IBM Contract Job Trends

IBM
UK

The table below provides summary statistics for contract job vacancies requiring knowledge or experience of IBM products and/or services. It includes a benchmarking guide to contractor rates offered in vacancies that cited IBM over the 6 months leading up to 19 February 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 International Business Machines Corporation.

6 months to
19 Feb 2026
Same period 2025 Same period 2024
Rank 298 242 212
Rank change year-on-year -56 -30 +93
Contract jobs citing IBM 361 329 488
As % of all contract jobs in the UK 0.89% 1.07% 1.11%
As % of the Vendors category 1.98% 2.30% 2.55%
Number of daily rates quoted 225 168 310
10th Percentile £313 £316 £403
25th Percentile £399 £400 £440
Median daily rate (50th Percentile) £471 £500 £550
Median % change year-on-year -5.80% -9.09% +4.76%
75th Percentile £550 £600 £650
90th Percentile £683 £686 £750
UK excluding London median daily rate £436 £450 £500
% change year-on-year -3.11% -10.00% -
Number of hourly rates quoted 22 21 28
10th Percentile £25.77 - £62.50
25th Percentile £32.14 £24.18 £65.00
Median hourly rate £65.00 £46.18 £70.00
Median % change year-on-year +40.75% -34.03% +40.00%
75th Percentile £70.00 £68.75 -
90th Percentile £71.35 - -
UK excluding London median hourly rate £70.00 £46.18 £70.00
% change year-on-year +51.58% -34.03% +68.16%

All Vendors
UK

IBM 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 18,193 14,299 19,133
As % of all contract IT jobs advertised in the UK 44.68% 46.42% 43.39%
Number of daily rates quoted 11,643 8,602 11,971
10th Percentile £300 £275 £258
25th Percentile £413 £406 £400
Median daily rate (50th Percentile) £500 £520 £523
Median % change year-on-year -3.89% -0.43% -1.42%
75th Percentile £606 £625 £630
90th Percentile £700 £712 £725
UK excluding London median daily rate £495 £500 £500
% change year-on-year -1.00% - -
Number of hourly rates quoted 899 407 930
10th Percentile £15.00 £15.62 £12.98
25th Percentile £17.97 £21.25 £15.50
Median hourly rate £24.00 £30.00 £26.72
Median % change year-on-year -20.00% +12.28% -20.24%
75th Percentile £57.63 £63.75 £57.50
90th Percentile £74.26 £81.45 £70.00
UK excluding London median hourly rate £22.50 £27.13 £26.00
% change year-on-year -17.05% +4.33% -13.33%

IBM
Job Vacancy Trend

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

IBM job vacancy trend in the UK

IBM
Daily Rate Trend

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

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

IBM
Daily Rate Histogram

Daily rate distribution for jobs citing IBM over the 6 months to 19 February 2026.

Daily rate histogram for IBM in the UK

IBM
Hourly Rate Trend

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

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

IBM
Hourly Rate Histogram

Hourly rate distribution of jobs citing IBM over the 6 months to 19 February 2026.

Hourly rate histogram for IBM in the UK

IBM
Top 16 Contract Job Locations

The table below looks at the demand and provides a guide to the median contractor rates quoted in IT jobs citing IBM within the UK over the 6 months to 19 February 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 -47 317 £472 -3.23% 113
UK excluding London -33 197 £436 -3.11% 83
London -49 122 £500 - 47
Work from Home -19 117 £488 -2.50% 64
North of England -68 59 £459 +12.98% 24
North West -11 46 £453 +18.90% 21
Midlands -40 46 £400 -13.04% 6
West Midlands -31 45 £397 -13.72% 3
South East -44 29 £500 +19.05% 35
East of England -6 28 £318 -31.14% 4
South West -25 21 £700 +16.67% 6
Scotland +13 17 £450 -12.20% 8
Yorkshire -66 12 £487 +8.22% 3
Wales -5 1 - - 1
North East -22 1 £375 -
East Midlands -27 1 £837 +74.27% 3

IBM
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 23 (6.37%) Confluence
2 22 (6.09%) WebSphere
3 14 (3.88%) CICS
4 10 (2.77%) Apache
4 10 (2.77%) Oracle SOA Suite
5 9 (2.49%) MQSeries
5 9 (2.49%) WebLogic
6 8 (2.22%) JBoss
6 8 (2.22%) SharePoint
7 7 (1.94%) IIS
7 7 (1.94%) WebSphere Application Server
8 6 (1.66%) iPlanet
8 6 (1.66%) nginx
9 5 (1.39%) ArcGIS
9 5 (1.39%) Tomcat
10 4 (1.11%) Anypoint
11 3 (0.83%) Apache Airflow
11 3 (0.83%) Apache Spark
11 3 (0.83%) CMS
11 3 (0.83%) SAS
Applications
1 10 (2.77%) MS Visio
2 7 (1.94%) Microsoft Office
3 6 (1.66%) Microsoft Excel
4 1 (0.28%) Microsoft Project
Business Applications
1 29 (8.03%) Maximo
2 9 (2.49%) IBM Planning Analytics
3 7 (1.94%) BusinessWorks
3 7 (1.94%) SAP S/4HANA
4 4 (1.11%) Oracle 11i
5 3 (0.83%) SAP EWM
5 3 (0.83%) SAP PM
5 3 (0.83%) SAP PP
5 3 (0.83%) SAP QM
5 3 (0.83%) SAP R/3
5 3 (0.83%) SAP WM
6 2 (0.55%) Oracle Payables
6 2 (0.55%) Oracle Procure-to-Pay
6 2 (0.55%) Oracle Subledger Accounting
7 1 (0.28%) Cognos Controller
7 1 (0.28%) Oracle FAH
7 1 (0.28%) Oracle Receivables
7 1 (0.28%) SAP AFS
7 1 (0.28%) Sparx Enterprise Architect
7 1 (0.28%) Teamcenter
Cloud Services
1 94 (26.04%) AWS
2 61 (16.90%) Azure
3 23 (6.37%) OpenShift
4 15 (4.16%) GCP
5 14 (3.88%) Datadog
6 13 (3.60%) AWS CloudFormation
6 13 (3.60%) AWS Lambda
6 13 (3.60%) Serverless
7 11 (3.05%) Azure Sentinel
8 9 (2.49%) Azure AKS
8 9 (2.49%) Azure API Management
8 9 (2.49%) Azure Monitor
8 9 (2.49%) SaaS
9 8 (2.22%) Azure ExpressRoute
9 8 (2.22%) OCI
10 7 (1.94%) Amazon CloudWatch
10 7 (1.94%) IBM Watson
10 7 (1.94%) Power Platform
11 6 (1.66%) Amazon S3
11 6 (1.66%) Azure DevOps
Communications & Networking
1 15 (4.16%) HTTPS
1 15 (4.16%) VSAN
2 13 (3.60%) VPN
3 11 (3.05%) SAN
4 9 (2.49%) HTTP
5 8 (2.22%) Firewall
5 8 (2.22%) SSH
6 6 (1.66%) Fibre Channel
6 6 (1.66%) Kerberos
6 6 (1.66%) TCP/IP
7 5 (1.39%) iSCSI
7 5 (1.39%) NAS
7 5 (1.39%) SNA
8 4 (1.11%) APPN
8 4 (1.11%) DWDM
8 4 (1.11%) LAN
8 4 (1.11%) Network Security
8 4 (1.11%) WAN
9 3 (0.83%) DNS
10 2 (0.55%) MPLS
Database & Business Intelligence
1 28 (7.76%) DB2
2 26 (7.20%) SQL Server
3 21 (5.82%) Oracle Database
4 16 (4.43%) DataStage
5 13 (3.60%) Oracle Reports
6 12 (3.32%) Data Warehouse
7 11 (3.05%) NoSQL
7 11 (3.05%) PostgreSQL
7 11 (3.05%) Relational Database
8 9 (2.49%) GIS
9 8 (2.22%) Amazon Redshift
10 7 (1.94%) Amazon RDS
11 6 (1.66%) Couchbase
11 6 (1.66%) IBM InfoSphere
11 6 (1.66%) Power BI
12 5 (1.39%) Big Data
12 5 (1.39%) DynamoDB
13 4 (1.11%) Amazon Aurora
13 4 (1.11%) Elasticsearch
13 4 (1.11%) Metadata
Development Applications
1 44 (12.19%) JIRA
2 23 (6.37%) Git
3 22 (6.09%) Rational DOORS
4 18 (4.99%) Jenkins
5 11 (3.05%) GitLab
6 8 (2.22%) Ant
6 8 (2.22%) PVCS
7 7 (1.94%) SoapUI
8 6 (1.66%) Bitbucket Server
8 6 (1.66%) CA Release Automation
9 5 (1.39%) JUnit
9 5 (1.39%) Sonatype Nexus
10 4 (1.11%) ERwin
10 4 (1.11%) IBM UrbanCode
11 3 (0.83%) Bitbucket
11 3 (0.83%) Liquibase
12 2 (0.55%) Selenium
13 1 (0.28%) Cucumber
13 1 (0.28%) Maven
13 1 (0.28%) XPEDITER
General
1 99 (27.42%) Finance
2 91 (25.21%) Social Skills
3 48 (13.30%) Banking
4 39 (10.80%) Analytical Skills
5 31 (8.59%) Public Sector
6 19 (5.26%) Documentation Skills
7 9 (2.49%) Electronics
7 9 (2.49%) Financial Institution
7 9 (2.49%) Presentation Skills
8 8 (2.22%) Influencing Skills
8 8 (2.22%) Private Banking
8 8 (2.22%) Retail
9 6 (1.66%) Aviation
9 6 (1.66%) Inclusion and Diversity
9 6 (1.66%) Legal
10 5 (1.39%) Law
10 5 (1.39%) Telecoms
11 4 (1.11%) Aerospace
11 4 (1.11%) Investment Banking
12 3 (0.83%) Manufacturing
Job Titles
1 67 (18.56%) Analyst
2 58 (16.07%) Developer
3 37 (10.25%) Architect
4 24 (6.65%) Infrastructure Analyst
5 22 (6.09%) Senior
6 20 (5.54%) Storage Analyst
7 19 (5.26%) Data Engineer
7 19 (5.26%) Solutions Architect
8 16 (4.43%) Software Engineer
9 14 (3.88%) DevOps Engineer
10 12 (3.32%) Lead
11 11 (3.05%) Platform Engineer
11 11 (3.05%) webMethods Developer
12 10 (2.77%) Consultant
13 9 (2.49%) Azure Engineer
14 8 (2.22%) Storage Engineer
15 7 (1.94%) C Software Engineer
15 7 (1.94%) Embedded C Engineer
15 7 (1.94%) Programmer
15 7 (1.94%) Systems Programmer
Libraries, Frameworks & Software Standards
1 39 (10.80%) XML
2 29 (8.03%) Kafka
2 29 (8.03%) Middleware
3 24 (6.65%) SOAP
4 20 (5.54%) Flash
4 20 (5.54%) JMS
5 18 (4.99%) JSON
6 14 (3.88%) XSLT
7 11 (3.05%) OAuth
7 11 (3.05%) REST
7 11 (3.05%) Web Services
8 9 (2.49%) ARM Templates
9 8 (2.22%) J2EE
9 8 (2.22%) WSDL
9 8 (2.22%) XSD
10 7 (1.94%) OC4J
10 7 (1.94%) OpenID
10 7 (1.94%) TIBCO EMS
11 6 (1.66%) IBM Integration Bus
11 6 (1.66%) SAML
Miscellaneous
1 46 (12.74%) Mainframe
2 39 (10.80%) Linux Command Line
3 31 (8.59%) Replication
4 20 (5.54%) Legacy Systems
5 18 (4.99%) Data Centre
6 13 (3.60%) VSAM
7 11 (3.05%) AS400
8 10 (2.77%) Enterprise Software
8 10 (2.77%) Hybrid Cloud
9 9 (2.49%) Algorithms
9 9 (2.49%) DataPower
10 8 (2.22%) Tandem
11 7 (1.94%) Enterprise Storage
12 6 (1.66%) BYOD
12 6 (1.66%) Data Structures
12 6 (1.66%) iSeries
12 6 (1.66%) Management Information System
12 6 (1.66%) Onboarding
12 6 (1.66%) SWIFT Messaging Network
13 5 (1.39%) CMDB
Operating Systems
1 86 (23.82%) Linux
2 51 (14.13%) Windows
3 45 (12.47%) Unix
4 33 (9.14%) zOS
5 24 (6.65%) AIX
6 18 (4.99%) Windows Server
7 11 (3.05%) Solaris
7 11 (3.05%) Windows Server 2016
8 10 (2.77%) Red Hat Enterprise Linux
9 7 (1.94%) Windows 10
9 7 (1.94%) Windows 7
9 7 (1.94%) Windows Server 2003
10 5 (1.39%) Windows Server 2008
10 5 (1.39%) Windows Server 2019
11 1 (0.28%) Android
11 1 (0.28%) Apple iOS
11 1 (0.28%) SUSE Linux Enterprise Server
11 1 (0.28%) VMS
Processes & Methodologies
1 77 (21.33%) Agile
2 58 (16.07%) Problem-Solving
3 50 (13.85%) DevOps
4 48 (13.30%) CI/CD
4 48 (13.30%) Migration
5 47 (13.02%) Stakeholder Management
6 33 (9.14%) ITIL
7 31 (8.59%) Asset Management
8 29 (8.03%) Analytics
9 27 (7.48%) ETL
9 27 (7.48%) Performance Tuning
9 27 (7.48%) Roadmaps
10 25 (6.93%) Stakeholder Engagement
11 24 (6.65%) Data Modelling
12 23 (6.37%) Validation
13 22 (6.09%) Workflow
14 21 (5.82%) Continuous Improvement
14 21 (5.82%) Infrastructure Engineering
14 21 (5.82%) Test Automation
15 19 (5.26%) High Availability
Programming Languages
1 65 (18.01%) SQL
2 43 (11.91%) Python
3 36 (9.97%) Java
4 18 (4.99%) Shell Script
5 15 (4.16%) JCL
5 15 (4.16%) PL/SQL
6 14 (3.88%) COBOL
6 14 (3.88%) REXX
7 12 (3.32%) C
8 10 (2.77%) PowerShell
9 9 (2.49%) Bash
9 9 (2.49%) Bicep
9 9 (2.49%) C++
9 9 (2.49%) CLIST
9 9 (2.49%) JavaScript
10 8 (2.22%) RPG
10 8 (2.22%) XPath
11 7 (1.94%) Embedded C
11 7 (1.94%) Groovy
11 7 (1.94%) Korn
Qualifications
1 80 (22.16%) Security Cleared
2 52 (14.40%) SC Cleared
3 27 (7.48%) Degree
4 16 (4.43%) BPSS Clearance
5 15 (4.16%) Azure Certification
5 15 (4.16%) Computer Science Degree
6 13 (3.60%) DV Cleared
7 11 (3.05%) CISM
8 10 (2.77%) CISSP
9 9 (2.49%) AWS Certification
9 9 (2.49%) Microsoft Certification
10 8 (2.22%) ISO 27001 Lead Implementer
11 7 (1.94%) IBM Certification
11 7 (1.94%) Master's Degree
12 5 (1.39%) ITIL Foundation Certificate
13 4 (1.11%) ITIL Certification
13 4 (1.11%) PMI Certification
13 4 (1.11%) PMP
14 3 (0.83%) ISTQB
14 3 (0.83%) PRINCE2 Certification
Quality Assurance & Compliance
1 17 (4.71%) QA
2 15 (4.16%) Data Quality
3 10 (2.77%) ISO/IEC 27001
3 10 (2.77%) SLA
4 9 (2.49%) NIST
5 8 (2.22%) NIST 800
6 5 (1.39%) ISO 20022
6 5 (1.39%) SEPA
7 4 (1.11%) GDPR
7 4 (1.11%) PCI DSS
7 4 (1.11%) Sarbanes-Oxley
8 2 (0.55%) Basel III
8 2 (0.55%) ISO/IEC 19770
9 1 (0.28%) Accessibility
9 1 (0.28%) Def Stans
9 1 (0.28%) GRC
9 1 (0.28%) IFRS
9 1 (0.28%) IFRS 17
9 1 (0.28%) IFRS 9
9 1 (0.28%) ISO 15022
System Software
1 44 (12.19%) VMware Infrastructure
2 30 (8.31%) vSphere
3 24 (6.65%) NFS
4 21 (5.82%) GPFS
4 21 (5.82%) VMware ESXi
5 17 (4.71%) Docker
6 16 (4.43%) Virtual Machines
7 10 (2.77%) RACF
8 7 (1.94%) Active Directory
9 6 (1.66%) Hyper-V
9 6 (1.66%) Job Entry Subsystem
9 6 (1.66%) KVM
10 5 (1.39%) Tivoli Directory Server
11 3 (0.83%) Oracle RAC
11 3 (0.83%) Time Sharing Option
11 3 (0.83%) VMware NSX
12 1 (0.28%) Ceph
12 1 (0.28%) Firmware
12 1 (0.28%) Lustre
12 1 (0.28%) Tivoli Workload Scheduler
Systems Management
1 33 (9.14%) Terraform
2 29 (8.03%) vRealize
3 24 (6.65%) Kubernetes
4 21 (5.82%) Ansible
5 14 (3.88%) VxRail
6 8 (2.22%) Control-M
6 8 (2.22%) IBM BigFix
7 7 (1.94%) TIBCO Hawk
8 6 (1.66%) CA Single Sign-On
8 6 (1.66%) CA Wily
8 6 (1.66%) OMEGAMON
8 6 (1.66%) Progress Chef
8 6 (1.66%) Tivoli
8 6 (1.66%) vCenter Server
9 5 (1.39%) Single Sign-On
9 5 (1.39%) Tivoli NetView
10 4 (1.11%) Tivoli Storage Manager
11 3 (0.83%) Grafana
11 3 (0.83%) Oracle RMAN
11 3 (0.83%) zSecure
Vendors
1 77 (21.33%) Oracle
2 52 (14.40%) VMware
3 44 (12.19%) Cisco
4 40 (11.08%) Microsoft
5 37 (10.25%) ServiceNow
6 27 (7.48%) SAP
7 22 (6.09%) Dell
8 20 (5.54%) AppDynamics
9 19 (5.26%) HP
10 15 (4.16%) Red Hat
11 14 (3.88%) Commvault
11 14 (3.88%) SolarWinds
12 13 (3.60%) Google
13 12 (3.32%) Broadcom
13 12 (3.32%) Software AG
13 12 (3.32%) webMethods
14 10 (2.77%) EMC
14 10 (2.77%) Splunk
15 9 (2.49%) Citrix
16 8 (2.22%) Cognos