PHP Developer Salary UK 2026

2026 GBPUKIR35CitySeniority

Last updated: May 20267 min read • Written by: ClickMasters HR Team • Reviewed by: Reviewed annually

Direct Answer

PHP Developer salaries range from GBP22,00038,000 to GBP638-GBP992/day. PHP with Laravel 11 + Livewire commands premium. PHP with Filament (Laravel admin panel -- internal tools) commands premium. PHP with Pest testing and multi-tenancy (Spatie tenancy) commands premium. Legacy modernisation experience (PHP 5/7 to PHP 8.2/Laravel 11 migration) commands growing premium.

Market Outlook

PHP Developers write web applications primarily with Laravel or Symfony. PHP remains widely deployed in UK e-commerce (WooCommerce, Magento), CMS (WordPress, Drupal), and SME web applications. The market is bifurcated: modern Laravel 11 developers are in demand; PHP 7 legacy developers face declining demand.

Salary benchmarks by Seniority

Seniority
Permanent Salary
Day Rate (Outside IR35)
Annual Equivalent
Junior PHP (0-2 yrs)
GBP22,000-GBP38,000
GBP172-GBP300/day
GBP32,105-GBP55,980
Mid PHP (3-5 yrs)
GBP38,000-GBP68,000
GBP300-GBP480/day
GBP55,980-GBP89,568
Senior PHP (6-10 yrs)
GBP68,000-GBP108,000
GBP480-GBP690/day
GBP89,568-GBP128,766
Lead PHP (10+ yrs)
GBP100,000-GBP155,000
GBP638-GBP992/day
GBP119,051-GBP185,142

IR35 Tax Position

Day rates assume outside IR35. Inside IR35 contractor day rates in the UK are typically 15–25% higher to compensate for the lack of tax efficiency and additional payroll costs. ClickMasters engineers are directly employed by us, representing **zero IR35 risk** for clients.

Frequently Asked Questions

Everything you need to know about php developer salary standards.

Approximately GBP68,000-GBP108,000 mid-level. London +20-30%.

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