Network Engineer Contract Job Trends in the Thames Valley
Network Engineer
South East > Thames Valley
The median Network Engineer daily rate in the Thames Valley is £463, according to job vacancies posted in the 6 months leading up to 8 November 2026.
The table below compares current contractor rates and summary statistics with the previous two years.
| 6 months to 8 Nov 2026 |
Same period 2025 | Same period 2024 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | 116 | 82 | 75 |
| Rank change year-on-year | -34 | -7 | +9 |
| Contract Network Engineer jobs | 46 | 43 | 49 |
| As % of all contract jobs in the Thames Valley | 1.46% | 2.29% | 2.29% |
| As % of the Job Titles category | 1.59% | 2.52% | 2.48% |
| Number of daily rates quoted | 31 | 35 | 25 |
| 10th Percentile | £250 | £267 | £175 |
| 25th Percentile | £380 | £333 | £350 |
| Median daily rate (50th Percentile) | £463 | £450 | £475 |
| Median % change year-on-year | +2.78% | -5.26% | +18.75% |
| 75th Percentile | £538 | £550 | £538 |
| 90th Percentile | £638 | £575 | £556 |
| South East median daily rate | £469 | £500 | £500 |
| % change year-on-year | -6.25% | - | +17.65% |
| Number of hourly rates quoted | 2 | 3 | 0 |
| 10th Percentile | £49.24 | £29.40 | - |
| 25th Percentile | £50.72 | £45.00 | - |
| Median hourly rate | £54.88 | £77.00 | - |
| Median % change year-on-year | -28.73% | - | - |
| 75th Percentile | £57.47 | £86.32 | - |
| 90th Percentile | £58.01 | £88.30 | - |
| South East median hourly rate | £54.88 | £77.00 | £20.08 |
| % change year-on-year | -28.73% | +283.56% | -68.13% |
All Contract IT Job Roles
Thames Valley
For comparison with the information above, the following table provides summary statistics for all contract IT job adverts in the Thames Valley matching a recognised job title. The table also shows what proportion of all contract IT job adverts they make up.
| 6 months to 8 Nov 2026 |
Same period 2025 | Same period 2024 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Contract job adverts in the Thames Valley matching a recognised job title | 2,888 | 1,706 | 1,973 |
| % of contract job adverts matching a recognised job title | 91.77% | 90.89% | 92.11% |
| Number of daily rates quoted | 1,634 | 1,104 | 1,129 |
| 10th Percentile | £325 | £258 | £281 |
| 25th Percentile | £441 | £403 | £406 |
| Median daily rate (50th Percentile) | £550 | £500 | £501 |
| Median % change year-on-year | +10.00% | -0.10% | +0.10% |
| 75th Percentile | £618 | £588 | £620 |
| 90th Percentile | £738 | £650 | £675 |
| South East median daily rate | £525 | £500 | £508 |
| % change year-on-year | +5.00% | -1.48% | - |
| Number of hourly rates quoted | 413 | 115 | 82 |
| 10th Percentile | £15.00 | £14.75 | £18.52 |
| 25th Percentile | £21.74 | £15.91 | £25.99 |
| Median hourly rate | £57.50 | £25.00 | £57.12 |
| Median % change year-on-year | +130.00% | -56.23% | +14.25% |
| 75th Percentile | £87.50 | £44.08 | £63.42 |
| 90th Percentile | £95.81 | £81.00 | £96.75 |
| South East median hourly rate | £47.50 | £20.79 | £57.50 |
| % change year-on-year | +128.48% | -63.84% | +12.22% |
Network Engineer Job Vacancy Trend in the Thames Valley
Historical trend showing the proportion of contract Network Engineer job postings relative to all contract IT jobs advertised in the Thames Valley.
Network Engineer Daily Rate Trend in the Thames Valley
Contractor daily rate distribution trend for Network Engineer job vacancies in the Thames Valley.
Network Engineer Daily Rate Histogram in the Thames Valley
Daily rate distribution for Network Engineer jobs in the Thames Valley over the 6 months to 8 November 2026.
Network Engineer Hourly Rate Trend in the Thames Valley
Contractor hourly rate distribution trend for Network Engineer job vacancies in the Thames Valley.
Network Engineer Contract Job Locations in the Thames Valley
The table below looks at the demand and provides a guide to the median contractor rates quoted in Network Engineer jobs within the Thames Valley region over the 6 months to 8 November 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 |
Job Ads Past 6 Months |
Median Daily Rate Past 6 Months |
Median Daily Rate % Change on Same Period Last Year |
Live Jobs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Berkshire | -31 | 29 | £390 | -22.00% | 9 |
| Buckinghamshire | -20 | 11 | £560 | - | 11 |
| Oxfordshire | -21 | 6 | £490 | +15.29% | 9 |
| Network Engineer South East |
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Network Engineer Skill Set Top 30 Co-Occurring Skills & Capabilities in the Thames Valley
For the 6 months to 8 November 2026, Network Engineer contract job ads cited the following skills and capabilities in order of popularity. The figures indicate the absolute number of co-occurrences and as a proportion of all contract Network Engineer job ads across the Thames Valley region.
| Rank | Skill | Share | Job Ads |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cisco | 58.7% | 27 |
| 2 | Firewall | 45.7% | 21 |
| 3 | LAN | 39.1% | 18 |
| 4 | Network Security | 37.0% | 17 |
| 5 | DNS | 34.8% | 16 |
| 5 | Palo Alto | 34.8% | 16 |
| 5 | Security Cleared | 34.8% | 16 |
| 5 | WAN | 34.8% | 16 |
| 9 | DHCP | 28.3% | 13 |
| 9 | VMware | 28.3% | 13 |
| 11 | VPN | 26.1% | 12 |
| 12 | Cisco ASA | 21.7% | 10 |
| 12 | Cisco Certification | 21.7% | 10 |
| 12 | ITIL | 21.7% | 10 |
| 12 | Network Monitoring | 21.7% | 10 |
| 16 | BGP | 19.6% | 9 |
| 16 | Cisco Firepower | 19.6% | 9 |
| 16 | DV Cleared | 19.6% | 9 |
| 16 | IPsec | 19.6% | 9 |
| 16 | Network Management | 19.6% | 9 |
| 16 | SolarWinds | 19.6% | 9 |
| 16 | SSL | 19.6% | 9 |
| 16 | Technical Leadership | 19.6% | 9 |
| 16 | VMware Infrastructure | 19.6% | 9 |
| 16 | Windows | 19.6% | 9 |
| 26 | 802.1X | 17.4% | 8 |
| 26 | Change Management | 17.4% | 8 |
| 26 | Linux | 17.4% | 8 |
| 26 | SD-WAN | 17.4% | 8 |
| 26 | Security Operations | 17.4% | 8 |
Network Engineer Skill Set Co-Occurring Skills & Capabilities in the Thames Valley by Category
The table below expands on the one above by listing co-occurrences one category at a time. It covers the same employment type, locality and period, with up to 20 co-occurrences in each category.
Job Titles
| Rank | Job Title | Share | Job Ads |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Senior Network Engineer | 21.7% | 10 |
| 2 | DV Cleared Network Engineer | 15.2% | 7 |
| 3 | Cisco Network Engineer | 13.0% | 6 |
| 3 | Network Security Engineer | 13.0% | 6 |
| 5 | SC Cleared Network Engineer | 10.9% | 5 |
| 6 | LAN Engineer | 6.5% | 3 |
| 6 | Network Systems Engineer | 6.5% | 3 |
| 6 | Test Engineer | 6.5% | 3 |
| 6 | WAN Engineer | 6.5% | 3 |
| 10 | Network Implementation Engineer | 4.3% | 2 |
| 10 | NOC Engineer | 4.3% | 2 |
| 12 | Data Network Engineer | 2.2% | 1 |
| 12 | Infoblox Engineer | 2.2% | 1 |
| 12 | Network Specialist | 2.2% | 1 |
| 12 | Switch Engineer | 2.2% | 1 |