LAN Contract Job Trends

Local Area Network (LAN)
UK

The table below provides summary statistics and contractor rates for jobs requiring LAN skills. It covers contract job vacancies from the 6 months leading up to 6 February 2026, with comparisons to the same periods in the previous two years.

6 months to
6 Feb 2026
Same period 2025 Same period 2024
Rank 240 179 129
Rank change year-on-year -61 -50 +45
Contract jobs citing LAN 457 457 837
As % of all contract jobs in the UK 1.17% 1.47% 1.87%
As % of the Communications & Networking category 11.21% 11.26% 13.69%
Number of daily rates quoted 297 277 507
10th Percentile £207 £223 £200
25th Percentile £313 £350 £313
Median daily rate (50th Percentile) £443 £450 £470
Median % change year-on-year -1.67% -4.26% +4.44%
75th Percentile £525 £575 £597
90th Percentile £600 £674 £738
UK excluding London median daily rate £425 £430 £450
% change year-on-year -1.16% -4.44% -
Number of hourly rates quoted 24 12 43
10th Percentile £12.97 £18.65 £14.69
25th Percentile £15.50 £20.00 £18.98
Median hourly rate £22.50 £20.19 £34.00
Median % change year-on-year +11.46% -40.63% -11.97%
75th Percentile £35.00 £34.06 £47.50
90th Percentile £69.17 £42.88 £62.00
UK excluding London median hourly rate £20.75 £20.00 £22.50
% change year-on-year +3.75% -11.11% -31.30%

All Communications and Computer Networking Skills
UK

LAN falls under the Communications and Computer Networking category. For comparison with the information above, the following table provides summary statistics for all contract job vacancies requiring communications or computer networking skills.

Contract vacancies with a requirement for communications or computer networking skills 4,078 4,060 6,113
As % of all contract IT jobs advertised in the UK 10.41% 13.03% 13.65%
Number of daily rates quoted 2,684 2,382 3,680
10th Percentile £204 £213 £206
25th Percentile £356 £360 £356
Median daily rate (50th Percentile) £475 £500 £493
Median % change year-on-year -5.00% +1.52% -5.20%
75th Percentile £588 £600 £600
90th Percentile £675 £680 £700
UK excluding London median daily rate £450 £467 £475
% change year-on-year -3.64% -1.68% +2.15%
Number of hourly rates quoted 167 136 409
10th Percentile £15.50 £15.85 £15.33
25th Percentile £18.69 £21.46 £21.25
Median hourly rate £30.00 £33.75 £50.00
Median % change year-on-year -11.11% -32.50% +150.00%
75th Percentile £65.00 £54.69 £65.00
90th Percentile £75.00 £69.38 £75.00
UK excluding London median hourly rate £41.24 £30.04 £55.00
% change year-on-year +37.28% -45.38% +176.66%

LAN
Job Vacancy Trend

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

LAN job vacancy trend in the UK

LAN
Daily Rate Trend

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

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

LAN
Daily Rate Histogram

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

Daily rate histogram for LAN in the UK

LAN
Hourly Rate Trend

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

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

LAN
Hourly Rate Histogram

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

Hourly rate histogram for LAN in the UK

LAN
Top 17 Contract Job Locations

The table below looks at the demand and provides a guide to the median contractor rates quoted in IT jobs citing LAN within the UK over the 6 months to 6 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 -61 382 £450 -2.70% 213
UK excluding London -63 296 £425 -1.16% 179
London -31 125 £475 -5.00% 76
Work from Home -15 116 £445 -11.00% 85
South East -14 91 £450 +10.77% 47
North of England -72 60 £420 -6.67% 39
Midlands -61 43 £340 -23.38% 30
Scotland +32 41 £275 -31.25% 15
West Midlands -33 37 £450 -5.26% 26
East of England -29 34 £350 -33.33% 16
North West -47 33 £475 +2.54% 20
Yorkshire -56 26 £313 +39.11% 16
South West -36 14 £513 +24.24% 24
Wales +3 7 £468 +133.75% 8
East Midlands -44 6 £200 -40.30% 4
Northern Ireland -2 5 £475 - 1
North East -14 1 £550 - 3

LAN
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 34 (7.44%) SharePoint
2 26 (5.69%) Microsoft Exchange
3 13 (2.84%) Confluence
4 12 (2.63%) OpenStack
5 10 (2.19%) Skype for Business
6 1 (0.22%) Apache
6 1 (0.22%) IIS
Applications
1 41 (8.97%) Microsoft Office
2 25 (5.47%) MS Visio
3 17 (3.72%) Microsoft Excel
4 16 (3.50%) Microsoft PowerPoint
5 5 (1.09%) Acrobat
6 4 (0.88%) Microsoft Project
7 1 (0.22%) Spreadsheet
Business Applications
1 2 (0.44%) DELMIA
2 1 (0.22%) Remedy ITSM
Cloud Services
1 100 (21.88%) Azure
2 62 (13.57%) Microsoft 365
3 55 (12.04%) AWS
4 32 (7.00%) Entra ID
5 18 (3.94%) GCP
6 15 (3.28%) SaaS
7 11 (2.41%) OneDrive
8 9 (1.97%) Virtual Private Cloud
9 7 (1.53%) Power Platform
10 6 (1.31%) PaaS
11 5 (1.09%) OpenShift
11 5 (1.09%) PowerApps
12 4 (0.88%) Azure DevOps
12 4 (0.88%) Azure ExpressRoute
12 4 (0.88%) Microsoft Purview
13 3 (0.66%) AWS Direct Connect
13 3 (0.66%) Nutanix
13 3 (0.66%) Serverless
14 2 (0.44%) Azure Functions
14 2 (0.44%) Google Ads
Communications & Networking
1 379 (82.93%) WAN
2 176 (38.51%) Firewall
3 145 (31.73%) VPN
4 99 (21.66%) Wi-Fi
5 95 (20.79%) BGP
6 89 (19.47%) SD-WAN
7 78 (17.07%) OSPF
8 77 (16.85%) DNS
9 75 (16.41%) Network Security
9 75 (16.41%) Wireless
10 73 (15.97%) TCP/IP
11 70 (15.32%) MPLS
12 59 (12.91%) DHCP
12 59 (12.91%) VLAN
13 49 (10.72%) WLAN
14 41 (8.97%) IPsec
15 30 (6.56%) Cisco Nexus
16 28 (6.13%) Cisco ASA
16 28 (6.13%) Structured Cabling
17 21 (4.60%) Internet
Database & Business Intelligence
1 6 (1.31%) SQL Server
2 4 (0.88%) MS Access
3 2 (0.44%) MariaDB
3 2 (0.44%) PostgreSQL
3 2 (0.44%) Power BI
4 1 (0.22%) Amazon RDS
4 1 (0.22%) Apache Cassandra
4 1 (0.22%) Data Warehouse
4 1 (0.22%) DynamoDB
4 1 (0.22%) MongoDB
4 1 (0.22%) MySQL
4 1 (0.22%) NoSQL
4 1 (0.22%) Oracle Database
4 1 (0.22%) SQL Server Reporting Services
Development Applications
1 22 (4.81%) JIRA
2 2 (0.44%) Sonatype Nexus
3 1 (0.22%) Bitbucket
3 1 (0.22%) Git
3 1 (0.22%) GitLab
3 1 (0.22%) Jenkins
3 1 (0.22%) Tricentis qTest
General
1 146 (31.95%) Social Skills
2 54 (11.82%) Public Sector
3 52 (11.38%) Analytical Skills
4 39 (8.53%) Finance
5 38 (8.32%) Telecoms
6 37 (8.10%) Documentation Skills
7 26 (5.69%) Manufacturing
8 16 (3.50%) Military
9 14 (3.06%) Legal
10 10 (2.19%) Banking
10 10 (2.19%) Organisational Skills
11 9 (1.97%) Presentation Skills
12 7 (1.53%) Financial Institution
12 7 (1.53%) Local Government
13 6 (1.31%) Inclusion and Diversity
13 6 (1.31%) Law
13 6 (1.31%) Marketing
14 5 (1.09%) Electronics
15 4 (0.88%) Influencing Skills
15 4 (0.88%) Retail
Job Titles
1 153 (33.48%) Network Engineer
2 79 (17.29%) Architect
3 55 (12.04%) Network Architect
4 40 (8.75%) Senior
5 37 (8.10%) Analyst
6 30 (6.56%) IT Support
7 29 (6.35%) Support Engineer
8 25 (5.47%) Infrastructure Engineer
9 22 (4.81%) Lead
9 22 (4.81%) SC Cleared Network Engineer
10 21 (4.60%) IT Engineer
11 20 (4.38%) Support Analyst
12 19 (4.16%) 2nd Line Support
12 19 (4.16%) Cisco Engineer
12 19 (4.16%) Project Manager
13 18 (3.94%) Cisco Network Engineer
13 18 (3.94%) Senior Network Engineer
14 17 (3.72%) Field Engineer
14 17 (3.72%) Technical Architect
14 17 (3.72%) Technical Support
Libraries, Frameworks & Software Standards
1 10 (2.19%) LDAP
2 8 (1.75%) Microsoft Graph
3 7 (1.53%) Middleware
3 7 (1.53%) NETCONF
3 7 (1.53%) REST
3 7 (1.53%) YANG
4 6 (1.31%) SAML
5 3 (0.66%) 802.1X
6 2 (0.44%) ARM Templates
6 2 (0.44%) CSS
6 2 (0.44%) Django
6 2 (0.44%) HTML
6 2 (0.44%) XMPP
6 2 (0.44%) YAML
7 1 (0.22%) .NET
7 1 (0.22%) Apache NiFi
7 1 (0.22%) EDI
7 1 (0.22%) Java RMI
7 1 (0.22%) Node.js
7 1 (0.22%) SOAP
Miscellaneous
1 88 (19.26%) Data Centre
2 22 (4.81%) Hybrid Cloud
3 20 (4.38%) Driving Licence
3 20 (4.38%) Onboarding
4 16 (3.50%) CMDB
5 14 (3.06%) Data Protection Act
6 13 (2.84%) NHS
7 9 (1.97%) Management Information System
8 8 (1.75%) Cloud Native
8 8 (1.75%) IoT
8 8 (1.75%) Operational Technology
8 8 (1.75%) Virtual Team
9 7 (1.53%) PKI
9 7 (1.53%) Security Posture
9 7 (1.53%) Self-Motivation
10 6 (1.31%) SCADA
11 5 (1.09%) Enterprise Software
11 5 (1.09%) iPhone
11 5 (1.09%) Public Cloud
11 5 (1.09%) Video Conferencing
Operating Systems
1 118 (25.82%) Windows
2 45 (9.85%) Windows Server
3 39 (8.53%) Windows 10
4 20 (4.38%) Linux
5 16 (3.50%) Windows Server 2019
6 13 (2.84%) Windows Server 2016
7 11 (2.41%) Android
8 10 (2.19%) Windows 7
9 7 (1.53%) Apple iOS
10 6 (1.31%) Mac OS
11 5 (1.09%) Windows Server 2012
12 4 (0.88%) CatOS
13 3 (0.66%) Red Hat Enterprise Linux
13 3 (0.66%) Ubuntu
14 2 (0.44%) VMS
14 2 (0.44%) Windows Server 2003
15 1 (0.22%) AIX
15 1 (0.22%) Unix
Processes & Methodologies
1 69 (15.10%) Problem-Solving
2 62 (13.57%) ITIL
3 57 (12.47%) Migration
4 56 (12.25%) Network Design
5 49 (10.72%) Stakeholder Management
6 47 (10.28%) Network Architecture
7 42 (9.19%) Cybersecurity
8 39 (8.53%) Infrastructure Engineering
9 38 (8.32%) ITSM
10 35 (7.66%) Project Delivery
11 34 (7.44%) Change Management
12 31 (6.78%) High Availability
12 31 (6.78%) Network Monitoring
13 28 (6.13%) Customer Service
14 26 (5.69%) Zero Trust
15 25 (5.47%) Continuous Improvement
16 24 (5.25%) Stakeholder Engagement
17 23 (5.03%) Agile
17 23 (5.03%) Roadmaps
18 22 (4.81%) Disaster Recovery
Programming Languages
1 43 (9.41%) Python
2 41 (8.97%) PowerShell
3 11 (2.41%) SQL
4 10 (2.19%) VBScript
5 9 (1.97%) VB
6 5 (1.09%) Perl
7 3 (0.66%) JavaScript
8 2 (0.44%) Bash
8 2 (0.44%) Bicep
9 1 (0.22%) C#
9 1 (0.22%) Ruby
9 1 (0.22%) Shell Script
9 1 (0.22%) T-SQL
Qualifications
1 133 (29.10%) Security Cleared
2 131 (28.67%) Cisco Certification
3 108 (23.63%) SC Cleared
4 105 (22.98%) CCNP
5 56 (12.25%) Degree
6 44 (9.63%) CCIE
7 43 (9.41%) CCNA
8 34 (7.44%) DV Cleared
9 19 (4.16%) JNCIE
10 13 (2.84%) AWS Certification
11 12 (2.63%) JNCIS
12 11 (2.41%) JNCIP
12 11 (2.41%) Network+ Certification
13 10 (2.19%) Azure Certification
13 10 (2.19%) PMI Certification
13 10 (2.19%) PMP
14 9 (1.97%) CCSE
15 7 (1.53%) BPSS Clearance
15 7 (1.53%) CISSP
15 7 (1.53%) Microsoft Certification
Quality Assurance & Compliance
1 14 (3.06%) ISO/IEC 27001
2 10 (2.19%) NIST
2 10 (2.19%) SLA
3 9 (1.97%) GDPR
4 7 (1.53%) PCI DSS
4 7 (1.53%) QA
5 5 (1.09%) PMO
6 4 (0.88%) Cyber Essentials
6 4 (0.88%) NCSC
7 3 (0.66%) JSP 440
8 2 (0.44%) RMADS
9 1 (0.22%) Accessibility
9 1 (0.22%) Disclosure Scotland
9 1 (0.22%) GRC
9 1 (0.22%) MiFID
9 1 (0.22%) Sarbanes-Oxley
System Software
1 83 (18.16%) Active Directory
2 35 (7.66%) VMware Infrastructure
3 22 (4.81%) VMware NSX
4 9 (1.97%) BitLocker
5 8 (1.75%) vSphere
6 6 (1.31%) Hyper-V
6 6 (1.31%) Virtual Desktop
7 4 (0.88%) Docker
8 3 (0.66%) VMware ESXi
9 2 (0.44%) Firmware
9 2 (0.44%) KVM
9 2 (0.44%) ProxySG
10 1 (0.22%) Ceph
10 1 (0.22%) iptables
10 1 (0.22%) Microsoft Virtual Server
10 1 (0.22%) RHEV
10 1 (0.22%) Samba
10 1 (0.22%) Slurm Workload Manager
10 1 (0.22%) VMware Workstation
10 1 (0.22%) Xen
Systems Management
1 40 (8.75%) Ansible
2 34 (7.44%) Microsoft Intune
3 30 (6.56%) Terraform
4 21 (4.60%) SCCM
5 20 (4.38%) FortiGate
6 10 (2.19%) Jamf Pro
6 10 (2.19%) Single Sign-On
7 5 (1.09%) Cisco Prime
8 4 (0.88%) Nagios
8 4 (0.88%) SCOM
9 3 (0.66%) Cisco CUCM
9 3 (0.66%) Endace
9 3 (0.66%) Grafana
9 3 (0.66%) WSUS
10 2 (0.44%) Check_MK
10 2 (0.44%) Nessus
10 2 (0.44%) vCenter Server
11 1 (0.22%) HAProxy
11 1 (0.22%) Kubernetes
11 1 (0.22%) WhatsUp Gold
Vendors
1 207 (45.30%) Cisco
2 101 (22.10%) Microsoft
3 89 (19.47%) Palo Alto
4 56 (12.25%) Fortinet
5 54 (11.82%) CheckPoint
6 51 (11.16%) VMware
7 49 (10.72%) Juniper
8 48 (10.50%) Aruba
9 42 (9.19%) F5
10 33 (7.22%) Meraki
11 31 (6.78%) SolarWinds
12 30 (6.56%) ServiceNow
13 20 (4.38%) Zscaler
14 14 (3.06%) Veeam
15 11 (2.41%) Arista
15 11 (2.41%) Citrix
16 10 (2.19%) Dell
17 8 (1.75%) SAP
18 6 (1.31%) Nokia
18 6 (1.31%) Remedy