Jobs grow in Luton as median pay reaches £2,514 a month
WageSight Wire · Aug 2026
- Employment
- 108,575 workers (July 2026)
- Monthly change
- +0.1% (+94 workers)
- Annual change
- +0.5% (+589 workers)
- Median pay
- £2,514/month (YoY: +5.5%, £130 more in cash terms)
- Total pay bill
- +5.1% on the year
- Real pay vs Feb 2022
- +£78 better off in real terms
Payrolled employment in Luton continued to grow in July 2026, with workers up 0.5% year-on-year, 589 more than a year ago, and rising a further 0.1% on the month.
Across the East of England, payrolled employment was broadly flat, down 0.2% over the year to July 2026. Luton ranked 1st of 17 sub-regional areas in the East of England by employment change over the past year.
The median pay packet for workers in Luton stood at £2,514 in July 2026, up 5.5% over the past year and ahead of inflation at 3.03%. After a period of sharp inflation from 2022 that eroded real earnings, wages have been recovering. Workers in Luton are now £78 a month better off in real terms than in February 2022, when median earnings stood at £1,943 a month. The total pay bill in Luton rose 5.1% over the year, faster than headcount, suggesting average earnings per worker are improving.
Luton outperformed the UK as a whole, where payrolled employment edged down 0.3% over the year to July 2026. Across the UK, 580,736 workers entered payrolled employment in June 2026, the most recently available flow data, while 594,229 left, a net loss of 13,493 workers.
“Luton is outperforming the national picture and stronger employment and better pay growth points to a local economy that is working well for all. Understanding what’s driving that is as important as celebrating it.”
— Paul Hebden, Director, Campaign Salience
East of England — employment and pay
| # | Area | Workers | Jobs (yr) | Median pay | Pay (yr) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Luton | 108,575 | +0.6% | £2,514 | +5.4% |
| 2 | Thurrock | 85,596 | +0.2% | £2,801 | +4.1% |
| 3 | Essex Haven Gateway | 217,118 | +0.1% | £2,617 | +4.8% |
| 4 | Bedford | 89,230 | +0.0% | £2,712 | +4.3% |
| 5 | Central Bedfordshire | 142,908 | -0.1% | £2,903 | +4.3% |
| 6 | Peterborough | 103,729 | -0.1% | £2,486 | +5.2% |
| 7 | Breckland and South Norfolk | 123,482 | -0.1% | £2,561 | +4.5% |
| 8 | Essex Thames Gateway | 163,581 | -0.1% | £2,804 | +4.8% |
| 9 | West Suffolk | 78,525 | -0.2% | £2,613 | +4.5% |
| 10 | Norwich and East Norfolk | 165,370 | -0.2% | £2,443 | +4.5% |
| 11 | West Essex | 149,933 | -0.4% | £2,839 | +4.6% |
| 12 | Heart of Essex | 152,414 | -0.4% | £2,953 | +4.8% |
| 13 | Cambridgeshire CC | 321,140 | -0.5% | £2,874 | +4.2% |
| 14 | East Suffolk | 97,943 | -0.6% | £2,425 | +4.8% |
| 15 | Southend | 79,648 | -0.6% | £2,719 | +5.3% |
| 16 | Ipswich | 67,053 | -0.8% | £2,467 | +4.2% |
| 17 | North and West Norfolk | 97,369 | -1.0% | £2,398 | +4.9% |
Notes to editors
Figures from WageSight, derived from ONS / HMRC PAYE Real Time Information. Full method at wagesight.com/methodology.
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