Lead Software Engineer Job Trends in Cardiff

Lead Software Engineer
South Wales > Cardiff

The median Lead Software Engineer salary in Cardiff is £75,000 per year, according to job vacancies posted during the 6 months leading to 12 January 2026.

The table below compares current salary benchmarking and summary statistics with the previous two years.

6 months to
12 Jan 2026
Same period 2025 Same period 2024
Rank 35 37 -
Rank change year-on-year +2 - -
Permanent jobs requiring a Lead Software Engineer 2 13 0
As % of all permanent jobs in Cardiff 0.57% 3.66% -
As % of the Job Titles category 0.59% 3.82% -
Number of salaries quoted 2 7 0
Median annual salary (50th Percentile) £75,000 £95,000 -
Median % change year-on-year -21.05% - -
South Wales median annual salary £75,000 £95,000 -
% change year-on-year -21.05% - -

All Permanent IT Job Roles
Cardiff

For comparison with the information above, the following table provides summary statistics for all permanent IT job vacancies in Cardiff. 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 permanent jobs in our overall sample.

Permanent vacancies in Cardiff with a recognized job title 338 340 360
% of permanent jobs with a recognized job title 96.30% 95.77% 95.24%
Number of salaries quoted 236 214 322
10th Percentile £26,000 £30,000 £32,500
25th Percentile £40,000 £31,438 £40,000
Median annual salary (50th Percentile) £55,000 £47,500 £51,000
Median % change year-on-year +15.79% -6.86% +2.00%
75th Percentile £65,000 £63,438 £66,646
90th Percentile £80,000 £76,750 £73,225
South Wales median annual salary £50,000 £50,000 £50,000
% change year-on-year - - +3.75%

Lead Software Engineer
Job Vacancy Trend in Cardiff

Historical trend showing the proportion of permanent IT job postings featuring 'Lead Software Engineer' in the job title relative to all permanent IT jobs advertised in Cardiff.

Lead Software Engineer job vacancy trend in Cardiff

Lead Software Engineer
Salary Trend in Cardiff

Salary distribution trend for Lead Software Engineer job vacancies in Cardiff.

Salary distribution trend for Lead Software Engineer job vacancies in Cardiff

Lead Software Engineer Skill Set
Top 2 Co-Occurring Skills & Capabilities in Cardiff

For the 6 months to 12 January 2026, Lead Software Engineer 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 permanent job ads across the Cardiff region featuring Lead Software Engineer in the job title.

1 2 (100.00%) Continuous Improvement
1 2 (100.00%) Software Engineering

Lead Software Engineer Skill Set
Co-Occurring Skills & Capabilities in Cardiff 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:

Processes & Methodologies
1 2 (100.00%) Continuous Improvement
1 2 (100.00%) Software Engineering