Lead Developer
UK
The median Lead Developer daily rate in the UK is £550, according to job vacancies posted in the 6 months leading up to 30 June 2025.
The table below provides contractor rate benchmarking and summary statistics, comparing them to the same period in the previous two years.
| 6 months to 30 Jun 2025 |
Same period 2024 | Same period 2023 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | 352 | 399 | 465 |
| Rank change year-on-year | +47 | +66 | -30 |
| Contract jobs requiring a Lead Developer | 187 | 189 | 223 |
| As % of all contract jobs advertised in the UK | 0.61% | 0.44% | 0.40% |
| As % of the Job Titles category | 0.66% | 0.47% | 0.42% |
| Number of daily rates quoted | 135 | 147 | 157 |
| 10th Percentile | £414 | £400 | £450 |
| 25th Percentile | £501 | £525 | £506 |
| Median daily rate (50th Percentile) | £550 | £650 | £600 |
| Median % change year-on-year | -15.38% | +8.33% | - |
| 75th Percentile | £699 | £888 | £688 |
| 90th Percentile | £750 | - | £780 |
| UK excluding London median daily rate | £525 | £556 | £575 |
| % change year-on-year | -5.62% | -3.26% | +6.48% |
| Number of hourly rates quoted | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| 10th Percentile | - | - | - |
| 25th Percentile | - | £51.25 | £61.25 |
| Median hourly rate | - | £52.50 | £62.50 |
| Median % change year-on-year | - | -16.00% | +131.65% |
| 75th Percentile | - | £53.75 | £63.75 |
| 90th Percentile | - | - | - |
| UK excluding London median hourly rate | - | £52.50 | £62.50 |
| % change year-on-year | - | -16.00% | - |
All Contract IT Job Vacancies
UK
For comparison with the information above, the following table provides summary statistics for all contract IT job vacancies. Most job vacancies include a discernible job title that can be normalized. As such, the figures in the second row provide an indication of the number of contract jobs in our overall sample.
| Contract vacancies in the UK with a recognized job title | 28,211 | 40,139 | 52,625 |
| % of contract IT jobs with a recognized job title | 92.03% | 92.98% | 94.46% |
| Number of daily rates quoted | 18,028 | 25,767 | 36,553 |
| 10th Percentile | £288 | £283 | £313 |
| 25th Percentile | £402 | £410 | £425 |
| Median daily rate (50th Percentile) | £500 | £525 | £538 |
| Median % change year-on-year | -4.76% | -2.33% | +1.42% |
| 75th Percentile | £625 | £638 | £650 |
| 90th Percentile | £738 | £750 | £750 |
| UK excluding London median daily rate | £475 | £493 | £500 |
| % change year-on-year | -3.65% | -1.40% | +4.38% |
| Number of hourly rates quoted | 1,262 | 2,867 | 1,530 |
| 10th Percentile | £13.78 | £12.86 | £14.25 |
| 25th Percentile | £17.33 | £16.50 | £19.06 |
| Median hourly rate | £27.00 | £37.50 | £43.00 |
| Median % change year-on-year | -28.00% | -12.79% | +71.71% |
| 75th Percentile | £56.25 | £62.50 | £65.00 |
| 90th Percentile | £73.75 | £74.00 | £76.03 |
| UK excluding London median hourly rate | £25.15 | £40.00 | £40.00 |
| % change year-on-year | -37.13% | - | +100.00% |
Lead Developer
Job Vacancy Trend
Job postings that featured Lead Developer in the job title as a proportion of all IT jobs advertised.
Lead Developer
Contractor Daily Rate Trend
3-month moving average daily rate quoted in jobs citing Lead Developer.
Lead Developer
Daily Rate Histogram
Daily rate distribution for jobs citing Lead Developer over the 6 months to 30 June 2025.
Lead Developer
Contractor Hourly Rate Trend
3-month moving average hourly rates quoted in jobs citing Lead Developer.
Lead Developer
Top 14 Contract Locations
The table below looks at the demand and provides a guide to the median contractor rates quoted in IT jobs citing Lead Developer within the UK over the 6 months to 30 June 2025. 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 | +43 | 155 | £600 | -7.69% | 446 |
| Work from Home | +41 | 101 | £600 | -25.00% | 284 |
| London | +25 | 92 | £670 | -16.25% | 202 |
| UK excluding London | +48 | 62 | £525 | -5.62% | 284 |
| North of England | +14 | 21 | £525 | -19.23% | 84 |
| Scotland | +15 | 13 | £311 | -48.25% | 14 |
| Midlands | +12 | 13 | £507 | -15.49% | 18 |
| West Midlands | +8 | 13 | £507 | -15.49% | 8 |
| Yorkshire | +6 | 12 | £525 | -19.23% | 27 |
| South West | +44 | 10 | £655 | +16.44% | 39 |
| North West | +15 | 9 | £525 | -4.55% | 50 |
| South East | +44 | 4 | £550 | +10.00% | 84 |
| East of England | +24 | 1 | £525 | -12.50% | 20 |
| North East | - | 1 | £635 | - | 7 |
Lead Developer Skill Set
Top 30 Co-occurring Skills and Capabilities
For the 6 months to 30 June 2025, Lead Developer contract job roles required the following skills and capabilities in order of popularity. The figures indicate the absolute number co-occurrences and as a proportion of all contract job ads featuring Lead Developer in the job title.
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Lead Developer Skill Set
Co-occurring Skills and Capabilities by Category
The follow tables expand on the table above by listing co-occurrences grouped by category. The same employment type, locality and period is covered with up to 20 co-occurrences shown in each of the following categories:
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