Embedded Engineer Contract Job Trends
Embedded Engineer
UK
The median Embedded Engineer daily rate in the UK is £550, according to job vacancies posted in the 6 months leading up to 23 October 2026.
The table below compares current contractor rates and summary statistics with the previous two years.
| 6 months to 23 Oct 2026 |
Same period 2025 | Same period 2024 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | 554 | 539 | 433 |
| Rank change year-on-year | -15 | -106 | +10 |
| Contract Embedded Engineer jobs | 146 | 28 | 130 |
| As % of all contract jobs in the UK | 0.26% | 0.084% | 0.35% |
| As % of the Job Titles category | 0.29% | 0.092% | 0.38% |
| Number of daily rates quoted | 14 | 4 | 35 |
| 10th Percentile | £479 | £432 | £375 |
| 25th Percentile | £513 | £452 | £400 |
| Median daily rate (50th Percentile) | £550 | £563 | £475 |
| Median % change year-on-year | -2.22% | +18.42% | -9.52% |
| 75th Percentile | £713 | £694 | £525 |
| 90th Percentile | £790 | £728 | £550 |
| UK excluding London median daily rate | £525 | £456 | £475 |
| % change year-on-year | +15.07% | -3.95% | -9.52% |
| Number of hourly rates quoted | 108 | 13 | 57 |
| 10th Percentile | £54.84 | £57.65 | £49.75 |
| 25th Percentile | £64.38 | £61.25 | £61.28 |
| Median hourly rate | £67.50 | £66.50 | £70.00 |
| Median % change year-on-year | +1.50% | -5.00% | +7.69% |
| 75th Percentile | £70.00 | £68.00 | - |
| 90th Percentile | - | £68.75 | £74.25 |
| UK excluding London median hourly rate | £67.50 | £66.50 | £69.00 |
| % change year-on-year | +1.50% | -3.62% | +6.15% |
All Contract IT Job Roles
UK
For comparison with the information above, the following table provides summary statistics for all contract IT job adverts matching a recognised job title. The table also shows what proportion of all contract IT job adverts they make up.
| 6 months to 23 Oct 2026 |
Same period 2025 | Same period 2024 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Contract job adverts in the UK matching a recognised job title | 50,638 | 30,447 | 34,540 |
| % of contract job adverts matching a recognised job title | 91.79% | 90.86% | 92.95% |
| Number of daily rates quoted | 29,785 | 19,268 | 20,825 |
| 10th Percentile | £325 | £278 | £300 |
| 25th Percentile | £425 | £402 | £413 |
| Median daily rate (50th Percentile) | £525 | £500 | £525 |
| Median % change year-on-year | +5.00% | -4.76% | - |
| 75th Percentile | £638 | £623 | £638 |
| 90th Percentile | £737 | £725 | £738 |
| UK excluding London median daily rate | £500 | £475 | £490 |
| % change year-on-year | +5.26% | -3.06% | -2.00% |
| Number of hourly rates quoted | 4,202 | 1,682 | 1,373 |
| 10th Percentile | £14.25 | £13.80 | £15.07 |
| 25th Percentile | £19.25 | £17.30 | £20.30 |
| Median hourly rate | £41.00 | £25.15 | £40.00 |
| Median % change year-on-year | +63.02% | -37.13% | -10.11% |
| 75th Percentile | £67.84 | £50.00 | £65.00 |
| 90th Percentile | £80.00 | £68.75 | £73.75 |
| UK excluding London median hourly rate | £40.00 | £25.00 | £40.00 |
| % change year-on-year | +60.00% | -37.50% | -9.09% |
Embedded Engineer Job Vacancy Trend
Historical trend showing the proportion of contract Embedded Engineer job postings relative to all contract IT jobs advertised.
Embedded Engineer Daily Rate Trend
Contractor daily rate distribution trend for Embedded Engineer job vacancies in the UK.
Embedded Engineer Daily Rate Histogram
Daily rate distribution for Embedded Engineer jobs over the 6 months to 23 October 2026.
Embedded Engineer Hourly Rate Trend
Contractor hourly rate distribution trend for Embedded Engineer job vacancies in the UK.
Embedded Engineer Hourly Rate Histogram
Hourly rate distribution for Embedded Engineer jobs over the 6 months to 23 October 2026.
Embedded Engineer Top 12 Contract Job Locations
The table below looks at the demand and provides a guide to the median contractor rates quoted in Embedded Engineer jobs within the UK over the 6 months to 23 October 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UK excluding London | +22 | 138 | £525 | +15.07% | 415 |
| England | +3 | 138 | £550 | -15.38% | 513 |
| Work from Home | -17 | 61 | £525 | - | 175 |
| South East | -18 | 45 | £525 | - | 91 |
| South West | -6 | 36 | - | - | 57 |
| East of England | -5 | 34 | - | - | 121 |
| North West | - | 10 | - | - | 26 |
| North of England | - | 10 | - | - | 53 |
| Scotland | -21 | 8 | £543 | +24.00% | 30 |
| London | -89 | 8 | £725 | +3.57% | 80 |
| West Midlands | - | 5 | - | - | 25 |
| Midlands | - | 5 | - | - | 59 |
Embedded Engineer Skill Set Top 30 Co-Occurring Skills & Capabilities
For the 6 months to 23 October 2026, Embedded 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 Embedded Engineer job ads.
| Rank | Skill | Share | Job Ads |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Software Engineering | 84.9% | 124 |
| 2 | C | 30.8% | 45 |
| 3 | C++ | 28.1% | 41 |
| 4 | Linux | 20.5% | 30 |
| 5 | Embedded C | 18.5% | 27 |
| 5 | Wireless | 18.5% | 27 |
| 7 | Embedded Linux | 12.3% | 18 |
| 7 | Security Cleared | 12.3% | 18 |
| 9 | Firmware | 11.6% | 17 |
| 9 | SC Cleared | 11.6% | 17 |
| 9 | Software-Defined Radio | 11.6% | 17 |
| 12 | JIRA | 11.0% | 16 |
| 12 | UML | 11.0% | 16 |
| 14 | Rational Rhapsody | 10.3% | 15 |
| 14 | Signal Processing | 10.3% | 15 |
| 16 | Yocto | 9.6% | 14 |
| 17 | Ada | 8.2% | 12 |
| 17 | Digital Signal Processing | 8.2% | 12 |
| 17 | Embedded Firmware | 8.2% | 12 |
| 20 | Validation | 7.5% | 11 |
| 21 | Agile | 6.8% | 10 |
| 21 | Rational DOORS | 6.8% | 10 |
| 23 | MISRA | 5.5% | 8 |
| 24 | Device Driver Development | 4.8% | 7 |
| 24 | Embedded C++ | 4.8% | 7 |
| 24 | FreeRTOS | 4.8% | 7 |
| 24 | Hardware-in-the-Loop | 4.8% | 7 |
| 24 | SDLC | 4.8% | 7 |
| 29 | CI/CD | 4.1% | 6 |
| 29 | DevOps | 4.1% | 6 |
Embedded Engineer Skill Set Co-Occurring Skills & Capabilities 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 | Embedded Software Engineer | 81.5% | 119 |
| 2 | Embedded C Engineer | 12.3% | 18 |
| 3 | Embedded C Software Engineer | 11.6% | 17 |
| 4 | Software Development Engineer | 10.3% | 15 |
| 5 | DSP Software Engineer | 9.6% | 14 |
| 6 | Embedded Linux Engineer | 6.8% | 10 |
| 7 | DSP Embedded Software Engineer | 6.2% | 9 |
| 8 | Radio Engineer | 5.5% | 8 |
| 9 | DevOps Engineer | 4.1% | 6 |
| 10 | Ada Software Engineer | 3.4% | 5 |
| 11 | Embedded Linux Software Engineer | 2.7% | 4 |
| 12 | Embedded C++ Engineer | 2.1% | 3 |
| 12 | Linux Systems Engineer | 2.1% | 3 |
| 12 | Robotics Engineer | 2.1% | 3 |
| 12 | SC Cleared Software Engineer | 2.1% | 3 |
| 16 | Audio Software Engineer | 1.4% | 2 |
| 16 | Embedded C/C++ Engineer | 1.4% | 2 |
| 16 | Embedded C++ Software Engineer | 1.4% | 2 |
| 16 | Qt Software Engineer | 1.4% | 2 |
| 20 | C/C++ Embedded Software Engineer | 0.7% | 1 |