How much does a NED cost in the UK?

For SMEs, typically £15,000–£40,000 a year for one to two days a month, rising with scale, risk and specialism. Early-stage companies often blend a lower fee with modest equity.

How much does an independent chair cost?

Typically £25,000–£60,000+ a year for two to four days a month at SME scale, with deal periods and turnarounds scoped separately.

Should NEDs take equity instead of fees?

Sometimes, at early stage — but modestly. Heavy equity turns an independent voice into another shareholder; straight fees are the cleanest protection of independence.

Are these figures quotes?

No — market context. Credible engagements are priced after scoping, in a written letter stating role, time, fee and review points.

Non-Executive Director & Chair Fees UK 2026: What SMEs Should Expect to Pay

Fee questions get answered vaguely because vagueness suits sellers. Here are the honest UK market ranges for non-executive roles in 2026, what moves them, and how to structure pay so it buys independence rather than compromising it. Treat everything below as market context, not a quote: every credible engagement is priced after scoping, in writing.

The headline ranges

Role	Typical UK SME range (per year)	Typical time
Non-Executive Director	£15,000 – £40,000	1–2 days / month
Independent Chair	£25,000 – £60,000+	2–4 days / month
Advisory board member	£1,000 – £3,000 per session, or modest retainer	Quarterly half-days + access
Board-level consultancy	£1,200 – £2,500 per day	Scoped programmes

Larger or regulated businesses, turnaround risk and deal periods push toward and beyond the top of these ranges; very early-stage companies sit below them, often blending fee with equity.

What actually moves the number

Five drivers explain most of the spread: scale and complexity (a £30m group with debt is not a £2m founder business); risk (regulated sectors, distress and litigation exposure are priced); time (a deal year is not a steady-state year); specialism (an AI-literate or exit-experienced director earns a premium when that's the gap); and the individual's market (operators with real executive records cost more than committee veterans — and are usually worth it).

Structures: fee, equity, session, hybrid

Straight fee is the default and the cleanest: independence is easiest when nobody's pay depends on agreeing with the founder. Equity or options suit earlier-stage businesses — alignment in exchange for cash — but should be modest and disclosed, because a director with too much skin starts thinking like a shareholder, not an independent. Per-session fits advisory boards. Hybrids (retainer plus scoped event support) work well where a raise or exit is foreseeable: steady-state pay for steady-state work, with the deal period priced separately rather than absorbed in resentment.

What good value looks like

Cheap and expensive are the wrong axes. The questions that matter: Is the role, time and review cycle written down? Does the director prepare — visibly? Did the board's decisions get harder to make badly? Would your investors recognise the name as a serious signal? A £25k NED who changes two big decisions a year is among the cheapest things a growing business can buy; a £12k one who skims the pack is expensive at any price.

Red flags in fee conversations

Consulting day-rates smuggled into a directorship — independence and invoices pull in opposite directions; keep project work separately scoped and disclosed.
No written time commitment — "as required" means "as avoided".
Reluctance about review points — a director who resists a six-month review is telling you something.
Pay precision without role precision — anyone who quotes a number before scoping the mandate is selling availability, not governance.

How MAXFR prices

Every engagement — chair, NED, advisory board or programme — is scoped first, then priced in a written letter: role, time, fee, review points at six and twelve months, and an exit either side can use. If the value isn't visible at review, the engagement should end. That keeps both sides honest, which is rather the point of the whole profession.

NED & chair fees in the UK: what to expect in 2026.