Microsoft Contract Job Trends in the South East

Microsoft
England > South East

The table below provides summary statistics for contract job vacancies advertised in the South East 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 30 May 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
30 May 2026
Same period 2025 Same period 2024
Rank 8 6 6
Rank change year-on-year -2 0 -1
Contract jobs citing Microsoft 687 452 818
As % of all contract jobs in the South East 11.44% 15.41% 14.57%
As % of the Vendors category 27.68% 29.09% 31.01%
Number of daily rates quoted 471 305 530
10th Percentile £201 £203 £200
25th Percentile £369 £288 £351
Median daily rate (50th Percentile) £475 £460 £465
Median % change year-on-year +3.26% -1.08% +2.20%
75th Percentile £575 £550 £588
90th Percentile £675 £614 £675
England median daily rate £498 £476 £488
% change year-on-year +4.52% -2.41% -2.45%
Number of hourly rates quoted 70 30 76
10th Percentile £12.73 £14.09 £11.71
25th Percentile £15.81 £14.20 £12.00
Median hourly rate £27.50 £14.90 £23.22
Median % change year-on-year +84.56% -35.82% +23.81%
75th Percentile £53.46 £24.69 £58.49
90th Percentile £108.28 £32.08 £61.60
England median hourly rate £20.69 £18.87 £15.00
% change year-on-year +9.64% +25.80% -30.23%

All Vendors
South East

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 the South East.

Contract vacancies with a requirement for knowledge or experience of vendor products and services 2,482 1,554 2,638
As % of all contract IT jobs advertised in the South East 41.33% 52.98% 47.00%
Number of daily rates quoted 1,684 1,045 1,575
10th Percentile £300 £222 £225
25th Percentile £413 £381 £400
Median daily rate (50th Percentile) £513 £500 £500
Median % change year-on-year +2.50% - -
75th Percentile £600 £600 £608
90th Percentile £700 £660 £688
England median daily rate £505 £520 £518
% change year-on-year -2.88% +0.48% -3.09%
Number of hourly rates quoted 169 81 189
10th Percentile £15.55 £14.20 £12.00
25th Percentile £21.25 £15.56 £16.74
Median hourly rate £47.50 £24.66 £50.00
Median % change year-on-year +92.62% -50.68% +11.11%
75th Percentile £83.75 £57.50 £61.30
90th Percentile £88.00 £71.25 £69.00
England median hourly rate £32.50 £26.75 £22.90
% change year-on-year +21.50% +16.82% -42.10%

Microsoft
Job Vacancy Trend in the South East

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

Microsoft job vacancy trend in the South East

Microsoft
Daily Rate Trend in the South East

Contractor daily rate distribution trend for jobs in the South East citing Microsoft.

Contractor daily rate distribution trend for jobs in the South East citing Microsoft

Microsoft
Daily Rate Histogram in the South East

Daily rate distribution for jobs citing Microsoft in the South East over the 6 months to 30 May 2026.

Daily rate histogram for Microsoft in the South East

Microsoft
Hourly Rate Trend in the South East

Contractor hourly rate distribution trend for jobs in the South East citing Microsoft.

Contractor hourly rate distribution trend for jobs in the South East citing Microsoft

Microsoft
Hourly Rate Histogram in the South East

Hourly rate distribution of jobs citing Microsoft in the South East over the 6 months to 30 May 2026.

Hourly rate histogram for Microsoft in the South East

Microsoft
Contract Job Locations in the South East

The table below looks at the demand and provides a guide to the median contractor rates quoted in IT jobs citing Microsoft within the South East region over the 6 months to 30 May 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
Thames Valley -1 349 £490 +8.89% 225
Berkshire -6 176 £491 +3.15% 99
Hampshire -9 141 £550 +10.00% 108
Surrey +9 103 £438 - 65
Buckinghamshire -3 102 £500 -1.72% 76
Oxfordshire -1 71 £450 +80.00% 55
West Sussex -1 45 £468 +37.91% 38
Kent -3 25 £275 +4.76% 64
East Sussex -3 9 £538 -6.52% 18
Home Counties +2 4 - - 1
Sussex - 1 - - 4
Microsoft
England

Microsoft
Co-Occurring Skills & Capabilities in the South East 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 77 (11.21%) SharePoint
2 67 (9.75%) Microsoft Exchange
3 14 (2.04%) Confluence
4 3 (0.44%) ArcGIS
4 3 (0.44%) MS Project Server
4 3 (0.44%) Smallworld
5 2 (0.29%) GeoServer
6 1 (0.15%) Apache
6 1 (0.15%) Apache Spark
6 1 (0.15%) BizTalk Server
6 1 (0.15%) IIS
6 1 (0.15%) nginx
6 1 (0.15%) SharePoint 2010
6 1 (0.15%) SharePoint 2013
6 1 (0.15%) Tomcat
Applications
1 73 (10.63%) Microsoft Excel
2 70 (10.19%) Microsoft Office
3 28 (4.08%) Microsoft Project
4 27 (3.93%) Microsoft PowerPoint
5 11 (1.60%) MS Visio
6 3 (0.44%) SOLIDWORKS
7 1 (0.15%) Acrobat
7 1 (0.15%) Adobe Illustrator
7 1 (0.15%) Autodesk Inventor
7 1 (0.15%) InDesign
7 1 (0.15%) MicroStation
7 1 (0.15%) Photoshop
7 1 (0.15%) Spreadsheet
7 1 (0.15%) Trello
Business Applications
1 12 (1.75%) SAP S/4HANA
2 4 (0.58%) NEC Housing
2 4 (0.58%) SAP Business One
3 3 (0.44%) Dynamics CRM
4 1 (0.15%) iTrent
4 1 (0.15%) SAP PSCD
4 1 (0.15%) Sparx Enterprise Architect
4 1 (0.15%) Teamcenter
Cloud Services
1 266 (38.72%) Azure
2 180 (26.20%) Microsoft 365
3 126 (18.34%) Entra ID
4 83 (12.08%) Power Platform
5 58 (8.44%) AWS
6 40 (5.82%) Azure DevOps
7 31 (4.51%) Dynamics 365
7 31 (4.51%) Power Automate
8 27 (3.93%) OneDrive
9 26 (3.78%) SaaS
10 22 (3.20%) PowerApps
11 21 (3.06%) Microsoft Purview
12 20 (2.91%) IaaS
13 18 (2.62%) Microsoft Copilot
13 18 (2.62%) Serverless
14 17 (2.47%) Azure Functions
14 17 (2.47%) Azure Logic Apps
14 17 (2.47%) GitHub
15 16 (2.33%) Azure Monitor
16 13 (1.89%) Copilot Studio
Communications & Networking
1 61 (8.88%) DNS
2 43 (6.26%) DHCP
3 33 (4.80%) Wi-Fi
4 30 (4.37%) Firewall
5 24 (3.49%) VPN
6 23 (3.35%) LAN
7 17 (2.47%) WAN
8 12 (1.75%) Kerberos
9 10 (1.46%) SD-WAN
9 10 (1.46%) TCP/IP
10 9 (1.31%) MPLS
10 9 (1.31%) Unified Communications
11 8 (1.16%) Network Security
11 8 (1.16%) VLAN
12 7 (1.02%) SAN
13 6 (0.87%) IPsec
14 5 (0.73%) BGP
14 5 (0.73%) VSAN
14 5 (0.73%) Wireless
15 4 (0.58%) MQTT
Database & Business Intelligence
1 63 (9.17%) Power BI
2 29 (4.22%) SQL Server
3 14 (2.04%) MySQL
4 11 (1.60%) Azure SQL Database
4 11 (1.60%) PostgreSQL
5 8 (1.16%) Relational Database
6 7 (1.02%) Data Lake
6 7 (1.02%) Data Warehouse
6 7 (1.02%) Metadata
7 6 (0.87%) SQL Server Integration Services
8 5 (0.73%) SQL Server Reporting Services
9 4 (0.58%) Oracle Database
10 3 (0.44%) Amazon RDS
10 3 (0.44%) Data Mining
10 3 (0.44%) GIS
10 3 (0.44%) MS Access
10 3 (0.44%) Star Schema
11 2 (0.29%) Oracle Reports
11 2 (0.29%) Spatial Data
11 2 (0.29%) SQL Server Analysis Services
Development Applications
1 20 (2.91%) JIRA
2 12 (1.75%) Git
3 8 (1.16%) Android Studio
4 6 (0.87%) Browser DevTools
4 6 (0.87%) Eclipse
4 6 (0.87%) Xcode
5 3 (0.44%) Gradle
5 3 (0.44%) JUnit
5 3 (0.44%) Maven
5 3 (0.44%) MSI
5 3 (0.44%) Robot Framework
6 2 (0.29%) Bitbucket
6 2 (0.29%) Jenkins
6 2 (0.29%) Sonatype Nexus
6 2 (0.29%) Subversion
7 1 (0.15%) Artifactory
7 1 (0.15%) ERwin
7 1 (0.15%) NUnit
7 1 (0.15%) Visual Studio
7 1 (0.15%) Visual Studio Code
General
1 192 (27.95%) Social Skills
2 64 (9.32%) Finance
3 63 (9.17%) Public Sector
4 59 (8.59%) Analytical Skills
5 43 (6.26%) Organisational Skills
6 24 (3.49%) Legal
7 16 (2.33%) Documentation Skills
8 15 (2.18%) Aerospace
8 15 (2.18%) Military
9 11 (1.60%) Inclusion and Diversity
10 10 (1.46%) Telecoms
11 8 (1.16%) Retail
12 7 (1.02%) Local Government
13 6 (0.87%) Marketing
14 5 (0.73%) Aviation
14 5 (0.73%) Influencing Skills
14 5 (0.73%) Manufacturing
14 5 (0.73%) Presentation Skills
15 4 (0.58%) Advertising
15 4 (0.58%) Police
Job Titles
1 85 (12.37%) Architect
2 67 (9.75%) IT Support
3 63 (9.17%) Analyst
4 57 (8.30%) Senior
5 51 (7.42%) Support Engineer
6 49 (7.13%) Infrastructure Engineer
7 43 (6.26%) IT Engineer
8 41 (5.97%) Lead
9 36 (5.24%) Consultant
10 35 (5.09%) IT Support Engineer
11 34 (4.95%) Developer
12 24 (3.49%) Azure Engineer
12 24 (3.49%) Solutions Architect
13 22 (3.20%) Project Manager
14 20 (2.91%) Administrator
14 20 (2.91%) IT Analyst
15 18 (2.62%) Support Analyst
16 17 (2.47%) Microsoft Engineer
17 16 (2.33%) 3rd Line Engineer
17 16 (2.33%) DevOps Engineer
Libraries, Frameworks & Software Standards
1 28 (4.08%) .NET
2 24 (3.49%) LDAP
3 20 (2.91%) OAuth
4 19 (2.77%) SAML
5 18 (2.62%) OpenID
6 16 (2.33%) REST
7 14 (2.04%) OAuth2
7 14 (2.04%) Web Services
8 11 (1.60%) Microsoft Graph
8 11 (1.60%) SailPoint
9 10 (1.46%) React
10 9 (1.31%) AngularJS
10 9 (1.31%) ARM Templates
10 9 (1.31%) CSS
10 9 (1.31%) JSON
11 8 (1.16%) XML
12 7 (1.02%) GraphQL
13 6 (0.87%) ADO
13 6 (0.87%) Ajax
13 6 (0.87%) Software Packaging
Miscellaneous
1 47 (6.84%) Onboarding
2 28 (4.08%) PKI
3 23 (3.35%) Product Ownership
4 22 (3.20%) Cloud Native
4 22 (3.20%) Data Centre
5 18 (2.62%) Legacy Systems
6 17 (2.47%) Hybrid Cloud
7 15 (2.18%) Public Cloud
7 15 (2.18%) Replication
8 13 (1.89%) Operational Technology
9 12 (1.75%) Driving Licence
10 10 (1.46%) Enterprise Software
10 10 (1.46%) Self-Motivation
11 9 (1.31%) Analytical Mindset
11 9 (1.31%) Cyber Defence
12 8 (1.16%) Mobile App
12 8 (1.16%) Security Posture
12 8 (1.16%) Virtual Team
13 7 (1.02%) Data Structures
14 6 (0.87%) CMDB
Operating Systems
1 197 (28.68%) Windows
2 61 (8.88%) Linux
2 61 (8.88%) Windows Server
3 27 (3.93%) Windows 10
4 20 (2.91%) Mac OS
5 15 (2.18%) Android
6 14 (2.04%) Apple iOS
6 14 (2.04%) Unix
7 10 (1.46%) Red Hat Enterprise Linux
8 9 (1.31%) Windows Server 2019
9 8 (1.16%) Windows 7
10 6 (0.87%) Windows Server 2012
10 6 (0.87%) Windows Server 2016
11 5 (0.73%) Ubuntu
12 4 (0.58%) CentOS
13 1 (0.15%) Debian
13 1 (0.15%) OpenVMS
13 1 (0.15%) VMS
13 1 (0.15%) Windows Server 2008
Processes & Methodologies
1 99 (14.41%) Problem-Solving
2 86 (12.52%) DevOps
3 85 (12.37%) Agile
4 79 (11.50%) Customer Service
5 76 (11.06%) ITIL
6 73 (10.63%) Migration
7 68 (9.90%) Business Intelligence
7 68 (9.90%) CI/CD
8 62 (9.02%) Cybersecurity
9 60 (8.73%) Stakeholder Management
10 56 (8.15%) Analytics
10 56 (8.15%) Infrastructure Engineering
11 50 (7.28%) Project Management
12 47 (6.84%) Project Delivery
13 46 (6.70%) Decision-Making
13 46 (6.70%) ITSM
14 43 (6.26%) Roadmaps
15 41 (5.97%) Stakeholder Engagement
15 41 (5.97%) User Experience
16 39 (5.68%) Continuous Improvement
Programming Languages
1 97 (14.12%) PowerShell
2 63 (9.17%) Python
3 60 (8.73%) SQL
4 27 (3.93%) T-SQL
5 20 (2.91%) C#
6 15 (2.18%) JavaScript
7 14 (2.04%) Bash
7 14 (2.04%) Java
8 10 (1.46%) Bicep
9 8 (1.16%) Data Analysis Expressions
10 7 (1.02%) Kusto Query Language
11 6 (0.87%) Perl
12 4 (0.58%) X++
13 3 (0.44%) TypeScript
14 2 (0.29%) Korn
15 1 (0.15%) Google Apps Script
15 1 (0.15%) PL/SQL
15 1 (0.15%) Shell Script
15 1 (0.15%) VBA
Qualifications
1 236 (34.35%) Security Cleared
2 167 (24.31%) SC Cleared
3 75 (10.92%) Degree
4 70 (10.19%) DV Cleared
5 24 (3.49%) Microsoft Certification
6 20 (2.91%) Azure Certification
7 15 (2.18%) CISSP
8 12 (1.75%) Computer Science Degree
8 12 (1.75%) GIAC
9 11 (1.60%) Cisco Certification
9 11 (1.60%) CISM
10 9 (1.31%) BPSS Clearance
10 9 (1.31%) DBS Check
11 6 (0.87%) AWS Certification
11 6 (0.87%) PMI Certification
11 6 (0.87%) PMP
12 5 (0.73%) ACCA
12 5 (0.73%) CIMA
12 5 (0.73%) CRISC
12 5 (0.73%) SANS
Quality Assurance & Compliance
1 33 (4.80%) NIST
2 26 (3.78%) ISO/IEC 27001
3 25 (3.64%) GDPR
3 25 (3.64%) SLA
4 23 (3.35%) NCSC
5 21 (3.06%) Cyber Essentials
6 18 (2.62%) PMO
7 17 (2.47%) Data Quality
8 12 (1.75%) QA
9 6 (0.87%) ISO 31000
9 6 (0.87%) NIST 800
10 4 (0.58%) Accessibility
10 4 (0.58%) PCI DSS
11 3 (0.44%) ISO/IEC 42001
12 2 (0.29%) JSP 440
13 1 (0.15%) Actionable Recommendations
13 1 (0.15%) Cyber Essentials PLUS
13 1 (0.15%) ISO 9001
13 1 (0.15%) Sarbanes-Oxley
System Software
1 207 (30.13%) Active Directory
2 66 (9.61%) VMware Infrastructure
3 24 (3.49%) Hyper-V
4 15 (2.18%) vSphere
5 13 (1.89%) Virtual Machines
6 11 (1.60%) VMware ESXi
7 10 (1.46%) VMware NSX
8 9 (1.31%) Docker
8 9 (1.31%) Virtual Desktop
9 5 (0.73%) Firmware
10 3 (0.44%) DFS Replication
11 2 (0.29%) UAG
12 1 (0.15%) BitLocker
12 1 (0.15%) Citrix Hypervisor
12 1 (0.15%) Dovecot
12 1 (0.15%) Oracle RAC
12 1 (0.15%) Postfix
12 1 (0.15%) XenApp
Systems Management
1 59 (8.59%) Microsoft Intune
2 31 (4.51%) Terraform
3 26 (3.78%) SCCM
4 23 (3.35%) Active Directory Federation Services
5 17 (2.47%) Single Sign-On
6 15 (2.18%) SCOM
7 12 (1.75%) vCenter Server
8 11 (1.60%) Ansible
8 11 (1.60%) Kubernetes
9 9 (1.31%) Jamf Pro
10 8 (1.16%) Avamar
11 4 (0.58%) QRadar
11 4 (0.58%) WMI
12 3 (0.44%) Clonezilla
12 3 (0.44%) Nessus
12 3 (0.44%) SCSM
12 3 (0.44%) WSUS
13 2 (0.29%) Grafana
13 2 (0.29%) Oracle RMAN
13 2 (0.29%) Puppet
Vendors
1 79 (11.50%) VMware
2 34 (4.95%) Cisco
3 30 (4.37%) SAP
4 21 (3.06%) ServiceNow
5 18 (2.62%) Meraki
6 15 (2.18%) Databricks
6 15 (2.18%) Oracle
7 14 (2.04%) Dell
7 14 (2.04%) Thales
8 13 (1.89%) Citrix
9 12 (1.75%) Splunk
10 10 (1.46%) Avaya
11 9 (1.31%) Fortinet
11 9 (1.31%) Google
11 9 (1.31%) Mitel
12 8 (1.16%) F5
12 8 (1.16%) Red Hat
12 8 (1.16%) SolarWinds
13 7 (1.02%) Juniper
13 7 (1.02%) Veeam