C&M Travel Recruitment's Travel Salary Index – 2025 H1 Overview
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LONDON - eTravelWire --

• Wages rise, but at lower level than 2024
• Senior travel pay jumps 7%
• More candidates now in higher wage brackets

Travel wages rise again at start of 2025

The average salary for a new job in the travel industry increased by 3.1 per cent in the first half of the year, according to the 2025 H1 Travel Salary Index from C&M Travel Recruitment which surveyed all new vacancies registered with the company during the timeframe.

The rise means that the average pay for a new travel job has reached £38,919 – an increase of £1,172 since the first half of last year. However, this follows jumps of 12.86 per cent and 12.58 per cent in the first six months of 2024 and 2023 respectively.

There was a notable 7.39 per cent rise in wages for senior travel roles (those paying £40,000 and above), with a significant increase in the number of new positions paying £60,000 or more. Such roles accounted for 13 per cent of all new jobs in the first half of 2025 compared to only five per cent during the same period of 2024.

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However, pay for standard travel jobs (those paying below £40,000) saw a small fall of 1.56 per cent – or £487 – during the first six months of the year to stand at £30,788, after increases of 6.78 per cent and 5.99 per cent in the first halves of 2024 and 2023 respectively. Despite the dip, the average wage for a standard travel job has risen by 19.04 per cent (or £4,925) in the past five years.

Activity slips from 2024

There were small falls across all three activity metrics at the start of 2025, with the number of candidates, job openings and job placements all falling by six per cent in the first half of this year compared to the same period in 2024.

Speaking about the stats, Barbara Kolosinska, Co-Owner and Managing Director at C&M Travel Recruitment (http://www.candm.co.uk/), said: "Salaries in the travel industry have now risen consistently for the past four years, which is great to see. Travel has always been an attractive sector to work in, but has historically been underpaid. But with these increases in wages, we are now in a much better position to compete with other industries for the best candidates out there.

"However, the small fall in pay for standard travel job is less welcome news. Wages for these positions need to at least match the rate of inflation or our industry risks missing out on top graduates who could otherwise have a long and fulfilling career within travel."