Microsoft Contract Job Trends in the South West

Microsoft
England > South West

The table below provides summary statistics for contract job vacancies advertised in the South West 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 29 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
29 Sep 2026
Same period 2025 Same period 2024
Rank 5 4 6
Rank change year-on-year -1 +2 +2
Contract jobs citing Microsoft 455 325 400
As % of all contract jobs in the South West 12.19% 16.65% 15.77%
As % of the Vendors category 37.26% 39.16% 35.12%
Number of daily rates quoted 264 199 242
10th Percentile £211 £201 £180
25th Percentile £380 £270 £326
Median daily rate (50th Percentile) £470 £438 £500
Median % change year-on-year +7.43% -12.50% -2.44%
75th Percentile £600 £575 £634
90th Percentile £730 £650 £749
England median daily rate £490 £475 £498
% change year-on-year +3.16% -4.62% -0.40%
Number of hourly rates quoted 67 49 20
10th Percentile £12.78 £17.62 £12.50
25th Percentile £14.31 - £25.26
Median hourly rate £17.50 £18.87 £65.00
Median % change year-on-year -7.26% -70.97% +33.42%
75th Percentile £25.01 £33.00 -
90th Percentile £46.24 £53.52 £85.00
England median hourly rate £18.58 £22.63 £16.90
% change year-on-year -17.92% +33.89% -24.98%

All Vendors
South West

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 West.

Contract vacancies with a requirement for knowledge or experience of vendor products and services 1,221 830 1,139
As % of all contract IT jobs advertised in the South West 32.70% 42.52% 44.91%
Number of daily rates quoted 704 481 666
10th Percentile £310 £213 £225
25th Percentile £419 £350 £425
Median daily rate (50th Percentile) £525 £500 £525
Median % change year-on-year +5.00% -4.76% -
75th Percentile £610 £619 £630
90th Percentile £725 £675 £700
England median daily rate £514 £508 £525
% change year-on-year +1.28% -3.33% -
Number of hourly rates quoted 191 118 92
10th Percentile £14.00 £14.42 £26.03
25th Percentile £16.62 £18.51 £61.25
Median hourly rate £26.14 £21.98 £70.00
Median % change year-on-year +18.93% -68.60% +23.92%
75th Percentile £55.66 £59.69 -
90th Percentile £76.75 £70.00 £74.40
England median hourly rate £26.37 £25.15 £35.00
% change year-on-year +4.83% -28.14% -20.24%

Microsoft
Job Vacancy Trend in the South West

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

Microsoft job vacancy trend in the South West

Microsoft
Daily Rate Trend in the South West

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

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

Microsoft
Daily Rate Histogram in the South West

Daily rate distribution for jobs citing Microsoft in the South West over the 6 months to 29 September 2026.

Daily rate histogram for Microsoft in the South West

Microsoft
Hourly Rate Trend in the South West

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

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

Microsoft
Hourly Rate Histogram in the South West

Hourly rate distribution of jobs citing Microsoft in the South West over the 6 months to 29 September 2026.

Hourly rate histogram for Microsoft in the South West

Microsoft
Contract Job Locations in the South West

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 West region over the 6 months to 29 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
Bristol -1 146 £500 +5.26% 106
Somerset -1 83 £450 +63.64% 85
Wiltshire 0 77 £550 -4.35% 74
Gloucestershire 0 68 £425 +13.33% 92
Devon +1 44 £317 +15.36% 45
Dorset -7 23 £515 +47.14% 67
Cornwall - 2 £525 - 12
Avon -2 1 - - 44
Microsoft
England

Microsoft
Co-Occurring Skills & Capabilities in the South West 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 68 (14.95%) SharePoint
2 29 (6.37%) Microsoft Exchange
3 15 (3.30%) Confluence
4 5 (1.10%) CMS
5 3 (0.66%) Sitecore CMS
6 2 (0.44%) Apache
6 2 (0.44%) Skype for Business
7 1 (0.22%) Apache Airflow
7 1 (0.22%) Apache Spark
7 1 (0.22%) Appian
7 1 (0.22%) ColdFusion
7 1 (0.22%) JBoss
7 1 (0.22%) Moodle
7 1 (0.22%) Palantir Foundry
7 1 (0.22%) Totara
7 1 (0.22%) Umbraco
Applications
1 72 (15.82%) Microsoft Excel
2 68 (14.95%) Microsoft Office
3 24 (5.27%) Microsoft PowerPoint
4 19 (4.18%) Microsoft Project
5 10 (2.20%) Spreadsheet
6 7 (1.54%) MS Visio
Business Applications
1 8 (1.76%) NetSuite
2 7 (1.54%) Oracle Payables
2 7 (1.54%) Oracle Receivables
3 6 (1.32%) Dynamics CRM
4 5 (1.10%) SAP HR
5 3 (0.66%) Dynamics NAV
5 3 (0.66%) Magento
5 3 (0.66%) SAP CRM
5 3 (0.66%) SAP S/4HANA
6 2 (0.44%) assyst
6 2 (0.44%) Salesforce CRM
7 1 (0.22%) Dynamics AX
7 1 (0.22%) Primavera
7 1 (0.22%) Remedy ITSM
7 1 (0.22%) SAP Hybris
7 1 (0.22%) SAP MM
7 1 (0.22%) SAP PM
Cloud Services
1 153 (33.63%) Azure
2 109 (23.96%) Microsoft 365
3 51 (11.21%) Entra ID
4 47 (10.33%) Power Platform
5 31 (6.81%) AWS
5 31 (6.81%) Azure DevOps
6 25 (5.49%) Dynamics 365
7 15 (3.30%) GitHub
7 15 (3.30%) SaaS
8 14 (3.08%) PowerApps
9 13 (2.86%) Microsoft Copilot
9 13 (2.86%) OneDrive
10 12 (2.64%) Microsoft Purview
10 12 (2.64%) Power Automate
11 11 (2.42%) Azure AKS
12 10 (2.20%) Serverless
13 9 (1.98%) Azure ExpressRoute
13 9 (1.98%) Azure Functions
13 9 (1.98%) Azure Key Vault
14 8 (1.76%) Azure Sentinel
Communications & Networking
1 24 (5.27%) DNS
2 21 (4.62%) WAN
3 18 (3.96%) DHCP
4 17 (3.74%) Firewall
5 12 (2.64%) LAN
6 11 (2.42%) Skype
6 11 (2.42%) VPN
7 8 (1.76%) SAN
7 8 (1.76%) TCP/IP
8 6 (1.32%) Wireless
9 5 (1.10%) BGP
9 5 (1.10%) Cisco IOS
9 5 (1.10%) Ethernet
9 5 (1.10%) VoIP
10 4 (0.88%) Kerberos
10 4 (0.88%) Wi-Fi
11 3 (0.66%) VLAN
12 2 (0.44%) Asterisk PBX
12 2 (0.44%) Cisco ASA
12 2 (0.44%) Network Security
Database & Business Intelligence
1 32 (7.03%) Power BI
2 21 (4.62%) SQL Server
3 13 (2.86%) Geospatial Data
4 11 (2.42%) Metadata
5 10 (2.20%) PostgreSQL
6 7 (1.54%) Azure SQL Database
7 6 (1.32%) Relational Database
8 5 (1.10%) Data Lake
8 5 (1.10%) GIS
8 5 (1.10%) Oracle Database
8 5 (1.10%) Oracle Reports
9 3 (0.66%) NoSQL
10 2 (0.44%) Data Warehouse
10 2 (0.44%) EDRMS
10 2 (0.44%) Spatial Data
10 2 (0.44%) SQL Server Integration Services
10 2 (0.44%) Tableau
11 1 (0.22%) Dremio
11 1 (0.22%) InfluxDB
11 1 (0.22%) Power Query
Development Applications
1 33 (7.25%) JIRA
2 28 (6.15%) Git
3 11 (2.42%) MSI
4 8 (1.76%) Visual Studio
5 5 (1.10%) GitLab
6 4 (0.88%) Eclipse
7 2 (0.44%) AdminStudio
7 2 (0.44%) Claude Code
7 2 (0.44%) InstallShield
8 1 (0.22%) HP UFT
8 1 (0.22%) Jenkins
8 1 (0.22%) Rational DOORS
8 1 (0.22%) Selenium
8 1 (0.22%) Visual Studio Code
General
1 184 (40.44%) Social Skills
2 55 (12.09%) Finance
3 51 (11.21%) Analytical Skills
3 51 (11.21%) Public Sector
4 47 (10.33%) Organisational Skills
5 33 (7.25%) Military
6 17 (3.74%) Aerospace
6 17 (3.74%) Inclusion and Diversity
7 16 (3.52%) Documentation Skills
8 13 (2.86%) Local Government
8 13 (2.86%) Retail
9 10 (2.20%) Manufacturing
10 9 (1.98%) Legal
11 7 (1.54%) General Ledger
12 5 (1.10%) Influencing Skills
12 5 (1.10%) Marketing
13 4 (0.88%) Banking
14 3 (0.66%) Aviation
14 3 (0.66%) Police
14 3 (0.66%) Presentation Skills
Job Titles
1 60 (13.19%) Architect
2 47 (10.33%) Consultant
3 45 (9.89%) Lead
4 34 (7.47%) Administrator
5 29 (6.37%) Analyst
6 28 (6.15%) Developer
7 27 (5.93%) Senior
8 22 (4.84%) IT Support
9 20 (4.40%) Support Engineer
10 19 (4.18%) Solutions Architect
11 18 (3.96%) Microsoft Consultant
12 17 (3.74%) Project Officer
13 15 (3.30%) DevOps Engineer
13 15 (3.30%) IT Engineer
14 14 (3.08%) Technical Architect
15 13 (2.86%) Data Engineer
16 12 (2.64%) Azure Consultant
16 12 (2.64%) Azure Engineer
16 12 (2.64%) Infrastructure Engineer
17 11 (2.42%) DBA
Libraries, Frameworks & Software Standards
1 42 (9.23%) Terraform
2 34 (7.47%) .NET
3 24 (5.27%) .NET Framework
4 19 (4.18%) REST
5 18 (3.96%) .NET Core
6 17 (3.74%) HTML
7 16 (3.52%) RESTful
8 13 (2.86%) GeoJSON
9 12 (2.64%) CSS
9 12 (2.64%) CSS3
9 12 (2.64%) HTML5
10 11 (2.42%) ATL
10 11 (2.42%) COM
10 11 (2.42%) MFC
10 11 (2.42%) WPF
11 10 (2.20%) LDAP
12 9 (1.98%) ARM Templates
13 8 (1.76%) OAuth
13 8 (1.76%) SailPoint
13 8 (1.76%) SAML
Miscellaneous
1 35 (7.69%) Onboarding
2 24 (5.27%) Cloud Native
3 23 (5.05%) Product Ownership
4 20 (4.40%) Legacy Systems
4 20 (4.40%) Management Information System
5 16 (3.52%) Wiki
6 15 (3.30%) Virtual Team
7 14 (3.08%) Hybrid Cloud
7 14 (3.08%) Self-Motivation
8 12 (2.64%) Enterprise Software
9 10 (2.20%) AI Agents
10 9 (1.98%) Driving Licence
10 9 (1.98%) EPoS
11 7 (1.54%) Low-Code
11 7 (1.54%) PKI
12 6 (1.32%) Data Centre
12 6 (1.32%) Data Protection Act
12 6 (1.32%) Freedom of Information
12 6 (1.32%) Replication
13 5 (1.10%) Clustering
Operating Systems
1 101 (22.20%) Windows
2 38 (8.35%) Windows 10
3 25 (5.49%) Windows Server
4 17 (3.74%) Android
4 17 (3.74%) Linux
5 6 (1.32%) Red Hat Enterprise Linux
6 5 (1.10%) Mac OS
7 3 (0.66%) Apple iOS
8 2 (0.44%) VMS
8 2 (0.44%) Windows Server 2019
9 1 (0.22%) Windows 7
Processes & Methodologies
1 78 (17.14%) Continuous Improvement
2 73 (16.04%) Problem-Solving
3 71 (15.60%) Agile
4 68 (14.95%) Stakeholder Management
5 52 (11.43%) Project Delivery
6 51 (11.21%) DevOps
7 50 (10.99%) CI/CD
7 50 (10.99%) Stakeholder Engagement
8 49 (10.77%) Migration
9 48 (10.55%) Customer Service
10 41 (9.01%) Technical Leadership
11 39 (8.57%) Decision-Making
12 38 (8.35%) Infrastructure as Code
12 38 (8.35%) Validation
13 37 (8.13%) ITIL
14 34 (7.47%) PRINCE2
14 34 (7.47%) Project Management
14 34 (7.47%) Roadmaps
15 29 (6.37%) Analytics
16 28 (6.15%) DevSecOps
Programming Languages
1 44 (9.67%) SQL
2 38 (8.35%) PowerShell
3 33 (7.25%) C#
4 28 (6.15%) Python
5 25 (5.49%) Bicep
6 21 (4.62%) JavaScript
7 14 (3.08%) Bash
8 12 (2.64%) TypeScript
9 9 (1.98%) Java
10 6 (1.32%) Data Analysis Expressions
11 5 (1.10%) BeanShell
11 5 (1.10%) C++
12 2 (0.44%) VB
13 1 (0.22%) Ada
13 1 (0.22%) Ada 95
13 1 (0.22%) C
13 1 (0.22%) Kusto Query Language
13 1 (0.22%) Shell Script
13 1 (0.22%) VBA
13 1 (0.22%) VBScript
Qualifications
1 186 (40.88%) Security Cleared
2 125 (27.47%) SC Cleared
3 64 (14.07%) DV Cleared
4 28 (6.15%) Degree
5 15 (3.30%) BPSS Clearance
6 13 (2.86%) Microsoft Certification
7 10 (2.20%) PRINCE2 Practitioner
8 8 (1.76%) Azure Certification
9 7 (1.54%) ACCA
9 7 (1.54%) CIMA
9 7 (1.54%) PMP
10 6 (1.32%) CIPD
10 6 (1.32%) Microsoft Certified Professional
11 5 (1.10%) Cisco Certification
11 5 (1.10%) DBS Check
12 4 (0.88%) CISSP
13 3 (0.66%) (ISC)2 CCSP
13 3 (0.66%) MCSE
13 3 (0.66%) TOGAF Certification
14 2 (0.44%) CCNA
Quality Assurance & Compliance
1 30 (6.59%) Data Quality
2 19 (4.18%) GDPR
3 18 (3.96%) Accessibility
3 18 (3.96%) SLA
4 16 (3.52%) NCSC
4 16 (3.52%) QA
5 14 (3.08%) PMO
6 11 (2.42%) WCAG
7 5 (1.10%) ISO 9000
8 4 (0.88%) Actionable Recommendations
9 3 (0.66%) Cyber Essentials
9 3 (0.66%) Disclosure Scotland
9 3 (0.66%) ISO/IEC 27001
9 3 (0.66%) NIST
10 2 (0.44%) Cyber Essentials PLUS
11 1 (0.22%) Def Stans
11 1 (0.22%) HMG Security Policy Framework
11 1 (0.22%) ISO 22301
11 1 (0.22%) MIL-STD-1553
11 1 (0.22%) NIST 800
System Software
1 81 (17.80%) Active Directory
2 28 (6.15%) Docker
3 16 (3.52%) Virtual Desktop
4 13 (2.86%) Hyper-V
4 13 (2.86%) VMware Infrastructure
5 6 (1.32%) Virtual Machines
6 5 (1.10%) vSphere
7 2 (0.44%) BitLocker
8 1 (0.22%) Firmware
8 1 (0.22%) Microsoft Virtual Server
8 1 (0.22%) Virtual Servers
8 1 (0.22%) VMware NSX
8 1 (0.22%) zsh
Systems Management
1 29 (6.37%) Kubernetes
2 23 (5.05%) Microsoft Intune
3 22 (4.84%) SCCM
4 8 (1.76%) WSUS
5 7 (1.54%) Ansible
6 5 (1.10%) Active Directory Federation Services
6 5 (1.10%) Failover Clustering
6 5 (1.10%) FortiGate
6 5 (1.10%) Oracle Enterprise Manager
7 4 (0.88%) Single Sign-On
8 3 (0.66%) Grafana
8 3 (0.66%) OPNET
8 3 (0.66%) VxRail
9 2 (0.44%) Argo
9 2 (0.44%) SCOM
10 1 (0.22%) FreeIPA
10 1 (0.22%) Podman
10 1 (0.22%) Prometheus
10 1 (0.22%) PTC Integrity
10 1 (0.22%) SELinux
Vendors
1 28 (6.15%) Oracle
2 17 (3.74%) Cisco
2 17 (3.74%) SAP
2 17 (3.74%) VMware
3 16 (3.52%) ServiceNow
4 14 (3.08%) Apple
5 12 (2.64%) Google
6 11 (2.42%) HP
7 9 (1.98%) Databricks
7 9 (1.98%) Red Hat
8 6 (1.32%) BiZZdesign
8 6 (1.32%) Informatica
8 6 (1.32%) McAfee
8 6 (1.32%) Workday
9 5 (1.10%) CyberArk
9 5 (1.10%) Zscaler
10 4 (0.88%) Atlassian
10 4 (0.88%) InterSystems
10 4 (0.88%) Meraki
10 4 (0.88%) MuleSoft