Police Superintendent Salary 2026/27
Superintendent is the first of the superintending ranks, above Chief Inspector and below Chief Superintendent. Pay in England and Wales runs across four pay points, £84,177 to £99,015, on the scale awaiting the determination that implements the 3.5% award from 1 September 2026. The Home Secretary awarded 3.5% from 1 September 2026, below the 3.9% recommended, and the revised pay points are not published yet.
Typical pay & take-home
- Pay point 2
- £88,449
- Typical range
- £84,177–£99,015
- Take-home at median
- £61,858 England, no pension applied — use the salary calculator for your scheme.
At the median for this profession, you earn about 127% above the UK full-time median (£39,039), placing you in the top 5% of UK earners.
What influences police superintendent pay
Four pay points spanning £14,838, the widest spread of any police rank, reached by service in the rank.
The pension contribution steps up to 14.22% at this rank, the top tier, which applies to pensionable pay of £79,588 or more. It is a net pay arrangement, so the contribution reduces taxable pay but National Insurance is still charged on the full gross.
The whole scale is inside the 40% band and below the £100,000 personal allowance taper. At the £99,015 top, the 14.22% contribution brings adjusted net income to about £84,935, so the taper is not in play on base pay even at the ceiling.
Superintending ranks are covered by the PRRB alongside the federated ranks; chief officer pay is set separately by the Senior Salaries Review Body.
Career progression
- Chief Inspector: £70,344 to £73,149.
- Superintendent: £84,177 to £99,015.
- Chief Superintendent: above the Superintendent scale.
- Chief officer ranks: set by the Senior Salaries Review Body, not the PRRB.
Frequently asked questions
- What does a Superintendent take home 2026/27?
- On the £84,177 bottom of the scale with the 14.22% pension tier, take-home is about £52,198 a year or £4,350 a month. At the £99,015 top it is about £59,538. Both are after Income Tax, National Insurance on the full gross, and the pension contribution.
- Why is the jump from Chief Inspector to Superintendent so large?
- The bottom of the Superintendent scale is £84,177 against £73,149 at the top of Chief Inspector, an £11,028 step. It is the largest single promotion increase in the police pay structure, and it also moves the officer into the 14.22% pension tier.