Quant salary, by level
A quantitative researcher with two to five years in London earns a base salary of £110k to £150k at a hedge fund or prop trading firm, with a bonus that usually exceeds base, so around £285k in total. Five years in, the midpoint is near £475k. Firm type moves this more than seniority does.
A bank quant desk and a top prop trading firm are different jobs paid on different curves, so they are separate tables here rather than one average. The graduate band alone spans more than £65,000 depending on which end of the market you land at.
Every level
London. A graduate at a top prop firm starts on £100,000 to £150,000 of base against the £85,000 a mid-sized fund pays, which is a gap between firms rather than between rungs and is why the entry band here describes the market rather than its top end.
| Level | Base | Bonus | Total (mid) | Reached at |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Graduate | £85k to £110k | 70% to 120% | £190k | On joining |
| Quant researcher (2–5 yrs) | £110k to £150k | 95% to 140% | £285k | 2y |
| Senior quant researcher (5+ yrs) | £150k to £200k | 130% to 210% | £475k | 5y |
| Portfolio manager | £120k to £250k | £185k + share | 9y |
Figures describe 2024. Base is as published. The bonus range is derived from the same source’s total compensation range, bottom paired with bottom and top with top, then rounded to five percentage points.
What the cash figures leave out
Dispersion is wider here than on any other track, and the range matters more than the midpoint. Non-competes are the reason: six months to three years out of the market is normal in Europe, so packages are built out of sign-ons, guarantees and accelerators that no band can show. The portfolio manager rung is paid a share of P&L, not a bonus, so it carries no multiple.
Where these numbers come from
Selby Jennings, Quantitative Analytics, Research & Trading Salary GuideAugust 2024
Base and total compensation for quant roles in Europe (GBP) and the USA (USD), split by firm type and by sell side and buy side.
Sell side, and the flattest curve on this page. The ladder starts at associate because that is where a quant PhD is hired in: the survey reports its graduate band and its associate band as the same money, which is not two rungs.
| Level | Base | Bonus | Total (mid) | Reached at |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Associate / AVP | £85k to £120k | 15% to 25% | £125k | On joining |
| Vice president | £115k to £180k | 15% to 40% | £190k | 3y |
| Director / ED | £180k to £250k | 35% to 80% | £340k | 6y |
| Managing director | £250k to £400k | 140% to 200% | £880k | 8y 6m |
Figures describe 2024. Base is as published. The bonus range is derived from the same source’s total compensation range, bottom paired with bottom and top with top, then rounded to five percentage points.
What the cash figures leave out
Dispersion is wider here than on any other track, and the range matters more than the midpoint. Non-competes are the reason: six months to three years out of the market is normal in Europe, so packages are built out of sign-ons, guarantees and accelerators that no band can show. The portfolio manager rung is paid a share of P&L, not a bonus, so it carries no multiple.
Where these numbers come from
Selby Jennings, Quantitative Analytics, Research & Trading Salary GuideAugust 2024
Base and total compensation for quant roles in Europe (GBP) and the USA (USD), split by firm type and by sell side and buy side.
The rungs are the seniority quartiles of 217 quantitative researcher filings at the named funds and prop firms: $150,000 at the 10th percentile, $225,000 at the median, $275,000 at the 90th. A first-year package at a top prop firm can sit at the top of that on its own, which is a gap between firms rather than between rungs.
| Level | Base | Bonus | Total (mid) | Reached at |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Graduate | $150k to $175k | 80% to 140% | $340k | On joining |
| Quant researcher (2–5 yrs) | $175k to $225k | 85% to 120% | $405k | 2y |
| Senior quant researcher (5+ yrs) | $225k to $275k | 120% to 190% | $640k | 5y |
| Portfolio manager | $200k to $300k | $250k + share | 9y |
Figures describe 2024. Base and total from the published survey, bonus derived between them. The visa disclosure filings are the check on it: 538 quant filings at the named trading firms and platforms in 2025 have a median base of $180,000 and a 90th percentile of $275,000, which is the survey’s buy-side range arrived at from an entirely different direction.
What the cash figures leave out
A graduate at a top prop firm out-earns a three-year researcher at a mid-sized fund, and the ladder cannot show that because it is a gap between firms rather than between rungs. Jane Street advertises a $300,000 base for a New York quantitative researcher before any bonus; the same title at a bank quant desk starts at half that. Pick the firm before you read the level.
Where these numbers come from
Selby Jennings, Quantitative Analytics, Research & Trading Salary GuideAugust 2024
Base and total compensation for quant roles in Europe (GBP) and the USA (USD), split by firm type and by sell side and buy side.
US Department of Labor, H-1B Labor Condition Application disclosure data2025 filings
Offered annual base wage by employer, job title and worksite. Percentiles below are computed from those rows, not taken from anyone else’s summary.
Licence: US public domain
Jane Street, Quantitative Researcher (New York), advertised base salaryRead September 2026
One named, advertised figure at the top of the US quant market, published because New York City requires a range on the posting.
Sell side in New York. Minimum junior salaries moved from around $150,000 towards $175,000 to $200,000 as the market tightened, and two-year guarantees became a way of winning candidates.
| Level | Base | Bonus | Total (mid) | Reached at |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Graduate | $145k to $175k | 55% to 75% | $265k | On joining |
| Associate / AVP | $175k to $195k | 50% to 60% | $285k | 2y |
| Vice president | $200k to $250k | 70% to 90% | $405k | 5y |
| Director / ED | $250k to $300k | 120% to 135% | $625k | 8y |
| Managing director | $350k to $500k | 100% to 180% | $1.0m | 10y 6m |
Figures describe 2024. Base and total from the published survey, bonus derived between them. The visa disclosure filings are the check on it: 538 quant filings at the named trading firms and platforms in 2025 have a median base of $180,000 and a 90th percentile of $275,000, which is the survey’s buy-side range arrived at from an entirely different direction.
What the cash figures leave out
A graduate at a top prop firm out-earns a three-year researcher at a mid-sized fund, and the ladder cannot show that because it is a gap between firms rather than between rungs. Jane Street advertises a $300,000 base for a New York quantitative researcher before any bonus; the same title at a bank quant desk starts at half that. Pick the firm before you read the level.
Where these numbers come from
Selby Jennings, Quantitative Analytics, Research & Trading Salary GuideAugust 2024
Base and total compensation for quant roles in Europe (GBP) and the USA (USD), split by firm type and by sell side and buy side.
US Department of Labor, H-1B Labor Condition Application disclosure data2025 filings
Offered annual base wage by employer, job title and worksite. Percentiles below are computed from those rows, not taken from anyone else’s summary.
Licence: US public domain
Jane Street, Quantitative Researcher (New York), advertised base salaryRead September 2026
One named, advertised figure at the top of the US quant market, published because New York City requires a range on the posting.
Ranges, not offers. Compare every track.
Other tracks
For what these jobs involve day to day and how people get into them, see the career path map. For open roles and deadlines, the opportunity tracker.
Getting to the next rung
Analyst to associate
Most people arrive here from a banking analyst job. This is that decision, including when to stay and when to move across.
Buyside Recruitment Bootcamp
The headhunter playbook, the modelling test and the case, for anyone crossing into private equity, hedge funds or asset management.