Support Engineer Contract Job Trends

Support Engineer
UK

The median Support Engineer daily rate in the UK is £235, according to job vacancies posted in the 6 months leading up to 31 July 2026.

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

6 months to
31 Jul 2026
Same period 2025 Same period 2024
Rank 176 137 111
Rank change year-on-year -39 -26 -15
Contract jobs requiring a Support Engineer 841 695 825
As % of all contract jobs in the UK 1.58% 2.12% 2.08%
As % of the Job Titles category 1.71% 2.32% 2.23%
Number of daily rates quoted 553 447 571
10th Percentile £163 £160 £140
25th Percentile £188 £195 £170
Median daily rate (50th Percentile) £235 £235 £225
Median % change year-on-year - +4.44% -10.00%
75th Percentile £400 £382 £344
90th Percentile £492 £538 £522
UK excluding London median daily rate £225 £228 £210
% change year-on-year -1.10% +8.33% -5.62%
Number of hourly rates quoted 54 66 50
10th Percentile £16.34 £17.39 £16.93
25th Percentile £18.31 £20.79 £18.03
Median hourly rate £25.39 £25.20 £21.50
Median % change year-on-year +0.73% +17.21% +12.04%
75th Percentile £36.00 £43.75 £24.80
90th Percentile £53.00 £68.00 £58.84
UK excluding London median hourly rate £22.00 £25.15 £22.00
% change year-on-year -12.52% +14.32% +15.79%

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 49,168 30,000 36,945
% of contract IT jobs with a recognized job title 92.60% 91.47% 92.99%
Number of daily rates quoted 29,645 19,092 23,906
10th Percentile £331 £284 £300
25th Percentile £425 £400 £413
Median daily rate (50th Percentile) £525 £500 £525
Median % change year-on-year +5.00% -4.76% -2.02%
75th Percentile £625 £623 £638
90th Percentile £725 £725 £750
UK excluding London median daily rate £500 £475 £500
% change year-on-year +5.26% -5.00% -
Number of hourly rates quoted 3,387 1,467 2,179
10th Percentile £15.37 £13.72 £14.05
25th Percentile £21.25 £17.30 £19.05
Median hourly rate £42.50 £25.15 £42.50
Median % change year-on-year +68.99% -40.82% -1.16%
75th Percentile £67.86 £55.00 £65.00
90th Percentile £80.00 £73.75 £75.00
UK excluding London median hourly rate £45.00 £25.15 £43.00
% change year-on-year +78.93% -41.51% +8.72%

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 31 July 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 31 July 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 31 July 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 -49 711 £225 -4.26% 240
UK excluding London -33 566 £225 -1.10% 219
London -44 242 £250 - 49
South East -32 167 £250 - 74
North of England -47 117 £200 -9.09% 47
Scotland +57 84 £442 +42.58% 12
Work from Home -83 79 £263 -25.00% 69
North West -33 77 £200 -12.09% 27
Midlands -60 63 £250 -9.09% 31
South West -56 61 £210 -10.64% 21
East of England -4 60 £200 - 38
West Midlands -77 40 £250 -9.09% 17
Yorkshire -32 39 £210 -7.69% 16
East Midlands -6 22 £250 +36.61% 14
Wales -28 10 £195 -2.50% 2
Northern Ireland -5 4 £175 -30.00% 3
North East -58 2 £233 +19.23% 6
Channel Islands - 1 £550 -

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

For the 6 months to 31 July 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.

1 442 (52.56%) Windows
2 357 (42.45%) Active Directory
3 353 (41.97%) Microsoft
4 298 (35.43%) Microsoft 365
5 190 (22.59%) Problem-Solving
6 181 (21.52%) Windows 10
7 175 (20.81%) Customer Service
8 169 (20.10%) Security Cleared
9 155 (18.43%) ITIL
10 140 (16.65%) Azure
11 124 (14.74%) Microsoft Intune
12 120 (14.27%) Entra ID
13 118 (14.03%) ServiceNow
14 108 (12.84%) SC Cleared
15 99 (11.77%) SharePoint
16 92 (10.94%) DNS
17 89 (10.58%) ITSM
18 82 (9.75%) PowerShell
19 65 (7.73%) Continuous Improvement
20 64 (7.61%) SQL
21 63 (7.49%) Linux
22 62 (7.37%) VPN
23 61 (7.25%) JIRA
24 60 (7.13%) Asset Management
24 60 (7.13%) Microsoft Exchange
24 60 (7.13%) Migration
24 60 (7.13%) Service Delivery
25 57 (6.78%) DHCP
25 57 (6.78%) Windows Server
26 55 (6.54%) TCP/IP

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 99 (11.77%) SharePoint
2 60 (7.13%) Microsoft Exchange
3 12 (1.43%) NetWeaver
4 11 (1.31%) HCL Notes
5 3 (0.36%) Confluence
5 3 (0.36%) Skype for Business
6 2 (0.24%) IIS
6 2 (0.24%) OpenStack
6 2 (0.24%) WebLogic
7 1 (0.12%) Exchange Server 2013
7 1 (0.12%) Tuxedo
7 1 (0.12%) WebSphere
Applications
1 42 (4.99%) Microsoft Office
2 12 (1.43%) Microsoft Excel
3 4 (0.48%) Microsoft PowerPoint
4 1 (0.12%) Acrobat
4 1 (0.12%) Chatbot
4 1 (0.12%) MS Visio
Business Applications
1 11 (1.31%) SAP S/4HANA
2 7 (0.83%) Remedy ITSM
3 4 (0.48%) SAP EHS
4 3 (0.36%) Teamcenter
5 2 (0.24%) NetSuite
6 1 (0.12%) Alphatax
6 1 (0.12%) Dynamics CRM
6 1 (0.12%) Dynamics GP
6 1 (0.12%) Oracle BRM
6 1 (0.12%) SAP BRIM
6 1 (0.12%) SAP FI
6 1 (0.12%) SAP FI-CA
6 1 (0.12%) SAP FS
6 1 (0.12%) SAP GRC
Cloud Services
1 298 (35.43%) Microsoft 365
2 140 (16.65%) Azure
3 120 (14.27%) Entra ID
4 36 (4.28%) OneDrive
5 32 (3.80%) AWS
6 20 (2.38%) Azure DevOps
7 18 (2.14%) GCP
7 18 (2.14%) SaaS
8 10 (1.19%) Power Platform
9 8 (0.95%) Google Workspace
10 7 (0.83%) PaaS
11 6 (0.71%) IaaS
12 5 (0.59%) Mimecast
13 3 (0.36%) Amazon EC2
13 3 (0.36%) Amazon S3
13 3 (0.36%) Azure Data Factory
13 3 (0.36%) Google App Engine
13 3 (0.36%) Google Compute Engine
13 3 (0.36%) OpenShift
13 3 (0.36%) Sauce Labs
Communications & Networking
1 92 (10.94%) DNS
2 62 (7.37%) VPN
3 57 (6.78%) DHCP
4 55 (6.54%) TCP/IP
5 40 (4.76%) Wi-Fi
6 34 (4.04%) LAN
7 24 (2.85%) WAN
8 23 (2.73%) SAN
9 20 (2.38%) Firewall
9 20 (2.38%) Internet
10 16 (1.90%) VLAN
11 9 (1.07%) Wireless
12 7 (0.83%) HTTP
12 7 (0.83%) Skype
12 7 (0.83%) WLAN
13 5 (0.59%) SMTP
13 5 (0.59%) WebEx
14 4 (0.48%) Network Security
14 4 (0.48%) Remote Desktop
15 3 (0.36%) Unified Communications
Database & Business Intelligence
1 39 (4.64%) SQL Server
2 16 (1.90%) MySQL
3 12 (1.43%) SAP HANA
4 11 (1.31%) Sybase ASE
5 10 (1.19%) MaxDB
6 9 (1.07%) Power BI
7 8 (0.95%) Relational Database
8 7 (0.83%) Amazon Redshift
8 7 (0.83%) Pentaho
9 6 (0.71%) PostgreSQL
10 5 (0.59%) Amazon RDS
10 5 (0.59%) Oracle Database
10 5 (0.59%) SQL Server Integration Services
11 4 (0.48%) Oracle Database 12c
12 3 (0.36%) Big Data
12 3 (0.36%) Data Warehouse
12 3 (0.36%) Elasticsearch
12 3 (0.36%) SQL Server Reporting Services
13 2 (0.24%) MariaDB
13 2 (0.24%) SQL Server Analysis Services
Development Applications
1 61 (7.25%) JIRA
2 20 (2.38%) Git
3 9 (1.07%) Browser DevTools
4 3 (0.36%) Android Studio
4 3 (0.36%) Eclipse
4 3 (0.36%) Jenkins
4 3 (0.36%) Xcode
5 2 (0.24%) Artifactory
5 2 (0.24%) Firebug
6 1 (0.12%) Atlassian Bamboo
6 1 (0.12%) Bitbucket
6 1 (0.12%) Claude Code
6 1 (0.12%) Gemini Tracker
6 1 (0.12%) GitLab
6 1 (0.12%) MSI
6 1 (0.12%) SQL Server Management Studio (SSMS)
6 1 (0.12%) Subversion
6 1 (0.12%) TeamCity
6 1 (0.12%) Visual Studio Code
General
1 339 (40.31%) Social Skills
2 101 (12.01%) Analytical Skills
3 65 (7.73%) Finance
4 43 (5.11%) Manufacturing
5 34 (4.04%) Banking
6 24 (2.85%) Organisational Skills
7 21 (2.50%) Inclusion and Diversity
8 17 (2.02%) Investment Banking
9 16 (1.90%) Documentation Skills
10 15 (1.78%) Retail
11 13 (1.55%) Law
12 11 (1.31%) Aerospace
13 10 (1.19%) Aviation
13 10 (1.19%) Financial Institution
13 10 (1.19%) Front Office
13 10 (1.19%) Telecoms
14 9 (1.07%) Legal
14 9 (1.07%) Spanish Language
15 7 (0.83%) Marketing
15 7 (0.83%) Public Sector
Libraries, Frameworks & Software Standards
1 15 (1.78%) .NET
2 11 (1.31%) LDAP
2 11 (1.31%) SAP Basis
3 10 (1.19%) Oracle GoldenGate
4 9 (1.07%) REST
4 9 (1.07%) XML
5 7 (0.83%) JDO
6 6 (0.71%) .NET Framework
6 6 (0.71%) SAP Fiori
6 6 (0.71%) SAPUI5
6 6 (0.71%) Software Packaging
7 5 (0.59%) CSS
7 5 (0.59%) SAML
8 4 (0.48%) OAuth
9 3 (0.36%) Ajax
9 3 (0.36%) GraphQL
9 3 (0.36%) JSP
9 3 (0.36%) Middleware
9 3 (0.36%) React
9 3 (0.36%) RESTful
Miscellaneous
1 107 (12.72%) Onboarding
2 35 (4.16%) Data Centre
3 23 (2.73%) Analytical Mindset
3 23 (2.73%) Video Conferencing
4 22 (2.62%) Self-Motivation
5 19 (2.26%) PKI
6 15 (1.78%) Data Protection Act
7 14 (1.66%) Driving Licence
7 14 (1.66%) Hedge funds
7 14 (1.66%) iPhone
8 13 (1.55%) Enterprise Software
9 12 (1.43%) Legacy Systems
9 12 (1.43%) Virtual Team
10 11 (1.31%) Blackberry
10 11 (1.31%) SCADA
11 10 (1.19%) Smartphone
12 9 (1.07%) iPad
13 7 (0.83%) CMDB
13 7 (0.83%) Management Information System
14 6 (0.71%) BYOD
Operating Systems
1 442 (52.56%) Windows
2 181 (21.52%) Windows 10
3 63 (7.49%) Linux
4 57 (6.78%) Windows Server
5 52 (6.18%) Mac OS
6 41 (4.88%) Unix
7 29 (3.45%) Apple iOS
8 27 (3.21%) Android
9 18 (2.14%) Windows 7
10 9 (1.07%) Windows Server 2019
11 8 (0.95%) Ubuntu
12 7 (0.83%) Red Hat Enterprise Linux
13 6 (0.71%) Windows Server 2016
14 4 (0.48%) Solaris
14 4 (0.48%) Windows Server 2008
15 3 (0.36%) OpenVMS
15 3 (0.36%) VMS
15 3 (0.36%) Windows Server 2012
15 3 (0.36%) Windows XP
16 2 (0.24%) Mac OS X
Processes & Methodologies
1 190 (22.59%) Problem-Solving
2 175 (20.81%) Customer Service
3 155 (18.43%) ITIL
4 89 (10.58%) ITSM
5 65 (7.73%) Continuous Improvement
6 60 (7.13%) Asset Management
6 60 (7.13%) Migration
6 60 (7.13%) Service Delivery
7 46 (5.47%) Change Management
7 46 (5.47%) Problem Management
8 44 (5.23%) Service Management
9 43 (5.11%) User Experience
10 41 (4.88%) Incident Management
11 40 (4.76%) Identity Access Management
12 39 (4.64%) Infrastructure Engineering
13 37 (4.40%) Root Cause Analysis
14 30 (3.57%) Data Protection
14 30 (3.57%) DevOps
15 29 (3.45%) High Availability
15 29 (3.45%) Runbook
Programming Languages
1 82 (9.75%) PowerShell
2 64 (7.61%) SQL
3 32 (3.80%) Python
4 27 (3.21%) C#
5 21 (2.50%) Java
6 17 (2.02%) Bash
6 17 (2.02%) Shell Script
7 16 (1.90%) JavaScript
8 10 (1.19%) Korn
9 7 (0.83%) C++
10 6 (0.71%) Perl
11 4 (0.48%) T-SQL
12 2 (0.24%) DCL
12 2 (0.24%) Go
12 2 (0.24%) VBScript
13 1 (0.12%) C
13 1 (0.12%) Search Processing Language
13 1 (0.12%) VB.NET
13 1 (0.12%) VBA
Qualifications
1 169 (20.10%) Security Cleared
2 108 (12.84%) SC Cleared
3 54 (6.42%) Degree
4 46 (5.47%) DV Cleared
5 31 (3.69%) Microsoft Certification
6 30 (3.57%) A+ Certification
7 24 (2.85%) Network+ Certification
8 21 (2.50%) CCNA
8 21 (2.50%) Cisco Certification
9 16 (1.90%) BPSS Clearance
9 16 (1.90%) MCSE
10 10 (1.19%) Computer Science Degree
11 9 (1.07%) DBS Check
12 7 (0.83%) Microsoft Certified Professional
13 6 (0.71%) Azure Certification
13 6 (0.71%) ITIL Foundation Certificate
14 5 (0.59%) ITIL Certification
15 4 (0.48%) NVQ Level 4
16 1 (0.12%) AWS Certification
16 1 (0.12%) CTC Cleared
Quality Assurance & Compliance
1 51 (6.06%) SLA
2 6 (0.71%) QA
3 5 (0.59%) Data Quality
4 4 (0.48%) GDPR
5 3 (0.36%) Cyber Essentials
5 3 (0.36%) Sarbanes-Oxley
6 2 (0.24%) GLP
6 2 (0.24%) GMP
6 2 (0.24%) GxP
6 2 (0.24%) ISO/IEC 27001
7 1 (0.12%) Actionable Recommendations
7 1 (0.12%) Disclosure Scotland
7 1 (0.12%) GRC
7 1 (0.12%) ITGC
System Software
1 357 (42.45%) Active Directory
2 43 (5.11%) VMware Infrastructure
3 24 (2.85%) VMware ESXi
4 22 (2.62%) Hyper-V
5 17 (2.02%) VMware NSX
6 15 (1.78%) Virtual Desktop
7 12 (1.43%) vCloud
8 10 (1.19%) Oracle RAC
9 7 (0.83%) vSphere
10 5 (0.59%) BitLocker
10 5 (0.59%) Docker
10 5 (0.59%) NFS
11 4 (0.48%) Firmware
12 3 (0.36%) Microsoft App-V
12 3 (0.36%) Terminal Services
13 2 (0.24%) zsh
14 1 (0.12%) Virtual Servers
14 1 (0.12%) XenDesktop
Systems Management
1 124 (14.74%) Microsoft Intune
2 49 (5.83%) SCCM
3 24 (2.85%) vCenter Server
4 21 (2.50%) Single Sign-On
5 18 (2.14%) SCOM
6 16 (1.90%) Jamf Pro
7 12 (1.43%) Grafana
8 10 (1.19%) Oracle Enterprise Manager
8 10 (1.19%) Oracle RMAN
9 9 (1.07%) Ansible
9 9 (1.07%) Kubernetes
9 9 (1.07%) Terraform
10 5 (0.59%) Red Hat Satellite
11 3 (0.36%) AirWatch
11 3 (0.36%) ITRS Geneos
11 3 (0.36%) Nagios
11 3 (0.36%) Puppet
11 3 (0.36%) vMotion
11 3 (0.36%) vRealize
11 3 (0.36%) WSUS
Vendors
1 353 (41.97%) Microsoft
2 118 (14.03%) ServiceNow
3 55 (6.54%) VMware
4 35 (4.16%) Apple
5 32 (3.80%) Oracle
6 31 (3.69%) Okta
7 25 (2.97%) Google
8 21 (2.50%) Citrix
8 21 (2.50%) Dell
8 21 (2.50%) SAP
9 20 (2.38%) BeyondTrust
9 20 (2.38%) Cisco
10 14 (1.66%) HP
11 12 (1.43%) Meraki
12 11 (1.31%) Lotus
12 11 (1.31%) Sybase
13 10 (1.19%) Splunk
14 9 (1.07%) iManage
14 9 (1.07%) McAfee
14 9 (1.07%) Remedy