Cisco Contract Job Trends

Cisco
UK

The table below provides summary statistics for contract job vacancies requiring knowledge or experience of Cisco products and/or services. It includes a benchmarking guide to contractor rates offered in vacancies that cited Cisco over the 6 months leading up to 17 June 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 Cisco Systems, Inc.

6 months to
17 Jun 2026
Same period 2025 Same period 2024
Rank 109 65 69
Rank change year-on-year -44 +4 -11
Contract jobs citing Cisco 1,135 1,105 1,298
As % of all contract jobs in the UK 2.26% 3.72% 2.98%
As % of the Vendors category 5.54% 7.82% 7.05%
Number of daily rates quoted 787 674 796
10th Percentile £300 £300 £250
25th Percentile £402 £402 £375
Median daily rate (50th Percentile) £475 £500 £475
Median % change year-on-year -5.00% +5.26% -
75th Percentile £575 £588 £588
90th Percentile £641 £650 £675
UK excluding London median daily rate £475 £500 £475
% change year-on-year -5.00% +5.26% +5.56%
Number of hourly rates quoted 35 29 36
10th Percentile £27.23 £18.06 £14.44
25th Percentile £38.80 £25.00 £20.00
Median hourly rate £55.00 £30.00 £26.00
Median % change year-on-year +83.33% +15.38% -48.00%
75th Percentile £69.92 £45.00 £41.25
90th Percentile £76.90 £66.21 £55.70
UK excluding London median hourly rate £55.00 £30.00 £25.00
% change year-on-year +83.33% +20.00% -48.89%

All Vendors
UK

Cisco 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.

Contract vacancies with a requirement for knowledge or experience of vendor products and services 20,477 14,135 18,402
As % of all contract IT jobs advertised in the UK 40.69% 47.62% 42.22%
Number of daily rates quoted 12,867 8,698 11,416
10th Percentile £313 £280 £270
25th Percentile £413 £401 £408
Median daily rate (50th Percentile) £500 £500 £515
Median % change year-on-year - -2.91% -1.90%
75th Percentile £600 £613 £625
90th Percentile £700 £713 £738
UK excluding London median daily rate £500 £480 £500
% change year-on-year +4.17% -4.00% -
Number of hourly rates quoted 1,051 649 1,149
10th Percentile £15.50 £14.84 £12.13
25th Percentile £19.00 £17.30 £14.50
Median hourly rate £33.98 £25.30 £23.80
Median % change year-on-year +34.31% +6.30% -44.65%
75th Percentile £60.00 £53.95 £59.50
90th Percentile £80.00 £69.72 £70.00
UK excluding London median hourly rate £32.00 £23.00 £22.50
% change year-on-year +39.13% +2.22% -43.75%

Cisco
Job Vacancy Trend

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

Cisco job vacancy trend in the UK

Cisco
Daily Rate Trend

Contractor daily rate distribution trend for jobs in the UK citing Cisco.

Contractor daily rate distribution trend for jobs in the UK citing Cisco

Cisco
Daily Rate Histogram

Daily rate distribution for jobs citing Cisco over the 6 months to 17 June 2026.

Daily rate histogram for Cisco in the UK

Cisco
Hourly Rate Trend

Contractor hourly rate distribution trend for jobs in the UK citing Cisco.

Contractor hourly rate distribution trend for jobs in the UK citing Cisco

Cisco
Hourly Rate Histogram

Hourly rate distribution of jobs citing Cisco over the 6 months to 17 June 2026.

Hourly rate histogram for Cisco in the UK

Cisco
Top 18 Contract Job Locations

The table below looks at the demand and provides a guide to the median contractor rates quoted in IT jobs citing Cisco within the UK over the 6 months to 17 June 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
England -52 955 £481 -4.40% 678
UK excluding London -39 698 £475 -5.00% 698
London -59 310 £500 - 166
Work from Home -41 287 £450 -10.00% 229
North of England -41 214 £481 -3.75% 157
South East -26 189 £500 - 164
North West -8 167 £481 -1.79% 72
Midlands -35 132 £402 -19.60% 79
West Midlands -20 125 £402 -10.67% 40
Scotland +18 80 £469 +19.26% 69
South West -69 48 £525 -4.55% 83
Yorkshire -72 46 £490 -2.00% 57
East of England -13 40 £500 +0.50% 88
Wales -18 19 £468 +35.51% 25
Northern Ireland +10 10 £175 -50.00% 43
East Midlands -41 4 £458 -16.82% 39
North East -39 2 £425 +30.77% 29
Channel Islands -1 1 £550 -24.14%

Cisco
Co-Occurring Skills & Capabilities 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 27 (2.38%) SharePoint
2 18 (1.59%) Microsoft Exchange
3 12 (1.06%) Confluence
4 9 (0.79%) Apache
5 6 (0.53%) IIS
5 6 (0.53%) OpenStack
6 3 (0.26%) nginx
6 3 (0.26%) Tomcat
7 2 (0.18%) CloudStack
7 2 (0.18%) CMS
8 1 (0.088%) Apache Spark
8 1 (0.088%) Skype for Business
Applications
1 44 (3.88%) Microsoft Office
2 28 (2.47%) MS Visio
3 23 (2.03%) Microsoft Excel
4 9 (0.79%) Microsoft PowerPoint
5 4 (0.35%) Acrobat
Business Applications
1 7 (0.62%) Remedy ITSM
Cloud Services
1 213 (18.77%) Azure
2 143 (12.60%) AWS
3 69 (6.08%) Microsoft 365
4 40 (3.52%) Entra ID
5 22 (1.94%) GCP
6 16 (1.41%) SaaS
7 15 (1.32%) GitHub
7 15 (1.32%) OpenShift
8 14 (1.23%) Nutanix
9 13 (1.15%) OneDrive
10 12 (1.06%) Azure ExpressRoute
10 12 (1.06%) Azure Sentinel
11 10 (0.88%) Virtual Private Cloud
12 8 (0.70%) IaaS
12 8 (0.70%) Microsoft Purview
13 7 (0.62%) Power Platform
14 5 (0.44%) Azure DevOps
14 5 (0.44%) GitHub Actions
14 5 (0.44%) Rubrik
15 4 (0.35%) Cloudflare
Communications & Networking
1 490 (43.17%) Firewall
2 374 (32.95%) WAN
3 284 (25.02%) LAN
4 280 (24.67%) BGP
5 240 (21.15%) Network Security
5 240 (21.15%) VPN
6 196 (17.27%) OSPF
7 174 (15.33%) Wireless
8 173 (15.24%) DNS
9 164 (14.45%) SD-WAN
10 162 (14.27%) VLAN
11 109 (9.60%) MPLS
12 107 (9.43%) Cisco Nexus
13 101 (8.90%) Wi-Fi
14 99 (8.72%) VXLAN
15 98 (8.63%) Cisco ISE
16 94 (8.28%) DHCP
17 75 (6.61%) Cisco IOS
17 75 (6.61%) IPsec
18 73 (6.43%) Multicast
Database & Business Intelligence
1 15 (1.32%) SQL Server
2 3 (0.26%) MySQL
2 3 (0.26%) NoSQL
3 2 (0.18%) PostgreSQL
4 1 (0.088%) Apache Hive
4 1 (0.088%) Big Data
4 1 (0.088%) ClickHouse
4 1 (0.088%) Hadoop
4 1 (0.088%) Metadata
4 1 (0.088%) Power BI
Development Applications
1 23 (2.03%) JIRA
2 13 (1.15%) Sonatype Nexus
3 11 (0.97%) Git
4 8 (0.70%) Jenkins
5 4 (0.35%) GitLab
6 2 (0.18%) Bitbucket
General
1 257 (22.64%) Social Skills
2 120 (10.57%) Finance
3 71 (6.26%) Analytical Skills
4 61 (5.37%) Public Sector
4 61 (5.37%) Telecoms
5 60 (5.29%) Legal
6 56 (4.93%) Documentation Skills
7 54 (4.76%) Banking
8 20 (1.76%) Investment Banking
9 19 (1.67%) Organisational Skills
10 18 (1.59%) Financial Institution
10 18 (1.59%) Manufacturing
11 16 (1.41%) Law
12 15 (1.32%) Retail
13 10 (0.88%) Military
14 8 (0.70%) Marketing
15 7 (0.62%) Police
16 6 (0.53%) Presentation Skills
17 5 (0.44%) Inclusion and Diversity
18 4 (0.35%) Influencing Skills
Job Titles
1 524 (46.17%) Network Engineer
2 140 (12.33%) Architect
3 126 (11.10%) Cisco Engineer
4 117 (10.31%) Cisco Network Engineer
4 117 (10.31%) Senior
5 88 (7.75%) Security Engineer
6 79 (6.96%) Network Architect
7 68 (5.99%) SC Cleared Network Engineer
8 65 (5.73%) Senior Network Engineer
9 64 (5.64%) Network Security Engineer
10 52 (4.58%) Infrastructure Engineer
11 47 (4.14%) Data Network Engineer
12 34 (3.00%) Analyst
12 34 (3.00%) Data Engineer
13 33 (2.91%) Cisco Security Engineer
14 29 (2.56%) Solutions Architect
15 26 (2.29%) Network Specialist
16 25 (2.20%) Lead
17 24 (2.11%) DV Cleared Network Engineer
18 23 (2.03%) Data Centre Engineer
Libraries, Frameworks & Software Standards
1 76 (6.70%) 802.1X
2 14 (1.23%) Flash
2 14 (1.23%) LDAP
2 14 (1.23%) SAML
3 12 (1.06%) REST
4 8 (0.70%) XMPP
5 6 (0.53%) Jinja
6 3 (0.26%) LAMP
6 3 (0.26%) LEMP Stack
6 3 (0.26%) NETCONF
6 3 (0.26%) YAML
7 2 (0.18%) .NET Core
7 2 (0.18%) Blazor
7 2 (0.18%) Django
7 2 (0.18%) Elastic Stack
7 2 (0.18%) OpenConfig
7 2 (0.18%) OpenID
7 2 (0.18%) RESTCONF
7 2 (0.18%) RFC 2544
7 2 (0.18%) YANG
Miscellaneous
1 308 (27.14%) Data Centre
2 55 (4.85%) PKI
3 47 (4.14%) Replication
4 41 (3.61%) Clustering
5 37 (3.26%) Onboarding
6 35 (3.08%) Data Protection Act
7 32 (2.82%) Hybrid Cloud
8 29 (2.56%) Operational Technology
9 23 (2.03%) Video Conferencing
10 22 (1.94%) Driving Licence
11 20 (1.76%) Security Posture
12 19 (1.67%) Enterprise Storage
13 18 (1.59%) Linux Command Line
14 17 (1.50%) EMC VMAX
15 15 (1.32%) Analytical Mindset
16 14 (1.23%) Cloud Native
16 14 (1.23%) SCADA
17 13 (1.15%) Self-Motivation
17 13 (1.15%) Virtual Team
18 10 (0.88%) Public Cloud
Operating Systems
1 222 (19.56%) Windows
2 120 (10.57%) Linux
3 70 (6.17%) Windows Server
4 21 (1.85%) Unix
5 16 (1.41%) Windows 10
6 13 (1.15%) Ubuntu
7 12 (1.06%) Red Hat Enterprise Linux
8 8 (0.70%) Android
8 8 (0.70%) Windows Server 2019
9 7 (0.62%) Mac OS
10 6 (0.53%) Windows Server 2012
11 5 (0.44%) AIX
11 5 (0.44%) Data ONTAP
11 5 (0.44%) VMS
12 4 (0.35%) CentOS
12 4 (0.35%) Solaris
13 3 (0.26%) CatOS
14 2 (0.18%) Windows Server 2016
15 1 (0.088%) Check Point GAiA
15 1 (0.088%) Windows 7
Processes & Methodologies
1 179 (15.77%) Migration
2 128 (11.28%) High Availability
3 127 (11.19%) Load Balancing
4 123 (10.84%) Problem-Solving
5 101 (8.90%) ITIL
6 93 (8.19%) ITSM
6 93 (8.19%) Project Delivery
7 89 (7.84%) Network Design
8 71 (6.26%) Change Management
9 69 (6.08%) Infrastructure Engineering
10 68 (5.99%) Agile
11 67 (5.90%) Continuous Improvement
12 65 (5.73%) Technical Leadership
13 63 (5.55%) Disaster Recovery
13 63 (5.55%) Network Monitoring
14 60 (5.29%) Infrastructure as Code
14 60 (5.29%) Stakeholder Management
15 57 (5.02%) Validation
16 56 (4.93%) Cybersecurity
17 52 (4.58%) Data Protection
Programming Languages
1 126 (11.10%) Python
2 57 (5.02%) PowerShell
3 24 (2.11%) SQL
4 22 (1.94%) Bash
5 6 (0.53%) C
6 4 (0.35%) Perl
6 4 (0.35%) PHP
7 3 (0.26%) C++
7 3 (0.26%) Java
7 3 (0.26%) Lisp
8 2 (0.18%) ActionScript
8 2 (0.18%) Korn
8 2 (0.18%) Shell Script
9 1 (0.088%) Bicep
9 1 (0.088%) JavaScript
9 1 (0.088%) Ladder Logic
Qualifications
1 339 (29.87%) Security Cleared
2 335 (29.52%) Cisco Certification
3 253 (22.29%) SC Cleared
4 249 (21.94%) CCNP
5 132 (11.63%) CCNA
6 100 (8.81%) DV Cleared
7 67 (5.90%) Degree
8 63 (5.55%) CCIE
9 28 (2.47%) Microsoft Certification
10 25 (2.20%) VMware Certified Professional (VCP)
11 22 (1.94%) Network+ Certification
12 21 (1.85%) MCSE
13 17 (1.50%) Azure Certification
13 17 (1.50%) Server+ Certification
14 15 (1.32%) CCSE
14 15 (1.32%) VCAP
15 14 (1.23%) BPSS Clearance
15 14 (1.23%) MCSA
16 13 (1.15%) JNCIP
16 13 (1.15%) JNCIS
Quality Assurance & Compliance
1 40 (3.52%) SLA
2 33 (2.91%) NIST
3 28 (2.47%) ISO/IEC 27001
4 24 (2.11%) Cyber Essentials
5 21 (1.85%) QA
6 16 (1.41%) NCSC
7 9 (0.79%) PMO
8 7 (0.62%) Disclosure Scotland
9 6 (0.53%) Cyber Essentials PLUS
9 6 (0.53%) GDPR
9 6 (0.53%) JSP 440
10 5 (0.44%) PCI DSS
11 3 (0.26%) ISO/IEC 27002 (supersedes ISO/IEC 17799)
11 3 (0.26%) NIST 800
11 3 (0.26%) RMADS
12 2 (0.18%) Accessibility
12 2 (0.18%) Government Security Classifications
12 2 (0.18%) GRC
12 2 (0.18%) ISA99
12 2 (0.18%) ISO/IEC 20000
System Software
1 148 (13.04%) VMware Infrastructure
2 93 (8.19%) Active Directory
3 56 (4.93%) VMware ESXi
4 55 (4.85%) vSphere
5 45 (3.96%) VMware NSX
6 35 (3.08%) Virtual Machines
7 28 (2.47%) Firmware
8 20 (1.76%) Hyper-V
9 18 (1.59%) NFS
10 14 (1.23%) GPFS
11 12 (1.06%) SRDF
12 6 (0.53%) Virtual Desktop
13 5 (0.44%) Docker
13 5 (0.44%) EMC RecoverPoint
14 4 (0.35%) vCloud
14 4 (0.35%) Virtual Servers
15 3 (0.26%) Dovecot
15 3 (0.26%) Postfix
15 3 (0.26%) UAG
16 2 (0.18%) Snort
Systems Management
1 136 (11.98%) Ansible
2 101 (8.90%) FortiGate
3 51 (4.49%) Terraform
4 30 (2.64%) vCenter Server
5 27 (2.38%) Grafana
6 23 (2.03%) Microsoft Intune
7 20 (1.76%) Kubernetes
7 20 (1.76%) Prometheus
8 18 (1.59%) SCCM
8 18 (1.59%) vRealize
9 14 (1.23%) Cisco Prime
10 13 (1.15%) Cisco CUCM
11 12 (1.06%) Single Sign-On
12 9 (0.79%) VxRail
13 8 (0.70%) WMI
14 6 (0.53%) EMC TimeFinder
14 6 (0.53%) EMC VPLEX
14 6 (0.53%) HAProxy
14 6 (0.53%) SCOM
15 5 (0.44%) Jamf Pro
Vendors
1 294 (25.90%) Palo Alto
2 213 (18.77%) F5
3 191 (16.83%) Microsoft
4 186 (16.39%) VMware
5 175 (15.42%) Fortinet
6 157 (13.83%) Juniper
7 119 (10.48%) Aruba
8 104 (9.16%) CheckPoint
9 102 (8.99%) ServiceNow
10 90 (7.93%) SolarWinds
11 86 (7.58%) Meraki
12 77 (6.78%) Arista
13 57 (5.02%) Splunk
14 48 (4.23%) Zscaler
15 42 (3.70%) Dell
16 31 (2.73%) EMC
17 29 (2.56%) Extreme Networks
17 29 (2.56%) IBM
18 27 (2.38%) Brocade
19 24 (2.11%) Infoblox