Telecoms Contract Job Trends

Telecommunications
UK

The table below looks at the prevalence of the term Telecoms in contract job vacancies. Included is a benchmarking guide to the contractor rates offered in vacancies that cited Telecoms over the 6 months leading up to 15 August 2026, comparing them to the same period in the previous two years.

6 months to
15 Aug 2026
Same period 2025 Same period 2024
Rank 168 98 69
Rank change year-on-year -70 -29 +8
Contract jobs citing Telecoms 880 849 1,162
As % of all contract jobs in the UK 1.64% 2.58% 2.99%
As % of the General category 2.98% 4.06% 5.21%
Number of daily rates quoted 500 495 564
10th Percentile £213 £293 £222
25th Percentile £397 £376 £363
Median daily rate (50th Percentile) £475 £470 £475
Median % change year-on-year +1.06% -1.05% -2.01%
75th Percentile £565 £575 £613
90th Percentile £675 £700 £738
UK excluding London median daily rate £450 £459 £475
% change year-on-year -1.91% -3.42% +5.56%
Number of hourly rates quoted 47 50 105
10th Percentile £15.32 - £12.15
25th Percentile £16.75 £14.00 £16.92
Median hourly rate £21.00 £22.13 £55.00
Median % change year-on-year -5.08% -59.77% -15.38%
75th Percentile £50.00 £54.44 £72.50
90th Percentile £178.75 £66.48 £75.75
UK excluding London median hourly rate £21.00 £15.50 £52.50
% change year-on-year +35.48% -70.48% -10.64%

All General Skills
UK

Telecoms falls under the General Skills category. For comparison with the information above, the following table provides summary statistics for all contract job vacancies requiring general skills.

Contract vacancies with a requirement for general skills 29,561 20,915 22,309
As % of all contract IT jobs advertised in the UK 55.10% 63.46% 57.44%
Number of daily rates quoted 17,532 13,009 14,027
10th Percentile £313 £276 £289
25th Percentile £414 £400 £413
Median daily rate (50th Percentile) £525 £500 £525
Median % change year-on-year +5.00% -4.76% -4.55%
75th Percentile £638 £626 £650
90th Percentile £738 £748 £775
UK excluding London median daily rate £500 £475 £497
% change year-on-year +5.26% -4.45% -0.58%
Number of hourly rates quoted 2,237 1,144 1,369
10th Percentile £13.97 £13.25 £14.06
25th Percentile £17.23 £16.29 £17.08
Median hourly rate £31.50 £25.15 £38.12
Median % change year-on-year +25.25% -34.02% +37.42%
75th Percentile £57.50 £50.75 £58.49
90th Percentile £80.00 £71.50 £70.00
UK excluding London median hourly rate £32.50 £22.14 £38.12
% change year-on-year +46.79% -41.92% +48.91%

Telecoms
Job Vacancy Trend

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

Telecoms job vacancy trend in the UK

Telecoms
Daily Rate Trend

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

Contractor daily rate distribution trend for jobs in the UK citing Telecoms

Telecoms
Daily Rate Histogram

Daily rate distribution for jobs citing Telecoms over the 6 months to 15 August 2026.

Daily rate histogram for Telecoms in the UK

Telecoms
Hourly Rate Trend

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

Contractor hourly rate distribution trend for jobs in the UK citing Telecoms

Telecoms
Hourly Rate Histogram

Hourly rate distribution of jobs citing Telecoms over the 6 months to 15 August 2026.

Hourly rate histogram for Telecoms in the UK

Telecoms
Top 17 Contract Job Locations

The table below looks at the demand and provides a guide to the median contractor rates quoted in IT jobs citing Telecoms within the UK over the 6 months to 15 August 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 -80 730 £475 -1.25% 1,147
UK excluding London -78 437 £450 -1.91% 676
London -26 335 £513 +7.89% 562
Work from Home -26 263 £480 - 442
South East -49 193 £465 -7.00% 237
North of England -58 58 £469 -6.25% 137
Scotland +4 54 £300 -7.69% 59
South West -85 45 £450 -14.29% 58
East of England -4 44 £190 -49.33% 53
Midlands -62 38 £475 +25.00% 112
West Midlands -60 35 £473 +24.34% 69
Yorkshire -23 32 £475 +128.92% 38
North West -62 25 £463 -12.74% 73
Wales -9 8 £200 -6.98% 24
Northern Ireland -1 4 £300 +81.82% 5
East Midlands -16 3 £500 +33.33% 43
North East -43 1 - - 29

Telecoms
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 19 (2.16%) Confluence
2 16 (1.82%) OpenStack
3 13 (1.48%) SharePoint
4 10 (1.14%) ArcGIS
5 8 (0.91%) Microsoft Exchange
6 7 (0.80%) Apache Airflow
7 4 (0.45%) Anypoint
8 3 (0.34%) Apache Spark
9 2 (0.23%) CMS
10 1 (0.11%) Apache
10 1 (0.11%) Camunda
10 1 (0.11%) IIS
10 1 (0.11%) Oracle Collaboration Suite
10 1 (0.11%) Smallworld
Applications
1 33 (3.75%) Microsoft Excel
2 28 (3.18%) Microsoft Office
3 21 (2.39%) MS Visio
4 12 (1.36%) Microsoft Project
5 10 (1.14%) Microsoft PowerPoint
6 5 (0.57%) AutoCAD
7 3 (0.34%) Adobe Creative Suite
8 2 (0.23%) Spreadsheet
9 1 (0.11%) Adobe Illustrator
9 1 (0.11%) Autodesk Inventor
9 1 (0.11%) Chatbot
9 1 (0.11%) InDesign
9 1 (0.11%) MicroStation
9 1 (0.11%) Photoshop
9 1 (0.11%) Revit
9 1 (0.11%) SOLIDWORKS
9 1 (0.11%) Trello
Business Applications
1 19 (2.16%) SAP PSCD
2 10 (1.14%) SAP BRIM
3 8 (0.91%) SAP FI
3 8 (0.91%) SAP Hybris
4 7 (0.80%) SAP FI-CA
5 6 (0.68%) Remedy ITSM
6 5 (0.57%) NetSuite
6 5 (0.57%) Sage X3
6 5 (0.57%) Salesforce CRM
6 5 (0.57%) SAP S/4HANA
7 4 (0.45%) BambooHR
8 3 (0.34%) Remedy AR System
8 3 (0.34%) SAP ERP
9 1 (0.11%) SAP CO
9 1 (0.11%) SAP FI/CO
9 1 (0.11%) SAP FS
9 1 (0.11%) SAP IBP
9 1 (0.11%) SAP IS-U
9 1 (0.11%) SAP SRM
9 1 (0.11%) Sparx Enterprise Architect
Cloud Services
1 97 (11.02%) Azure
2 91 (10.34%) AWS
3 67 (7.61%) GCP
4 22 (2.50%) Microsoft 365
5 20 (2.27%) Power Platform
6 16 (1.82%) Entra ID
6 16 (1.82%) GitHub
7 15 (1.70%) SaaS
8 11 (1.25%) Azure DevOps
8 11 (1.25%) dbt
9 10 (1.14%) Cloud Computing
9 10 (1.14%) SAP Commerce Cloud
9 10 (1.14%) Snowflake
10 9 (1.02%) GitHub Actions
11 6 (0.68%) Cloud Functions
11 6 (0.68%) Datadog
11 6 (0.68%) OneDrive
11 6 (0.68%) Serverless
12 5 (0.57%) Figma
12 5 (0.57%) OpenShift
Communications & Networking
1 106 (12.05%) WAN
2 86 (9.77%) LAN
3 81 (9.20%) 5G
4 74 (8.41%) MPLS
5 60 (6.82%) 4G
6 52 (5.91%) Firewall
7 50 (5.68%) Radio Access Network
8 34 (3.86%) SD-WAN
9 33 (3.75%) DNS
10 28 (3.18%) Wi-Fi
11 27 (3.07%) BGP
12 25 (2.84%) 3G
12 25 (2.84%) Network Security
13 24 (2.73%) LTE
13 24 (2.73%) SDH
14 23 (2.61%) TCP/IP
15 22 (2.50%) VPN
16 21 (2.39%) 3GPP
16 21 (2.39%) Broadband
16 21 (2.39%) VoIP
Database & Business Intelligence
1 19 (2.16%) Data Warehouse
1 19 (2.16%) Power BI
2 14 (1.59%) BigQuery
3 12 (1.36%) Amazon Redshift
3 12 (1.36%) Looker
4 11 (1.25%) NoSQL
4 11 (1.25%) Tableau
5 10 (1.14%) GIS
6 8 (0.91%) Big Data
6 8 (0.91%) PostgreSQL
7 5 (0.57%) Apache Cassandra
7 5 (0.57%) Metadata
7 5 (0.57%) MongoDB
7 5 (0.57%) MySQL
8 4 (0.45%) InfluxDB
8 4 (0.45%) SQL Server
9 3 (0.34%) Hazelcast
9 3 (0.34%) Redis
9 3 (0.34%) Relational Database
9 3 (0.34%) SAP Data Services
Development Applications
1 35 (3.98%) JIRA
2 23 (2.61%) Git
3 12 (1.36%) Jenkins
4 6 (0.68%) GitLab
5 5 (0.57%) Selenium
6 2 (0.23%) Robot Framework
6 2 (0.23%) Sonatype Nexus
7 1 (0.11%) Bitbucket
7 1 (0.11%) Oracle Forms
7 1 (0.11%) Rational DOORS
7 1 (0.11%) TestRail
7 1 (0.11%) Visual Studio
7 1 (0.11%) Visual Studio Code
General
1 245 (27.84%) Social Skills
2 136 (15.45%) Finance
3 116 (13.18%) Analytical Skills
4 59 (6.70%) Public Sector
5 38 (4.32%) Billing
6 31 (3.52%) Documentation Skills
7 30 (3.41%) Retail
8 25 (2.84%) Legal
8 25 (2.84%) Organisational Skills
9 22 (2.50%) Marketing
10 18 (2.05%) Influencing Skills
11 15 (1.70%) Aerospace
12 14 (1.59%) Presentation Skills
13 12 (1.36%) Manufacturing
14 10 (1.14%) Publishing
15 9 (1.02%) Inclusion and Diversity
16 8 (0.91%) Police
17 6 (0.68%) Electronics
18 4 (0.45%) Military
19 3 (0.34%) Banking
Job Titles
1 134 (15.23%) Architect
2 79 (8.98%) Senior
3 68 (7.73%) Consultant
3 68 (7.73%) Lead
4 59 (6.70%) Analyst
5 58 (6.59%) Project Manager
6 57 (6.48%) Network Engineer
7 46 (5.23%) Field Engineer
7 46 (5.23%) Solutions Architect
8 42 (4.77%) Telecoms Engineer
9 39 (4.43%) Designer
10 34 (3.86%) Telecoms Manager
11 32 (3.64%) Developer
12 29 (3.30%) ServiceNow Architect
13 27 (3.07%) Enterprise Architect
14 26 (2.95%) Data Engineer
15 21 (2.39%) Telecoms Architect
16 20 (2.27%) Platform Engineer
16 20 (2.27%) SAP Consultant
17 19 (2.16%) Programme Manager
Libraries, Frameworks & Software Standards
1 53 (6.02%) REST
2 33 (3.75%) SOAP
3 18 (2.05%) Kafka
4 13 (1.48%) ONVIF
4 13 (1.48%) RESTful
4 13 (1.48%) XML
5 12 (1.36%) Elastic Stack
5 12 (1.36%) Middleware
5 12 (1.36%) NETCONF
5 12 (1.36%) YANG
6 10 (1.14%) AngularJS
6 10 (1.14%) HTML
6 10 (1.14%) React
7 9 (1.02%) CSS
7 9 (1.02%) OpenAPI
7 9 (1.02%) Swagger
8 8 (0.91%) JSON
9 7 (0.80%) 802.1X
10 6 (0.68%) Backbone.js
10 6 (0.68%) Vue
Miscellaneous
1 51 (5.80%) Data Centre
2 50 (5.68%) CMDB
3 43 (4.89%) Onboarding
4 38 (4.32%) Driving Licence
5 34 (3.86%) Cloud Native
6 22 (2.50%) Analytical Mindset
7 19 (2.16%) Product Ownership
7 19 (2.16%) Virtual Team
8 18 (2.05%) Data Protection Act
9 17 (1.93%) Management Information System
9 17 (1.93%) Self-Motivation
10 16 (1.82%) Hybrid Cloud
11 13 (1.48%) Video\Live Streaming
12 11 (1.25%) Algorithms
12 11 (1.25%) TM Forum
13 10 (1.14%) Data Structures
13 10 (1.14%) Video Conferencing
14 9 (1.02%) Distributed Systems
14 9 (1.02%) Private Cloud
15 8 (0.91%) Enterprise Software
Operating Systems
1 48 (5.45%) Windows
2 36 (4.09%) Linux
3 15 (1.70%) Windows 10
4 11 (1.25%) Unix
4 11 (1.25%) Windows Server
5 8 (0.91%) Mac OS
6 4 (0.45%) Android
7 3 (0.34%) Apple iOS
7 3 (0.34%) VMS
8 2 (0.23%) Embedded Linux
8 2 (0.23%) OpenVMS
8 2 (0.23%) Red Hat Enterprise Linux
9 1 (0.11%) Mac OS X
9 1 (0.11%) Oracle Linux
9 1 (0.11%) Ubuntu
9 1 (0.11%) Windows 7
Processes & Methodologies
1 175 (19.89%) Stakeholder Management
2 126 (14.32%) Agile
3 115 (13.07%) Problem-Solving
4 89 (10.11%) Project Delivery
5 87 (9.89%) ITIL
6 82 (9.32%) Stakeholder Engagement
7 72 (8.18%) AI
8 71 (8.07%) Roadmaps
9 70 (7.95%) CI/CD
10 69 (7.84%) Project Management
11 68 (7.73%) Service Management
12 67 (7.61%) Migration
13 65 (7.39%) Continuous Improvement
14 59 (6.70%) Decision-Making
15 57 (6.48%) Validation
16 56 (6.36%) Change Management
16 56 (6.36%) CRM
17 55 (6.25%) Technical Leadership
18 53 (6.02%) Customer Service
19 52 (5.91%) Analytics
Programming Languages
1 76 (8.64%) Python
2 44 (5.00%) SQL
3 32 (3.64%) JavaScript
4 18 (2.05%) Bash
5 15 (1.70%) Java
6 10 (1.14%) PowerShell
7 9 (1.02%) C#
8 7 (0.80%) Apex Code
8 7 (0.80%) R
9 5 (0.57%) C++
10 4 (0.45%) ABAP
10 4 (0.45%) DataWeave
10 4 (0.45%) Shell Script
10 4 (0.45%) SOQL
10 4 (0.45%) TypeScript
11 3 (0.34%) LookML
12 2 (0.23%) Bicep
12 2 (0.23%) C
12 2 (0.23%) DCL
13 1 (0.11%) Go
Qualifications
1 157 (17.84%) Security Cleared
2 101 (11.48%) SC Cleared
3 89 (10.11%) Degree
4 61 (6.93%) Cisco Certification
5 42 (4.77%) CCNA
6 24 (2.73%) DV Cleared
6 24 (2.73%) Microsoft Certification
7 23 (2.61%) PMP
8 22 (2.50%) A+ Certification
8 22 (2.50%) Computer Science Degree
9 21 (2.39%) CCNP
10 18 (2.05%) PMI Certification
11 17 (1.93%) BPSS Clearance
12 13 (1.48%) MCSA
13 11 (1.25%) Azure Certification
14 10 (1.14%) CCIE
15 9 (1.02%) AWS Certification
15 9 (1.02%) CISSP
15 9 (1.02%) Network+ Certification
16 8 (0.91%) CISM
Quality Assurance & Compliance
1 29 (3.30%) ISO/IEC 27001
1 29 (3.30%) SLA
2 26 (2.95%) QA
3 23 (2.61%) GDPR
4 21 (2.39%) GRC
5 20 (2.27%) PMO
6 18 (2.05%) NCSC
7 15 (1.70%) Data Quality
8 9 (1.02%) NIST
9 3 (0.34%) Accessibility
9 3 (0.34%) Actionable Recommendations
9 3 (0.34%) Cyber Essentials
9 3 (0.34%) PCI DSS
9 3 (0.34%) Sarbanes-Oxley
10 2 (0.23%) Cyber Essentials PLUS
10 2 (0.23%) EU AI Act
11 1 (0.11%) ISO 31000
11 1 (0.11%) ISO/IEC 15288
11 1 (0.11%) ISO/IEC 42001
11 1 (0.11%) SOC 1
System Software
1 25 (2.84%) Docker
2 23 (2.61%) Active Directory
3 21 (2.39%) VMware Infrastructure
4 8 (0.91%) VMware NSX
5 5 (0.57%) VMware ESXi
5 5 (0.57%) vSphere
6 3 (0.34%) Hyper-V
7 1 (0.11%) Ceph
7 1 (0.11%) Firmware
7 1 (0.11%) KVM
7 1 (0.11%) NDS
7 1 (0.11%) NetIQ eDirectory
7 1 (0.11%) Virtual Servers
Systems Management
1 50 (5.68%) Kubernetes
2 22 (2.50%) Terraform
3 20 (2.27%) Ansible
4 16 (1.82%) Grafana
4 16 (1.82%) Prometheus
5 8 (0.91%) Microsoft Intune
6 5 (0.57%) Jamf Pro
7 3 (0.34%) Amdocs OSS
7 3 (0.34%) Check_MK
7 3 (0.34%) Cisco Prime
7 3 (0.34%) Kibana
7 3 (0.34%) Podman
7 3 (0.34%) vCenter Server
7 3 (0.34%) vRealize
8 2 (0.23%) Cilium
8 2 (0.23%) Istio
8 2 (0.23%) NSN NetAct
8 2 (0.23%) QRadar
8 2 (0.23%) SolarWinds Orion
9 1 (0.11%) AirWatch
Vendors
1 121 (13.75%) Microsoft
2 108 (12.27%) Cisco
3 89 (10.11%) ServiceNow
4 55 (6.25%) Nokia
5 45 (5.11%) Salesforce
6 35 (3.98%) VMware
7 29 (3.30%) SAP
8 25 (2.84%) Google
9 24 (2.73%) Ericsson
10 22 (2.50%) BT
10 22 (2.50%) Juniper
11 19 (2.16%) F5
12 18 (2.05%) Fortinet
12 18 (2.05%) MuleSoft
13 16 (1.82%) Huawei
14 12 (1.36%) BMC
14 12 (1.36%) Palo Alto
15 9 (1.02%) CheckPoint
15 9 (1.02%) Oracle
15 9 (1.02%) Zscaler