Average partner pay at PwC climbs to £900,000 following cost-cutting
After a sustained period of cost-cutting, PwC is reportedly set to offer UK partners an average annual remuneration of more than £900,000 for the year to June 2026. After trimming headcount by more than 2,000 people, the controversial payouts will approach the firm’s previous record levels for senior payouts.
The world’s largest consultancy firms are currently under pressure to innovate, amid increased competition from technology companies and boutique firms. At the same time, many find themselves considering downsizing their headcounts, as a means to shoring up bottom lines, having ‘over-hired’ during a post-pandemic boom in demand which did not last.
Earlier in 2026, as it sought to reduce overheads, PwC announced it was bringing its consulting and risk practices under one umbrella. The merger came as the firm looks to streamline its operations, and followed an announcement in the second half of 2025 which declared it would trim its graduate intake by 200 places for the year.
Later, reports also claimed PwC was planning further redundancies in the sector most considered its bread-and-butter: audit. Audit and accounting are the traditional sources of the Big Four’s might – but the team had reportedly seen “low staff attrition” over the years. In combination with the aggressive post-pandemic hiring when audit and consulting services were booming, the market’s plateau has since led PwC to explore reducing its workforce.
After these cost-saving exercises, PwC’s headcount has fallen from 36,000 to 33,700. And according to new reports, the measures have helped to boost profitability – after flat growth in 2025. As a result, partners at PwC’s UK wing could see their payout grow by slightly more than 5% from the £865,000 average paid in the previous financial year.
Final payments have not yet been determined and could be reduced if PwC decides to retain more profit for investment. However, at present, partners are on course to receive average annual remuneration of more than £900,000 for the year to June 2026, bringing payouts close to the firm’s previous record levels from 2022. A payout above £900,000 would also exceed the latest reported averages at KPMG, where partners received £880,000, and EY, where the average was £787,000.
