Microsoft Contract Job Trends in Manchester

Microsoft
North West > Manchester

The table below provides summary statistics for contract job vacancies advertised in Manchester requiring knowledge or experience of Microsoft products and/or services. It includes a benchmarking guide to contractor rates offered in vacancies that cited Microsoft over the 6 months leading up to 11 September 2026, comparing them to the same period in the previous two years.

The figures below represent the IT contractor job market in general and are not representative of contractor rates within the Microsoft Corporation.

6 months to
11 Sep 2026
Same period 2025 Same period 2024
Rank 8 3 14
Rank change year-on-year -5 +11 -10
Contract jobs citing Microsoft 254 185 124
As % of all contract jobs in Manchester 12.74% 18.24% 10.43%
As % of the Vendors category 32.94% 37.22% 26.96%
Number of daily rates quoted 164 125 88
10th Percentile £193 £213 £361
25th Percentile £372 £350 £413
Median daily rate (50th Percentile) £479 £450 £500
Median % change year-on-year +6.39% -10.00% +11.11%
75th Percentile £538 £535 £638
90th Percentile £612 £612 £675
North West median daily rate £450 £437 £450
% change year-on-year +2.97% -2.89% +2.27%
Number of hourly rates quoted 20 29 7
10th Percentile £19.00 £13.00 £18.40
25th Percentile £27.42 £19.07 £24.25
Median hourly rate £30.00 £22.32 £30.00
Median % change year-on-year +34.44% -25.62% +74.83%
75th Percentile £178.75 £31.40 £33.75
90th Percentile - - £40.50
North West median hourly rate £25.38 £22.32 £30.00
% change year-on-year +13.74% -25.62% +34.74%

All Vendors
Manchester

Microsoft falls under the Vendor Products and Services category. For comparison with the information above, the following table provides summary statistics for all contract job vacancies requiring knowledge or experience of all vendor products and services in Manchester.

Contract vacancies with a requirement for knowledge or experience of vendor products and services 771 497 460
As % of all contract IT jobs advertised in Manchester 38.67% 49.01% 38.69%
Number of daily rates quoted 444 317 275
10th Percentile £275 £310 £361
25th Percentile £400 £400 £413
Median daily rate (50th Percentile) £494 £475 £500
Median % change year-on-year +3.89% -5.00% -
75th Percentile £588 £600 £613
90th Percentile £663 £718 £675
North West median daily rate £500 £470 £500
% change year-on-year +6.50% -6.10% -
Number of hourly rates quoted 71 38 17
10th Percentile £21.08 £13.00 £15.85
25th Percentile £24.19 £19.07 £20.00
Median hourly rate £40.00 £22.47 £30.00
Median % change year-on-year +78.00% -25.09% +69.30%
75th Percentile £76.00 £31.40 £45.00
90th Percentile £87.50 £57.97 £76.00
North West median hourly rate £29.48 £22.63 £35.36
% change year-on-year +30.27% -36.00% +1.03%

Microsoft
Job Vacancy Trend in Manchester

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

Microsoft job vacancy trend in Manchester

Microsoft
Daily Rate Trend in Manchester

Contractor daily rate distribution trend for jobs in Manchester citing Microsoft.

Contractor daily rate distribution trend for jobs in Manchester citing Microsoft

Microsoft
Daily Rate Histogram in Manchester

Daily rate distribution for jobs citing Microsoft in Manchester over the 6 months to 11 September 2026.

Daily rate histogram for Microsoft in Manchester

Microsoft
Hourly Rate Trend in Manchester

Contractor hourly rate distribution trend for jobs in Manchester citing Microsoft.

Contractor hourly rate distribution trend for jobs in Manchester citing Microsoft

Microsoft
Hourly Rate Histogram in Manchester

Hourly rate distribution of jobs citing Microsoft in Manchester over the 6 months to 11 September 2026.

Hourly rate histogram for Microsoft in Manchester

Microsoft
Contract Job Locations in Manchester

The table below looks at the demand and provides a guide to the median contractor rates quoted in IT jobs citing Microsoft within the Manchester region over the 6 months to 11 September 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
Bolton -6 7 £160 -59.62% 16
Oldham +3 3 - - 11
Rochdale - 2 - - 3
Salford +2 1 £168 -58.13% 10
Bury - 1 - - 3
Microsoft
North West

Microsoft
Co-Occurring Skills & Capabilities in Manchester 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 43 (16.93%) SharePoint
2 26 (10.24%) Microsoft Exchange
3 13 (5.12%) SharePoint Server
4 5 (1.97%) Confluence
5 2 (0.79%) CMS
6 1 (0.39%) IIS
6 1 (0.39%) SharePoint 2013
6 1 (0.39%) WebSphere
Applications
1 29 (11.42%) Microsoft Office
2 25 (9.84%) Microsoft Excel
3 12 (4.72%) Microsoft Project
4 11 (4.33%) Microsoft PowerPoint
5 4 (1.57%) MS Visio
6 3 (1.18%) AutoCAD
7 2 (0.79%) Chatbot
7 2 (0.79%) Navisworks
7 2 (0.79%) ProjectWise
7 2 (0.79%) Revit
8 1 (0.39%) MicroStation
Business Applications
1 5 (1.97%) Dynamics CRM
2 4 (1.57%) Primavera
2 4 (1.57%) SAP MM
2 4 (1.57%) SAP S/4HANA
3 2 (0.79%) Dynamics AX
3 2 (0.79%) Elite 3E
3 2 (0.79%) Integrated Workplace Management System
4 1 (0.39%) Adobe Campaign
4 1 (0.39%) Cloudability
4 1 (0.39%) Oracle Payables
4 1 (0.39%) Unit4 Business World
Cloud Services
1 114 (44.88%) Azure
2 100 (39.37%) Microsoft 365
3 64 (25.20%) Power Platform
4 44 (17.32%) Entra ID
5 36 (14.17%) Microsoft Copilot
6 29 (11.42%) Power Automate
7 26 (10.24%) PowerApps
8 22 (8.66%) Azure DevOps
9 21 (8.27%) AWS
9 21 (8.27%) OneDrive
10 14 (5.51%) Azure AI
10 14 (5.51%) Dynamics 365
11 12 (4.72%) Azure Monitor
11 12 (4.72%) GCP
12 6 (2.36%) Azure Data Factory
13 5 (1.97%) OpenShift
14 4 (1.57%) Copilot Studio
14 4 (1.57%) GitHub
15 3 (1.18%) Salesforce Service Cloud
15 3 (1.18%) Serverless
Communications & Networking
1 11 (4.33%) SSL
2 10 (3.94%) Firewall
2 10 (3.94%) VPN
3 7 (2.76%) DNS
4 6 (2.36%) VLAN
5 5 (1.97%) Network Security
5 5 (1.97%) SAN
6 4 (1.57%) DHCP
6 4 (1.57%) NAS
6 4 (1.57%) Skype
7 3 (1.18%) LAN
7 3 (1.18%) TCP/IP
7 3 (1.18%) WAN
8 2 (0.79%) BGP
8 2 (0.79%) PABX
8 2 (0.79%) SD-WAN
8 2 (0.79%) SMTP
8 2 (0.79%) VoIP
8 2 (0.79%) VSAN
9 1 (0.39%) VXLAN
Database & Business Intelligence
1 37 (14.57%) Power BI
2 26 (10.24%) SQL Server
3 15 (5.91%) SQL Server Integration Services
4 13 (5.12%) MySQL
5 5 (1.97%) Metadata
6 4 (1.57%) Data Lake
6 4 (1.57%) Data Warehouse
6 4 (1.57%) Power Query
7 3 (1.18%) Relational Database
8 2 (0.79%) Azure SQL Database
8 2 (0.79%) PostgreSQL
8 2 (0.79%) SQL Server Analysis Services
8 2 (0.79%) SQL Server Reporting Services
9 1 (0.39%) Azure SQL Data Warehouse
9 1 (0.39%) Delta Lake
9 1 (0.39%) MongoDB
9 1 (0.39%) Star Schema
Development Applications
1 9 (3.54%) JIRA
2 6 (2.36%) Git
3 4 (1.57%) Jenkins
4 3 (1.18%) GitLab
5 2 (0.79%) MSI
5 2 (0.79%) SQL Server Management Studio (SSMS)
6 1 (0.39%) MSTest
6 1 (0.39%) NUnit
6 1 (0.39%) Sonatype Nexus
General
1 81 (31.89%) Social Skills
2 55 (21.65%) Finance
3 36 (14.17%) Analytical Skills
4 17 (6.69%) Banking
5 16 (6.30%) Public Sector
6 13 (5.12%) Manufacturing
7 12 (4.72%) Documentation Skills
8 9 (3.54%) Organisational Skills
9 7 (2.76%) Telecoms
10 6 (2.36%) Legal
11 5 (1.97%) Games
11 5 (1.97%) Retail
12 4 (1.57%) Marketing
13 3 (1.18%) Influencing Skills
13 3 (1.18%) Military
14 2 (0.79%) Agriculture
14 2 (0.79%) Aviation
14 2 (0.79%) Presentation Skills
15 1 (0.39%) Law
15 1 (0.39%) Retail Banking
Job Titles
1 28 (11.02%) IT Support
2 25 (9.84%) Support Engineer
3 23 (9.06%) Analyst
4 20 (7.87%) Architect
4 20 (7.87%) Developer
5 18 (7.09%) IT Engineer
5 18 (7.09%) IT Support Engineer
6 17 (6.69%) DBA
6 17 (6.69%) SQL DBA
7 15 (5.91%) Lead
8 12 (4.72%) Designer
9 11 (4.33%) Content Designer
10 10 (3.94%) Administrator
10 10 (3.94%) IT Analyst
10 10 (3.94%) Senior
10 10 (3.94%) Support Analyst
11 8 (3.15%) Consultant
11 8 (3.15%) Project Manager
11 8 (3.15%) SharePoint Developer
11 8 (3.15%) Solutions Architect
Libraries, Frameworks & Software Standards
1 12 (4.72%) Terraform
2 10 (3.94%) SAML
3 4 (1.57%) .NET
3 4 (1.57%) REST
3 4 (1.57%) Software Packaging
4 3 (1.18%) A2A Protocol
4 3 (1.18%) JSON
4 3 (1.18%) Microsoft Graph
4 3 (1.18%) Model Context Protocol
4 3 (1.18%) React
5 2 (0.79%) Flash
5 2 (0.79%) Kafka
5 2 (0.79%) Next.js
5 2 (0.79%) Node.js
5 2 (0.79%) OAuth
5 2 (0.79%) ODBC
5 2 (0.79%) PySpark
5 2 (0.79%) SailPoint
5 2 (0.79%) Spring
5 2 (0.79%) Spring Boot
Miscellaneous
1 25 (9.84%) Onboarding
2 13 (5.12%) Replication
3 12 (4.72%) Clustering
4 8 (3.15%) Cloud Native
5 7 (2.76%) Data Centre
5 7 (2.76%) Management Information System
6 6 (2.36%) CMDB
6 6 (2.36%) Data Protection Act
6 6 (2.36%) Handset
6 6 (2.36%) Legacy Systems
7 5 (1.97%) Animation
7 5 (1.97%) Blackberry
7 5 (1.97%) Enterprise Software
7 5 (1.97%) Product Ownership
8 4 (1.57%) Hybrid Cloud
8 4 (1.57%) PKI
9 3 (1.18%) Analytical Mindset
9 3 (1.18%) Life Science
10 2 (0.79%) Greenfield Project
10 2 (0.79%) Self-Motivation
Operating Systems
1 61 (24.02%) Windows
2 26 (10.24%) Windows 10
3 25 (9.84%) Windows Server
4 9 (3.54%) Linux
5 5 (1.97%) Android
5 5 (1.97%) Unix
6 4 (1.57%) VMS
7 3 (1.18%) Apple iOS
7 3 (1.18%) Red Hat Enterprise Linux
8 2 (0.79%) Windows Server 2012
9 1 (0.39%) AIX
9 1 (0.39%) HPUX
9 1 (0.39%) Oracle Linux
9 1 (0.39%) Solaris
9 1 (0.39%) SUSE
9 1 (0.39%) Windows Server 2016
9 1 (0.39%) Windows Server 2019
Processes & Methodologies
1 59 (23.23%) ITIL
2 42 (16.54%) Stakeholder Management
3 40 (15.75%) Problem-Solving
4 37 (14.57%) DevOps
5 36 (14.17%) Business Intelligence
6 32 (12.60%) Agile
7 29 (11.42%) Customer Service
8 26 (10.24%) CI/CD
8 26 (10.24%) Roadmaps
9 22 (8.66%) Analytics
9 22 (8.66%) Migration
9 22 (8.66%) Performance Tuning
10 21 (8.27%) Continuous Improvement
11 20 (7.87%) Stakeholder Engagement
12 19 (7.48%) Data Modelling
12 19 (7.48%) Service Management
13 17 (6.69%) AI
13 17 (6.69%) Technical Leadership
14 16 (6.30%) Infrastructure as Code
14 16 (6.30%) RBAC
Programming Languages
1 44 (17.32%) SQL
2 36 (14.17%) PowerShell
3 21 (8.27%) Python
4 18 (7.09%) T-SQL
5 7 (2.76%) C#
6 5 (1.97%) Bash
6 5 (1.97%) Bicep
6 5 (1.97%) JavaScript
7 4 (1.57%) Java
8 3 (1.18%) VBScript
9 2 (0.79%) Data Analysis Expressions
9 2 (0.79%) Kusto Query Language
9 2 (0.79%) Search Processing Language
10 1 (0.39%) Go
10 1 (0.39%) TypeScript
Qualifications
1 52 (20.47%) Degree
2 45 (17.72%) Security Cleared
3 37 (14.57%) SC Cleared
4 34 (13.39%) BPSS Clearance
5 24 (9.45%) Microsoft Certification
6 14 (5.51%) Azure Certification
7 11 (4.33%) Computer Science Degree
8 10 (3.94%) ITIL Foundation Certificate
9 8 (3.15%) A+ Certification
10 7 (2.76%) Network+ Certification
11 4 (1.57%) DBS Check
12 3 (1.18%) Cisco Certification
12 3 (1.18%) CISSP
12 3 (1.18%) Microsoft Certified Professional
13 2 (0.79%) CCNA
13 2 (0.79%) GCFA
13 2 (0.79%) GCIH
13 2 (0.79%) Numerate Degree
13 2 (0.79%) PMI Certification
13 2 (0.79%) PMP
Quality Assurance & Compliance
1 20 (7.87%) Data Quality
2 11 (4.33%) GDPR
3 8 (3.15%) SLA
4 6 (2.36%) PMO
5 5 (1.97%) Accessibility
5 5 (1.97%) WCAG
6 4 (1.57%) GRC
6 4 (1.57%) NIST
6 4 (1.57%) Sarbanes-Oxley
7 3 (1.18%) QA
8 2 (0.79%) Actionable Recommendations
8 2 (0.79%) ISO 19650
8 2 (0.79%) PCI DSS
9 1 (0.39%) Disclosure Scotland
System Software
1 69 (27.17%) Active Directory
2 12 (4.72%) Docker
3 11 (4.33%) Virtual Machines
4 9 (3.54%) VMware Infrastructure
5 4 (1.57%) Hyper-V
5 4 (1.57%) Virtual Desktop
6 2 (0.79%) GPFS
6 2 (0.79%) NFS
6 2 (0.79%) Oracle RAC
6 2 (0.79%) VMware ESXi
6 2 (0.79%) vSphere
7 1 (0.39%) BitLocker
7 1 (0.39%) Microsoft App-V
7 1 (0.39%) VMware NSX
Systems Management
1 30 (11.81%) Microsoft Intune
2 12 (4.72%) Kubernetes
2 12 (4.72%) Single Sign-On
3 11 (4.33%) SCOM
4 7 (2.76%) Ansible
4 7 (2.76%) SCCM
5 4 (1.57%) Grafana
5 4 (1.57%) Progress Chef
6 2 (0.79%) CASB
6 2 (0.79%) Data Guard
6 2 (0.79%) Failover Clustering
6 2 (0.79%) vRealize
6 2 (0.79%) VxRail
7 1 (0.39%) Active Directory Federation Services
7 1 (0.39%) AirWatch
7 1 (0.39%) Prometheus
7 1 (0.39%) Puppet
7 1 (0.39%) WSUS
Vendors
1 27 (10.63%) ServiceNow
2 19 (7.48%) BeyondTrust
3 14 (5.51%) SAP
4 9 (3.54%) Google
4 9 (3.54%) VMware
5 8 (3.15%) Databricks
5 8 (3.15%) Oracle
6 7 (2.76%) Red Hat
6 7 (2.76%) Splunk
7 5 (1.97%) Cisco
7 5 (1.97%) CyberArk
7 5 (1.97%) Perforce
8 4 (1.57%) Adobe
8 4 (1.57%) IBM
8 4 (1.57%) Okta
8 4 (1.57%) UiPath
9 3 (1.18%) Salesforce
10 2 (0.79%) Apple
10 2 (0.79%) Autodesk
10 2 (0.79%) Clearswift