Microsoft Certification Contract Job Trends in England

Microsoft Certification
UK > England

The table below provides summary statistics for contract job vacancies advertised in England with a requirement for Microsoft Certification qualifications. It includes a benchmarking guide to the contractor rates offered over the 6 months leading up to 8 December 2025, comparing them to the same period in the previous two years.

6 months to
8 Dec 2025
Same period 2024 Same period 2023
Rank 251 247 312
Rank change year-on-year -4 +65 +59
Contract jobs citing Microsoft Certification 328 296 270
As % of all contract jobs in England 1.06% 0.98% 0.70%
As % of the Qualifications category 3.15% 3.25% 2.33%
Number of daily rates quoted 239 171 190
10th Percentile £219 £210 £209
25th Percentile £312 £325 £300
Median daily rate (50th Percentile) £500 £495 £500
Median % change year-on-year +1.01% -1.00% +17.65%
75th Percentile £600 £588 £600
90th Percentile £700 £713 £700
UK median daily rate £500 £483 £488
% change year-on-year +3.63% -1.03% +8.33%
Number of hourly rates quoted 19 21 17
10th Percentile £6.00 £11.75 £15.88
25th Percentile £16.00 £19.97 £16.25
Median hourly rate £21.25 £21.46 £19.00
Median % change year-on-year -0.98% +12.95% +22.58%
75th Percentile £29.61 £35.00 £35.00
90th Percentile £89.63 £112.00 £39.66
UK median hourly rate £19.23 £21.46 £22.00
% change year-on-year -10.39% -2.45% +41.94%

All Academic and Professional Certifications
England

Microsoft Certification falls under the Academic Qualifications and Professional Certifications category. For comparison with the information above, the following table provides summary statistics for all contract job vacancies requiring academic qualifications or professional certifications in England.

Contract vacancies requiring academic qualifications or professional certifications 10,416 9,114 11,591
As % of all contract IT jobs advertised in England 33.64% 30.06% 30.09%
Number of daily rates quoted 6,809 5,594 7,326
10th Percentile £308 £310 £305
25th Percentile £416 £425 £439
Median daily rate (50th Percentile) £525 £530 £550
Median % change year-on-year -0.94% -3.64% -
75th Percentile £627 £638 £650
90th Percentile £725 £738 £738
UK median daily rate £525 £525 £550
% change year-on-year - -4.55% -
Number of hourly rates quoted 898 427 699
10th Percentile £17.14 £19.99 £17.72
25th Percentile £18.87 £25.66 £26.77
Median hourly rate £25.15 £50.00 £52.50
Median % change year-on-year -49.70% -4.76% +16.67%
75th Percentile £52.45 £68.00 £67.88
90th Percentile £75.24 £75.00 £80.00
UK median hourly rate £25.15 £42.50 £52.50
% change year-on-year -40.82% -19.05% +16.67%

Microsoft Certification
Job Vacancy Trend in England

Historical trend showing the proportion of contract IT job postings citing Microsoft Certification relative to all contract IT jobs advertised in England.

Microsoft Certification job vacancy trend in England

Microsoft Certification
Daily Rate Trend in England

Contractor daily rate distribution trend for jobs in England citing Microsoft Certification.

Contractor daily rate distribution trend for jobs in England citing Microsoft Certification

Microsoft Certification
Daily Rate Histogram in England

Daily rate distribution for jobs citing Microsoft Certification in England over the 6 months to 8 December 2025.

Daily rate histogram for Microsoft Certification in England

Microsoft Certification
Hourly Rate Trend in England

Contractor hourly rate distribution trend for jobs in England citing Microsoft Certification.

Contractor hourly rate distribution trend for jobs in England citing Microsoft Certification

Microsoft Certification
Hourly Rate Histogram in England

Hourly rate distribution of jobs citing Microsoft Certification in England over the 6 months to 8 December 2025.

Hourly rate histogram for Microsoft Certification in England

Microsoft Certification
Contract Job Locations in England

The table below looks at the demand and provides a guide to the median contractor rates quoted in IT jobs citing Microsoft Certification within the England region over the 6 months to 8 December 2025. The 'Rank Change' column provides an indication of the change in demand within each location based on the same 6 month period last year.

Location Rank Change
on Same Period
Last Year
Matching
Contract
IT Job Ads
Median
Daily Rate
Past 6 Months
Median Daily Rate
% Change
on Same Period
Last Year
Live
Jobs
London -7 109 £510 +21.43% 198
South West +14 59 £550 +2.33% 60
South East -26 57 £486 -2.80% 176
Midlands -17 42 £300 -35.15% 119
West Midlands -15 32 £315 -40.00% 72
North of England -45 30 £450 -5.26% 159
East of England 0 28 £438 +48.94% 91
North West -23 24 £450 -5.26% 84
East Midlands -13 10 £210 -47.50% 46
Yorkshire -36 6 £425 - 55
Microsoft Certification
UK

Microsoft Certification
Co-Occurring Skills & Capabilities in England by Category

The following tables expand on the one above by listing co-occurrences grouped by category. They cover the same employment type, locality and period, with up to 20 co-occurrences shown in each category:

Application Platforms
1 36 (10.98%) SharePoint
2 35 (10.67%) Microsoft Exchange
3 6 (1.83%) Skype for Business
4 4 (1.22%) Confluence
Applications
1 16 (4.88%) Microsoft Office
2 12 (3.66%) Microsoft Excel
3 7 (2.13%) Microsoft PowerPoint
4 4 (1.22%) Microsoft Project
4 4 (1.22%) MS Visio
Business Applications
1 8 (2.44%) Dynamics CRM
2 3 (0.91%) Maximo
3 1 (0.30%) Payment Gateway
3 1 (0.30%) Sprinklr
Cloud Services
1 152 (46.34%) Azure
2 109 (33.23%) Microsoft 365
3 62 (18.90%) Entra ID
4 47 (14.33%) Power Platform
5 45 (13.72%) AWS
6 31 (9.45%) Azure DevOps
7 29 (8.84%) Power Automate
8 27 (8.23%) Dynamics 365
9 26 (7.93%) PowerApps
10 22 (6.71%) Microsoft Purview
11 16 (4.88%) Azure Monitor
11 16 (4.88%) Azure Sentinel
12 15 (4.57%) GitHub
13 14 (4.27%) Azure Logic Apps
14 11 (3.35%) Azure AKS
14 11 (3.35%) GitHub Actions
15 10 (3.05%) Azure Data Factory
15 10 (3.05%) SaaS
16 9 (2.74%) GCP
16 9 (2.74%) Serverless
Communications & Networking
1 58 (17.68%) DNS
2 43 (13.11%) Firewall
3 36 (10.98%) DHCP
4 32 (9.76%) TCP/IP
5 26 (7.93%) VPN
6 12 (3.66%) Fibre Channel
6 12 (3.66%) iSCSI
6 12 (3.66%) VLAN
7 9 (2.74%) LAN
7 9 (2.74%) Skype
7 9 (2.74%) SSL
8 7 (2.13%) Wi-Fi
9 6 (1.83%) Unified Communications
10 5 (1.52%) Network Security
10 5 (1.52%) SAN
10 5 (1.52%) Wireless
11 4 (1.22%) Kerberos
12 3 (0.91%) S/MIME
12 3 (0.91%) Softphone
12 3 (0.91%) WAN
Database & Business Intelligence
1 19 (5.79%) Power BI
2 15 (4.57%) SQL Server
3 7 (2.13%) Oracle Database
4 6 (1.83%) Azure SQL Database
4 6 (1.83%) Data Lake
5 5 (1.52%) MySQL
5 5 (1.52%) PostgreSQL
6 4 (1.22%) Data Warehouse
6 4 (1.22%) NoSQL
7 3 (0.91%) Amazon RDS
7 3 (0.91%) MongoDB
7 3 (0.91%) Power Query
7 3 (0.91%) Relational Database
8 2 (0.61%) Apache Cassandra
8 2 (0.61%) Metadata
8 2 (0.61%) RDBMS
8 2 (0.61%) SQL Server Integration Services
9 1 (0.30%) Redis
9 1 (0.30%) SQL Server Reporting Services
9 1 (0.30%) Tableau
Development Applications
1 16 (4.88%) JIRA
2 14 (4.27%) Git
3 7 (2.13%) MSI
4 6 (1.83%) GitLab
5 5 (1.52%) Jenkins
6 3 (0.91%) AdminStudio
6 3 (0.91%) Bitbucket
6 3 (0.91%) InstallShield
7 2 (0.61%) CircleCI
8 1 (0.30%) Cypress.io
General
1 141 (42.99%) Social Skills
2 60 (18.29%) Analytical Skills
3 48 (14.63%) Finance
4 43 (13.11%) Public Sector
5 20 (6.10%) Documentation Skills
6 18 (5.49%) Banking
7 7 (2.13%) Legal
7 7 (2.13%) Marketing
8 5 (1.52%) Military
8 5 (1.52%) Organisational Skills
9 4 (1.22%) Aerospace
9 4 (1.22%) Retail
10 3 (0.91%) Polish Language
11 2 (0.61%) Advertising
11 2 (0.61%) Aeronautics
11 2 (0.61%) Influencing Skills
11 2 (0.61%) Presentation Skills
11 2 (0.61%) Telecoms
12 1 (0.30%) Agriculture
12 1 (0.30%) French Language
Job Titles
1 56 (17.07%) Architect
2 41 (12.50%) Analyst
3 29 (8.84%) Senior
4 28 (8.54%) Support Engineer
5 23 (7.01%) Support Analyst
6 22 (6.71%) Infrastructure Engineer
7 18 (5.49%) Consultant
8 17 (5.18%) Lead
8 17 (5.18%) Solutions Architect
9 16 (4.88%) Security Engineer
10 15 (4.57%) Administrator
10 15 (4.57%) Azure Engineer
10 15 (4.57%) Developer
11 14 (4.27%) Technical Support
12 13 (3.96%) Infrastructure Architect
12 13 (3.96%) Microsoft 365 Engineer
12 13 (3.96%) Wintel Engineer
13 12 (3.66%) IT Analyst
13 12 (3.66%) IT Support
14 11 (3.35%) Cloud Engineer
Libraries, Frameworks & Software Standards
1 29 (8.84%) OAuth
2 24 (7.32%) OpenID
2 24 (7.32%) SAML
3 15 (4.57%) OAuth2
4 14 (4.27%) .NET
5 11 (3.35%) ARM Templates
5 11 (3.35%) Microsoft Graph
6 9 (2.74%) LDAP
7 8 (2.44%) JSON
7 8 (2.44%) REST
8 6 (1.83%) RESTful
9 3 (0.91%) ASP.NET Web API
9 3 (0.91%) HTML
9 3 (0.91%) PySpark
10 2 (0.61%) Azure Blueprints
10 2 (0.61%) Elastic Stack
10 2 (0.61%) HTML5 Canvas
10 2 (0.61%) React
10 2 (0.61%) Software Packaging
10 2 (0.61%) YAML
Miscellaneous
1 22 (6.71%) PKI
2 18 (5.49%) Analytical Mindset
3 13 (3.96%) Cloud Native
3 13 (3.96%) Hybrid Cloud
3 13 (3.96%) Onboarding
3 13 (3.96%) Replication
3 13 (3.96%) Security Posture
4 12 (3.66%) Enterprise Software
5 11 (3.35%) NHS
6 10 (3.05%) Driving Licence
7 9 (2.74%) Management Information System
8 7 (2.13%) iPad
8 7 (2.13%) iPhone
9 6 (1.83%) Private Cloud
10 5 (1.52%) BYOD
10 5 (1.52%) Data Centre
10 5 (1.52%) Low-Code
10 5 (1.52%) Self-Motivation
10 5 (1.52%) Team-Oriented Environment
11 4 (1.22%) Security Operations Centre
Operating Systems
1 172 (52.44%) Windows
2 68 (20.73%) Windows Server
3 39 (11.89%) Windows 10
4 28 (8.54%) Linux
5 24 (7.32%) Mac OS
6 13 (3.96%) Windows Server 2019
7 11 (3.35%) Windows Server 2012
8 5 (1.52%) Android
8 5 (1.52%) Windows Server 2003
9 4 (1.22%) Apple iOS
9 4 (1.22%) Unix
10 3 (0.91%) CentOS
10 3 (0.91%) VMS
11 1 (0.30%) Windows Server 2016
Processes & Methodologies
1 97 (29.57%) ITIL
2 93 (28.35%) Problem-Solving
3 51 (15.55%) DevOps
4 44 (13.41%) Customer Service
5 42 (12.80%) Agile
5 42 (12.80%) CI/CD
6 41 (12.50%) Service Management
7 39 (11.89%) Identity Access Management
8 38 (11.59%) Continuous Improvement
9 36 (10.98%) Computer Science
10 35 (10.67%) Migration
11 34 (10.37%) Cloud Security
12 32 (9.76%) Infrastructure Engineering
13 31 (9.45%) Identity Management
14 28 (8.54%) Mentoring
14 28 (8.54%) RBAC
15 27 (8.23%) Stakeholder Engagement
16 26 (7.93%) Analytics
17 24 (7.32%) Change Management
17 24 (7.32%) Disaster Recovery
Programming Languages
1 86 (26.22%) PowerShell
2 42 (12.80%) SQL
3 23 (7.01%) Python
4 14 (4.27%) Bicep
4 14 (4.27%) JavaScript
5 12 (3.66%) C#
6 9 (2.74%) Bash
7 6 (1.83%) TypeScript
7 6 (1.83%) VBScript
8 3 (0.91%) Data Analysis Expressions
9 2 (0.61%) R
9 2 (0.61%) T-SQL
10 1 (0.30%) Java
10 1 (0.30%) Kusto Query Language
Qualifications
1 117 (35.67%) Security Cleared
2 85 (25.91%) Degree
3 76 (23.17%) SC Cleared
4 75 (22.87%) Azure Certification
5 63 (19.21%) MCSE
6 35 (10.67%) DV Cleared
7 31 (9.45%) A+ Certification
8 27 (8.23%) MCP
9 23 (7.01%) MCSA
10 20 (6.10%) CISSP
10 20 (6.10%) Computer Science Degree
11 19 (5.79%) Cisco Certification
12 18 (5.49%) AWS Certification
12 18 (5.49%) Network+ Certification
13 14 (4.27%) CCNA
13 14 (4.27%) VMware Certified Professional (VCP)
14 13 (3.96%) Master's Degree
15 11 (3.35%) AWS Certified Solutions Architect
15 11 (3.35%) HND
15 11 (3.35%) ITIL Certification
Quality Assurance & Compliance
1 31 (9.45%) ISO/IEC 27001
2 24 (7.32%) GDPR
3 19 (5.79%) NIST
4 7 (2.13%) SLA
5 5 (1.52%) NCSC
6 4 (1.22%) Accessibility
6 4 (1.22%) Cyber Essentials
6 4 (1.22%) HIPAA
7 3 (0.91%) HMG Security Policy Framework
7 3 (0.91%) NIST 800
7 3 (0.91%) PCI DSS
7 3 (0.91%) SOC 2
8 2 (0.61%) ISO 22301
8 2 (0.61%) QA
9 1 (0.30%) Government Security Classifications
9 1 (0.30%) ISO/IEC 20000
9 1 (0.30%) JSP 440
9 1 (0.30%) PMO
9 1 (0.30%) WCAG
System Software
1 152 (46.34%) Active Directory
2 46 (14.02%) VMware Infrastructure
3 20 (6.10%) vSphere
4 17 (5.18%) Docker
5 16 (4.88%) Hyper-V
6 15 (4.57%) VMware ESXi
7 12 (3.66%) NFS
8 5 (1.52%) Microsoft Virtual Server
8 5 (1.52%) Virtual Servers
9 4 (1.22%) Microsoft App-V
9 4 (1.22%) Virtual Desktop
10 3 (0.91%) VMware NSX
11 2 (0.61%) Firmware
12 1 (0.30%) BitLocker
12 1 (0.30%) XenApp
Systems Management
1 43 (13.11%) SCCM
2 34 (10.37%) Microsoft Intune
3 27 (8.23%) Terraform
4 23 (7.01%) Kubernetes
5 22 (6.71%) Active Directory Federation Services
6 20 (6.10%) Single Sign-On
7 10 (3.05%) Ansible
8 9 (2.74%) WSUS
9 8 (2.44%) SCOM
10 4 (1.22%) CASB
10 4 (1.22%) Nessus
10 4 (1.22%) QRadar
11 3 (0.91%) vCenter Server
12 2 (0.61%) PowerCLI
13 1 (0.30%) Argo
13 1 (0.30%) CSIRT
13 1 (0.30%) FortiGate
13 1 (0.30%) Jamf Pro
13 1 (0.30%) Microsoft Data Protection Manager
Vendors
1 311 (94.82%) Microsoft
2 57 (17.38%) VMware
3 24 (7.32%) Splunk
4 23 (7.01%) Veeam
5 18 (5.49%) ServiceNow
6 17 (5.18%) Cisco
6 17 (5.18%) Oracle
7 15 (4.57%) Citrix
8 12 (3.66%) NetApp
9 10 (3.05%) Dell
10 9 (2.74%) SolarWinds
11 7 (2.13%) CheckPoint
11 7 (2.13%) Databricks
11 7 (2.13%) Tenable
12 6 (1.83%) Red Hat
13 5 (1.52%) CyberArk
13 5 (1.52%) Darktrace
13 5 (1.52%) iManage
13 5 (1.52%) Mitel
13 5 (1.52%) Zscaler