Support Engineer Contract Job Trends

Support Engineer
UK

The median Support Engineer daily rate in the UK is £210, according to job vacancies posted in the 6 months leading up to 4 June 2026.

The table below compares current contractor rates and summary statistics with the previous two years.

6 months to
4 Jun 2026
Same period 2025 Same period 2024
Rank 169 129 112
Rank change year-on-year -40 -17 +5
Contract jobs requiring a Support Engineer 768 625 858
As % of all contract jobs in the UK 1.57% 2.17% 2.00%
As % of the Job Titles category 1.70% 2.35% 2.16%
Number of daily rates quoted 499 396 591
10th Percentile £153 £153 £138
25th Percentile £183 £200 £163
Median daily rate (50th Percentile) £210 £248 £213
Median % change year-on-year -15.09% +16.47% -15.00%
75th Percentile £372 £385 £338
90th Percentile £478 £494 £450
UK excluding London median daily rate £203 £230 £200
% change year-on-year -11.96% +15.00% -5.33%
Number of hourly rates quoted 72 55 52
10th Percentile £18.07 £18.10 £16.25
25th Percentile £20.50 £19.58 £18.00
Median hourly rate £23.91 £25.00 £22.23
Median % change year-on-year -4.35% +12.49% +5.16%
75th Percentile £36.00 £35.25 £43.75
90th Percentile £38.63 £68.00 £56.75
UK excluding London median hourly rate £22.50 £24.83 £23.34
% change year-on-year -9.38% +6.38% +16.70%

All Contract IT Job Roles
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 45,181 26,628 39,798
% of contract IT jobs with a recognized job title 92.32% 92.36% 92.85%
Number of daily rates quoted 27,497 17,201 25,733
10th Percentile £325 £287 £280
25th Percentile £413 £404 £408
Median daily rate (50th Percentile) £513 £504 £525
Median % change year-on-year +1.69% -4.00% -2.78%
75th Percentile £619 £625 £638
90th Percentile £725 £738 £750
UK excluding London median daily rate £500 £475 £488
% change year-on-year +5.26% -2.56% -2.50%
Number of hourly rates quoted 3,016 1,081 2,844
10th Percentile £15.03 £14.00 £12.83
25th Percentile £20.53 £17.80 £16.30
Median hourly rate £42.70 £28.00 £37.50
Median % change year-on-year +52.48% -25.33% -16.67%
75th Percentile £67.50 £58.75 £61.60
90th Percentile £80.00 £75.00 £73.75
UK excluding London median hourly rate £45.00 £25.15 £40.00
% change year-on-year +78.93% -37.13% -5.88%

Support Engineer
Job Vacancy Trend

Historical trend showing the proportion of contract IT job postings featuring 'Support Engineer' in the job title relative to all contract IT jobs advertised.

Support Engineer job vacancy trend in the UK

Support Engineer
Daily Rate Trend

Contractor daily rate distribution trend for Support Engineer job vacancies in the UK.

Contractor daily rate distribution trend for Support Engineer job vacancies in the UK

Support Engineer
Daily Rate Histogram

Daily rate distribution for jobs citing Support Engineer over the 6 months to 4 June 2026.

Daily rate histogram for Support Engineer in the UK

Support Engineer
Hourly Rate Trend

Contractor hourly rate distribution trend for Support Engineer job vacancies in the UK.

Contractor hourly rate distribution trend for Support Engineer job vacancies in the UK

Support Engineer
Hourly Rate Histogram

Hourly rate distribution of jobs citing Support Engineer over the 6 months to 4 June 2026.

Hourly rate histogram for Support Engineer in the UK

Support Engineer
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 Support Engineer within the UK over the 6 months to 4 June 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 -50 672 £210 -15.15% 296
UK excluding London -41 520 £203 -11.96% 287
London -40 217 £275 - 52
South East -30 144 £210 -16.00% 87
North of England -70 90 £190 -11.63% 68
Work from Home -69 88 £220 -26.67% 82
Midlands -37 87 £204 -22.19% 39
South West -40 71 £210 -10.64% 34
East of England -11 62 £195 -12.36% 34
North West -28 56 £190 -11.63% 39
Scotland +29 55 £313 +11.61% 21
West Midlands -59 51 £238 -13.64% 14
East Midlands +1 37 £200 -5.88% 25
Yorkshire -46 32 £190 -19.15% 22
Wales -22 9 £250 +25.00% 3
Northern Ireland +1 4 £175 +16.67% 7
North East -41 2 £290 +48.72% 9
Channel Islands - 1 £550 -

Support Engineer Skill Set
Top 30 Co-Occurring Skills & Capabilities

For the 6 months to 4 June 2026, Support Engineer contract job roles required the following skills and capabilities in order of popularity. The figures indicate the absolute number of co-occurrences and as a proportion of all contract job ads featuring Support Engineer in the job title.

1 360 (46.88%) Windows
2 273 (35.55%) Active Directory
3 272 (35.42%) Microsoft
4 244 (31.77%) Microsoft 365
5 162 (21.09%) Windows 10
6 155 (20.18%) Security Cleared
7 149 (19.40%) Problem-Solving
8 142 (18.49%) Azure
8 142 (18.49%) Customer Service
9 120 (15.63%) ITIL
10 108 (14.06%) SC Cleared
11 107 (13.93%) Microsoft Intune
12 93 (12.11%) ServiceNow
13 80 (10.42%) Entra ID
14 65 (8.46%) ITSM
14 65 (8.46%) SharePoint
15 64 (8.33%) PowerShell
16 59 (7.68%) DNS
17 58 (7.55%) Migration
18 57 (7.42%) SQL
19 55 (7.16%) JIRA
20 47 (6.12%) Linux
21 45 (5.86%) Windows Server
22 44 (5.73%) Continuous Improvement
22 44 (5.73%) Mac OS
23 43 (5.60%) Degree
23 43 (5.60%) DHCP
23 43 (5.60%) VPN
23 43 (5.60%) Wi-Fi
24 42 (5.47%) SCCM

Support Engineer Skill Set
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 65 (8.46%) SharePoint
2 35 (4.56%) Microsoft Exchange
3 11 (1.43%) NetWeaver
4 7 (0.91%) HCL Notes
5 4 (0.52%) Confluence
5 4 (0.52%) IIS
6 3 (0.39%) Skype for Business
7 2 (0.26%) Apache
7 2 (0.26%) OpenStack
7 2 (0.26%) WebLogic
8 1 (0.13%) Tuxedo
8 1 (0.13%) WebSphere
Applications
1 39 (5.08%) Microsoft Office
2 14 (1.82%) Microsoft Excel
3 4 (0.52%) Microsoft PowerPoint
Business Applications
1 10 (1.30%) SAP S/4HANA
2 6 (0.78%) SAP EHS
2 6 (0.78%) Shopify
2 6 (0.78%) Teamcenter
3 5 (0.65%) Remedy ITSM
4 2 (0.26%) NetSuite
5 1 (0.13%) Alphatax
5 1 (0.13%) Dynamics CRM
5 1 (0.13%) Dynamics GP
5 1 (0.13%) Oracle EBS
5 1 (0.13%) SAP GRC
Cloud Services
1 244 (31.77%) Microsoft 365
2 142 (18.49%) Azure
3 80 (10.42%) Entra ID
4 30 (3.91%) AWS
5 23 (2.99%) SaaS
6 22 (2.86%) OneDrive
7 21 (2.73%) Azure DevOps
8 10 (1.30%) Dynamics 365
8 10 (1.30%) GCP
8 10 (1.30%) Power Platform
9 6 (0.78%) Amazon S3
9 6 (0.78%) PaaS
10 5 (0.65%) Azure Data Factory
10 5 (0.65%) Sauce Labs
11 4 (0.52%) Google Workspace
11 4 (0.52%) Mimecast
12 3 (0.39%) IaaS
13 2 (0.26%) Amazon EC2
13 2 (0.26%) Datadog
13 2 (0.26%) GitHub
Communications & Networking
1 59 (7.68%) DNS
2 43 (5.60%) DHCP
2 43 (5.60%) VPN
2 43 (5.60%) Wi-Fi
3 39 (5.08%) LAN
4 35 (4.56%) TCP/IP
5 23 (2.99%) SAN
5 23 (2.99%) WAN
6 14 (1.82%) Firewall
6 14 (1.82%) VLAN
7 13 (1.69%) Internet
8 12 (1.56%) Wireless
9 11 (1.43%) WLAN
10 7 (0.91%) HTTP
11 6 (0.78%) Skype
11 6 (0.78%) VoIP
12 4 (0.52%) Remote Desktop
12 4 (0.52%) Unified Communications
13 2 (0.26%) VSAN
13 2 (0.26%) Wireshark
Database & Business Intelligence
1 30 (3.91%) SQL Server
2 18 (2.34%) MySQL
3 13 (1.69%) Amazon Redshift
4 12 (1.56%) Relational Database
5 11 (1.43%) SAP HANA
6 10 (1.30%) Sybase ASE
7 9 (1.17%) MaxDB
8 8 (1.04%) Power BI
9 7 (0.91%) Pentaho
9 7 (0.91%) SQL Server Integration Services
10 5 (0.65%) Oracle Database
10 5 (0.65%) PostgreSQL
11 4 (0.52%) Amazon Athena
11 4 (0.52%) Oracle Database 12c
12 2 (0.26%) Amazon RDS
12 2 (0.26%) Data Warehouse
12 2 (0.26%) MariaDB
12 2 (0.26%) SQL Server Reporting Services
13 1 (0.13%) Crystal Reports
13 1 (0.13%) RDBMS
Development Applications
1 55 (7.16%) JIRA
2 19 (2.47%) Git
3 11 (1.43%) Browser DevTools
4 5 (0.65%) Android Studio
4 5 (0.65%) Eclipse
4 5 (0.65%) Xcode
5 2 (0.26%) Firebug
5 2 (0.26%) Maven
6 1 (0.13%) Atlassian Bamboo
6 1 (0.13%) Claude Code
6 1 (0.13%) Gemini Tracker
6 1 (0.13%) Jenkins
6 1 (0.13%) MSI
6 1 (0.13%) RStudio
6 1 (0.13%) SQL Server Management Studio (SSMS)
6 1 (0.13%) Subversion
6 1 (0.13%) TeamCity
6 1 (0.13%) Visual Studio Code
General
1 295 (38.41%) Social Skills
2 85 (11.07%) Analytical Skills
3 56 (7.29%) Finance
4 46 (5.99%) Manufacturing
5 37 (4.82%) Banking
6 23 (2.99%) Investment Banking
7 20 (2.60%) Inclusion and Diversity
8 18 (2.34%) Aerospace
9 17 (2.21%) Law
10 15 (1.95%) Aviation
10 15 (1.95%) Organisational Skills
11 13 (1.69%) Documentation Skills
12 9 (1.17%) Front Office
12 9 (1.17%) Legal
13 8 (1.04%) Retail
14 7 (0.91%) Public Sector
15 6 (0.78%) French Language
15 6 (0.78%) Marketing
15 6 (0.78%) Pharmaceutical
15 6 (0.78%) Telecoms
Libraries, Frameworks & Software Standards
1 10 (1.30%) Oracle GoldenGate
1 10 (1.30%) SAP Basis
2 9 (1.17%) REST
3 7 (0.91%) CSS
3 7 (0.91%) JDO
3 7 (0.91%) Software Packaging
4 6 (0.78%) .NET
5 5 (0.65%) Ajax
5 5 (0.65%) AngularJS
5 5 (0.65%) GraphQL
5 5 (0.65%) PySpark
5 5 (0.65%) React
5 5 (0.65%) SAML
5 5 (0.65%) SAP Fiori
5 5 (0.65%) SAPUI5
6 4 (0.52%) Middleware
6 4 (0.52%) OAuth
6 4 (0.52%) YAML
7 3 (0.39%) JSP
7 3 (0.39%) RESTful
Miscellaneous
1 61 (7.94%) Onboarding
2 31 (4.04%) Data Centre
3 24 (3.13%) Self-Motivation
4 23 (2.99%) Analytical Mindset
5 17 (2.21%) Virtual Team
6 15 (1.95%) Enterprise Software
6 15 (1.95%) Smartphone
7 13 (1.69%) Data Protection Act
8 12 (1.56%) iPhone
9 11 (1.43%) Legacy Systems
10 10 (1.30%) Driving Licence
10 10 (1.30%) PKI
10 10 (1.30%) SCADA
11 9 (1.17%) Video Conferencing
12 8 (1.04%) Hybrid Cloud
13 7 (0.91%) Blackberry
13 7 (0.91%) Hedge funds
14 5 (0.65%) CCTV
14 5 (0.65%) iPad
14 5 (0.65%) Mobile App
Operating Systems
1 360 (46.88%) Windows
2 162 (21.09%) Windows 10
3 47 (6.12%) Linux
4 45 (5.86%) Windows Server
5 44 (5.73%) Mac OS
6 41 (5.34%) Unix
7 25 (3.26%) Apple iOS
8 23 (2.99%) Android
9 17 (2.21%) Windows 7
10 7 (0.91%) Windows Server 2016
11 6 (0.78%) Red Hat Enterprise Linux
12 4 (0.52%) Solaris
12 4 (0.52%) Windows Server 2019
12 4 (0.52%) Windows XP
13 3 (0.39%) Windows Server 2012
14 2 (0.26%) Mac OS X
14 2 (0.26%) Ubuntu
15 1 (0.13%) CentOS
15 1 (0.13%) Windows Server 2008
Processes & Methodologies
1 149 (19.40%) Problem-Solving
2 142 (18.49%) Customer Service
3 120 (15.63%) ITIL
4 65 (8.46%) ITSM
5 58 (7.55%) Migration
6 44 (5.73%) Continuous Improvement
7 41 (5.34%) Change Management
7 41 (5.34%) Infrastructure Engineering
8 38 (4.95%) Asset Management
9 37 (4.82%) Service Delivery
10 34 (4.43%) Service Management
11 33 (4.30%) Incident Management
11 33 (4.30%) Root Cause Analysis
12 32 (4.17%) User Experience
13 31 (4.04%) DevOps
14 29 (3.78%) Problem Management
15 25 (3.26%) Data Protection
16 22 (2.86%) Break/Fix
17 21 (2.73%) CI/CD
17 21 (2.73%) Stakeholder Management
Programming Languages
1 64 (8.33%) PowerShell
2 57 (7.42%) SQL
3 29 (3.78%) Python
4 20 (2.60%) C#
4 20 (2.60%) Java
5 17 (2.21%) JavaScript
6 15 (1.95%) Shell Script
7 11 (1.43%) Bash
8 10 (1.30%) Korn
9 9 (1.17%) Perl
10 6 (0.78%) C++
11 1 (0.13%) C
11 1 (0.13%) R
11 1 (0.13%) T-SQL
11 1 (0.13%) VB.NET
11 1 (0.13%) VBA
11 1 (0.13%) VBScript
Qualifications
1 155 (20.18%) Security Cleared
2 108 (14.06%) SC Cleared
3 43 (5.60%) Degree
4 33 (4.30%) DV Cleared
5 24 (3.13%) Microsoft Certification
6 23 (2.99%) A+ Certification
7 20 (2.60%) CCNA
7 20 (2.60%) Cisco Certification
8 18 (2.34%) Network+ Certification
9 16 (2.08%) MCSE
10 12 (1.56%) BPSS Clearance
11 10 (1.30%) Computer Science Degree
12 9 (1.17%) Azure Certification
13 7 (0.91%) DBS Check
14 6 (0.78%) ITIL Certification
15 4 (0.52%) Microsoft Certified Professional
15 4 (0.52%) NVQ Level 4
16 2 (0.26%) ITIL Foundation Certificate
17 1 (0.13%) AWS Certification
17 1 (0.13%) CompTIA Security+
Quality Assurance & Compliance
1 36 (4.69%) SLA
2 4 (0.52%) Cyber Essentials
2 4 (0.52%) GDPR
3 3 (0.39%) Data Quality
3 3 (0.39%) ISO/IEC 27001
3 3 (0.39%) QA
4 2 (0.26%) GLP
4 2 (0.26%) GMP
5 1 (0.13%) Actionable Recommendations
5 1 (0.13%) GRC
5 1 (0.13%) GxP
5 1 (0.13%) ITGC
5 1 (0.13%) Sarbanes-Oxley
5 1 (0.13%) SOC 2
System Software
1 273 (35.55%) Active Directory
2 29 (3.78%) VMware Infrastructure
3 15 (1.95%) Hyper-V
4 13 (1.69%) VMware NSX
5 12 (1.56%) VMware ESXi
6 10 (1.30%) Oracle RAC
6 10 (1.30%) Virtual Desktop
7 8 (1.04%) vCloud
8 6 (0.78%) vSphere
9 4 (0.52%) NFS
10 3 (0.39%) Firmware
11 2 (0.26%) Virtual Servers
12 1 (0.13%) BitLocker
12 1 (0.13%) Docker
12 1 (0.13%) Microsoft Virtual Server
12 1 (0.13%) XenDesktop
12 1 (0.13%) zsh
Systems Management
1 107 (13.93%) Microsoft Intune
2 42 (5.47%) SCCM
3 20 (2.60%) Jamf Pro
4 18 (2.34%) Single Sign-On
5 13 (1.69%) Grafana
6 12 (1.56%) vCenter Server
7 10 (1.30%) Oracle Enterprise Manager
7 10 (1.30%) Oracle RMAN
8 9 (1.17%) SCOM
9 7 (0.91%) Ansible
9 7 (0.91%) Terraform
10 4 (0.52%) Red Hat Satellite
11 3 (0.39%) Kubernetes
11 3 (0.39%) vRealize
12 2 (0.26%) AirWatch
12 2 (0.26%) Kibana
12 2 (0.26%) McAfee ePO
12 2 (0.26%) PaperCut
12 2 (0.26%) WMI
13 1 (0.13%) WSUS
Vendors
1 272 (35.42%) Microsoft
2 93 (12.11%) ServiceNow
3 33 (4.30%) Oracle
3 33 (4.30%) VMware
4 25 (3.26%) Apple
4 25 (3.26%) Dell
5 22 (2.86%) SAP
6 15 (1.95%) Cisco
6 15 (1.95%) HP
7 13 (1.69%) Okta
8 10 (1.30%) Citrix
8 10 (1.30%) Sybase
9 9 (1.17%) Google
9 9 (1.17%) McAfee
10 8 (1.04%) Denodo
10 8 (1.04%) Remedy
10 8 (1.04%) Starlink
10 8 (1.04%) Talend
11 7 (0.91%) Lotus
11 7 (0.91%) Red Hat