Leader
UK
The median Leader daily rate in the UK is £575, according to job vacancies posted in the 6 months leading up to 19 September 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 19 Sep 2025 |
Same period 2024 | Same period 2023 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | 31 | 29 | 31 |
| Rank change year-on-year | -2 | +2 | +6 |
| Contract jobs requiring a Lead | 1,964 | 2,449 | 2,923 |
| As % of all contract jobs advertised in the UK | 5.96% | 6.36% | 5.90% |
| As % of the Job Titles category | 6.54% | 6.84% | 6.26% |
| Number of daily rates quoted | 1,249 | 1,479 | 1,990 |
| 10th Percentile | £363 | £399 | £413 |
| 25th Percentile | £463 | £488 | £500 |
| Median daily rate (50th Percentile) | £575 | £590 | £600 |
| Median % change year-on-year | -2.54% | -1.67% | +2.13% |
| 75th Percentile | £675 | £700 | £700 |
| 90th Percentile | £771 | £838 | £775 |
| UK excluding London median daily rate | £525 | £538 | £563 |
| % change year-on-year | -2.33% | -4.44% | +5.88% |
| Number of hourly rates quoted | 54 | 111 | 54 |
| 10th Percentile | £35.40 | £16.37 | £38.83 |
| 25th Percentile | £50.00 | £23.82 | £46.18 |
| Median hourly rate | £61.70 | £46.18 | £46.84 |
| Median % change year-on-year | +33.61% | -1.41% | -5.16% |
| 75th Percentile | £88.44 | £72.50 | £65.56 |
| 90th Percentile | £91.50 | - | £78.00 |
| UK excluding London median hourly rate | £60.00 | £46.18 | £46.18 |
| % change year-on-year | +29.93% | - | -6.50% |
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 | 30,009 | 35,817 | 46,695 |
| % of contract IT jobs with a recognized job title | 91.07% | 92.96% | 94.21% |
| Number of daily rates quoted | 18,949 | 22,029 | 31,957 |
| 10th Percentile | £278 | £300 | £300 |
| 25th Percentile | £400 | £413 | £420 |
| Median daily rate (50th Percentile) | £500 | £525 | £530 |
| Median % change year-on-year | -4.76% | -0.94% | -3.64% |
| 75th Percentile | £623 | £638 | £650 |
| 90th Percentile | £725 | £750 | £750 |
| UK excluding London median daily rate | £475 | £500 | £500 |
| % change year-on-year | -5.00% | - | - |
| Number of hourly rates quoted | 1,585 | 1,680 | 1,499 |
| 10th Percentile | £13.75 | £14.73 | £14.99 |
| 25th Percentile | £17.30 | £20.50 | £19.06 |
| Median hourly rate | £25.15 | £43.00 | £44.50 |
| Median % change year-on-year | -41.51% | -3.37% | +71.15% |
| 75th Percentile | £52.50 | £65.00 | £65.00 |
| 90th Percentile | £70.00 | £75.00 | £77.50 |
| UK excluding London median hourly rate | £25.15 | £45.00 | £43.75 |
| % change year-on-year | -44.11% | +2.86% | +98.86% |
Lead
Job Vacancy Trend
Job postings that featured Lead in the job title as a proportion of all IT jobs advertised.
Lead
Daily Rate Trend
Contractor daily rate distribution trend for Lead job vacancies in the UK.
Lead
Daily Rate Histogram
Daily rate distribution for jobs citing Lead over the 6 months to 19 September 2025.
Lead
Hourly Rate Trend
Contractor hourly rate distribution trend for Lead job vacancies in the UK.
Lead
Hourly Rate Histogram
Hourly rate distribution of jobs citing Lead over the 6 months to 19 September 2025.
Lead
Top 18 Contract Job 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 19 September 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 | -2 | 1,664 | £575 | -4.17% | 1,753 |
| London | -4 | 878 | £610 | -0.41% | 803 |
| UK excluding London | -7 | 822 | £525 | -2.33% | 1,305 |
| Work from Home | +1 | 642 | £575 | -4.17% | 810 |
| North of England | -13 | 215 | £500 | -6.98% | 272 |
| South East | -2 | 181 | £550 | -4.35% | 546 |
| South West | -4 | 133 | £575 | +4.55% | 126 |
| North West | -2 | 126 | £450 | -16.28% | 159 |
| Midlands | -24 | 123 | £521 | -0.76% | 154 |
| West Midlands | -19 | 85 | £531 | +1.19% | 83 |
| Yorkshire | -12 | 81 | £513 | -4.21% | 87 |
| Scotland | -11 | 70 | £525 | -4.55% | 63 |
| East of England | 0 | 69 | £550 | +37.50% | 115 |
| East Midlands | -15 | 35 | £450 | +16.13% | 66 |
| Wales | +24 | 30 | £306 | -51.04% | 43 |
| North East | -9 | 9 | £630 | -13.10% | 30 |
| Northern Ireland | -2 | 3 | £783 | - | 18 |
| Channel Islands | - | 3 | £725 | - |
Lead Skill Set
Top 30 Co-occurring Skills and Capabilities
For the 6 months to 19 September 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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