Software Engineer Job Trends in the South East

Software Engineer
England > South East

The median Software Engineer salary in the South East is £65,000 per year, according to job vacancies posted during the 6 months leading to 28 June 2026.

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

6 months to
28 Jun 2026
Same period 2025 Same period 2024
Rank 20 101 29
Rank change year-on-year +81 -72 +43
Permanent jobs requiring a Software Engineer 919 227 1,128
As % of all permanent jobs in the South East 6.07% 2.80% 6.27%
As % of the Job Titles category 6.36% 3.20% 6.66%
Number of salaries quoted 673 167 871
10th Percentile £45,000 £36,250 £37,500
25th Percentile £52,500 £47,875 £45,000
Median annual salary (50th Percentile) £65,000 £65,000 £54,500
Median % change year-on-year - +19.27% -9.17%
75th Percentile £80,000 £75,000 £65,000
90th Percentile £90,000 £92,000 £80,000
England median annual salary £70,000 £78,810 £60,000
% change year-on-year -11.18% +31.35% -14.29%

All Permanent IT Job Roles
South East

For comparison with the information above, the following table provides summary statistics for all permanent IT job vacancies in the South East. 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 the South East with a recognized job title 14,446 7,099 16,946
% of permanent jobs with a recognized job title 95.49% 87.71% 94.21%
Number of salaries quoted 10,198 3,849 12,126
10th Percentile £30,000 £27,500 £27,750
25th Percentile £38,500 £36,250 £36,250
Median annual salary (50th Percentile) £54,000 £50,500 £50,000
Median % change year-on-year +6.93% +1.00% -9.09%
75th Percentile £70,000 £67,500 £65,000
90th Percentile £85,000 £82,500 £77,500
England median annual salary £57,500 £57,500 £52,500
% change year-on-year - +9.52% -12.50%

Software Engineer
Job Vacancy Trend in the South East

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

Software Engineer job vacancy trend in the South East

Software Engineer
Salary Trend in the South East

Salary distribution trend for Software Engineer job vacancies in the South East.

Salary distribution trend for Software Engineer job vacancies in the South East

Software Engineer
Salary Histogram in the South East

Salary distribution for jobs citing Software Engineer in the South East over the 6 months to 28 June 2026.

Salary histogram for Software Engineer in the South East

Software Engineer
Job Locations in the South East

The table below looks at the demand and provides a guide to the median salaries quoted in IT jobs citing Software Engineer within the South East region over the 6 months to 28 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
Permanent
IT Job Ads
Median Salary
Past 6 Months
Median Salary
% Change
on Same Period
Last Year
Live
Jobs
Thames Valley +89 367 £65,000 +1.96% 41
Hampshire +45 360 £70,000 +12.00% 65
Oxfordshire +29 196 £65,000 -3.70% 15
Surrey +33 113 £80,000 +18.52% 10
Berkshire +56 88 £63,750 +15.91% 13
Buckinghamshire +55 83 £80,000 +45.45% 13
Kent -10 37 £40,000 -36.00% 9
East Sussex +17 29 £62,500 -30.56% 1
West Sussex -16 13 £75,000 +150.00% 7
Software Engineer
England

Software Engineer Skill Set
Top 30 Co-Occurring Skills & Capabilities in the South East

For the 6 months to 28 June 2026, 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 South East region featuring Software Engineer in the job title.

1 905 (98.48%) Software Engineering
2 247 (26.88%) C++
3 191 (20.78%) C#
4 185 (20.13%) Degree
5 182 (19.80%) Python
6 124 (13.49%) .NET
7 121 (13.17%) Agile
8 109 (11.86%) AWS
9 97 (10.55%) Computer Science
10 95 (10.34%) Computer Science Degree
11 92 (10.01%) Security Cleared
12 85 (9.25%) Azure
13 84 (9.14%) Linux
14 82 (8.92%) C
15 81 (8.81%) Full-Stack Development
16 74 (8.05%) DevOps
17 73 (7.94%) CI/CD
18 72 (7.83%) AI
19 68 (7.40%) SaaS
20 64 (6.96%) Problem-Solving
21 63 (6.86%) SC Cleared
22 57 (6.20%) Docker
23 56 (6.09%) JavaScript
24 55 (5.98%) TypeScript
25 54 (5.88%) Test Automation
26 53 (5.77%) Git
27 50 (5.44%) Mentoring
28 48 (5.22%) Containerisation
28 48 (5.22%) Continuous Improvement
28 48 (5.22%) SQL

Software Engineer Skill Set
Co-Occurring Skills & Capabilities in the South East 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 5 (0.54%) Apache
2 2 (0.22%) Confluence
3 1 (0.11%) ArchestrA
Applications
1 6 (0.65%) Lightworks
2 3 (0.33%) Simulink
3 2 (0.22%) AutoCAD
3 2 (0.22%) EPLAN
3 2 (0.22%) Microsoft Office
4 1 (0.11%) Microsoft Excel
4 1 (0.11%) Microsoft PowerPoint
4 1 (0.11%) Microsoft Project
Cloud Services
1 109 (11.86%) AWS
2 85 (9.25%) Azure
3 68 (7.40%) SaaS
4 32 (3.48%) GCP
5 14 (1.52%) Azure DevOps
6 12 (1.31%) GitHub
7 11 (1.20%) Serverless
8 6 (0.65%) Firebase
8 6 (0.65%) PaaS
9 5 (0.54%) Figma
10 4 (0.44%) Amazon EKS
10 4 (0.44%) AWS Lambda
11 3 (0.33%) Azure Functions
11 3 (0.33%) Azure Monitor
11 3 (0.33%) GitHub Actions
11 3 (0.33%) Stripe
12 2 (0.22%) Amazon S3
12 2 (0.22%) Anthropic Claude
12 2 (0.22%) Cloud Run
13 1 (0.11%) Azure Machine Learning
Communications & Networking
1 16 (1.74%) Wireless
2 9 (0.98%) TCP/IP
3 6 (0.65%) MQTT
4 4 (0.44%) Software-Defined Radio
4 4 (0.44%) Wireshark
5 2 (0.22%) ATM
5 2 (0.22%) Ethernet
6 1 (0.11%) Broadband
6 1 (0.11%) Internet
6 1 (0.11%) LAN
6 1 (0.11%) Multicast
6 1 (0.11%) Software-Defined Networking
6 1 (0.11%) SpaceWire
6 1 (0.11%) VoIP
6 1 (0.11%) WAN
Database & Business Intelligence
1 34 (3.70%) SQL Server
2 15 (1.63%) PostgreSQL
3 7 (0.76%) MySQL
4 6 (0.65%) MongoDB
5 3 (0.33%) Elasticsearch
5 3 (0.33%) Redis
6 2 (0.22%) NoSQL
6 2 (0.22%) Pinecone
6 2 (0.22%) Relational Database
7 1 (0.11%) Oracle Reports
Development Applications
1 53 (5.77%) Git
2 21 (2.29%) GitLab
3 20 (2.18%) Visual Studio Code
4 6 (0.65%) Yeoman
5 4 (0.44%) JIRA
5 4 (0.44%) Visual Studio
6 3 (0.33%) Bitbucket
6 3 (0.33%) Jenkins
6 3 (0.33%) JUnit
6 3 (0.33%) Rational Rhapsody
7 2 (0.22%) CMake
7 2 (0.22%) Eclipse
7 2 (0.22%) Eclipse RCP
7 2 (0.22%) PetaLinux
7 2 (0.22%) Postman
7 2 (0.22%) SpecFlow
8 1 (0.11%) NUnit
8 1 (0.11%) Storybook
8 1 (0.11%) Toad
8 1 (0.11%) utPLSQL
General
1 61 (6.64%) Social Skills
2 57 (6.20%) Manufacturing
3 54 (5.88%) Electronics
4 31 (3.37%) Aerospace
5 30 (3.26%) Finance
6 23 (2.50%) Aviation
7 15 (1.63%) Telecoms
8 14 (1.52%) Analytical Skills
8 14 (1.52%) Military
8 14 (1.52%) Pharmaceutical
9 12 (1.31%) Games
10 8 (0.87%) Automotive
11 7 (0.76%) Public Sector
12 4 (0.44%) Law
13 3 (0.33%) Banking
13 3 (0.33%) Health Technology
13 3 (0.33%) Organisational Skills
14 2 (0.22%) Digital Health
15 1 (0.11%) Marketing
15 1 (0.11%) Tech for Good
Libraries, Frameworks & Software Standards
1 124 (13.49%) .NET
2 45 (4.90%) React
3 28 (3.05%) CSS
4 27 (2.94%) HTML
5 22 (2.39%) Vue
6 20 (2.18%) AngularJS
7 18 (1.96%) Unreal Engine
8 17 (1.85%) Django
8 17 (1.85%) WPF
9 16 (1.74%) Node.js
9 16 (1.74%) REST
10 12 (1.31%) JSON
10 12 (1.31%) WebSockets
11 11 (1.20%) ASP.NET
12 10 (1.09%) XML
13 9 (0.98%) .NET Core
14 7 (0.76%) Blazor
14 7 (0.76%) Qt
15 6 (0.65%) OpenGL
15 6 (0.65%) RESTful
Miscellaneous
1 51 (5.55%) Algorithms
2 34 (3.70%) Embedded Systems
3 22 (2.39%) Product Ownership
4 21 (2.29%) Client/Server
5 20 (2.18%) Robotics
6 19 (2.07%) IoT
7 18 (1.96%) Distributed Systems
8 17 (1.85%) Distributed Computing
9 14 (1.52%) Cloud Native
10 13 (1.41%) Self-Motivation
11 11 (1.20%) Data Structures
12 10 (1.09%) Smart Energy
13 8 (0.87%) AI Agents
13 8 (0.87%) Legacy Systems
14 6 (0.65%) Life Science
15 5 (0.54%) Video Conferencing
16 4 (0.44%) Enterprise Software
16 4 (0.44%) FPGA
16 4 (0.44%) Management Information System
16 4 (0.44%) SCADA
Operating Systems
1 84 (9.14%) Linux
2 21 (2.29%) Windows
3 9 (0.98%) Android
4 6 (0.65%) Embedded Linux
5 4 (0.44%) Debian
6 3 (0.33%) Gentoo
7 2 (0.22%) FreeRTOS
8 1 (0.11%) Robot Operating System
8 1 (0.11%) Ubuntu
8 1 (0.11%) VxWorks
Processes & Methodologies
1 905 (98.48%) Software Engineering
2 121 (13.17%) Agile
3 97 (10.55%) Computer Science
4 81 (8.81%) Full-Stack Development
5 74 (8.05%) DevOps
6 73 (7.94%) CI/CD
7 72 (7.83%) AI
8 64 (6.96%) Problem-Solving
9 54 (5.88%) Test Automation
10 50 (5.44%) Mentoring
11 48 (5.22%) Containerisation
11 48 (5.22%) Continuous Improvement
12 46 (5.01%) SDLC
12 46 (5.01%) Software Architecture
13 45 (4.90%) Machine Learning
14 38 (4.13%) Code Quality
15 37 (4.03%) Microservices
16 34 (3.70%) Embedded Software Development
17 31 (3.37%) Software Testing
18 27 (2.94%) Scrum
Programming Languages
1 247 (26.88%) C++
2 191 (20.78%) C#
3 182 (19.80%) Python
4 82 (8.92%) C
5 56 (6.09%) JavaScript
6 55 (5.98%) TypeScript
7 48 (5.22%) SQL
8 37 (4.03%) Java
9 31 (3.37%) Rust
10 12 (1.31%) PHP
11 10 (1.09%) Go
12 7 (0.76%) Ruby
13 6 (0.65%) MATLAB
13 6 (0.65%) PL/SQL
14 4 (0.44%) Apex Code
14 4 (0.44%) Julia
15 3 (0.33%) Bash
15 3 (0.33%) T-SQL
15 3 (0.33%) Uniface
15 3 (0.33%) VB.NET
Qualifications
1 185 (20.13%) Degree
2 95 (10.34%) Computer Science Degree
3 92 (10.01%) Security Cleared
4 63 (6.86%) SC Cleared
5 47 (5.11%) Master's Degree
6 23 (2.50%) PhD
7 22 (2.39%) DV Cleared
8 8 (0.87%) Azure Certification
9 4 (0.44%) BPSS Clearance
10 3 (0.33%) HNC
10 3 (0.33%) HND
11 2 (0.22%) AWS Certification
11 2 (0.22%) Microsoft Certification
11 2 (0.22%) NVQ Level 3
Quality Assurance & Compliance
1 27 (2.94%) QA
2 4 (0.44%) ISO 9001
3 3 (0.33%) DO-178B
3 3 (0.33%) ECSS
3 3 (0.33%) GAMP
4 2 (0.22%) GDPR
System Software
1 57 (6.20%) Docker
2 40 (4.35%) Firmware
3 14 (1.52%) Hyper-V
3 14 (1.52%) KVM
3 14 (1.52%) VMware Infrastructure
4 11 (1.20%) Embedded Firmware
5 6 (0.65%) Virtual Machines
Systems Management
1 33 (3.59%) Kubernetes
2 14 (1.52%) Terraform
3 10 (1.09%) Ansible
4 4 (0.44%) Podman
5 1 (0.11%) Puppet
Vendors
1 14 (1.52%) VMware
2 12 (1.31%) Oracle
3 10 (1.09%) Microsoft
4 9 (0.98%) Salesforce
5 3 (0.33%) Allen-Bradley
5 3 (0.33%) Google
5 3 (0.33%) HubSpot
5 3 (0.33%) Siemens
5 3 (0.33%) Wonderware
6 2 (0.22%) Xilinx
7 1 (0.11%) Adobe
7 1 (0.11%) NVIDIA
7 1 (0.11%) Typelevel
7 1 (0.11%) Xamarin