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 3 April 2026, with comparisons to the same periods in the previous two years.

6 months to
3 Apr 2026
Same period 2025 Same period 2024
Rank 186 114 84
Rank change year-on-year -72 -30 +7
Contract jobs citing Windows Server 562 572 953
As % of all contract jobs in England 1.47% 2.36% 2.54%
As % of the Operating Systems category 13.55% 16.72% 18.27%
Number of daily rates quoted 430 397 668
10th Percentile £249 £302 £191
25th Percentile £401 £406 £300
Median daily rate (50th Percentile) £500 £525 £450
Median % change year-on-year -4.76% +16.67% -10.00%
75th Percentile £588 £608 £575
90th Percentile £711 £675 £685
UK median daily rate £500 £523 £450
% change year-on-year -4.31% +16.11% -10.00%
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 4,149 3,421 5,217
As % of all contract IT jobs advertised in England 10.82% 14.11% 13.88%
Number of daily rates quoted 2,755 2,352 3,543
10th Percentile £181 £200 £178
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 £567 £600 £588
90th Percentile £663 £700 £700
UK median daily rate £450 £475 £460
% change year-on-year -5.26% +3.26% -10.24%
Number of hourly rates quoted 295 138 375
10th Percentile £14.40 £16.25 £12.86
25th Percentile £18.24 £18.13 £15.38
Median hourly rate £25.00 £28.00 £22.00
Median % change year-on-year -10.71% +27.27% -24.14%
75th Percentile £65.00 £65.00 £52.83
90th Percentile £74.26 £69.50 £68.38
UK median hourly rate £25.00 £24.66 £22.00
% change year-on-year +1.38% +12.09% -25.80%

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 3 April 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 3 April 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 3 April 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 -87 173 £500 -4.76% 76
South East -43 117 £508 -7.73% 111
North of England -79 84 £420 -16.00% 91
South West -39 64 £563 -2.17% 43
Midlands -35 63 £415 +34.96% 48
North West -48 63 £404 -9.27% 59
East of England -5 58 £450 - 39
West Midlands -42 45 £438 +45.83% 27
Yorkshire -75 18 £419 -23.86% 26
East Midlands -25 16 £415 -17.00% 21
North East -12 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 73 (12.99%) Microsoft Exchange
2 27 (4.80%) IIS
2 27 (4.80%) SharePoint
3 6 (1.07%) Apache
4 5 (0.89%) nginx
4 5 (0.89%) Tomcat
5 4 (0.71%) Confluence
6 3 (0.53%) SAS
6 3 (0.53%) 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 19 (3.38%) Microsoft Office
2 5 (0.89%) Microsoft Excel
3 2 (0.36%) Microsoft PowerPoint
4 1 (0.18%) InfoPath
Business Applications
1 7 (1.25%) Remedy ITSM
2 3 (0.53%) 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
1 203 (36.12%) Azure
2 107 (19.04%) Microsoft 365
3 99 (17.62%) Entra ID
4 51 (9.07%) AWS
5 21 (3.74%) IaaS
6 15 (2.67%) PaaS
7 14 (2.49%) Azure Monitor
8 12 (2.14%) Nutanix
9 11 (1.96%) Power Platform
9 11 (1.96%) SaaS
10 10 (1.78%) Azure DevOps
11 6 (1.07%) GCP
11 6 (1.07%) GitHub
12 5 (0.89%) Azure Sentinel
12 5 (0.89%) Mimecast
12 5 (0.89%) OCI
13 3 (0.53%) Amazon EKS
13 3 (0.53%) GitHub Actions
13 3 (0.53%) Microsoft Copilot
13 3 (0.53%) OneDrive
Communications & Networking
1 189 (33.63%) DNS
2 128 (22.78%) DHCP
3 124 (22.06%) Firewall
4 54 (9.61%) VPN
5 52 (9.25%) TCP/IP
6 45 (8.01%) WAN
7 42 (7.47%) LAN
8 26 (4.63%) Network Security
9 21 (3.74%) VLAN
10 16 (2.85%) Kerberos
11 14 (2.49%) FTP
12 13 (2.31%) SMTP
12 13 (2.31%) SSL
12 13 (2.31%) VoIP
12 13 (2.31%) Wi-Fi
13 12 (2.14%) SAN
13 12 (2.14%) Wireless
14 9 (1.60%) BGP
15 8 (1.42%) Cisco IOS
15 8 (1.42%) NetScaler
Database & Business Intelligence
1 85 (15.12%) SQL Server
2 14 (2.49%) Oracle Database
3 10 (1.78%) Elasticsearch
3 10 (1.78%) Power BI
4 6 (1.07%) DB2
5 5 (0.89%) PostgreSQL
6 4 (0.71%) NoSQL
6 4 (0.71%) Relational Database
7 3 (0.53%) Amazon RDS
7 3 (0.53%) SQL Server Integration Services
8 2 (0.36%) Big Data
8 2 (0.36%) Data Mining
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 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 (1.96%) JIRA
1 11 (1.96%) Visual Studio
2 9 (1.60%) GitLab
2 9 (1.60%) Jenkins
3 8 (1.42%) Git
4 6 (1.07%) Robot Framework
5 5 (0.89%) Sonatype Nexus
6 3 (0.53%) Bitbucket
6 3 (0.53%) 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
1 139 (24.73%) Social Skills
2 60 (10.68%) Finance
3 58 (10.32%) Public Sector
4 55 (9.79%) Analytical Skills
5 30 (5.34%) Documentation Skills
6 25 (4.45%) Legal
7 21 (3.74%) Banking
8 11 (1.96%) Inclusion and Diversity
8 11 (1.96%) Military
9 7 (1.25%) Organisational Skills
10 6 (1.07%) Local Government
10 6 (1.07%) Telecoms
11 5 (0.89%) Front Office
12 4 (0.71%) Law
12 4 (0.71%) Retail
13 3 (0.53%) Aerospace
13 3 (0.53%) Financial Institution
13 3 (0.53%) Spanish Language
14 2 (0.36%) Back Office
14 2 (0.36%) Manufacturing
Job Titles
1 102 (18.15%) Infrastructure Engineer
2 56 (9.96%) Analyst
3 37 (6.58%) Senior
4 36 (6.41%) Architect
5 34 (6.05%) IT Support
5 34 (6.05%) Support Engineer
6 33 (5.87%) Platform Engineer
7 26 (4.63%) Developer
7 26 (4.63%) Wintel Engineer
8 25 (4.45%) 3rd Line Engineer
8 25 (4.45%) Windows Engineer
9 24 (4.27%) Support Analyst
10 22 (3.91%) Lead
11 21 (3.74%) Server Engineer
12 20 (3.56%) 3rd Line Support
13 19 (3.38%) Technical Analyst
14 18 (3.20%) 2nd Line Support
14 18 (3.20%) C# Developer
14 18 (3.20%) IT Engineer
15 15 (2.67%) Network Engineer
Libraries, Frameworks & Software Standards
1 32 (5.69%) .NET
2 31 (5.52%) OAuth
3 30 (5.34%) SAML
4 25 (4.45%) .NET Framework
5 22 (3.91%) LDAP
6 19 (3.38%) REST
7 17 (3.02%) OAuth2
7 17 (3.02%) OpenID
8 8 (1.42%) XMPP
9 7 (1.25%) Middleware
9 7 (1.25%) React
10 5 (0.89%) AngularJS
11 4 (0.71%) Keycloak
12 3 (0.53%) ASP.NET Web API
12 3 (0.53%) Vue
12 3 (0.53%) WCF
12 3 (0.53%) Web Services
12 3 (0.53%) WinForms
13 2 (0.36%) ADO
13 2 (0.36%) SOAP
Miscellaneous
1 45 (8.01%) PKI
2 44 (7.83%) Replication
3 38 (6.76%) Data Centre
4 28 (4.98%) Clustering
5 25 (4.45%) Onboarding
6 22 (3.91%) Hybrid Cloud
7 21 (3.74%) Product Ownership
8 20 (3.56%) Legacy Systems
9 15 (2.67%) Enterprise Software
9 15 (2.67%) NHS
9 15 (2.67%) Private Cloud
9 15 (2.67%) Self-Motivation
10 12 (2.14%) Enterprise Storage
11 11 (1.96%) Management Information System
12 10 (1.78%) Analytical Mindset
13 9 (1.60%) Driving Licence
14 8 (1.42%) Legacy Code
15 7 (1.25%) iPhone
15 7 (1.25%) Linux Command Line
16 6 (1.07%) Security Posture
Operating Systems
1 560 (99.64%) Windows
2 144 (25.62%) Linux
3 40 (7.12%) Red Hat Enterprise Linux
3 40 (7.12%) Windows 10
3 40 (7.12%) Windows Server 2019
4 36 (6.41%) Windows Server 2016
5 33 (5.87%) Windows Server 2012
6 19 (3.38%) Unix
7 13 (2.31%) Ubuntu
8 11 (1.96%) Windows Server 2003
9 10 (1.78%) AIX
10 9 (1.60%) Android
10 9 (1.60%) VMS
11 8 (1.42%) CentOS
12 7 (1.25%) Solaris
12 7 (1.25%) 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
1 142 (25.27%) Infrastructure Engineering
2 90 (16.01%) Disaster Recovery
3 87 (15.48%) Problem-Solving
4 86 (15.30%) ITIL
5 82 (14.59%) High Availability
6 67 (11.92%) Agile
7 60 (10.68%) Migration
8 57 (10.14%) Change Management
9 56 (9.96%) Service Management
10 49 (8.72%) ITSM
11 47 (8.36%) Continuous Improvement
12 46 (8.19%) Identity Access Management
13 44 (7.83%) Project Delivery
14 41 (7.30%) Cybersecurity
14 41 (7.30%) RBAC
15 39 (6.94%) DevOps
16 33 (5.87%) Change Control
16 33 (5.87%) Platform Engineering
17 30 (5.34%) CI/CD
18 29 (5.16%) Infrastructure as Code
Programming Languages
1 228 (40.57%) PowerShell
2 77 (13.70%) SQL
3 51 (9.07%) Python
4 37 (6.58%) Bash
5 31 (5.52%) C#
6 26 (4.63%) PL/SQL
7 22 (3.91%) T-SQL
8 14 (2.49%) JavaScript
9 11 (1.96%) Java
9 11 (1.96%) Perl
10 5 (0.89%) 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
1 230 (40.93%) Security Cleared
2 151 (26.87%) SC Cleared
3 80 (14.23%) DV Cleared
4 66 (11.74%) Degree
5 60 (10.68%) Microsoft Certification
6 21 (3.74%) MCSE
7 17 (3.02%) Azure Certification
7 17 (3.02%) Cisco Certification
7 17 (3.02%) VMware Certified Professional (VCP)
8 15 (2.67%) CCNA
9 13 (2.31%) CCNP
10 12 (2.14%) MCSA
11 11 (1.96%) VCAP
12 9 (1.60%) CCDP
13 8 (1.42%) AWS Certification
14 7 (1.25%) CISSP
15 6 (1.07%) AWS Certified Solutions Architect
15 6 (1.07%) BPSS Clearance
16 5 (0.89%) CISM
16 5 (0.89%) CompTIA Security+
Quality Assurance & Compliance
1 29 (5.16%) QA
2 27 (4.80%) GDPR
2 27 (4.80%) ISO/IEC 27001
3 15 (2.67%) NIST
3 15 (2.67%) Sarbanes-Oxley
4 11 (1.96%) Cyber Essentials
5 7 (1.25%) SLA
6 3 (0.53%) 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
1 344 (61.21%) Active Directory
2 169 (30.07%) VMware Infrastructure
3 72 (12.81%) Hyper-V
4 51 (9.07%) vSphere
5 40 (7.12%) VMware ESXi
6 33 (5.87%) Docker
7 31 (5.52%) Virtual Machines
8 24 (4.27%) VMware NSX
9 10 (1.78%) Virtual Desktop
10 8 (1.42%) BitLocker
10 8 (1.42%) Microsoft App-V
11 7 (1.25%) KVM
12 5 (0.89%) Terminal Services
13 3 (0.53%) Firmware
13 3 (0.53%) NFS
13 3 (0.53%) Oracle RAC
13 3 (0.53%) Virtual Servers
13 3 (0.53%) XenApp
14 2 (0.36%) Job Entry Subsystem
14 2 (0.36%) XenDesktop
Systems Management
1 79 (14.06%) Microsoft Intune
2 67 (11.92%) SCCM
3 65 (11.57%) Ansible
4 51 (9.07%) Active Directory Federation Services
5 48 (8.54%) Single Sign-On
6 47 (8.36%) vCenter Server
7 42 (7.47%) Terraform
8 28 (4.98%) Kubernetes
9 22 (3.91%) SCOM
10 16 (2.85%) WSUS
11 11 (1.96%) Puppet
12 10 (1.78%) vMotion
13 6 (1.07%) IBM BigFix
14 5 (0.89%) FortiGate
14 5 (0.89%) Nessus
14 5 (0.89%) VxRail
15 4 (0.71%) Backup Exec
15 4 (0.71%) Oracle RMAN
15 4 (0.71%) Progress Chef
15 4 (0.71%) SCOrch
Vendors
1 254 (45.20%) Microsoft
2 217 (38.61%) VMware
3 68 (12.10%) Citrix
4 59 (10.50%) Cisco
5 46 (8.19%) Oracle
6 32 (5.69%) Red Hat
6 32 (5.69%) ServiceNow
7 23 (4.09%) Dell
8 22 (3.91%) Veeam
9 20 (3.56%) SolarWinds
10 15 (2.67%) Okta
11 14 (2.49%) NetApp
12 13 (2.31%) HP
12 13 (2.31%) Palo Alto
13 12 (2.14%) IBM
14 10 (1.78%) BeyondTrust
14 10 (1.78%) CyberArk
15 9 (1.60%) BMC
15 9 (1.60%) Tenable
16 8 (1.42%) McAfee