UK reward metrics · Incentives & Recognition

What percentage of UK organisations have sign-on bonuses used for any roles in place?

Source lumi HRBase 267 organisationsFieldwork 2026 H1

14.2%in place

14.2% of organisations in the lumi HR community have sign-on bonuses used for any roles in place; a further 0% have it partly in place (base: 267 UK organisations, 2026 H1).

Figures describe organisations in the lumi HR community, not a random sample of UK employers.

How the base splits

In place 14.2% Partly in place 0% Not in place 85.8%
Share of the 267 organisations assessed, 2026 H1. Organisations answering not applicable or don’t know are excluded from the base.

What organisations answered

Sign-on bonuses used for any roles: share of organisations by answer
AnswerShare of organisations
Not used85.8%
Used rarely in exceptional cases4.9%
Used for specific hard-to-fill roles7.9%
Used strategically as part of attraction strategy1.5%

Definition

Whether sign-on (joining) bonuses are used, and how routinely — from never to a core attraction tool. See the methodology for how the base is built, how not-applicable answers are handled, the public floor, and which organisations are excluded.

For context, HR DataHub Talent Attraction & Retention Survey, Oct 2022 reports 15% (base: UK employer-prevalence).

Cite this figure
Source: lumi HR, UK Reward Metrics, September 2026, lumihr.co.uk/metrics/sign-on-bonuses-used-for-any-roles
Last updated 19 September 2026 · Data licence: CC BY 4.0 for the figures in the CSV download.

See how your organisation compares

Members see their own organisation against the peer group, by sector and size, on every metric.

Book a call