Windows Server Contract Job Trends in England

Microsoft Windows Server
UK > England

The table below provides summary statistics and contractor rates for jobs advertised in England requiring Windows Server skills. It covers contract job vacancies from the 6 months leading up to 31 March 2026, with comparisons to the same periods in the previous two years.

6 months to
31 Mar 2026
Same period 2025 Same period 2024
Rank 192 112 85
Rank change year-on-year -80 -27 +5
Contract jobs citing Windows Server 555 576 952
As % of all contract jobs in England 1.46% 2.37% 2.53%
As % of the Operating Systems category 13.42% 16.67% 18.20%
Number of daily rates quoted 428 403 667
10th Percentile £248 £300 £190
25th Percentile £400 £403 £300
Median daily rate (50th Percentile) £500 £525 £450
Median % change year-on-year -4.76% +16.67% -10.00%
75th Percentile £588 £607 £575
90th Percentile £712 £685 £679
UK median daily rate £500 £518 £455
% change year-on-year -3.38% +13.74% -9.00%
Number of hourly rates quoted 33 4 25
10th Percentile £16.85 £16.17 £15.86
25th Percentile £20.79 £17.43 £16.25
Median hourly rate £22.50 £35.88 £38.50
Median % change year-on-year -37.28% -6.82% +31.40%
75th Percentile £41.94 £58.19 £61.60
90th Percentile £74.21 £67.53 £68.63
UK median hourly rate £22.50 £35.88 £38.50
% change year-on-year -37.28% -6.82% +31.40%

All Operating Systems
England

Windows Server falls under the Operating Systems category. For comparison with the information above, the following table provides summary statistics for all contract job vacancies requiring operating system skills in England.

Contract vacancies with a requirement for operating system skills 4,135 3,456 5,232
As % of all contract IT jobs advertised in England 10.87% 14.24% 13.88%
Number of daily rates quoted 2,742 2,371 3,560
10th Percentile £181 £200 £180
25th Percentile £300 £313 £275
Median daily rate (50th Percentile) £450 £475 £450
Median % change year-on-year -5.26% +5.56% -13.46%
75th Percentile £569 £600 £588
90th Percentile £663 £700 £700
UK median daily rate £450 £475 £463
% change year-on-year -5.26% +2.70% -9.76%
Number of hourly rates quoted 297 138 376
10th Percentile £14.00 £16.43 £13.06
25th Percentile £17.69 £18.13 £15.50
Median hourly rate £23.58 £28.00 £22.00
Median % change year-on-year -15.80% +27.27% -24.14%
75th Percentile £65.00 £65.00 £56.33
90th Percentile £74.00 £69.50 £68.32
UK median hourly rate £24.00 £24.66 £22.00
% change year-on-year -2.68% +12.09% -26.67%

Windows Server
Job Vacancy Trend in England

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

Windows Server job vacancy trend in England

Windows Server
Daily Rate Trend in England

Contractor daily rate distribution trend for jobs in England citing Windows Server.

Contractor daily rate distribution trend for jobs in England citing Windows Server

Windows Server
Daily Rate Histogram in England

Daily rate distribution for jobs citing Windows Server in England over the 6 months to 31 March 2026.

Daily rate histogram for Windows Server in England

Windows Server
Hourly Rate Trend in England

Contractor hourly rate distribution trend for jobs in England citing Windows Server.

Contractor hourly rate distribution trend for jobs in England citing Windows Server

Windows Server
Hourly Rate Histogram in England

Hourly rate distribution of jobs citing Windows Server in England over the 6 months to 31 March 2026.

Hourly rate histogram for Windows Server in England

Windows Server
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 Windows Server within the England region over the 6 months to 31 March 2026. 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 -81 171 £500 -3.38% 76
South East -38 116 £505 -8.18% 111
North of England -85 83 £413 -15.38% 91
South West -37 63 £565 -1.74% 43
North West -38 63 £404 -11.26% 59
Midlands -38 63 £415 +7.10% 48
East of England -5 56 £438 -2.78% 39
West Midlands -32 45 £438 +45.83% 27
Yorkshire -70 17 £394 -28.41% 26
East Midlands -35 16 £415 +0.58% 21
North East -11 6 £550 -8.33% 8
Windows Server
UK

Windows Server
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 71 (12.79%) Microsoft Exchange
2 27 (4.86%) IIS
2 27 (4.86%) SharePoint
3 6 (1.08%) Apache
4 5 (0.90%) nginx
4 5 (0.90%) Tomcat
5 4 (0.72%) Confluence
6 3 (0.54%) SAS
6 3 (0.54%) WebLogic
7 2 (0.36%) Exchange Server 2010
7 2 (0.36%) Skype for Business
7 2 (0.36%) WordPress
8 1 (0.18%) ArcGIS
8 1 (0.18%) Oracle SOA Suite
8 1 (0.18%) SharePoint 2010
8 1 (0.18%) SharePoint Server
8 1 (0.18%) WebSphere
Applications
1 17 (3.06%) Microsoft Office
2 5 (0.90%) Microsoft Excel
3 2 (0.36%) Microsoft PowerPoint
4 1 (0.18%) InfoPath
Business Applications
1 6 (1.08%) Remedy ITSM
2 3 (0.54%) Veritas eDiscovery
3 1 (0.18%) Dynamics CRM
3 1 (0.18%) Oracle FAH
3 1 (0.18%) Oracle General Ledger
3 1 (0.18%) Oracle Procure-to-Pay
3 1 (0.18%) Oracle Subledger Accounting
3 1 (0.18%) SystmOne
Cloud Services
1 204 (36.76%) Azure
2 106 (19.10%) Microsoft 365
3 100 (18.02%) Entra ID
4 51 (9.19%) AWS
5 20 (3.60%) IaaS
6 14 (2.52%) Azure Monitor
6 14 (2.52%) PaaS
7 12 (2.16%) Nutanix
8 11 (1.98%) SaaS
9 10 (1.80%) Azure DevOps
9 10 (1.80%) Power Platform
10 6 (1.08%) GCP
10 6 (1.08%) GitHub
11 5 (0.90%) Azure Sentinel
11 5 (0.90%) Mimecast
11 5 (0.90%) OCI
12 3 (0.54%) Amazon EKS
12 3 (0.54%) GitHub Actions
12 3 (0.54%) Microsoft Copilot
12 3 (0.54%) OneDrive
Communications & Networking
1 184 (33.15%) DNS
2 126 (22.70%) DHCP
3 123 (22.16%) Firewall
4 52 (9.37%) VPN
5 51 (9.19%) TCP/IP
6 45 (8.11%) WAN
7 42 (7.57%) LAN
8 26 (4.68%) Network Security
9 22 (3.96%) VLAN
10 16 (2.88%) Kerberos
11 14 (2.52%) FTP
11 14 (2.52%) VoIP
12 13 (2.34%) SSL
12 13 (2.34%) Wi-Fi
13 12 (2.16%) SMTP
13 12 (2.16%) Wireless
14 11 (1.98%) SAN
15 9 (1.62%) BGP
15 9 (1.62%) Cisco IOS
16 8 (1.44%) NetScaler
Database & Business Intelligence
1 85 (15.32%) SQL Server
2 14 (2.52%) Oracle Database
3 9 (1.62%) Elasticsearch
3 9 (1.62%) Power BI
4 6 (1.08%) DB2
5 5 (0.90%) PostgreSQL
6 4 (0.72%) NoSQL
6 4 (0.72%) Relational Database
7 3 (0.54%) Amazon RDS
7 3 (0.54%) SQL Server Integration Services
8 2 (0.36%) Big Data
8 2 (0.36%) GIS
8 2 (0.36%) SQL Server Analysis Services
8 2 (0.36%) SQL Server Reporting Services
9 1 (0.18%) Data Mining
9 1 (0.18%) Data Warehouse
9 1 (0.18%) Electronic Patient Records
9 1 (0.18%) MySQL
9 1 (0.18%) Oracle Database 12c
9 1 (0.18%) Oracle Reports
Development Applications
1 11 (1.98%) JIRA
1 11 (1.98%) Visual Studio
2 9 (1.62%) GitLab
2 9 (1.62%) Jenkins
3 8 (1.44%) Git
4 6 (1.08%) Robot Framework
5 5 (0.90%) Sonatype Nexus
6 3 (0.54%) Bitbucket
6 3 (0.54%) Octopus Deploy
7 1 (0.18%) Artifactory
7 1 (0.18%) eggPlant
7 1 (0.18%) GoCD
7 1 (0.18%) REST Assured
7 1 (0.18%) TeamCity
General
1 137 (24.68%) Social Skills
2 59 (10.63%) Finance
3 57 (10.27%) Public Sector
4 55 (9.91%) Analytical Skills
5 30 (5.41%) Documentation Skills
6 25 (4.50%) Legal
7 20 (3.60%) Banking
8 11 (1.98%) Inclusion and Diversity
8 11 (1.98%) Military
9 7 (1.26%) Organisational Skills
10 6 (1.08%) Local Government
11 5 (0.90%) Front Office
11 5 (0.90%) Telecoms
12 4 (0.72%) Law
13 3 (0.54%) Aerospace
13 3 (0.54%) Financial Institution
13 3 (0.54%) Retail
13 3 (0.54%) Spanish Language
14 2 (0.36%) Back Office
14 2 (0.36%) Pharmaceutical
Job Titles
1 95 (17.12%) Infrastructure Engineer
2 57 (10.27%) Analyst
3 36 (6.49%) Senior
4 35 (6.31%) Architect
4 35 (6.31%) Support Engineer
5 33 (5.95%) IT Support
5 33 (5.95%) Platform Engineer
6 26 (4.68%) Developer
6 26 (4.68%) Wintel Engineer
7 25 (4.50%) 3rd Line Engineer
7 25 (4.50%) Windows Engineer
8 24 (4.32%) Support Analyst
9 22 (3.96%) Lead
9 22 (3.96%) Server Engineer
10 21 (3.78%) 3rd Line Support
11 19 (3.42%) Technical Analyst
12 18 (3.24%) 2nd Line Support
12 18 (3.24%) C# Developer
12 18 (3.24%) IT Engineer
13 16 (2.88%) Network Engineer
Libraries, Frameworks & Software Standards
1 32 (5.77%) .NET
2 31 (5.59%) OAuth
3 30 (5.41%) SAML
4 25 (4.50%) .NET Framework
5 22 (3.96%) LDAP
6 18 (3.24%) REST
7 17 (3.06%) OAuth2
7 17 (3.06%) OpenID
8 8 (1.44%) XMPP
9 7 (1.26%) Middleware
9 7 (1.26%) React
10 5 (0.90%) AngularJS
11 4 (0.72%) Keycloak
12 3 (0.54%) ASP.NET Web API
12 3 (0.54%) Vue
12 3 (0.54%) WCF
12 3 (0.54%) Web Services
12 3 (0.54%) WinForms
13 2 (0.36%) ADO
13 2 (0.36%) SOAP
Miscellaneous
1 44 (7.93%) Replication
2 42 (7.57%) PKI
3 38 (6.85%) Data Centre
4 26 (4.68%) Clustering
5 25 (4.50%) Onboarding
6 22 (3.96%) Hybrid Cloud
7 21 (3.78%) Product Ownership
8 20 (3.60%) Legacy Systems
9 15 (2.70%) Enterprise Software
9 15 (2.70%) NHS
9 15 (2.70%) Self-Motivation
10 14 (2.52%) Private Cloud
11 11 (1.98%) Management Information System
12 10 (1.80%) Analytical Mindset
12 10 (1.80%) Enterprise Storage
13 9 (1.62%) Driving Licence
14 8 (1.44%) Legacy Code
15 7 (1.26%) iPhone
15 7 (1.26%) Linux Command Line
16 6 (1.08%) Security Posture
Operating Systems
1 553 (99.64%) Windows
2 143 (25.77%) Linux
3 40 (7.21%) Red Hat Enterprise Linux
3 40 (7.21%) Windows Server 2019
4 39 (7.03%) Windows 10
5 36 (6.49%) Windows Server 2016
6 33 (5.95%) Windows Server 2012
7 19 (3.42%) Unix
8 13 (2.34%) Ubuntu
9 10 (1.80%) AIX
9 10 (1.80%) Windows Server 2003
10 9 (1.62%) Android
10 9 (1.62%) VMS
11 8 (1.44%) CentOS
12 7 (1.26%) Solaris
12 7 (1.26%) Windows Server 2008
13 2 (0.36%) Apple iOS
13 2 (0.36%) Mac OS
13 2 (0.36%) Windows 7
13 2 (0.36%) zOS
Processes & Methodologies
1 135 (24.32%) Infrastructure Engineering
2 90 (16.22%) Disaster Recovery
3 85 (15.32%) Problem-Solving
4 83 (14.95%) ITIL
5 82 (14.77%) High Availability
6 66 (11.89%) Agile
7 60 (10.81%) Migration
8 55 (9.91%) Change Management
8 55 (9.91%) Service Management
9 48 (8.65%) ITSM
10 47 (8.47%) Continuous Improvement
11 46 (8.29%) Identity Access Management
12 43 (7.75%) Project Delivery
13 41 (7.39%) RBAC
14 40 (7.21%) Cybersecurity
15 39 (7.03%) DevOps
16 34 (6.13%) Change Control
17 33 (5.95%) Platform Engineering
18 30 (5.41%) CI/CD
19 29 (5.23%) Infrastructure as Code
Programming Languages
1 228 (41.08%) PowerShell
2 76 (13.69%) SQL
3 52 (9.37%) Python
4 37 (6.67%) Bash
5 31 (5.59%) C#
6 26 (4.68%) PL/SQL
7 22 (3.96%) T-SQL
8 13 (2.34%) JavaScript
9 11 (1.98%) Java
9 11 (1.98%) Perl
10 5 (0.90%) Bicep
11 2 (0.36%) Delphi
11 2 (0.36%) JCL
11 2 (0.36%) PHP
11 2 (0.36%) REXX
11 2 (0.36%) Shell Script
12 1 (0.18%) TypeScript
12 1 (0.18%) VBA
Qualifications
1 225 (40.54%) Security Cleared
2 148 (26.67%) SC Cleared
3 75 (13.51%) DV Cleared
4 65 (11.71%) Degree
5 59 (10.63%) Microsoft Certification
6 21 (3.78%) MCSE
7 18 (3.24%) Cisco Certification
8 17 (3.06%) Azure Certification
9 16 (2.88%) VMware Certified Professional (VCP)
10 15 (2.70%) CCNA
11 14 (2.52%) CCNP
12 12 (2.16%) MCSA
13 11 (1.98%) VCAP
14 9 (1.62%) CCDP
15 8 (1.44%) AWS Certification
16 7 (1.26%) CISSP
17 6 (1.08%) AWS Certified Solutions Architect
17 6 (1.08%) BPSS Clearance
18 5 (0.90%) CISM
18 5 (0.90%) CompTIA Security+
Quality Assurance & Compliance
1 29 (5.23%) QA
2 26 (4.68%) GDPR
2 26 (4.68%) ISO/IEC 27001
3 15 (2.70%) NIST
3 15 (2.70%) Sarbanes-Oxley
4 11 (1.98%) Cyber Essentials
5 5 (0.90%) SLA
6 3 (0.54%) NIST 800
7 2 (0.36%) ISO/IEC 42001
8 1 (0.18%) Basel III
8 1 (0.18%) DICOM
8 1 (0.18%) GAAP
8 1 (0.18%) HL7
8 1 (0.18%) IFRS
8 1 (0.18%) IFRS 17
8 1 (0.18%) IFRS 9
8 1 (0.18%) JSP 440
8 1 (0.18%) NCSC
System Software
1 338 (60.90%) Active Directory
2 165 (29.73%) VMware Infrastructure
3 68 (12.25%) Hyper-V
4 49 (8.83%) vSphere
5 38 (6.85%) VMware ESXi
6 32 (5.77%) Docker
7 31 (5.59%) Virtual Machines
8 25 (4.50%) VMware NSX
9 10 (1.80%) Virtual Desktop
10 7 (1.26%) BitLocker
10 7 (1.26%) KVM
10 7 (1.26%) Microsoft App-V
11 5 (0.90%) Terminal Services
12 3 (0.54%) Firmware
12 3 (0.54%) NFS
12 3 (0.54%) Oracle RAC
12 3 (0.54%) Virtual Servers
12 3 (0.54%) XenApp
13 2 (0.36%) Job Entry Subsystem
13 2 (0.36%) XenDesktop
Systems Management
1 79 (14.23%) Microsoft Intune
2 65 (11.71%) SCCM
3 63 (11.35%) Ansible
4 51 (9.19%) Active Directory Federation Services
5 48 (8.65%) Single Sign-On
6 46 (8.29%) vCenter Server
7 43 (7.75%) Terraform
8 27 (4.86%) Kubernetes
9 21 (3.78%) SCOM
10 15 (2.70%) WSUS
11 10 (1.80%) Puppet
12 9 (1.62%) vMotion
13 6 (1.08%) IBM BigFix
14 5 (0.90%) FortiGate
14 5 (0.90%) VxRail
15 4 (0.72%) Backup Exec
15 4 (0.72%) Nessus
15 4 (0.72%) Oracle RMAN
15 4 (0.72%) Progress Chef
15 4 (0.72%) SCOrch
Vendors
1 251 (45.23%) Microsoft
2 213 (38.38%) VMware
3 67 (12.07%) Citrix
4 60 (10.81%) Cisco
5 46 (8.29%) Oracle
6 32 (5.77%) Red Hat
7 31 (5.59%) ServiceNow
8 23 (4.14%) Dell
9 21 (3.78%) SolarWinds
9 21 (3.78%) Veeam
10 15 (2.70%) Okta
11 13 (2.34%) HP
11 13 (2.34%) Palo Alto
12 12 (2.16%) IBM
12 12 (2.16%) NetApp
13 10 (1.80%) BeyondTrust
13 10 (1.80%) CyberArk
14 8 (1.44%) F5
14 8 (1.44%) McAfee
14 8 (1.44%) Qualys