Microsoft Office Contract Job Trends

Microsoft Office
UK

The table below provides summary statistics and contractor rates for jobs requiring Microsoft Office skills. It covers contract job vacancies from the 6 months leading up to 25 May 2026, with comparisons to the same periods in the previous two years.

6 months to
25 May 2026
Same period 2025 Same period 2024
Rank 159 90 66
Rank change year-on-year -69 -24 +13
Contract jobs citing Microsoft Office 795 801 1,309
As % of all contract jobs in the UK 1.64% 2.78% 3.07%
As % of the Applications category 28.78% 32.95% 40.29%
Number of daily rates quoted 415 462 698
10th Percentile £158 £156 £140
25th Percentile £250 £208 £190
Median daily rate (50th Percentile) £350 £320 £263
Median % change year-on-year +9.55% +21.71% -30.00%
75th Percentile £492 £500 £496
90th Percentile £625 £600 £606
UK excluding London median daily rate £342 £250 £225
% change year-on-year +36.90% +11.11% -29.96%
Number of hourly rates quoted 129 93 304
10th Percentile £12.29 £13.92 £11.00
25th Percentile £13.72 £14.84 £12.52
Median hourly rate £18.17 £17.00 £16.00
Median % change year-on-year +6.88% +6.25% -29.11%
75th Percentile £26.66 £23.01 £24.16
90th Percentile £62.86 £26.29 £41.75
UK excluding London median hourly rate £17.39 £16.61 £15.00
% change year-on-year +4.68% +10.72% -25.00%

All Software Application Skills
UK

Microsoft Office falls under the Software Applications category. For comparison with the information above, the following table provides summary statistics for all contract job vacancies requiring software application skills.

Contract vacancies with a requirement for software application skills 2,762 2,431 3,249
As % of all contract IT jobs advertised in the UK 5.70% 8.44% 7.63%
Number of daily rates quoted 1,592 1,414 1,657
10th Percentile £248 £188 £165
25th Percentile £335 £263 £213
Median daily rate (50th Percentile) £450 £413 £400
Median % change year-on-year +9.09% +3.13% -5.88%
75th Percentile £562 £538 £538
90th Percentile £650 £650 £650
UK excluding London median daily rate £425 £375 £350
% change year-on-year +13.33% +7.14% -9.68%
Number of hourly rates quoted 315 260 632
10th Percentile £13.37 £14.20 £11.52
25th Percentile £16.30 £15.62 £14.00
Median hourly rate £22.00 £22.50 £16.66
Median % change year-on-year -2.22% +35.05% -47.81%
75th Percentile £34.48 £43.81 £38.43
90th Percentile £72.05 £67.50 £57.50
UK excluding London median hourly rate £20.35 £21.39 £16.06
% change year-on-year -4.86% +33.19% -39.40%

Microsoft Office
Job Vacancy Trend

Historical trend showing the proportion of contract IT job postings citing Microsoft Office relative to all contract IT jobs advertised.

Microsoft Office job vacancy trend in the UK

Microsoft Office
Daily Rate Trend

Contractor daily rate distribution trend for jobs in the UK citing Microsoft Office.

Contractor daily rate distribution trend for jobs in the UK citing Microsoft Office

Microsoft Office
Daily Rate Histogram

Daily rate distribution for jobs citing Microsoft Office over the 6 months to 25 May 2026.

Daily rate histogram for Microsoft Office in the UK

Microsoft Office
Hourly Rate Trend

Contractor hourly rate distribution trend for jobs in the UK citing Microsoft Office.

Contractor hourly rate distribution trend for jobs in the UK citing Microsoft Office

Microsoft Office
Hourly Rate Histogram

Hourly rate distribution of jobs citing Microsoft Office over the 6 months to 25 May 2026.

Hourly rate histogram for Microsoft Office in the UK

Microsoft Office
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 Microsoft Office within the UK over the 6 months to 25 May 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 -62 704 £386 +22.38% 567
UK excluding London -54 544 £342 +36.90% 524
London -84 211 £413 +10.00% 116
Work from Home -49 177 £375 -6.25% 261
South East -30 139 £438 +25.00% 148
North of England -80 118 £347 +47.66% 127
Midlands -37 79 £315 +0.64% 103
North West -21 76 £350 +40.00% 67
South West -31 76 £369 +47.70% 65
East of England -5 71 £325 +34.72% 50
West Midlands -49 48 £314 -0.32% 57
Yorkshire -91 36 £368 +56.60% 44
East Midlands -12 31 £325 +62.50% 46
Scotland -24 30 £209 -16.60% 24
Wales -3 17 £246 -24.23% 11
Northern Ireland +2 15 £350 +70.73% 11
North East -28 6 £263 +34.62% 18
Channel Islands -2 1 £550 +84.87%

Microsoft Office
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
1 121 (15.22%) SharePoint
2 59 (7.42%) Confluence
3 50 (6.29%) Microsoft Exchange
4 9 (1.13%) Skype for Business
5 7 (0.88%) Apache Airflow
5 7 (0.88%) CMS
5 7 (0.88%) HCL Notes
6 1 (0.13%) Adobe Experience Manager
6 1 (0.13%) Drupal
6 1 (0.13%) IIS
6 1 (0.13%) SAS
6 1 (0.13%) WordPress
Applications
1 309 (38.87%) Microsoft Excel
2 197 (24.78%) Microsoft PowerPoint
3 63 (7.92%) MS Visio
4 52 (6.54%) Microsoft Project
5 10 (1.26%) Spreadsheet
6 4 (0.50%) Trello
7 3 (0.38%) Adobe Creative Suite
7 3 (0.38%) Adobe Illustrator
8 1 (0.13%) AutoCAD
8 1 (0.13%) Photoshop
8 1 (0.13%) SOLIDWORKS
8 1 (0.13%) Windchill
Business Applications
1 23 (2.89%) SAP S/4HANA
2 9 (1.13%) Remedy ITSM
3 7 (0.88%) Primavera
4 6 (0.75%) Veritas eDiscovery
5 4 (0.50%) Finacle
5 4 (0.50%) Magento
5 4 (0.50%) Salesforce CRM
5 4 (0.50%) SAP Business One
6 3 (0.38%) Aladdin
6 3 (0.38%) Fidessa
6 3 (0.38%) Maximo
6 3 (0.38%) Oracle Financials
6 3 (0.38%) SAP MM
6 3 (0.38%) SimCorp Dimension
6 3 (0.38%) Teamcenter
7 2 (0.25%) Oracle Payables
7 2 (0.25%) Shopify
8 1 (0.13%) Oracle Procure-to-Pay
8 1 (0.13%) Payment Gateway
8 1 (0.13%) SAP EHS
Cloud Services
1 148 (18.62%) Microsoft 365
2 89 (11.19%) Azure
3 48 (6.04%) Power Platform
4 39 (4.91%) AWS
5 21 (2.64%) Entra ID
6 16 (2.01%) Google Workspace
6 16 (2.01%) SaaS
7 11 (1.38%) Azure DevOps
7 11 (1.38%) GCP
8 10 (1.26%) OneDrive
9 7 (0.88%) Amazon SageMaker
9 7 (0.88%) Dagster
9 7 (0.88%) GitHub
9 7 (0.88%) GitHub Actions
9 7 (0.88%) Google Docs
9 7 (0.88%) Mimecast
10 6 (0.75%) Google Sheets
11 5 (0.63%) Dynamics 365
11 5 (0.63%) Microsoft Purview
11 5 (0.63%) Snowflake
Communications & Networking
1 42 (5.28%) VPN
2 30 (3.77%) Firewall
3 28 (3.52%) TCP/IP
4 24 (3.02%) Skype
5 20 (2.52%) Wireless
6 19 (2.39%) Wi-Fi
7 17 (2.14%) DNS
8 16 (2.01%) Ethernet
9 15 (1.89%) LAN
10 14 (1.76%) Network Security
10 14 (1.76%) WAN
11 12 (1.51%) DHCP
12 7 (0.88%) Cisco IOS
12 7 (0.88%) Internet
12 7 (0.88%) VoIP
12 7 (0.88%) WebEx
13 5 (0.63%) BGP
13 5 (0.63%) MPLS
13 5 (0.63%) Unified Communications
13 5 (0.63%) VLAN
Database & Business Intelligence
1 44 (5.53%) Power BI
2 18 (2.26%) SQL Server
3 6 (0.75%) MySQL
3 6 (0.75%) Relational Database
3 6 (0.75%) Tableau
4 5 (0.63%) Oracle Reports
5 4 (0.50%) Azure SQL Database
5 4 (0.50%) Oracle Database
5 4 (0.50%) RDBMS
6 3 (0.38%) Data Mining
6 3 (0.38%) Metadata
6 3 (0.38%) Power Query
7 2 (0.25%) BigQuery
7 2 (0.25%) Data Warehouse
7 2 (0.25%) Electronic Patient Records
7 2 (0.25%) Looker
7 2 (0.25%) PowerPivot
8 1 (0.13%) Amazon Redshift
8 1 (0.13%) EDMS
8 1 (0.13%) EDRMS
Development Applications
1 77 (9.69%) JIRA
2 13 (1.64%) Burp Suite
2 13 (1.64%) Git
2 13 (1.64%) Metasploit
3 9 (1.13%) Jenkins
4 8 (1.01%) Subversion
5 7 (0.88%) MLflow
6 3 (0.38%) Android Studio
6 3 (0.38%) Bitbucket
6 3 (0.38%) SQL Server Management Studio (SSMS)
6 3 (0.38%) Toad
7 2 (0.25%) JMeter
7 2 (0.25%) Sonatype Nexus
7 2 (0.25%) Tricentis qTest
8 1 (0.13%) Atlassian Bamboo
8 1 (0.13%) GitLab
8 1 (0.13%) LabVIEW
8 1 (0.13%) Rational DOORS
8 1 (0.13%) Rational Rhapsody
8 1 (0.13%) Team Foundation Server
General
1 454 (57.11%) Social Skills
2 221 (27.80%) Finance
3 183 (23.02%) Analytical Skills
4 120 (15.09%) Organisational Skills
5 69 (8.68%) Public Sector
6 67 (8.43%) Banking
7 46 (5.79%) Legal
8 43 (5.41%) Presentation Skills
9 29 (3.65%) Pharmaceutical
10 25 (3.14%) Military
11 24 (3.02%) Documentation Skills
11 24 (3.02%) Marketing
12 23 (2.89%) Telecoms
13 22 (2.77%) Manufacturing
13 22 (2.77%) Retail
14 20 (2.52%) Inclusion and Diversity
15 19 (2.39%) Investment Banking
16 17 (2.14%) Front Office
16 17 (2.14%) Influencing Skills
16 17 (2.14%) Law
Job Titles
1 153 (19.25%) Analyst
2 55 (6.92%) Business Analyst
3 46 (5.79%) Administrator
4 44 (5.53%) IT Support
4 44 (5.53%) Senior
5 41 (5.16%) Support Officer
6 36 (4.53%) Support Engineer
7 33 (4.15%) Project Manager
7 33 (4.15%) Project Officer
8 32 (4.03%) Project Support Officer
9 26 (3.27%) Architect
9 26 (3.27%) IT Analyst
9 26 (3.27%) Support Analyst
9 26 (3.27%) Technical Engineer
10 25 (3.14%) Service Analyst
11 24 (3.02%) Coordinator
12 20 (2.52%) 2nd Line Support
12 20 (2.52%) Service Desk Analyst
13 18 (2.26%) Desktop Engineer
13 18 (2.26%) Technical Support
Libraries, Frameworks & Software Standards
1 8 (1.01%) Web Services
2 7 (0.88%) NumPy
2 7 (0.88%) Pandas
2 7 (0.88%) REST
2 7 (0.88%) scikit-learn
2 7 (0.88%) Seaborn
3 6 (0.75%) SOAP
4 5 (0.63%) .NET
4 5 (0.63%) JDO
4 5 (0.63%) VML
5 4 (0.50%) HTML
6 3 (0.38%) Microsoft Graph
6 3 (0.38%) NETCONF
6 3 (0.38%) OpenConfig
6 3 (0.38%) RESTCONF
6 3 (0.38%) YANG
7 2 (0.25%) FHIR
7 2 (0.25%) JSON
7 2 (0.25%) LDAP
7 2 (0.25%) Middleware
Miscellaneous
1 55 (6.92%) Onboarding
2 48 (6.04%) Self-Motivation
3 42 (5.28%) Management Information System
4 21 (2.64%) Product Ownership
5 20 (2.52%) Robotics
6 19 (2.39%) Data Protection Act
7 18 (2.26%) Social Media
8 16 (2.01%) Industry 4.0
9 14 (1.76%) Virtual Team
10 13 (1.64%) Data Centre
10 13 (1.64%) Security Posture
11 12 (1.51%) Analytical Mindset
12 11 (1.38%) Life Science
13 10 (1.26%) Enterprise Software
13 10 (1.26%) PMI
14 9 (1.13%) Driving Licence
14 9 (1.13%) Insider Threat
14 9 (1.13%) Video Conferencing
15 8 (1.01%) Legacy Systems
15 8 (1.01%) NHS
Operating Systems
1 184 (23.14%) Windows
2 88 (11.07%) Windows 10
3 34 (4.28%) Android
4 23 (2.89%) Linux
5 18 (2.26%) Windows 7
6 12 (1.51%) Apple iOS
6 12 (1.51%) Windows Server
7 11 (1.38%) Mac OS
8 8 (1.01%) Windows Server 2016
9 7 (0.88%) Windows Server 2019
10 4 (0.50%) Unix
11 2 (0.25%) AIX
11 2 (0.25%) Solaris
11 2 (0.25%) Ubuntu
12 1 (0.13%) FreeRTOS
12 1 (0.13%) MVS
12 1 (0.13%) Red Hat Enterprise Linux
12 1 (0.13%) SUSE Linux Enterprise Server
12 1 (0.13%) Windows Server 2012
12 1 (0.13%) zOS
Processes & Methodologies
1 221 (27.80%) Problem-Solving
2 137 (17.23%) Project Management
3 127 (15.97%) Agile
4 125 (15.72%) Customer Service
5 119 (14.97%) Stakeholder Management
6 97 (12.20%) Continuous Improvement
7 89 (11.19%) Project Delivery
8 87 (10.94%) ITIL
9 77 (9.69%) Decision-Making
10 66 (8.30%) Service Management
11 65 (8.18%) AI
12 64 (8.05%) Change Management
13 60 (7.55%) Stakeholder Engagement
14 57 (7.17%) PRINCE2
14 57 (7.17%) Time Management
14 57 (7.17%) Waterfall
15 49 (6.16%) ITSM
16 48 (6.04%) Data Protection
17 46 (5.79%) Data Analysis
18 43 (5.41%) Analytical Thinking
Programming Languages
1 50 (6.29%) SQL
2 33 (4.15%) PowerShell
3 24 (3.02%) Python
4 17 (2.14%) VB
5 10 (1.26%) VBScript
6 7 (0.88%) JavaScript
7 6 (0.75%) PHP
7 6 (0.75%) VBA
8 4 (0.50%) C
8 4 (0.50%) Java
8 4 (0.50%) PL/SQL
8 4 (0.50%) T-SQL
9 3 (0.38%) C++
9 3 (0.38%) Kusto Query Language
10 2 (0.25%) R
11 1 (0.13%) Ada
11 1 (0.13%) Bash
11 1 (0.13%) Data Analysis Expressions
11 1 (0.13%) Google Apps Script
11 1 (0.13%) REXX
Qualifications
1 282 (35.47%) Degree
2 180 (22.64%) Security Cleared
3 136 (17.11%) SC Cleared
4 39 (4.91%) DV Cleared
5 21 (2.64%) Microsoft Certification
5 21 (2.64%) PMI Certification
5 21 (2.64%) PMP
6 20 (2.52%) Computer Science Degree
7 18 (2.26%) BPSS Clearance
8 17 (2.14%) DBS Check
9 16 (2.01%) Cisco Certification
10 13 (1.64%) A+ Certification
10 13 (1.64%) CCNP
10 13 (1.64%) CHECK Team Member
10 13 (1.64%) PRINCE2 Practitioner
11 12 (1.51%) CBAP
12 11 (1.38%) CREST Certified
12 11 (1.38%) CTC Cleared
12 11 (1.38%) Cyber Scheme
12 11 (1.38%) IIBA
Quality Assurance & Compliance
1 78 (9.81%) PMO
2 42 (5.28%) SLA
3 37 (4.65%) QA
4 27 (3.40%) GDPR
5 24 (3.02%) Data Quality
5 24 (3.02%) ISO/IEC 27001
6 19 (2.39%) PCI DSS
7 9 (1.13%) Accessibility
7 9 (1.13%) Cyber Essentials
8 6 (0.75%) NIST
8 6 (0.75%) P3O
9 5 (0.63%) MiFID
10 4 (0.50%) EMIR
11 3 (0.38%) ISO/IEC 42001
11 3 (0.38%) WCAG
12 2 (0.25%) GRC
12 2 (0.25%) HL7
12 2 (0.25%) ISO 20022
12 2 (0.25%) ISO 9001
12 2 (0.25%) SOC 2
System Software
1 89 (11.19%) Active Directory
2 10 (1.26%) BitLocker
2 10 (1.26%) VMware Infrastructure
3 8 (1.01%) Docker
4 5 (0.63%) Virtual Desktop
4 5 (0.63%) VMware ESXi
5 4 (0.50%) Hyper-V
5 4 (0.50%) XenApp
5 4 (0.50%) XenDesktop
6 3 (0.38%) vSphere
7 1 (0.13%) Citrix Presentation Server
7 1 (0.13%) Firmware
7 1 (0.13%) Job Entry Subsystem
7 1 (0.13%) Microsoft Virtual Server
7 1 (0.13%) Virtual Servers
7 1 (0.13%) VMware NSX
Systems Management
1 43 (5.41%) SCCM
2 30 (3.77%) Microsoft Intune
3 13 (1.64%) Nmap
4 11 (1.38%) OPNET
5 9 (1.13%) Active Directory Federation Services
5 9 (1.13%) Ansible
6 7 (0.88%) HP Quality Center
7 5 (0.63%) TeamSite
7 5 (0.63%) vCenter Server
8 4 (0.50%) Cisco CUCM
8 4 (0.50%) HP ALM
8 4 (0.50%) SCVMM
8 4 (0.50%) Single Sign-On
8 4 (0.50%) Terraform
9 3 (0.38%) Cisco Prime
9 3 (0.38%) SCOM
9 3 (0.38%) SCSM
9 3 (0.38%) Systems Management Server (SMS)
10 1 (0.13%) Control-M
10 1 (0.13%) Progress Chef
Vendors
1 549 (69.06%) Microsoft
2 77 (9.69%) ServiceNow
3 53 (6.67%) SAP
4 41 (5.16%) Cisco
5 30 (3.77%) Remedy
6 28 (3.52%) Google
7 26 (3.27%) Oracle
8 22 (2.77%) Apple
9 20 (2.52%) Atlassian
10 17 (2.14%) Citrix
10 17 (2.14%) HP
11 15 (1.89%) Siemens
12 12 (1.51%) Adobe
12 12 (1.51%) VMware
13 9 (1.13%) Salesforce
14 8 (1.01%) Planview
14 8 (1.01%) Workday
15 7 (0.88%) Lotus
16 6 (0.75%) NEC
17 5 (0.63%) CyberArk