Sheffield Wages, Employment and Property Affordability

Resident earnings, employment, unemployment and affordability context for reading Sheffield prices and rents.

Last updated 5 Jul 2026HPI April 2026Rents May 2026Sold prices April 2026
Jan 2025-Dec 2025 / ASHE 2025

Sheffield wages, employment and affordability

Resident earnings and labour-market context help explain local affordability, rental pressure and housing demand.

Resident population
582,493
ONS 2024
Median resident annual pay
£38,116
Sheffield
Median resident weekly pay
£733
Full-time employees
Employment rate
70.8%
Aged 16-64
Unemployment rate
4.1%
Economically active
House price affordability5.8x earnings

Average house price compared with resident median annual pay.

Rent affordability29% of monthly earnings

Average monthly rent compared with estimated monthly earnings.

Labour market rates are from the ONS Annual Population Survey profile shown by Nomis. Where the local APS unemployment value is suppressed, the ONS model-based unemployment estimate is used. Earnings are ONS ASHE resident-analysis median full-time employee earnings. Annual pay is annualised from weekly pay for display context.

Wages and employment commentary · Last updated July 2026

Sheffield’s latest ONS/Nomis labour-market profile gives a clear picture of local earning power and labour supply. The city had a resident population of 582,493 in 2024, which provides the scale for the labour market and the housing needs that sit around it.

On pay, Sheffield’s resident median weekly earnings were £733 in ASHE 2025.

Incomes Explain Affordability Pressure

Wage and employment data does not predict house prices by itself. It gives demand-side context: how average prices and rents compare with resident earnings, whether employment conditions support demand, and where affordability pressure may limit the buyer or renter pool.