Leader
UK
The median Leader daily rate in the UK is £575, according to job vacancies posted in the 6 months leading up to 30 April 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 Apr 2025 |
Same period 2024 | Same period 2023 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | 30 | 27 | 32 |
| Rank change year-on-year | -3 | +5 | +7 |
| Contract jobs requiring a Lead | 1,855 | 2,607 | 3,405 |
| As % of all contract jobs advertised in the UK | 6.34% | 5.98% | 5.70% |
| As % of the Job Titles category | 6.86% | 6.44% | 6.03% |
| Number of daily rates quoted | 1,259 | 1,644 | 2,266 |
| 10th Percentile | £410 | £400 | £406 |
| 25th Percentile | £500 | £485 | £500 |
| Median daily rate (50th Percentile) | £575 | £575 | £600 |
| Median % change year-on-year | - | -4.17% | +4.35% |
| 75th Percentile | £675 | £694 | £700 |
| 90th Percentile | £800 | £813 | £791 |
| UK excluding London median daily rate | £545 | £550 | £566 |
| % change year-on-year | -0.91% | -2.83% | +8.85% |
| Number of hourly rates quoted | 25 | 104 | 66 |
| 10th Percentile | £27.66 | £16.12 | £21.25 |
| 25th Percentile | £55.00 | £26.75 | £35.00 |
| Median hourly rate | £70.00 | £55.00 | £55.00 |
| Median % change year-on-year | +27.27% | - | +57.14% |
| 75th Percentile | £92.50 | £72.50 | £65.75 |
| 90th Percentile | £97.79 | £75.25 | £66.25 |
| UK excluding London median hourly rate | £76.25 | £65.00 | £60.00 |
| % change year-on-year | +17.31% | +8.33% | +71.43% |
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 | 27,050 | 40,453 | 56,471 |
| % of contract IT jobs with a recognized job title | 92.52% | 92.79% | 94.61% |
| Number of daily rates quoted | 17,687 | 26,352 | 39,474 |
| 10th Percentile | £300 | £275 | £313 |
| 25th Percentile | £406 | £409 | £425 |
| Median daily rate (50th Percentile) | £515 | £525 | £540 |
| Median % change year-on-year | -1.90% | -2.78% | +2.86% |
| 75th Percentile | £625 | £638 | £650 |
| 90th Percentile | £738 | £750 | £750 |
| UK excluding London median daily rate | £475 | £493 | £500 |
| % change year-on-year | -3.55% | -1.50% | +5.26% |
| Number of hourly rates quoted | 1,031 | 2,658 | 1,569 |
| 10th Percentile | £14.20 | £12.86 | £14.29 |
| 25th Percentile | £18.51 | £16.30 | £19.50 |
| Median hourly rate | £29.07 | £36.00 | £45.00 |
| Median % change year-on-year | -19.25% | -20.00% | +91.86% |
| 75th Percentile | £62.50 | £60.75 | £65.75 |
| 90th Percentile | £75.00 | £72.50 | £75.75 |
| UK excluding London median hourly rate | £28.75 | £38.50 | £42.50 |
| % change year-on-year | -25.32% | -9.41% | +117.95% |
Lead
Job Vacancy Trend
Job postings that featured Lead in the job title as a proportion of all IT jobs advertised.
Lead
Contractor Daily Rate Trend
3-month moving average daily rate quoted in jobs citing Lead.
Lead
Daily Rate Histogram
Daily rate distribution for jobs citing Lead over the 6 months to 30 April 2025.
Lead
Contractor Hourly Rate Trend
3-month moving average hourly rates quoted in jobs citing Lead.
Lead
Hourly Rate Histogram
Hourly rate distribution of jobs citing Lead over the 6 months to 30 April 2025.
Lead
Top 17 Contract Locations
The table below looks at the demand and provides a guide to the median contractor rates quoted in IT jobs citing Lead within the UK over the 6 months to 30 April 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 | -3 | 1,567 | £585 | - | 2,029 |
| London | +2 | 910 | £600 | - | 998 |
| UK excluding London | -2 | 687 | £545 | -0.91% | 1,162 |
| Work from Home | -2 | 630 | £600 | +3.90% | 1,128 |
| North of England | -13 | 164 | £525 | -9.79% | 355 |
| South East | -5 | 154 | £575 | +4.55% | 271 |
| Midlands | -2 | 111 | £521 | -5.27% | 159 |
| North West | -10 | 96 | £530 | -10.17% | 249 |
| Scotland | -8 | 85 | £550 | +9.95% | 68 |
| West Midlands | +1 | 83 | £525 | -11.76% | 109 |
| South West | -21 | 83 | £650 | +18.18% | 148 |
| East of England | +17 | 71 | £550 | -3.08% | 104 |
| Yorkshire | -17 | 51 | £507 | -11.83% | 79 |
| East Midlands | +5 | 26 | £425 | +80.85% | 50 |
| Wales | +13 | 19 | £305 | -46.41% | 56 |
| North East | +7 | 19 | £550 | +6.54% | 31 |
| Northern Ireland | -24 | 1 | £525 | -10.64% | 21 |
Lead Skill Set
Top 30 Co-occurring Skills and Capabilities
For the 6 months to 30 April 2025, Lead 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 in the job title.
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Lead 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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