Wide Area Network (WAN)
UK
The table below provides summary statistics and contractor rates for jobs requiring WAN skills. It covers contract job vacancies from the 6 months leading up to 1 January 2026, with comparisons to the same periods in the previous two years.
| 6 months to 1 Jan 2026 |
Same period 2025 | Same period 2024 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | 202 | 157 | 105 |
| Rank change year-on-year | -45 | -52 | +58 |
| Contract jobs citing WAN | 532 | 556 | 941 |
| As % of all contract jobs in the UK | 1.43% | 1.68% | 2.19% |
| As % of the Communications & Networking category | 13.40% | 13.15% | 16.08% |
| Number of daily rates quoted | 342 | 360 | 550 |
| 10th Percentile | £250 | £243 | £233 |
| 25th Percentile | £350 | £363 | £350 |
| Median daily rate (50th Percentile) | £450 | £493 | £500 |
| Median % change year-on-year | -8.63% | -1.50% | +8.11% |
| 75th Percentile | £550 | £583 | £647 |
| 90th Percentile | £649 | £650 | £738 |
| UK excluding London median daily rate | £425 | £438 | £475 |
| % change year-on-year | -2.86% | -7.89% | +5.56% |
| Number of hourly rates quoted | 20 | 12 | 32 |
| 10th Percentile | £12.97 | £18.78 | £17.29 |
| 25th Percentile | £15.50 | £28.75 | £21.81 |
| Median hourly rate | £23.50 | £55.00 | £23.75 |
| Median % change year-on-year | -57.27% | +131.58% | +3.26% |
| 75th Percentile | £35.00 | £75.00 | £69.62 |
| 90th Percentile | £69.03 | - | £75.23 |
| UK excluding London median hourly rate | £16.00 | £72.50 | £23.00 |
| % change year-on-year | -77.93% | +215.22% | - |
All Communications and Computer Networking Skills
UK
WAN falls under the Communications and Computer Networking category. For comparison with the information above, the following table provides summary statistics for all contract job vacancies requiring communications or computer networking skills.
| Contract vacancies with a requirement for communications or computer networking skills | 3,970 | 4,228 | 5,851 |
| As % of all contract IT jobs advertised in the UK | 10.70% | 12.75% | 13.62% |
| Number of daily rates quoted | 2,600 | 2,480 | 3,605 |
| 10th Percentile | £206 | £220 | £209 |
| 25th Percentile | £356 | £368 | £363 |
| Median daily rate (50th Percentile) | £475 | £500 | £500 |
| Median % change year-on-year | -5.00% | - | - |
| 75th Percentile | £588 | £600 | £600 |
| 90th Percentile | £675 | £675 | £700 |
| UK excluding London median daily rate | £450 | £475 | £473 |
| % change year-on-year | -5.26% | +0.53% | +5.00% |
| Number of hourly rates quoted | 179 | 138 | 329 |
| 10th Percentile | £15.50 | £14.86 | £17.72 |
| 25th Percentile | £20.00 | £20.88 | £23.00 |
| Median hourly rate | £34.00 | £35.00 | £56.49 |
| Median % change year-on-year | -2.86% | -38.04% | +68.63% |
| 75th Percentile | £65.50 | £57.81 | £65.98 |
| 90th Percentile | £80.00 | £70.38 | £75.33 |
| UK excluding London median hourly rate | £42.50 | £32.50 | £57.99 |
| % change year-on-year | +30.77% | -43.96% | +50.62% |
WAN
Job Vacancy Trend
Historical trend showing the proportion of contract IT job postings citing WAN relative to all contract IT jobs advertised.
WAN
Daily Rate Trend
Contractor daily rate distribution trend for jobs in the UK citing WAN.
WAN
Daily Rate Histogram
Daily rate distribution for jobs citing WAN over the 6 months to 1 January 2026.
WAN
Hourly Rate Trend
Contractor hourly rate distribution trend for jobs in the UK citing WAN.
WAN
Hourly Rate Histogram
Hourly rate distribution of jobs citing WAN over the 6 months to 1 January 2026.
WAN
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 WAN within the UK over the 6 months to 1 January 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 | -53 | 441 | £456 | -8.44% | 529 |
| UK excluding London | -44 | 312 | £425 | -2.86% | 461 |
| London | -11 | 166 | £525 | +2.44% | 150 |
| Work from Home | -10 | 134 | £460 | -11.96% | 140 |
| North of England | -66 | 78 | £445 | +1.14% | 83 |
| South East | -23 | 77 | £456 | -8.80% | 129 |
| Midlands | -36 | 65 | £395 | -7.06% | 93 |
| West Midlands | -15 | 61 | £395 | -7.06% | 60 |
| North West | -27 | 58 | £450 | - | 40 |
| Scotland | +49 | 47 | £360 | -10.00% | 30 |
| East of England | -29 | 25 | £350 | -36.36% | 60 |
| Yorkshire | -74 | 18 | £440 | +79.59% | 40 |
| South West | -36 | 12 | £531 | +26.49% | 50 |
| Wales | +3 | 6 | £335 | +67.50% | 14 |
| East Midlands | -37 | 3 | £408 | +8.67% | 30 |
| Northern Ireland | -6 | 2 | £600 | - | 10 |
| North East | -7 | 2 | £550 | +22.22% | 4 |
WAN
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:
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