Our Aberdeen team (formerly Hutcheon Mearns) has published their annual Salary Guide. It’s a comprehensive look into pay, benefits, and market expectations across Scotland’s finance and accountancy scene. With competition for skilled professionals heating up, this guide arms employers with the insight to craft standout packages that attract and retain the best people. For finance candidates, it’s a confidence boost and a clear benchmark to navigate career decisions in a fast-changing market.
Download the Cooper Parry Scotland Salary Guide 2026
What’s inside the Cooper Parry Salary Guide 2026
The guide considers major developments influencing the finance profession this year, including:
- How AI is reshaping finance teams, especially in PE-backed environments
- The rise of fractional CFOs and flexible financial leadership
- The shifting future of finance roles, with demand growing in ESG, analytics, and transformation
- The top trends in benefits and working conditions that determine whether people join – or leave – a business
- In-depth regional market commentary across Aberdeen, Dundee, Edinburgh and Glasgow
- Clear salary benchmarks across levels, sectors and specialisms
Combined, these insights help both employers and candidates understand not just what people are paid, but why and how expectations are shifting as the profession evolves.
Why this matters for employers
The battle for exceptional finance talent is far from slowing down. Organisations are under pressure to offer competitive, transparent compensation that stands up to scrutiny. Not only to secure new hires, but to keep their strongest performers engaged and committed. With finance teams being reshaped by AI, digital transformation, regulatory change and rising commercial expectations, employers can’t afford to operate on outdated assumptions.
The 2026 Scotland Salary Guide gives businesses the evidence-based insight they need to make smarter hiring and retention decisions. It helps leaders understand how their salary structures compare across regions, sectors and role levels, and provides critical context around benefits, hybrid working expectations and what candidates are prioritising right now. This reduces the risk of losing talent to competitors and ensures salary negotiations are grounded, transparent, and aligned with market realities.
And for candidates? It’s equally essential
For finance professionals thinking about their next step – or simply wanting to check if they’re being paid what they’re worth – salary conversations can be the most uncomfortable part of any process. The guide cuts through the uncertainty. It sets out realistic benchmarks based on real market data, helping candidates negotiate with confidence and understand where they stand. In a market where AI literacy, data capability, commercial awareness and communication skills are increasingly in demand, knowing your value has never been more important.
A tighter market, higher expectations
Across Scotland, employers are competing not only on salary, but on flexibility, wellbeing support, development opportunities, culture, and tech capability. Finance professionals increasingly want hybrid working, meaningful progression, exposure to strategic work and organisations that invest in digital skills. Businesses that aren’t adapting are feeling the impact through longer hiring cycles, higher turnover and reduced candidate pipelines.
For employers, the guide highlights where they must sharpen their offer. For candidates, it reveals which skills and attributes are commanding a premium, and where the biggest opportunities lie.
The bottom line
The data reflects a finance profession in transition. AI is accelerating routine work, pushing teams toward higher-value activity. Strategic business partnering, ESG understanding, data literacy and strong communication are quickly becoming non-negotiables. Meanwhile, competition for part-qualified through to manager-level talent remains intense across both industry and practice.
Against this backdrop, the Salary Guide 2026 provides clarity in a market where expectations are changing fast.
Want to find out more?
Get in touch if you’d like advice on how to strengthen your finance team, or you’re a candidate wanting guidance on your next move.
