---
title: "Are charity CEO salaries too high? | CharityCompare"
description: "There is no single fair figure."
source: https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/answers/charity-ceo-pay
retrieved: 2026-08-18T01:26:03.144Z
license: "Charity data © Crown copyright, Open Government Licence v3.0"
---

Charity finances

# Are charity CEO salaries too high?

**In short:** There is no single fair figure. A charity running £200m of services and employing thousands competes for senior finance and operational skills, and underpaying can cost more than it saves. Charities must disclose the number of staff paid over £60,000 in their accounts, so you can check the bands yourself and judge whether pay looks proportionate to scale and complexity.

Data from [CharityCompare editorial](https://register-of-charities.charitycommission.gov.uk/), last updated 12 August 2026.

Charities must disclose in their accounts the **number of staff paid over £60,000**, in bands, along with total staff costs and key management personnel remuneration. So the information is public even where individual names are not.

Judging it fairly means comparing like with like. Running a £200m charity with thousands of staff and regulated services requires senior finance and operational expertise that the labour market prices accordingly; underpaying can cost far more through poor decisions than it saves in salary. Equally, a large salary at a small charity with volunteer-delivered services deserves a question.

Useful test: is pay proportionate to scale and complexity, and does the trustees’ annual report explain how it is set? Silence on a striking figure is itself informative.

## Related questions

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