTechnical assistantMeasuring surveyorQuantity surveyor's assistantChartered quantity surveyorand 7 more titles
Typical full-time pay£52,5002025 Provisional
People in the job45,000across the UK
Demand for workersElevated
New adverts a month3,400↑ 3.3%on last year · 51st of 412

Pay

ONS · ASHE 2025

Half of full-time quantity surveyors earn between £41,500 and £67,200 a year.

What full-time quantity surveyors earn, 2025
£52,500 typical£32,000lowest 10%£41,50025%£67,20075%£75,000top 20%n/ptop 10%
Middle half (£41,500–£67,200)n/p: top 10% not published by ONS
Show as table
Lowest 10% earn less than£32,000
Lowest 20% earn less than£38,200
25%£41,500
Median£52,500
75%£67,200
Top 20% earn more than£75,000
Top 10% earn more thanNot published
Typical pay by regionUK median £52,500
Wales!£53,800
East of England!£53,600
Scotland!£52,000
North East!£48,400
North WestNot published by ONS–
Yorkshire and The HumberNot published by ONS–
East MidlandsNot published by ONS–
West MidlandsNot published by ONS–
LondonNot published by ONS–
South EastNot published by ONS–
South WestNot published by ONS–
!Small sample: treat with caution
Show as table
UK median, £52,500
Wales£53,800 (small sample)
East of England£53,600 (small sample)
Scotland£52,000 (small sample)
North East£48,400 (small sample)
North WestNot published by ONS
Yorkshire and The HumberNot published by ONS
East MidlandsNot published by ONS
West MidlandsNot published by ONS
LondonNot published by ONS
South EastNot published by ONS
South WestNot published by ONS
Typical pay over 3 years
  • 2023 £44,600
  • 2024 £48,600
  • 2025 Provisional£52,500
↑ 18% since 2023Provisional figures are revised when ONS publishes the next year’s survey.

Jobs and demand

ONS · Textkernel adverts · DfE

About 3,400 jobs for quantity surveyors are advertised each month. The Department for Education rates demand for workers as elevated.

New job adverts a month, Jan 2017 to Aug 2026
New advertsMonth not published by ONS (5 in all)
Show as table
Aug 2026Not published
Jul 20263,034
Jun 2026Not published
May 20263,152
Apr 20263,213
Mar 2026Not published
Feb 20263,203
Jan 20264,020
Dec 20252,165
Nov 20253,807
Oct 20253,900
Sept 20253,762
Aug 20253,506
Jul 2025Not published
Jun 2025Not published
May 20254,096
Apr 20252,878
Mar 20253,159
Feb 20255,352
Jan 20253,459
Dec 20241,913
Nov 20242,658
Oct 20242,820
Sept 20243,175
Aug 20243,027
Jul 20243,444
Jun 20243,194
May 20243,627
Apr 20244,189
Mar 20243,632
Feb 20243,509
Jan 20244,370
Dec 20233,000
Nov 20233,755
Oct 20233,253
Sept 20233,713
Aug 20233,524
Jul 20233,619
Jun 20235,363
May 20234,660
Apr 20234,315
Mar 20234,402
Feb 20234,128
Jan 20235,069
Dec 20223,831
Nov 20224,591
Oct 20224,356
Sept 20224,411
Aug 20224,211
Jul 20223,591
Jun 20224,297
May 20224,568
Apr 20223,293
Mar 20224,189
Feb 20224,122
Jan 20225,191
Dec 20213,628
Nov 20213,800
Oct 20213,880
Sept 20214,088
Aug 20213,681
Jul 20214,864
Jun 20214,278
May 20214,806
Apr 20214,338
Mar 20215,448
Feb 20214,217
Jan 20214,065
Dec 20202,864
Nov 20203,636
Oct 20203,097
Sept 20202,527
Aug 20202,265
Jul 20202,274
Jun 20204,081
May 20201,659
Apr 20203,161
Mar 20205,672
Feb 20205,237
Jan 20204,521
Dec 20194,068
Nov 20195,044
Oct 20195,232
Sept 20194,839
Aug 20194,853
Jul 20194,828
Jun 20195,341
May 20194,912
Apr 20193,958
Mar 20194,277
Feb 20193,965
Jan 20195,079
Dec 20182,925
Nov 20183,808
Oct 20183,924
Sept 20183,807
Aug 20183,465
Jul 20183,231
Jun 20183,854
May 20184,094
Apr 20183,854
Mar 20185,301
Feb 20183,831
Jan 20185,023
Dec 20173,586
Nov 20174,603
Oct 20174,289
Sept 20174,251
Aug 20174,919
Jul 20174,642
Jun 20176,726
May 20176,648
Apr 20176,243
Mar 20176,437
Feb 20175,184
Jan 20177,180
Is there a shortage of quantity surveyors?
Elevated

The Department for Education rates demand as not high, elevated or critical, using five indicators. This is its 2025 assessment.

  • Visas grantedAbove usual
  • Online job advertsWell above usual
  • Wage growthUsual
  • Pay against similar jobsUsual
  • Hours workedUsual
Vacancies hard to fill because of skills
50%against 27% for all jobs
Broader groupFigure for architects, chartered architectural technologists, planning officers, surveyors and construction professionals, which includes quantity surveyors. DfE Employer Skills Survey 2024.
Where the most jobs are advertisedadverts a quarter
London1,824
Birmingham338
Manchester337
Bristol, City of237
Leeds217
Glasgow City183
Cambridge127
Gloucester116
Somerset108
Exeter102
London is published as one area. Averages leave out quarters ONS withheld.
Where quantity surveyors are most concentratedShare of local job adverts, compared with the UK.

Recruitment from abroad. 29 sponsored work visas were granted for this job from July 2025 to June 2026, most to people from France, Sri Lanka, Australia, ranking it 164th of 313. Home Office

Who does it

ONS · Annual Population Survey · April 2025 to March 2026
WomenToo few in the survey to give a reliable figure
Age of quantity surveyors
n/p
30%!
20%!
18%!
14%!
5.1%!
!Small sample: treat with cautionn/p: too few in the survey to publish
Show as table
16–24Not published
25–3430% (small sample)
35–4420% (small sample)
45–5418% (small sample)
55–6414% (small sample)
65+5.1% (small sample)
Highest qualification
Degree or equivalent82%
Higher education below degree!6.5%
A levels or equivalent!5.9%
GCSEs or equivalent–
Not published
Other qualifications–
Not published
No qualifications!2.1%
!Small sample: treat with caution
Show as table
Degree or equivalent82%
Higher education below degree6.5% (small sample)
A levels or equivalent5.9% (small sample)
GCSEs or equivalentNot published
Other qualificationsNot published
No qualifications2.1% (small sample)

Main employers: construction of residential and non-residential buildings (31%), other professional, scientific and technical activities nec (18%), construction of other civil engineering projects nec (10%), engineering activities and related technical consultancy (8.3%).

How to get in

Hold a degree
82%
as their highest qualification
Apprenticeships
1
from level 6, a degree apprenticeship
Apprenticeships take
3 years
typically

Routes in

You can get into this job through:

University

You could do a quantity surveying degree or a postgraduate conversion course accredited by the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors.

Related degree subjects include:

  • construction
  • structural or civil engineering
  • building surveying
  • maths
  • geography
  • economics
  • land studies
Entry requirements

You'll usually need:

  • 2 to 3 A levels, or equivalent, for a degree
  • a degree in any subject for a postgraduate course

Apprenticeship

You could apply to do a Level 6 Degree Apprenticeship, with a quantity surveying business or construction company. Apprenticeships include:

  • Construction Quantity Surveyor
  • Chartered Surveyor

These take between 3 and 5 years to complete. You'll do on-the-job training and spend time with a learning provider.

Entry requirements

You'll usually need:

  • 4 or 5 GCSEs at grades 9 to 4 (A* to C) and A levels, or equivalent, for a degree apprenticeship

Other ways in

Work your way up

You could start work as a surveying technician or surveying assistant with a company, and study part time to become a quantity surveyor.

Other routes

You could get a postgraduate surveying qualification through a graduate trainee scheme with a company, or through distance learning with the University of the Built Environment.

Registration and professional bodies

Registration
  • you can register with the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors to become a chartered surveyor through the Assessment of Professional Competence (APC) scheme
Further information

You can find out more about becoming a quantity surveyor from the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors and Go Construct.

Routes in are from the National Careers Service job profile for quantity surveyor. Contains public sector information from the National Careers Service licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

Apprenticeships

1 for this job

© Skills England 2025. This information is licensed under the Open Government Licence https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/3/

The work

ONS · ESCO · O*NET

Typical tasks

  • liaises with client on project costs, formulates detailed cost plan and advises contractors and engineers to ensure that they remain within cost limit
  • examines plans and specifications and prepares details of the material and labour required for the project
  • prepares bills of quantities for use by contractors when tendering for work
  • examines tenders received, advises client on the most acceptable and assists with preparation of a contract document
  • measures and values work in progress and examines any deviations from original contract
  • measures and values completed contract for authorisation of payment

Skills

  • adjust engineering designs
  • perform scientific research
  • approve engineering design
  • analyse test data
  • use technical drawing software
  • draft design specifications
  • record test data
  • design prototypes
  • follow nuclear plant safety precautions
  • monitor nuclear power plant systems
  • perform laboratory tests
  • perform project management
  • use CAD software
  • assess financial viability

Knowledge

  • engineering principles
  • engineering processes
  • design principles
  • quality standards
  • mechanical engineering
  • physics
  • project management
  • technical drawings

Suits people who like

  • Practical, hands-on work
  • Working with ideas and solving problems

Outlook

DfE · Skills Imperative 2035
Broader groupThese projections are for business, media and public service professionals, a group of 32 jobs that includes quantity surveyors.
Change in jobs, 2020 to 2035↑ 26%about 670,000 more jobs
Workers needed by 20352.1 millionincluding people replacing those who retire or leave

Sources

Pay
ONS, Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings, 2025 provisional
People in the job, who does it
ONS, Annual Population Survey, April 2025 to March 2026
Job adverts
ONS, online job adverts (Textkernel), to Aug 2026
Demand, skill shortages
Department for Education and Skills England, Occupations in demand and the Employer Skills Survey
Outlook
The Skills Imperative 2035 (2024), NFER/Nuffield/DfE/IER/CE
Routes in
National Careers Service job profiles
Apprenticeships, qualifications
Skills England occupational maps
Skills, interests
ESCO classification of the European Commission; O*NET data, U.S. Department of Labor (CC BY 4.0, modified)
Visas
Home Office, immigration system statistics

Figures as of 10 October 2026.

Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Source: Office for National Statistics licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Occupations in demand and the Employer Skills Survey: Department for Education and Skills England. Immigration system statistics: Home Office. Contains public sector information from the National Careers Service licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

© Skills England 2025. This information is licensed under the Open Government Licence https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/3/

Source: The Skills Imperative 2035 (2024), NFER/Nuffield/DfE/IER/CE.

This service uses the ESCO classification of the European Commission.

This service includes information from the O*NET 31.0 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. This service has modified all or some of this information. USDOL/ETA has not approved, endorsed, or tested these modifications. CC BY 4.0 licence.

jobfacts is independent. It is not part of, affiliated with or endorsed by the Office for National Statistics, the Department for Education, Skills England, the National Careers Service, the Home Office, the European Commission or the U.S. Department of Labor.