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 10 September 2026, with comparisons to the same periods in the previous two years.

6 months to
10 Sep 2026
Same period 2025 Same period 2024
Rank 260 215 183
Rank change year-on-year -45 -32 -62
Contract jobs citing LAN 554 408 511
As % of all contract jobs in the UK 1.02% 1.24% 1.33%
As % of the Communications & Networking category 10.82% 10.61% 11.28%
Number of daily rates quoted 336 250 275
10th Percentile £213 £190 £221
25th Percentile £325 £301 £350
Median daily rate (50th Percentile) £475 £450 £475
Median % change year-on-year +5.56% -5.26% +5.56%
75th Percentile £538 £575 £580
90th Percentile £625 £638 £688
UK excluding London median daily rate £450 £388 £425
% change year-on-year +16.13% -8.82% -
Number of hourly rates quoted 35 23 24
10th Percentile £12.71 £21.35 £16.32
25th Percentile £16.25 £28.00 £19.63
Median hourly rate £26.72 £30.00 £23.80
Median % change year-on-year -10.93% +26.05% -39.01%
75th Percentile £73.00 £41.63 £41.69
90th Percentile £78.75 £64.20 £75.17
UK excluding London median hourly rate £19.00 £30.00 £22.40
% change year-on-year -36.67% +33.93% -44.00%

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 5,121 3,847 4,532
As % of all contract IT jobs advertised in the UK 9.40% 11.66% 11.84%
Number of daily rates quoted 3,001 2,367 2,650
10th Percentile £235 £235 £228
25th Percentile £396 £363 £375
Median daily rate (50th Percentile) £500 £483 £500
Median % change year-on-year +3.63% -3.50% -
75th Percentile £588 £600 £609
90th Percentile £675 £680 £688
UK excluding London median daily rate £478 £465 £500
% change year-on-year +2.80% -7.00% +10.50%
Number of hourly rates quoted 398 201 267
10th Percentile £14.68 £15.33 £14.16
25th Percentile £19.33 £25.15 £21.37
Median hourly rate £26.14 £42.50 £51.50
Median % change year-on-year -38.49% -17.48% -8.83%
75th Percentile £65.88 £63.25 £65.00
90th Percentile £79.13 £73.00 £75.00
UK excluding London median hourly rate £25.77 £42.50 £57.35
% change year-on-year -39.36% -25.89% +1.52%

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 10 September 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 10 September 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 10 September 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 -50 447 £500 +11.11% 223
UK excluding London -12 392 £450 +16.13% 165
London -99 119 £505 +9.19% 75
South East -32 116 £523 +4.50% 53
Work from Home -49 101 £500 +8.11% 93
North of England -39 85 £500 +166.67% 34
Scotland +9 72 £273 -30.71% 4
Midlands -41 50 £355 -7.19% 38
North West -51 47 £519 +237.56% 24
Yorkshire -12 38 £450 +123.60% 6
West Midlands -38 37 £406 -9.72% 18
East of England -9 36 £338 +42.11% 24
South West -37 26 £463 +42.31% 15
East Midlands -11 11 £255 +27.50% 20
Wales -18 5 £425 +83.78% 2
Channel Islands - 3 £600 -
Northern Ireland +3 1 £550 +15.79% 1

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 22 (3.97%) SharePoint
2 21 (3.79%) Microsoft Exchange
3 9 (1.62%) OpenStack
4 7 (1.26%) Skype for Business
5 5 (0.90%) Confluence
6 3 (0.54%) IIS
7 2 (0.36%) CMS
8 1 (0.18%) Oracle Workflow
Applications
1 30 (5.42%) Microsoft Office
2 26 (4.69%) MS Visio
3 25 (4.51%) Microsoft Excel
4 10 (1.81%) Microsoft PowerPoint
5 5 (0.90%) Microsoft Project
6 1 (0.18%) Spreadsheet
Cloud Services
1 112 (20.22%) Azure
2 78 (14.08%) Microsoft 365
3 54 (9.75%) AWS
4 33 (5.96%) Entra ID
5 12 (2.17%) SaaS
6 10 (1.81%) OneDrive
6 10 (1.81%) Virtual Private Cloud
7 8 (1.44%) GCP
8 5 (0.90%) AWS Direct Connect
8 5 (0.90%) Azure ExpressRoute
9 4 (0.72%) Azure DevOps
9 4 (0.72%) Microsoft Copilot
9 4 (0.72%) OpenShift
10 3 (0.54%) Azure Sentinel
10 3 (0.54%) Power Platform
10 3 (0.54%) Smartsheet
11 2 (0.36%) Google Ads
11 2 (0.36%) IaaS
11 2 (0.36%) PaaS
11 2 (0.36%) PowerApps
Communications & Networking
1 473 (85.38%) WAN
2 258 (46.57%) Firewall
3 144 (25.99%) VPN
4 130 (23.47%) Wi-Fi
5 127 (22.92%) Network Security
6 122 (22.02%) Wireless
7 118 (21.30%) BGP
7 118 (21.30%) SD-WAN
8 100 (18.05%) MPLS
9 92 (16.61%) DNS
10 89 (16.06%) OSPF
11 77 (13.90%) TCP/IP
12 74 (13.36%) DHCP
13 73 (13.18%) WLAN
14 68 (12.27%) VLAN
15 52 (9.39%) IPsec
16 51 (9.21%) Cisco Nexus
17 41 (7.40%) Cisco ISE
18 38 (6.86%) Cisco ASA
19 27 (4.87%) Internet
Database & Business Intelligence
1 7 (1.26%) SQL Server
2 1 (0.18%) DTS
2 1 (0.18%) Oracle Reports
2 1 (0.18%) Power BI
2 1 (0.18%) Tableau
Development Applications
1 15 (2.71%) JIRA
2 4 (0.72%) Sonatype Nexus
3 3 (0.54%) Browser DevTools
4 2 (0.36%) Git
4 2 (0.36%) SQL Server Management Studio (SSMS)
5 1 (0.18%) Fiddler
5 1 (0.18%) MSI
5 1 (0.18%) Visual Studio
General
1 184 (33.21%) Social Skills
2 93 (16.79%) Telecoms
3 59 (10.65%) Analytical Skills
4 51 (9.21%) Public Sector
5 35 (6.32%) Finance
6 25 (4.51%) Documentation Skills
7 24 (4.33%) Organisational Skills
8 15 (2.71%) Banking
8 15 (2.71%) Retail
9 13 (2.35%) Legal
10 10 (1.81%) Police
11 9 (1.62%) Manufacturing
12 8 (1.44%) Financial Institution
13 7 (1.26%) Influencing Skills
14 6 (1.08%) Local Government
15 3 (0.54%) Billing
15 3 (0.54%) Law
16 2 (0.36%) Inclusion and Diversity
17 1 (0.18%) Fire and Rescue
17 1 (0.18%) Presentation Skills
Job Titles
1 237 (42.78%) Network Engineer
2 75 (13.54%) Architect
3 74 (13.36%) Senior
4 56 (10.11%) Network Architect
5 45 (8.12%) Senior Network Engineer
6 36 (6.50%) Support Engineer
7 34 (6.14%) IT Support
8 26 (4.69%) IT Engineer
9 25 (4.51%) Cisco Engineer
9 25 (4.51%) Field Engineer
9 25 (4.51%) Telecoms Engineer
10 24 (4.33%) Infrastructure Engineer
11 22 (3.97%) SC Cleared Network Engineer
12 21 (3.79%) Cisco Network Engineer
12 21 (3.79%) IT Support Engineer
13 17 (3.07%) Developer
13 17 (3.07%) Lead
13 17 (3.07%) Project Engineer
14 16 (2.89%) Network Field Engineer
15 15 (2.71%) LAN Engineer
Libraries, Frameworks & Software Standards
1 25 (4.51%) 802.1X
2 15 (2.71%) Terraform
3 13 (2.35%) NETCONF
4 9 (1.62%) YANG
5 7 (1.26%) REST
6 6 (1.08%) SAML
7 4 (0.72%) LDAP
7 4 (0.72%) Middleware
7 4 (0.72%) OpenConfig
7 4 (0.72%) RESTCONF
8 3 (0.54%) Java RMI
8 3 (0.54%) RFC 2544
8 3 (0.54%) Software Packaging
9 2 (0.36%) .NET
9 2 (0.36%) Microsoft Graph
9 2 (0.36%) ODBC
10 1 (0.18%) .NET Framework
10 1 (0.18%) ARM Templates
10 1 (0.18%) ModSecurity
10 1 (0.18%) XMPP
Miscellaneous
1 111 (20.04%) Data Centre
2 36 (6.50%) Driving Licence
3 30 (5.42%) Hybrid Cloud
4 26 (4.69%) Onboarding
5 19 (3.43%) PKI
6 18 (3.25%) Self-Motivation
7 17 (3.07%) Operational Technology
8 15 (2.71%) Video Conferencing
9 14 (2.53%) Private Cloud
10 12 (2.17%) Cloud Native
10 12 (2.17%) Data Protection Act
10 12 (2.17%) Security Posture
11 11 (1.99%) Public Cloud
12 10 (1.81%) Analytical Mindset
12 10 (1.81%) IoT
13 8 (1.44%) NHS
13 8 (1.44%) Virtual Team
14 7 (1.26%) SCADA
14 7 (1.26%) Smartphone
15 6 (1.08%) CCTV
Operating Systems
1 141 (25.45%) Windows
2 42 (7.58%) Windows Server
3 34 (6.14%) Linux
3 34 (6.14%) Windows 10
4 14 (2.53%) Mac OS
5 12 (2.17%) Windows 7
6 7 (1.26%) Unix
7 6 (1.08%) Windows Server 2019
8 4 (0.72%) Android
9 3 (0.54%) Ubuntu
9 3 (0.54%) Windows Server 2012
10 2 (0.36%) Apple iOS
10 2 (0.36%) Windows Server 2016
11 1 (0.18%) CatOS
11 1 (0.18%) CentOS
11 1 (0.18%) Red Hat Enterprise Linux
11 1 (0.18%) Solaris
11 1 (0.18%) Windows Server 2003
Processes & Methodologies
1 105 (18.95%) Problem-Solving
2 94 (16.97%) ITIL
3 75 (13.54%) Project Delivery
4 69 (12.45%) High Availability
5 57 (10.29%) Continuous Improvement
6 56 (10.11%) Stakeholder Management
7 52 (9.39%) Load Balancing
8 49 (8.84%) Network Architecture
8 49 (8.84%) Roadmaps
9 44 (7.94%) Infrastructure Engineering
10 43 (7.76%) Technical Leadership
11 42 (7.58%) Customer Service
11 42 (7.58%) Migration
12 36 (6.50%) Network Monitoring
13 35 (6.32%) Change Management
13 35 (6.32%) Service Management
14 33 (5.96%) Mentoring
14 33 (5.96%) Zero Trust
15 32 (5.78%) Incident Management
16 31 (5.60%) Network Design
Programming Languages
1 30 (5.42%) Python
2 20 (3.61%) PowerShell
3 6 (1.08%) VB
3 6 (1.08%) VBScript
4 5 (0.90%) SQL
5 2 (0.36%) Bicep
5 2 (0.36%) C++
5 2 (0.36%) T-SQL
6 1 (0.18%) C
6 1 (0.18%) Java
6 1 (0.18%) Shell Script
Qualifications
1 169 (30.51%) Security Cleared
2 159 (28.70%) Cisco Certification
3 103 (18.59%) SC Cleared
4 102 (18.41%) CCNP
5 67 (12.09%) CCNA
6 47 (8.48%) DV Cleared
7 43 (7.76%) CCIE
8 36 (6.50%) Degree
9 14 (2.53%) Azure Certification
10 11 (1.99%) PMP
11 10 (1.81%) Microsoft Certification
12 9 (1.62%) AWS Certification
12 9 (1.62%) JNCIE
12 9 (1.62%) PMI Certification
13 8 (1.44%) A+ Certification
14 7 (1.26%) Computer Science Degree
14 7 (1.26%) ITIL Foundation Certificate
14 7 (1.26%) JNCIS
15 6 (1.08%) BPSS Clearance
15 6 (1.08%) JNCIP
Quality Assurance & Compliance
1 22 (3.97%) SLA
2 13 (2.35%) ISO/IEC 27001
2 13 (2.35%) QA
3 10 (1.81%) NIST
4 7 (1.26%) NCSC
5 6 (1.08%) Disclosure Scotland
6 4 (0.72%) GDPR
6 4 (0.72%) JSP 440
6 4 (0.72%) PMO
7 3 (0.54%) Cyber Essentials
7 3 (0.54%) GRC
8 2 (0.36%) Cyber Essentials PLUS
8 2 (0.36%) PCI DSS
9 1 (0.18%) Actionable Recommendations
9 1 (0.18%) DICOM
9 1 (0.18%) ISO 9001
9 1 (0.18%) NEBOSH
System Software
1 81 (14.62%) Active Directory
2 45 (8.12%) VMware Infrastructure
3 21 (3.79%) VMware NSX
4 13 (2.35%) Firmware
5 10 (1.81%) Hyper-V
6 9 (1.62%) Virtual Desktop
7 8 (1.44%) Virtual Machines
7 8 (1.44%) vSphere
8 7 (1.26%) BitLocker
9 5 (0.90%) Virtual Servers
10 3 (0.54%) VMware ESXi
11 2 (0.36%) FreeRADIUS
11 2 (0.36%) Microsoft Virtual Server
12 1 (0.18%) NFS
12 1 (0.18%) ProxySG
Systems Management
1 31 (5.60%) FortiGate
2 27 (4.87%) Ansible
3 25 (4.51%) Microsoft Intune
4 14 (2.53%) SCCM
5 8 (1.44%) Single Sign-On
6 5 (0.90%) Cisco Prime
7 4 (0.72%) Jamf Pro
7 4 (0.72%) vCenter Server
8 3 (0.54%) Cisco CUCM
9 2 (0.36%) AirWatch
9 2 (0.36%) CASB
9 2 (0.36%) Endace
9 2 (0.36%) Nagios
9 2 (0.36%) Progress Chef
9 2 (0.36%) vRealize Orchestrator
9 2 (0.36%) VxRail
9 2 (0.36%) WSUS
10 1 (0.18%) Grafana
10 1 (0.18%) Prometheus
10 1 (0.18%) TrustSec
Vendors
1 277 (50.00%) Cisco
2 146 (26.35%) Microsoft
3 90 (16.25%) Palo Alto
4 73 (13.18%) VMware
5 67 (12.09%) Fortinet
6 60 (10.83%) F5
7 55 (9.93%) Juniper
8 47 (8.48%) SolarWinds
9 43 (7.76%) Aruba
10 37 (6.68%) CheckPoint
11 31 (5.60%) Meraki
12 30 (5.42%) ServiceNow
13 21 (3.79%) Nokia
14 18 (3.25%) Zscaler
15 12 (2.17%) Ekahau
16 11 (1.99%) Extreme Networks
16 11 (1.99%) Splunk
17 10 (1.81%) HP
18 9 (1.62%) Google
19 7 (1.26%) Citrix