jobfacts

Sales administrator

Sales administrators — SOC 2020 4151

Sales administrators provide support to the process of selling equipment, materials and other products or services.

Also calledSales administration assistantSales office clerkSales clerkOnline sales assistantAdministratorEbay trading assistantand 21 more titles
Typical full-time pay£28,7002025 Provisional
People in the job85,000across the UK
Demand for workersNot high
New adverts a month1,500↓ 5.7%on last year · 126th of 412

Pay

ONS · ASHE 2025

Half of full-time sales administrators earn between £25,000 and £34,000 a year.

What full-time sales administrators earn, 2025
£28,700 typical£22,800lowest 10%£25,00025%£35,000top 20%n/ptop 10%
Middle half (£25,000–£34,000)n/p: top 10% not published by ONS
Show as table
Lowest 10% earn less than£22,800
Lowest 20% earn less than£24,500
25%£25,000
Median£28,700
75%£34,000
Top 20% earn more than£35,000
Top 10% earn more thanNot published
Typical pay by regionUK median £28,700
London!£35,000
Yorkshire and The Humber£30,200
Wales!£29,800
North West£28,600
South East!£28,600
South West£28,000
Scotland!£26,700
East of England!£26,700
West Midlands£26,100
East Midlands£25,500
North EastNot published by ONS–
!Small sample: treat with caution
Show as table
UK median, £28,700
London£35,000 (small sample)
Yorkshire and The Humber£30,200
Wales£29,800 (small sample)
North West£28,600
South East£28,600 (small sample)
South West£28,000
Scotland£26,700 (small sample)
East of England£26,700 (small sample)
West Midlands£26,100
East Midlands£25,500
North EastNot published by ONS
Typical pay over 3 years
  • 2023 £25,800
  • 2024 £26,900
  • 2025 Provisional£28,700
↑ 11% since 2023Provisional figures are revised when ONS publishes the next year’s survey.

Jobs and demand

ONS · Textkernel adverts · DfE

About 1,500 jobs for sales administrators are advertised each month. The Department for Education rates demand for workers as not high.

New job adverts a month, Jan 2017 to Aug 2026
New advertsMonth not published by ONS (3 in all)
Show as table
Aug 20261,473
Jul 20261,506
Jun 20261,463
May 20261,633
Apr 20261,465
Mar 2026Not published
Feb 20261,457
Jan 20261,832
Dec 2025792
Nov 20251,723
Oct 20251,724
Sept 20251,661
Aug 20251,792
Jul 2025Not published
Jun 2025Not published
May 20251,806
Apr 20251,554
Mar 20251,781
Feb 20251,887
Jan 20251,601
Dec 2024871
Nov 20241,517
Oct 20241,709
Sept 20241,862
Aug 20241,943
Jul 20242,144
Jun 20242,095
May 20242,519
Apr 20242,305
Mar 20242,018
Feb 20241,893
Jan 20242,169
Dec 20231,462
Nov 20231,731
Oct 20231,840
Sept 20231,750
Aug 20232,165
Jul 20232,411
Jun 20233,334
May 20233,075
Apr 20232,735
Mar 20233,260
Feb 20233,265
Jan 20233,365
Dec 20222,746
Nov 20224,033
Oct 20224,092
Sept 20224,224
Aug 20224,784
Jul 20224,782
Jun 20224,128
May 20224,580
Apr 20223,728
Mar 20224,374
Feb 20224,180
Jan 20226,039
Dec 20213,371
Nov 20214,143
Oct 20214,376
Sept 20214,235
Aug 20213,378
Jul 20213,719
Jun 20213,249
May 20213,293
Apr 20212,682
Mar 20213,198
Feb 20211,779
Jan 20211,587
Dec 20201,589
Nov 20201,431
Oct 20201,659
Sept 20201,481
Aug 20201,354
Jul 20201,244
Jun 2020895
May 2020724
Apr 20201,075
Mar 20202,569
Feb 20203,645
Jan 20203,325
Dec 20192,164
Nov 20192,935
Oct 20193,174
Sept 20193,066
Aug 20193,060
Jul 20193,656
Jun 20193,449
May 20193,586
Apr 20192,745
Mar 20193,151
Feb 20192,918
Jan 20193,402
Dec 20181,990
Nov 20183,222
Oct 20183,150
Sept 20183,251
Aug 20183,203
Jul 20182,948
Jun 20183,201
May 20183,054
Apr 20182,709
Mar 20183,150
Feb 20182,721
Jan 20183,352
Dec 20172,098
Nov 20173,396
Oct 20172,866
Sept 20172,926
Aug 20173,377
Jul 20173,054
Jun 20173,748
May 20174,038
Apr 20174,176
Mar 20174,829
Feb 20173,695
Jan 20175,037
Is there a shortage of sales administrators?
Not high

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 advertsAbove usual
  • Wage growthAbove usual
  • Pay against similar jobsUsual
  • Hours workedUsual
Note: uncertainty in change in hourly wage.
Vacancies hard to fill because of skills
16%against 27% for all jobs
Broader groupFigure for other administrative occupations, which includes sales administrators. DfE Employer Skills Survey 2024.
Where the most jobs are advertisedadverts a quarter
London464
Leeds85
Birmingham80
Manchester80
Bristol, City of64
West Northamptonshire53
Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole52
Glasgow City45
Sheffield45
North Yorkshire42
London is published as one area. Averages leave out quarters ONS withheld.
Where sales administrators are most concentratedShare of local job adverts, compared with the UK.

Recruitment from abroad. 26 sponsored work visas were granted for this job from July 2025 to June 2026, most to people from France, Pakistan, Germany, ranking it 168th of 313. Home Office

Who does it

ONS · Annual Population Survey · April 2025 to March 2026
Age of sales administrators
15%!
24%!
16%!
18%!
25%
3.4%!
!Small sample: treat with caution
Show as table
16–2415% (small sample)
25–3424% (small sample)
35–4416% (small sample)
45–5418% (small sample)
55–6425%
65+3.4% (small sample)
Highest qualification
Degree or equivalent33%
Higher education below degree!4.4%
A levels or equivalent28%
GCSEs or equivalent30%
Other qualifications–
Not published
No qualifications!1%
!Small sample: treat with caution
Show as table
Degree or equivalent33%
Higher education below degree4.4% (small sample)
A levels or equivalent28%
GCSEs or equivalent30%
Other qualificationsNot published
No qualifications1% (small sample)

Main employers: retail sale via mail order houses or via internet (4.6%), retail sale of furniture, lighting equipment and other household articles in specialised stores (3.9%), retail trade of motor vehicle parts and accessories (3%), wholesale of wood, construction materials and sanitary equipment (3%).

How to get in

Hold a degree
33%
as their highest qualification
Apprenticeships
None
none leads directly into this work

Routes in

You can get into this job through:

College

You could do a college course, which would teach you some of the skills and knowledge you need in this job.

Relevant courses include:

  • business and administration
  • sales and account management
  • T Level in Management and Administration
Entry requirements

Entry requirements for these courses vary.

  • 4 or 5 GCSEs at grades 9 to 4 (A* to C), or equivalent, including English and maths for a T Level

Apprenticeship

You could get into this job by applying to do an Administration Assistant Level 2 Intermediate Apprenticeship or Business Administrator Level 3 Advanced Apprenticeship.

Entry requirements

You'll usually need:

  • some GCSEs, usually including English and maths, or equivalent, for an intermediate apprenticeship
  • 5 GCSEs at grades 9 to 4 (A* to C), or equivalent, including English and maths, for an advanced apprenticeship

Other ways in

Work your way up

You may be able to work your way into this role by starting as a receptionist or administration assistant and learning on the job.

Apply directly

You could apply directly if you've got the relevant skills and knowledge needed to do this job.

Some employers may ask for GCSEs at grades 9 to 4 (A* to C), including English and maths, or equivalent qualifications.

Customer service and IT skills will also be useful.

Registration and professional bodies

Professional and industry bodies

You could join the Institute of Administration Management for professional development opportunities.

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

The work

ONS · ESCO · O*NET

Typical tasks

  • provides information to customers on products and prices
  • help customers to place orders online through social media platforms
  • fields telephone enquiries from prospective customers on behalf of the sales team
  • prepares sales invoices and maintains records and accounts of sales activity
  • handles customer complaints or forwards them to relevant member of sales team
  • carries out general sales and marketing administrative duties

Skills

  • file documents
  • apply grammar and spelling rules
  • communicate commercial and technical issues in foreign languages
  • develop creative ideas
  • ensure proper document management
  • identify customer's needs
  • liaise with advertising agencies
  • master language rules
  • perform business research
  • speak different languages
  • support managers
  • translate foreign language
  • translate language concepts
  • use communication techniques

Knowledge

  • advertising techniques
  • company policies
  • grammar
  • spelling
  • content marketing strategy
  • media planning

Suits people who like

  • Organising and following procedures
  • Leading and persuading

Outlook

DfE · Skills Imperative 2035
Broader groupThese projections are for administrative occupations, a group of 20 jobs that includes sales administrators.
Change in jobs, 2020 to 2035↓ 12%about 381,000 fewer jobs
Workers needed by 20351 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.