Principal Developer
UK
The median Principal Developer daily rate in the UK is £925, according to job vacancies posted in the 6 months leading up to 9 July 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 9 Jul 2025 |
Same period 2024 | Same period 2023 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | 534 | 584 | 679 |
| Rank change year-on-year | +50 | +95 | +159 |
| Contract jobs requiring a Principal Developer | 3 | 18 | 11 |
| As % of all contract jobs advertised in the UK | 0.009% | 0.042% | 0.019% |
| As % of the Job Titles category | 0.010% | 0.045% | 0.020% |
| Number of daily rates quoted | 3 | 9 | 10 |
| 10th Percentile | £853 | - | £553 |
| 25th Percentile | £875 | £575 | £638 |
| Median daily rate (50th Percentile) | £925 | £650 | £725 |
| Median % change year-on-year | +42.31% | -10.34% | +11.54% |
| 75th Percentile | £956 | £813 | £838 |
| 90th Percentile | £968 | £880 | £1,010 |
| UK excluding London median daily rate | - | £663 | £613 |
| % change year-on-year | - | +8.16% | +2.08% |
| Number of hourly rates quoted | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| Median hourly rate | - | £80.00 | - |
| UK excluding London median hourly rate | - | £80.00 | - |
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 | 29,729 | 40,327 | 54,100 |
| % of contract IT jobs with a recognized job title | 91.88% | 92.98% | 94.55% |
| Number of daily rates quoted | 18,953 | 25,977 | 37,572 |
| 10th Percentile | £288 | £286 | £313 |
| 25th Percentile | £400 | £410 | £425 |
| Median daily rate (50th Percentile) | £500 | £525 | £538 |
| Median % change year-on-year | -4.76% | -2.33% | +0.94% |
| 75th Percentile | £625 | £638 | £650 |
| 90th Percentile | £738 | £750 | £750 |
| UK excluding London median daily rate | £475 | £494 | £500 |
| % change year-on-year | -3.85% | -1.20% | +3.31% |
| Number of hourly rates quoted | 1,355 | 2,780 | 1,586 |
| 10th Percentile | £13.75 | £12.86 | £14.25 |
| 25th Percentile | £17.33 | £16.65 | £19.00 |
| Median hourly rate | £26.32 | £37.50 | £43.00 |
| Median % change year-on-year | -29.81% | -12.79% | +68.63% |
| 75th Percentile | £55.75 | £62.50 | £65.00 |
| 90th Percentile | £73.05 | £73.75 | £77.00 |
| UK excluding London median hourly rate | £25.15 | £40.00 | £39.80 |
| % change year-on-year | -37.13% | +0.50% | +96.64% |
Principal Developer
Job Vacancy Trend
Job postings that featured Principal Developer in the job title as a proportion of all IT jobs advertised.
Principal Developer
Contractor Daily Rate Trend
3-month moving average daily rate quoted in jobs citing Principal Developer.
Principal Developer
Contractor Hourly Rate Trend
3-month moving average hourly rates quoted in jobs citing Principal Developer.
Principal Developer
Top 3 Contract Locations
The table below looks at the demand and provides a guide to the median contractor rates quoted in IT jobs citing Principal Developer within the UK over the 6 months to 9 July 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| London | +34 | 3 | £925 | +48.00% | 5 |
| England | +33 | 3 | £925 | +42.31% | 37 |
| Work from Home | +22 | 2 | £938 | - | 16 |
Principal Developer Skill Set
Top 30 Co-occurring Skills and Capabilities
For the 6 months to 9 July 2025, Principal 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 Principal Developer in the job title.
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Principal 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: