Santa Monica Talent · London · 2026
2026
Salary
Benchmarking
London salary data for VC/PE-backed scale-ups and challenger brands, 20–250 headcount.
C-Suite · AI · Product · Software · Sales · OpsWho Is This Report For?
Company Size
20 to 250 headcount — VC or PE-backed scale-ups and challenger brands.
Sectors
AI, Blockchain, Cybersecurity, Fintech, Healthtech, HR SaaS, Social Impact, Payments.
Functions
C-Suite, AI, Product, Software, Marketing, Software Sales, Operations.
C-Suite & VP
Salaries
Base salaries for digital scale-ups in London, from 20 to 250 headcount.
| Role | Base Salary Range |
|---|---|
| Chief Financial Officer | £120k – £180k |
| Chief Revenue Officer60/40 split OTE | £150k – £250k |
| Chief Product Officer | £150k – £250k |
| Chief Operating Officer | £150k – £250k |
| VP Engineering | £130k – £200k |
| VP Data | £120k – £150k |
| VP SalesDouble OTE | £120k – £150k |
| VP Marketing | £100k – £180k |
| VP People | £100k – £150k |
CTO Salaries
Same title. Completely different roles. CTO compensation varies significantly by company stage.
Series A CTO
Hands-on, player-coach role. Deeply involved in technical work while mentoring junior team members. Typically a VP Engineering moving up. Strong technical architecture knowledge required.
Late-Stage VC / PE CTO
Proven ability to scale software teams. C-suite experience essential. Not hands-on — focused on team-building and leadership with corporate experience in governance and security.
| Stage | Base Salary | Equity |
|---|---|---|
| Series APlayer-coach role | £150k – £200k | 1–2% Equity |
| Late-stage VC / PE50–250 headcount | £200k – £350k | Life-changing payout on company event |
Hands-on, player-coach role. Deeply involved in technical work while mentoring junior team members. Typically a VP Engineering moving up.
Proven ability to scale software teams. C-suite experience essential. Not hands-on — focused on team-building and leadership with corporate governance experience.
CEO Salary
What should a CEO earn? The short answer: it depends.
This data reflects SME scale-ups (20 to 250 headcount), not unicorns or listed companies. In VC-backed firms, candidates typically prefer equity over bonus structures, viewing ownership as the path to life-changing returns.
Sector matters: B2B Fintech, SaaS, and Enterprise AI continue to pay the highest salaries. US firms consistently pay higher than their European counterparts.
Equity increases for lower base salary.
| Stage | Base + Bonus |
|---|---|
| Late-stage VC / PE-backed50–250 headcount | £200k – £350k |
| Series A, B & SMEChallenger brands · 20–50 headcount | £150k – £250k |
Software Developer
Salaries
Ranging from £100k to £250k, along with bonus and equity opportunities.
| Market Tier | Salary | Typical Sector |
|---|---|---|
| Top-Paying (1%) | Up to £250k | Tier-1 AI firms |
| Top-Paying (10%) | Up to £150k | Late-stage VC (AI/Fintech), PE-backed, Tier-1 tech |
| Mid-Market | Up to £120k | VC scale-ups, Tier-2 tech, Financial Services |
| Lowest-Paying | Up to £100k | Startups |
Most in-demand tech stack (in no order): Python, LLM, AWS, Java, C#, Rust, Javascript, Node.js, Typescript, React, Django, Go, C++.
London ranks 7th globally for open Engineering roles, behind San Francisco, Seattle, New York, US (other), Bengaluru and Singapore.
In-office roles command higher salaries — though asking developers to spend 5 days in the office remains a challenge.
In-Demand
AI Roles
The gap between what LLMs can do and what companies are actually using is enormous — creating massive demand for implementation talent.
But technical skills alone aren't enough. The real value is in people who can turn AI capability into provable ROI. That requires judgement, communication, and cross-functional thinking.
not clarity of thought."
| Role | Base + Bonus |
|---|---|
| AI EngineersLLM & NLP specialists | £120k – £250k |
| Head of AI | £150k – £250k |
| Data Engineers | £120k – £200k |
| Forward Deployed Engineers | £120k – £200k |
| AI Product Managers | £120k – £150k |
| Enterprise Account ExecutivesAI sales experience · Double OTE | £100k – £150k |
Santa Monica
Talent
With over 20 years of experience, we build high-performing teams for challenger brands and scale-ups. From placing experienced executives to conducting competitor intel and diversity planning, we offer a full-service approach that goes far beyond talent acquisition.
Santa Monica Talent has a successful record hiring across the tech industry. We identify and secure experienced executives who align with your company vision and values and connect you with executive leaders who drive growth and innovation.
Our key strengths lie in identifying experienced executive leaders through targeted headhunting campaigns and providing you with the market intelligence needed to make informed, strategic hires.
Ellis Seder
Founder, Santa Monica Talent
Let's Talk
Are you a Founder, Operator, or Investor at a VC/PE-backed company? If you're thinking about driving revenue, replacing underperformers, or launching a new market — we should talk.
Get in touch →