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 4 August 2026, with comparisons to the same periods in the previous two years.

6 months to
4 Aug 2026
Same period 2025 Same period 2024
Rank 238 206 179
Rank change year-on-year -32 -27 -56
Contract jobs citing LAN 587 419 548
As % of all contract jobs in the UK 1.11% 1.27% 1.40%
As % of the Communications & Networking category 11.89% 10.60% 11.51%
Number of daily rates quoted 348 260 322
10th Percentile £230 £200 £216
25th Percentile £363 £313 £350
Median daily rate (50th Percentile) £475 £450 £475
Median % change year-on-year +5.56% -5.26% -
75th Percentile £538 £575 £625
90th Percentile £625 £626 £687
UK excluding London median daily rate £450 £400 £475
% change year-on-year +12.50% -15.79% +11.76%
Number of hourly rates quoted 39 19 30
10th Percentile £12.71 £23.15 £15.43
25th Percentile £16.25 £28.00 £15.75
Median hourly rate £22.50 £30.00 £23.80
Median % change year-on-year -25.00% +26.05% -52.40%
75th Percentile £56.00 £41.63 £37.38
90th Percentile £74.15 £55.63 £75.02
UK excluding London median hourly rate £21.50 £30.00 £24.87
% change year-on-year -28.33% +20.63% -58.55%

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 4,937 3,953 4,763
As % of all contract IT jobs advertised in the UK 9.34% 12.01% 12.15%
Number of daily rates quoted 2,934 2,417 2,892
10th Percentile £250 £235 £220
25th Percentile £400 £373 £363
Median daily rate (50th Percentile) £500 £488 £500
Median % change year-on-year +2.56% -2.50% -
75th Percentile £588 £600 £608
90th Percentile £675 £675 £688
UK excluding London median daily rate £492 £475 £500
% change year-on-year +3.58% -5.00% +9.89%
Number of hourly rates quoted 352 195 327
10th Percentile £16.00 £14.99 £14.16
25th Percentile £19.34 £25.15 £18.27
Median hourly rate £26.66 £50.00 £47.50
Median % change year-on-year -46.68% +5.26% -5.79%
75th Percentile £65.00 £65.00 £65.00
90th Percentile £74.26 £83.60 £73.75
UK excluding London median hourly rate £26.69 £45.00 £53.69
% change year-on-year -40.69% -16.18% -6.49%

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 4 August 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 4 August 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 4 August 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 -39 490 £475 +5.56% 227
UK excluding London +8 420 £450 +12.50% 194
South East +4 156 £520 -0.95% 61
London -96 117 £513 +10.81% 74
Work from Home -37 111 £510 +2.00% 85
North of England -33 77 £483 +96.94% 52
Scotland +23 61 £350 -9.68% 19
Midlands -34 55 £275 -23.08% 34
East of England +6 41 £338 +14.89% 6
North West -52 41 £525 +241.46% 28
West Midlands -50 39 £375 -1.96% 23
Yorkshire -14 36 £450 +12.50% 22
South West -44 26 £513 +28.13% 23
East Midlands 0 13 £220 +20.55% 11
Wales -22 5 £425 +61.90% 4
Northern Ireland - 2 £550 - 3
Channel Islands - 1 £575 -

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 21 (3.58%) SharePoint
2 13 (2.21%) Microsoft Exchange
3 9 (1.53%) OpenStack
4 4 (0.68%) Confluence
5 2 (0.34%) CMS
5 2 (0.34%) IIS
6 1 (0.17%) Oracle Workflow
6 1 (0.17%) Skype for Business
Applications
1 25 (4.26%) MS Visio
2 21 (3.58%) Microsoft Office
3 18 (3.07%) Microsoft Excel
4 9 (1.53%) Microsoft PowerPoint
5 2 (0.34%) Microsoft Project
5 2 (0.34%) Spreadsheet
Cloud Services
1 123 (20.95%) Azure
2 81 (13.80%) Microsoft 365
3 58 (9.88%) AWS
4 32 (5.45%) Entra ID
5 13 (2.21%) OneDrive
6 11 (1.87%) GCP
6 11 (1.87%) SaaS
7 10 (1.70%) Virtual Private Cloud
8 7 (1.19%) PaaS
9 6 (1.02%) Azure DevOps
9 6 (1.02%) Azure ExpressRoute
10 5 (0.85%) AWS Direct Connect
10 5 (0.85%) IaaS
11 4 (0.68%) Microsoft Copilot
11 4 (0.68%) OpenShift
12 3 (0.51%) Azure Sentinel
12 3 (0.51%) Google Ads
12 3 (0.51%) Nutanix
12 3 (0.51%) Power Platform
13 2 (0.34%) PowerApps
Communications & Networking
1 487 (82.96%) WAN
2 295 (50.26%) Firewall
3 150 (25.55%) BGP
4 144 (24.53%) VPN
5 135 (23.00%) Network Security
6 132 (22.49%) Wi-Fi
7 125 (21.29%) SD-WAN
8 121 (20.61%) OSPF
9 119 (20.27%) Wireless
10 118 (20.10%) DNS
11 108 (18.40%) MPLS
12 93 (15.84%) DHCP
13 80 (13.63%) TCP/IP
14 75 (12.78%) VLAN
15 70 (11.93%) WLAN
16 55 (9.37%) IPsec
17 52 (8.86%) Cisco ISE
18 46 (7.84%) Cisco Nexus
19 40 (6.81%) BIG-IP
20 38 (6.47%) Cisco ASA
Database & Business Intelligence
1 8 (1.36%) SQL Server
2 1 (0.17%) DTS
2 1 (0.17%) Oracle Reports
2 1 (0.17%) Power BI
2 1 (0.17%) Tableau
Development Applications
1 18 (3.07%) JIRA
2 5 (0.85%) Browser DevTools
3 4 (0.68%) Sonatype Nexus
4 2 (0.34%) Git
4 2 (0.34%) SQL Server Management Studio (SSMS)
5 1 (0.17%) Fiddler
5 1 (0.17%) GitLab
5 1 (0.17%) Jenkins
5 1 (0.17%) MSI
5 1 (0.17%) Visual Studio
General
1 178 (30.32%) Social Skills
2 79 (13.46%) Telecoms
3 57 (9.71%) Public Sector
4 53 (9.03%) Analytical Skills
5 39 (6.64%) Finance
6 25 (4.26%) Organisational Skills
7 22 (3.75%) Documentation Skills
8 18 (3.07%) Financial Institution
9 16 (2.73%) Banking
10 12 (2.04%) Legal
10 12 (2.04%) Manufacturing
11 11 (1.87%) Retail
12 9 (1.53%) Police
13 8 (1.36%) Influencing Skills
14 7 (1.19%) Local Government
15 6 (1.02%) Law
16 5 (0.85%) Military
17 3 (0.51%) Billing
17 3 (0.51%) German Language
18 2 (0.34%) Inclusion and Diversity
Job Titles
1 244 (41.57%) Network Engineer
2 78 (13.29%) Architect
2 78 (13.29%) Senior
3 56 (9.54%) Network Architect
4 42 (7.16%) Senior Network Engineer
5 39 (6.64%) IT Support
6 35 (5.96%) Support Engineer
7 29 (4.94%) IT Engineer
8 25 (4.26%) Cisco Engineer
9 24 (4.09%) Infrastructure Engineer
10 23 (3.92%) IT Support Engineer
11 22 (3.75%) Cisco Network Engineer
12 21 (3.58%) Field Engineer
12 21 (3.58%) Telecoms Engineer
13 20 (3.41%) Analyst
13 20 (3.41%) Consultant
13 20 (3.41%) SC Cleared Network Engineer
14 19 (3.24%) Lead
15 18 (3.07%) Network Specialist
16 17 (2.90%) Developer
Libraries, Frameworks & Software Standards
1 52 (8.86%) 802.1X
2 13 (2.21%) NETCONF
3 9 (1.53%) YANG
4 8 (1.36%) SAML
5 6 (1.02%) REST
6 5 (0.85%) LDAP
7 4 (0.68%) Middleware
7 4 (0.68%) OpenConfig
7 4 (0.68%) RESTCONF
8 3 (0.51%) Java RMI
8 3 (0.51%) Software Packaging
9 2 (0.34%) .NET
9 2 (0.34%) Microsoft Graph
9 2 (0.34%) ODBC
9 2 (0.34%) RFC 2544
10 1 (0.17%) .NET Framework
10 1 (0.17%) ARM Templates
10 1 (0.17%) ModSecurity
10 1 (0.17%) SailPoint
10 1 (0.17%) XMPP
Miscellaneous
1 113 (19.25%) Data Centre
2 35 (5.96%) PKI
3 31 (5.28%) Driving Licence
4 30 (5.11%) Hybrid Cloud
5 26 (4.43%) Clustering
6 21 (3.58%) Onboarding
7 16 (2.73%) Self-Motivation
8 15 (2.56%) Security Posture
9 13 (2.21%) Cloud Native
9 13 (2.21%) Video Conferencing
10 12 (2.04%) Private Cloud
10 12 (2.04%) Public Cloud
11 11 (1.87%) NHS
12 10 (1.70%) Analytical Mindset
12 10 (1.70%) Data Protection Act
12 10 (1.70%) Operational Technology
13 9 (1.53%) Virtual Team
14 8 (1.36%) CCTV
15 7 (1.19%) Management Information System
15 7 (1.19%) Smartphone
Operating Systems
1 164 (27.94%) Windows
2 47 (8.01%) Windows Server
3 38 (6.47%) Linux
4 24 (4.09%) Windows 10
5 14 (2.39%) Mac OS
6 10 (1.70%) Windows Server 2019
7 7 (1.19%) Android
7 7 (1.19%) Unix
8 6 (1.02%) Windows 7
9 5 (0.85%) Apple iOS
10 4 (0.68%) VMS
10 4 (0.68%) Windows Server 2012
11 3 (0.51%) Ubuntu
12 2 (0.34%) Windows Server 2003
12 2 (0.34%) Windows Server 2016
13 1 (0.17%) AIX
13 1 (0.17%) CentOS
13 1 (0.17%) Data ONTAP
13 1 (0.17%) Red Hat Enterprise Linux
13 1 (0.17%) Solaris
Processes & Methodologies
1 103 (17.55%) Problem-Solving
2 97 (16.52%) ITIL
3 88 (14.99%) High Availability
4 72 (12.27%) Load Balancing
5 68 (11.58%) Project Delivery
6 55 (9.37%) Continuous Improvement
7 50 (8.52%) Roadmaps
8 48 (8.18%) Stakeholder Management
9 47 (8.01%) Migration
9 47 (8.01%) Network Architecture
10 41 (6.98%) Change Management
10 41 (6.98%) Infrastructure Engineering
10 41 (6.98%) Technical Leadership
11 39 (6.64%) Network Monitoring
12 35 (5.96%) Service Management
13 32 (5.45%) Customer Service
14 31 (5.28%) Network Design
14 31 (5.28%) Stakeholder Engagement
15 30 (5.11%) Disaster Recovery
15 30 (5.11%) Mentoring
Programming Languages
1 28 (4.77%) Python
2 21 (3.58%) PowerShell
3 8 (1.36%) SQL
4 2 (0.34%) C++
4 2 (0.34%) T-SQL
5 1 (0.17%) Bicep
5 1 (0.17%) C
5 1 (0.17%) Java
5 1 (0.17%) Shell Script
5 1 (0.17%) VBScript
Qualifications
1 196 (33.39%) Security Cleared
2 173 (29.47%) Cisco Certification
3 107 (18.23%) SC Cleared
4 104 (17.72%) CCNP
5 73 (12.44%) DV Cleared
6 71 (12.10%) CCNA
7 41 (6.98%) CCIE
8 40 (6.81%) Degree
9 14 (2.39%) Microsoft Certification
10 13 (2.21%) Azure Certification
10 13 (2.21%) JNCIP
10 13 (2.21%) JNCIS
10 13 (2.21%) PMP
11 10 (1.70%) Computer Science Degree
11 10 (1.70%) JNCIE
11 10 (1.70%) PMI Certification
12 9 (1.53%) AWS Certification
12 9 (1.53%) JNCIA
13 6 (1.02%) BPSS Clearance
13 6 (1.02%) VMware Certified Professional (VCP)
Quality Assurance & Compliance
1 27 (4.60%) SLA
2 14 (2.39%) QA
3 12 (2.04%) ISO/IEC 27001
4 11 (1.87%) NIST
5 9 (1.53%) NCSC
6 7 (1.19%) Disclosure Scotland
7 4 (0.68%) GDPR
8 3 (0.51%) Cyber Essentials
8 3 (0.51%) PMO
9 2 (0.34%) Cyber Essentials PLUS
9 2 (0.34%) GRC
9 2 (0.34%) JSP 440
10 1 (0.17%) Actionable Recommendations
10 1 (0.17%) DICOM
10 1 (0.17%) ISO 9001
10 1 (0.17%) NEBOSH
10 1 (0.17%) PCI DSS
System Software
1 92 (15.67%) Active Directory
2 47 (8.01%) VMware Infrastructure
3 24 (4.09%) VMware NSX
4 12 (2.04%) Firmware
4 12 (2.04%) vSphere
5 8 (1.36%) Hyper-V
6 7 (1.19%) Virtual Machines
7 6 (1.02%) Virtual Desktop
8 2 (0.34%) Virtual Servers
8 2 (0.34%) VMware ESXi
9 1 (0.17%) BitLocker
9 1 (0.17%) Citrix Presentation Server
9 1 (0.17%) FreeRADIUS
9 1 (0.17%) NFS
9 1 (0.17%) ProxySG
Systems Management
1 54 (9.20%) FortiGate
2 27 (4.60%) Ansible
3 24 (4.09%) Microsoft Intune
4 16 (2.73%) Terraform
5 11 (1.87%) Single Sign-On
6 9 (1.53%) SCCM
7 6 (1.02%) Cisco Prime
8 4 (0.68%) Jamf Pro
8 4 (0.68%) Nagios
8 4 (0.68%) Progress Chef
8 4 (0.68%) vRealize Orchestrator
9 3 (0.51%) Cisco CUCM
9 3 (0.51%) vCenter Server
9 3 (0.51%) WSUS
10 2 (0.34%) AirWatch
10 2 (0.34%) CASB
10 2 (0.34%) Endace
10 2 (0.34%) VxRail
11 1 (0.17%) Grafana
11 1 (0.17%) TrustSec
Vendors
1 292 (49.74%) Cisco
2 138 (23.51%) Microsoft
3 96 (16.35%) Palo Alto
4 89 (15.16%) F5
5 79 (13.46%) Juniper
6 69 (11.75%) VMware
7 66 (11.24%) SolarWinds
8 62 (10.56%) Fortinet
9 54 (9.20%) Aruba
10 43 (7.33%) CheckPoint
11 30 (5.11%) Extreme Networks
11 30 (5.11%) Splunk
12 23 (3.92%) Meraki
12 23 (3.92%) Zscaler
13 21 (3.58%) ServiceNow
14 17 (2.90%) Nokia
15 16 (2.73%) Ekahau
16 11 (1.87%) HP
17 10 (1.70%) Citrix
18 8 (1.36%) Google