Teaching union fees aren't straightforward — they vary by role, by FTE, by salary band, by nation, sometimes by local council, and they change every year. Here's a clear-eyed look at what each major UK option costs in 2025/26.
Full-time classroom teacher (England & Wales)
If you're a full-time classroom teacher past your ECT years, these are the ballpark annual figures for the main options:
| Organisation | Annual cost (FT teacher) | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| NEU | £239–£274/yr | Including 5–20% local branch sub |
| NASUWT | £242/yr | No local subs |
| Edapt | £194/yr (£17.95/mo) | Not a trade union; ~10% saving if paid annually |
The three are close enough in price that cost alone shouldn't be the deciding factor. What you get for the money — collective action, in-school reps, casework, political fund or not — varies more than the headline number.
Classroom teacher (Scotland)
| Organisation | Annual cost (FT teacher) | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| EIS | £169–£187/yr (DD) | National £156 + local sub by council. Add ~£20–£30 if paying other than direct debit. |
| NASUWT (Scotland) | £242/yr | Same national rate as elsewhere in the UK |
| SSTA (secondary only) | £212–£231/yr | Lower if paid annually before 31 January |
Classroom teacher (Northern Ireland)
NI is unusual because most teaching unions charge as a percentage of gross salary (0.6%) rather than a flat fee, deducted directly from payroll.
| Organisation | Annual cost (FT teacher) | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| INTO | £198–£296/yr | 0.6% of gross salary, deducted from payroll. Voluntary Grammar schools have separate flat rate. |
| UTU | £190–£294/yr | Banded across the NI teaching pay scale (M2 to UPS+) |
| NASUWT NI | £242/yr | Flat rate UK-wide |
Classroom teacher (Wales)
| Organisation | Annual cost (FT teacher) | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| UCAC | £233/yr (£19.38/mo) | Tiered FTE bands rather than linear pro-rata |
| NEU Cymru | £239–£274/yr | Same as NEU rates |
| NASUWT Cymru | £242/yr | Same as NASUWT rates |
School leaders
Leadership union subs are higher and tier by role:
| Role | NAHT | ASCL |
|---|---|---|
| Executive Head / CEO | £512/yr | £502/yr |
| Head / Principal | £486/yr | £483/yr |
| Deputy / Vice Principal | £395/yr | £390/yr |
| Assistant Head | £278/yr | £291/yr |
| Middle leader | £205/yr | — |
In Scotland, leadership-specific options are AHDS (£216–£312/yr) for primary, special and nursery leaders, and SLS (£253–£446/yr) for secondary.
Support staff (TAs, admin, technicians)
Support-staff subs are usually cheaper than teacher subs and frequently banded by earnings.
| Organisation | Typical full-time annual | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| UNISON | £168/yr (typical TA band) | Earnings-banded — entry rates as low as £116/yr |
| GMB | £182/yr | PT rate (≤20 hrs/wk) ~£103/yr |
| Unite | £148–£266/yr | Banded by hours and salary |
| Community | £166–£229/yr | Low / high salary bands |
| Edapt | £119/yr (£11/mo) | Not a union; tiered FTE bands |
Trainees, ECTs and probationers
Worth knowing: almost every option is free during initial teacher training, and most charge just £1 in your first year post-qualification. There's no good reason not to have something in place during this period.
| Stage | Typical cost |
|---|---|
| ITT trainee (PGCE / School Direct / etc) | £0 with most unions |
| Year 1 post-qualification (ECT 1 / probationer) | £1 (NEU, NASUWT) up to full rate at some |
| Year 2 (ECT 2) | ~⅓ of full rate (NASUWT); full rate at NEU |
| Year 3 | ~⅔ of full rate at NASUWT; full elsewhere |
The small print to watch out for
- Local branch subs. NEU and EIS add a local sub on top of the national rate, which varies by council/branch — usually 5–20%. NASUWT and Edapt don't.
- Salary banding. UNISON, Community, INTO, UTU and Unite all band subs by earnings. The lower your salary, the less you pay.
- FTE pro-rata. Most options pro-rata fees for part-time, but Edapt and UCAC use tier bands (0.6–0.8 FTE is one tier; ≤0.5 another).
- Calendar year vs academic year. Some unions charge on a calendar-year cycle (January–December), others on an academic year (September–August). Worth checking when you join.
- Annual vs monthly billing. Edapt offers ~10% saving for annual payment. SSTA has different rates depending on whether you pay before 31 January.
- Political fund opt-out. If you opt out of a political fund (where applicable), your sub goes down slightly. Worth doing if politics isn't part of why you joined.
Is the cheapest option the best?
Not necessarily. Edapt is the cheapest for most teachers (£194/yr full-time), but it's not a trade union — it can't call strikes or do collective bargaining, and there are no in-school reps. If those things matter to you, you'd be paying for something you don't want. The right comparison is value for what you actually want from membership, not just price.
That's what our 2-minute quiz is designed to help you do: it ranks every option by how well it matches your actual priorities, then shows you the personalised cost for your specific role and FTE.
Last updated: 26 May 2026. Union fees usually change each September. Always verify the current rate on the organisation's own joining page before signing up — we link directly to it from each quiz result.