Leave the salary off an advert and nobody saves any time. The lawyer who would turn the job down at that figure applies anyway, or does not apply and wonders. The firm sorts through the replies, then loses the person it wanted at the offer.
This guide covers what pay on an advert does for lawyers and for firms, what an advert should show, and how to read a band that is wide or marked "DOE". It also covers the UK proposal to make pay on adverts a legal duty. It is our view, backed by the sources listed. Every advert we run shows the pay or earnings basis, the working pattern and the date.
Why does pay on an advert matter to a lawyer?#
Because pay is the first thing many jobseekers check, and a missing figure costs them an evening to find out. CV-Library's 2026 survey gives the size of it. It asked 1,043 UK jobseekers in August 2026.
41%
of UK jobseekers said they would refuse to apply for a job with no salary information. That is up from 38% in 2025. A job board survey of stated intention.
66%
of the same jobseekers ranked salary as the single most important part of an advert.
58%
said salary information is essential when deciding whether to apply. A further 37% said it is preferred.
These are stated intentions from a job board's survey, not measured behaviour. They still describe a real cost. In our view, the lawyer who is in work and not desperate has the least reason to ring and ask. That lawyer is often the one a firm wants.
Pay alone does not make a job good. Caseload, supervision and hours change what a figure is worth. Our guide to how to read a legal job advert covers those.
How common is pay on UK job adverts?#
Common, but far from universal. Two sources put the share at about 58%, and neither is specific to law. CV-Library's analysis found that 58% of UK job adverts included salary information over the previous 12 months. Indeed Hiring Lab found that 58% of UK postings included pay in the three months to June 2026.
We found no published count for legal adverts, so we cannot say whether law sits above or below.
- Indeed postings with pay, three months to June 202658%
- Indeed postings with pay, September 2024 high64%
- CV-Library adverts with salary information, previous 12 months58%
- Jobseekers who would not apply without it, August 202641%
Source: Indeed Hiring Lab, 3 August 2026; CV-Library, reported by Onrec, 13 October 2026
Indeed says the share remains well below its September 2024 high. It ties the dip to cooler hiring. As hiring conditions cool and employer bargaining power strengthens, it says, the incentive to compete on pay visibility diminishes.
So a missing figure is not proof of a poor employer. On Indeed's reading, employers show pay less when they hold more of the bargaining power. For a lawyer, that is a reason to ask. It is not a reason to feel lucky to be asked.
What should a legal job advert show, and why does a range beat "competitive"?#
It should show the pay band, the working pattern in days, the place and the date posted. A range beats "competitive" because it lets a lawyer decide in a minute whether to spend an hour.
| What to show | What a lawyer does with it |
|---|---|
| The pay band for this role | Decides whether to apply. A band for this role beats "competitive". |
| The working pattern in days | Weighs the commute and home life against the pay. |
| The place | Checks the commute. One town reads better than "various locations". |
| The date posted | Judges whether the role is open. See ghost jobs. |
| The bonus and its rules | Separates base pay from pay that may never arrive. |
| Holiday, and whether bank holidays are inside it | Compares like with like. Gov.uk says an employer can count bank holidays within the 28 days. |
The law asks a little of agencies. Under regulation 27 of the 2003 Conduct Regulations, an agency advert that gives pay must also state the nature of the work, the location, and the minimum experience, training or qualifications needed for that pay. The regulation does not require the pay itself.
A range does more than "competitive". It tells the lawyer the firm has set a budget. The government's consultation asked whether employers should be required to show a range, a specific salary or a benchmark rate. Onrec's write-up of the CV-Library report also recommends a banded range.
On this siteCheck a band against the marketSet the band you are offered against published ranges before you answer.Open the salary guideWhat do firms gain from showing pay, and what do they fear?#
They gain applicants who have already accepted the number. They fear what showing it might set off. Both are real.
On the gain, the European Commission says pay transparency increases job applications and reduces recruitment costs by clarifying salary expectations upfront. That is the Commission's view of its own directive, not a measurement. The UK consultation made a gentler point: showing pay can encourage employers to evaluate roles before recruiting. In our view, the practical gain is fewer interviews that end at the offer.
On the fear, CV-Library asked 233 recruiters, hiring managers and direct employers why pay is left off. Pay varying with experience came first, at 27%. Wanting a wider pool of applicants came next, at 16%. Budgets not yet being final was 13%. A further 9.3% said they rarely or never disclose salary in adverts.
| What firms fear | Our answer |
|---|---|
| Pay varies with experience. | Show the band, and say what moves a person up or down it. |
| We want a wider pool. | Someone who would refuse the pay at the offer has not added to the pool. |
| The budget is not final. | Settle it before advertising. If it is not agreed, the role may not be real yet. |
| Current staff will compare. | Check the band against your own team first. A gap you can explain beats one a colleague finds. |
Firms can read how to write a conveyancer job advert and how to choose a legal recruiter for the next steps.
What if the band is too wide to be useful?#
Ask where a person with your experience would sit in it. A band is only useful if it describes one role at one level. A band from £35,000 to £60,000 is not one role. That example is invented, but you will have seen its cousins.
Ask which levels it covers
Is it one role as advertised, or several levels in one advert?
Give your years, not your pay
Say how many years PQE you have and ask where that would land.
Ask what moves a person up it
Caseload, supervision of others, a qualification or a client base.
Ask for the typical offer
A firm that hires often knows where most people start.
Check it against the market
The salary guide and what a conveyancer earns give outside figures.
Decide with what you have
If nobody can answer, treat the width itself as the answer.
If you are the firm, the fix is simple. Split the advert by level, or say which part of the band goes with which experience. A narrow honest band attracts better than a wide one.
How should you read "DOE" or "depending on experience"?#
As a promise that a range exists, not as the range. "DOE" is honest when a range sits next to it. It is a flag when it replaces one. In CV-Library's survey, pay varying with experience was the most common reason employers gave for leaving pay off.
Is there a range next to it?
YesRead it as a band, and ask where you would sit in it.
NoAsk for the range before you apply. "DOE" alone is "competitive" in fewer letters.
Do they ask what you earn now in return?
YesGive the range you would accept, not your current pay.
NoGood. Compare their band with the market.
Does the band cover several levels?
YesAsk which level this role is.
NoAsk what the typical offer is.
Naming your current pay first can anchor the offer low. Should you tell a recruiter your current salary sets out what to say instead. The cost of the wrong move calculator helps you set a floor from your own figures. The sums run in your browser, and nothing you type is sent or saved.
How should a firm set a band it can publish?#
Start from the role, not from the person who left. Then test the band against the market and against your own team.
- Define the level. Say what the person will run, supervise and be answerable for. A band follows the level, not the title.
- Check your own team. A new hire on more than a colleague of the same level will be noticed. Decide what you will say about it.
- Check the market. Use the salary guide and live adverts for the same role and town. A band well below both will bring few replies.
- Settle the extras. Bonus rules, holiday and pension belong in the advert too.
- Test it on a lawyer. Ask someone at that level whether they would apply at the bottom of the band.
If you want an outside view first, you get a written market read from us before you pay anything. It is part of the 30-minute discovery meeting on Microsoft Teams. Book a discovery meeting when you are ready.
Is UK law about to require pay on job adverts?#
Not yet. The government has consulted on it, and the EU has already passed a directive. Here is where each stands.
| Place | Position | Source |
|---|---|---|
| UK | A consultation, Equal pay and pay discrimination, published 14 July 2026 and closed at 5pm on 27 October 2026. It proposed that all employers publish pay information in adverts, or give it in writing before interview if there is no advert. | GOV.UK |
| UK | The government's employment rights timeline, updated 22 October 2026, does not mention pay transparency. | GOV.UK |
| EU | A directive that required member states to bring it into national law by 7 June 2026. Once a country has brought it into law, employers there must give applicants the starting pay or range in the vacancy notice or before interview. They may not ask about pay history. | European Commission |
In the UK proposal, regulations would set the detail, such as how wide a range can be. The consultation says it wants to avoid new reporting requirements. We did not find pay history in the UK proposals. Indeed Hiring Lab calls the consultation a possible inflection point for how often adverts show pay.
The EU directive is EU law. It does not set the rule for a job in England or Wales. Whether the UK proposal becomes law, and when, is not ours to forecast. For now, the sensible move for a firm is to show the band, and for a lawyer is to ask for it.
What should you do before you apply?#
Check the advert against the list below, and ask for whatever is missing. A short email costs you nothing.
Every advert we run shows the pay or earnings basis, the working pattern and the date, so you can see the pay basis before you apply. See the live roles. A named person looks after you, it costs lawyers nothing, and no CV goes to a firm without your say so.
If you are a firm, you can register a vacancy. For conveyancing roles, see our conveyancing recruitment page.
On this siteSet your floor before you replyEnter your own figures and see what a move that does not work could cost. The sums run in your browser.Open the calculatorSources
- Onrec: 4 in 10 jobseekers won't apply without a salary, reporting CV-Library's Candidate Behaviour Barometer 2026 (13 October 2026, job board survey)
- Indeed Hiring Lab: Indeed's 2026 Mid-Year UK Jobs and Hiring Trends Report (3 August 2026)
- GOV.UK: Equal pay and pay discrimination consultation (published 14 July 2026, closed 5pm on 27 October 2026)
- GOV.UK: Equal pay and pay discrimination consultation document, chapter 1, pay transparency in recruitment
- GOV.UK: Plan to Make Work Pay and Employment Rights Act timeline update (updated 22 October 2026)
- European Commission: Frequently asked questions on the Pay Transparency Directive (2023/970)
- European Commission: EU action for equal pay
- legislation.gov.uk: The Conduct of Employment Agencies and Employment Businesses Regulations 2003, regulation 27 (Advertisements)
- GOV.UK: Employment agencies and businesses: Job advertisements
- GOV.UK: Holiday entitlement
This is general information, not legal advice. Where a figure comes from another organisation, the source is above, and we say when it is dated.