Annual Salary
£18,000 to £22,000
Average UK salary in 2023 was £34,963
(source Office for National Statistics)
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Swap to Finance & accounting or Sales & marketing or go back to all job sectors
Receptionists are the first point of contact for visitors to an organisation.
Average UK salary in 2023 was £34,963
(source Office for National Statistics)
You could work: evenings / weekends / bank holidays; on shifts
There will be
18.7% fewer Receptionist jobs in 2027.
As a receptionist, your tasks will depend on where you work. You could:
You may need to wear a uniform.
You could work in a reception area, in an office, in an NHS or private hospital or in a hotel.
You can get into this job through:
You can take a college course before applying for work as a receptionist. Some courses relate to particular types of work, others are more general.
For example:
You could get into this job through an apprenticeship, such as:
These take around 1 year to complete.
You'll usually need:
You could begin as an admin assistant in an organisation, for instance by doing temporary work, then apply for a permanent job as a receptionist when a vacancy becomes available.
In a hotel, you could start in housekeeping and take further training on the job.
You may be able to apply directly for receptionist jobs. It will help to have good admin and customer service skills.
Some employers will prefer you to have GCSEs and IT skills to work with computerised booking or payment systems.
You can learn more about working as a receptionist in hospitality from Caterer.com.
You can also find out about medical reception work from NHS Careers.
With training and experience, you could become a senior receptionist, front of house supervisor or personal assistant (PA).
In a GP surgery or health centre, you could train to become a medical secretary.
You can find out more about becoming a receptionist in hospitality from the Hospitality Guild.
You'll need: