In theory, landing a role in a coveted West End show might be the pinnacle of many actors’ stage careers. It means performing to sold-out audiences night after night, meeting fans at the stage door, and working with creatives at the peak of their careers. But if you think winning a part guarantees an actor a hefty paycheck, think again. “I was not conscious, when I first entered the industry, of how little money most [theatre] actors actually make,” says Adam, an actor who has 30 years experience across West End shows, as well as TV, film and voiceover work. “It really doesn’t reflect the current cost of living”.
Adam, by the way, is talking to me on the proviso that I use a pseudonym – in the world of theatre, openly discussing money is a guaranteed way to lose you work.
Equity, the performing arts union, has seen contracts attempting to prohibit pay discussions, says Hannah Plant, the West End official for Equity. “We’ve seen contracts that say the discussion of pay is confidential between the producer, artist, and their agent, although we don’t believe those clauses are enforceable under the Equality Act,” she says.
Adam agrees that actors on the same production rarely discuss salaries among themselves. “It’s all very hush-hush,” he says. “Nobody talks about it.”
While Adam was paid “around £1750 a week” for his last stint in a principal role in the West End in 2022, he says this is far from typical. “I’ve had 30 years in the business, so I shouldn’t be paid the same as someone fresh out of drama school because obviously I’ve got more experience,” he says. “But, if you’re in the ensemble, and you’re not a big name, or you’re just a generic character in a show, it is a very different story.”
Right now, the minimum amount a West End actor can earn is £745.57 a week before tax, although Equity is currently pushing for it to be increased to £1000 for the lowest-paid workers. “But it is a lot more complicated than there being a single base rate,” says Plant. Minimum rates for West End actors are set by an agreement between Equity and the Society of London Theatre, and split into three categories based on the size of the theatre. “Actors can always be paid more, but this is the absolute minimum for the West End,” Plant says.
Still, Equity’s audits have found that most actors are paid only slightly above that threshold. “We certainly don’t think it’s enough,” Plant says. Once agents take their commission of 10-15 per cent and tax and pension contributions are deducted, take-home pay is also significantly reduced. “With high rents, inflation and food costs, if you’re on the lowest band, the money is ridiculous,” Adam says. “These are actors operating at the top of their game.”
“When I started out, I had no idea the pay could be this bad – I was just happy to be there,” says Katie (also a pseudonym), an actor who has appeared in several major UK tours since graduating from drama school in 2019 and also took on a principal role in a popular West End production earlier this year. While she describes her West End debut as a “dream role”, paying £1,000 a week, she says the bulk of her annual income still comes from social media work. “If anything, social media is my main source of income, and performing is my side hustle,” she adds. “That’s just the way the world works at the moment…I feel very privileged I can do both.”
According to London Theatre News, most actors in 2025 earned between £15,000 and £25,000 per year. But, this might come as a surprise, given the sums high-profile performers are paid to appear in theatre. London Theatre News estimates that Tom Hiddleston earned over £20,000 a week as Benedick in Much Ado about Nothing at Drury Lane earlier this year, while James McAvoy was on a weekly salary of £25,000 for Cyrano de Bergerac in 2019. For her stint in the Birmingham Hippodrome pantomime Peter Pan last Christmas, Alison Hammond was paid almost £200,000. “There’s obviously a massive disparity there,” Adam says.
For many actors, taking on additional work is a necessity. Tom (another pseudonym), who appeared as a principal in a West End show in 2019 before touring internationally with the same production, says supplementary jobs dominate his working life. “Currently, I do corporate roleplay, facilitate workshops in schools about gender, and sell cat food subscriptions,” he says. “The average day rate is around £200 for roleplay and sales, £180 for facilitation.” Adam adds that he has previously worked in healthcare to support his acting career, too. “Lots of actors work for nine months on a contract and then have three to five months off with no income. There’s just no stability,” he says.
When Tom went on a smaller-scale UK tour in 2024, he earned £525 a week. As the production was outside the West End, Equity’s West End minimums did not apply. “Small and mid-scale touring theatre is no joke,” he says. “The pay does not reflect the skill, time and physical toll the job requires. I wouldn’t accept another tour on the current terms.”
For Katie, touring on a bigger show has proved difficult, too. “I got £350 to find weekly accommodation while I was on tour… if you don’t want to stay in a random person’s spare room, it isn’t really a lot… sometimes being on tour can actually end up costing you.
“When I was at drama school I could only have dreamed of doing a UK tour, but when you’re actually doing it and you can’t pay your bills, something is wrong,” Katie continues. “It’s crazy because, as actors, you’re put on a pedestal a little bit. You come out of the stage door, sign autographs and take pictures, but then you go and sit on the tube next to those same people, which is probably not what people imagine happens.”
The disparity is felt more sharply as theatre companies report strong financial results. ATG Entertainment’s parent company, which owns 10 theatres in the West End and more across the UK and overseas took home a record profit of £160.9 million in the financial year ending in March 2025, while Delfont Mackintosh’s eight West End venues reported a turnover of £71 million during the financial year to March 2024. “So if the theatre companies are making so much money, why are actors in the West End having to suffer on such low money?” Adam wonders.
“Only once has my agent been able to eke out a slight bump in pay,” adds Tom, “In general you’re told budgets are so stretched that you must be a good little piggy and accept what you’re given.” Then there are the other hidden costs of being an actor to consider, such as travel, singing lessons, or physio sessions. “This last year I’ve paid roughly £700 on podiatry appointments after the shoes I was wearing for a touring show led to a chronic nerve injury,” Tom says.
Adam is clear in his position: for many actors, it is a grim and difficult reality, even if to an outsider, they might look like they’re thriving. “The fundamental problem with this industry,” he concludes, “is that we’re dramatically undervalued.”
