2nd Line Support Job Trends

Second Line Support
UK

The median Second Line Support salary in the UK is £32,000 per year, according to job vacancies posted during the 6 months leading to 20 January 2026.

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

6 months to
20 Jan 2026
Same period 2025 Same period 2024
Rank 234 380 283
Rank change year-on-year +146 -97 +125
Permanent jobs requiring a 2nd Line Support 577 355 630
As % of all permanent jobs in the UK 0.94% 0.67% 1.04%
As % of the Job Titles category 1.04% 0.72% 1.09%
Number of salaries quoted 536 245 580
10th Percentile £27,000 £28,000 £25,475
25th Percentile £29,000 £30,000 £27,500
Median annual salary (50th Percentile) £32,000 £33,500 £31,500
Median % change year-on-year -4.48% +6.35% -
75th Percentile £36,250 £39,500 £37,500
90th Percentile £40,250 £45,000 £42,500
UK excluding London median annual salary £31,500 £32,500 £30,000
% change year-on-year -3.08% +8.33% -

All Permanent IT Job Roles
UK

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

Permanent vacancies in the UK with a recognized job title 55,541 49,002 57,717
% of permanent jobs with a recognized job title 90.82% 92.63% 95.20%
Number of salaries quoted 34,360 25,280 44,689
10th Percentile £28,697 £33,500 £30,000
25th Percentile £37,500 £45,000 £40,988
Median annual salary (50th Percentile) £55,000 £60,000 £57,000
Median % change year-on-year -8.33% +5.26% -5.00%
75th Percentile £75,000 £78,750 £75,000
90th Percentile £95,000 £98,272 £95,000
UK excluding London median annual salary £50,000 £53,000 £50,000
% change year-on-year -5.66% +6.00% -5.04%

2nd Line Support
Job Vacancy Trend

Historical trend showing the proportion of permanent IT job postings featuring '2nd Line Support' in the job title relative to all permanent IT jobs advertised.

2nd Line Support job vacancy trend in the UK

2nd Line Support
Salary Trend

Salary distribution trend for 2nd Line Support job vacancies in the UK.

Salary distribution trend for 2nd Line Support job vacancies in the UK

2nd Line Support
Salary Histogram

Salary distribution for jobs citing 2nd Line Support over the 6 months to 20 January 2026.

Salary histogram for 2nd Line Support in the UK

2nd Line Support
Top 16 Job Locations

The table below looks at the demand and provides a guide to the median salaries quoted in IT jobs citing 2nd Line Support within the UK over the 6 months to 20 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
Permanent
IT Job Ads
Median Salary
Past 6 Months
Median Salary
% Change
on Same Period
Last Year
Live
Jobs
England +157 549 £32,000 -4.48% 69
UK excluding London +160 530 £31,500 -3.08% 78
South East +82 164 £32,750 -2.24% 26
Work from Home +125 136 £31,500 -3.08% 19
Midlands +109 135 £30,500 -6.15% 8
North of England +67 101 £30,000 - 12
East Midlands +44 82 £30,000 -4.76% 2
South West +48 61 £31,500 -5.97% 13
Yorkshire +26 53 £29,500 - 9
West Midlands +64 48 £31,500 -6.67% 6
London +12 46 £40,000 +1.27% 7
North West +43 45 £30,000 -7.69% 3
East of England +18 42 £33,500 +4.69% 10
Scotland +10 26 £30,000 - 12
North East +10 3 £26,000 -13.33%
Wales - 1 £34,000 -

2nd Line Support Skill Set
Top 30 Co-Occurring Skills & Capabilities

For the 6 months to 20 January 2026, 2nd Line Support 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 featuring 2nd Line Support in the job title.

1 296 (51.30%) Windows
2 271 (46.97%) Microsoft 365
3 265 (45.93%) Microsoft
4 212 (36.74%) Active Directory
5 188 (32.58%) Problem-Solving
6 173 (29.98%) Customer Service
7 159 (27.56%) Azure
8 156 (27.04%) Windows Server
9 131 (22.70%) Firewall
10 129 (22.36%) DNS
11 121 (20.97%) DHCP
12 111 (19.24%) Mentoring
12 111 (19.24%) SLA
12 111 (19.24%) VPN
13 107 (18.54%) Windows 10
14 96 (16.64%) Continuous Improvement
15 91 (15.77%) Entra ID
16 86 (14.90%) ITIL
17 83 (14.38%) Microsoft Exchange
18 81 (14.04%) Microsoft Intune
18 81 (14.04%) TCP/IP
19 74 (12.82%) SQL
20 69 (11.96%) VLAN
21 68 (11.79%) SharePoint
22 65 (11.27%) Hyper-V
23 63 (10.92%) WAN
24 61 (10.57%) LAN
24 61 (10.57%) VMware
25 58 (10.05%) Microsoft Office
26 52 (9.01%) Security Cleared

2nd Line Support 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 83 (14.38%) Microsoft Exchange
2 68 (11.79%) SharePoint
3 9 (1.56%) IIS
4 6 (1.04%) Confluence
4 6 (1.04%) Exchange Server 2013
5 1 (0.17%) Exchange Server 2007
5 1 (0.17%) Exchange Server 2010
Applications
1 58 (10.05%) Microsoft Office
2 12 (2.08%) Microsoft Excel
3 6 (1.04%) Microsoft PowerPoint
4 4 (0.69%) CATIA
5 1 (0.17%) AutoCAD
Business Applications
1 5 (0.87%) Dynamics CRM
2 2 (0.35%) Remedy ITSM
3 1 (0.17%) Carpe Diem
3 1 (0.17%) Elite 3E
Cloud Services
1 271 (46.97%) Microsoft 365
2 159 (27.56%) Azure
3 91 (15.77%) Entra ID
4 43 (7.45%) SaaS
5 24 (4.16%) AWS
5 24 (4.16%) Google Workspace
6 22 (3.81%) OneDrive
7 3 (0.52%) Amazon EC2
7 3 (0.52%) Virtual Private Cloud
8 2 (0.35%) Azure Sentinel
8 2 (0.35%) Mimecast
8 2 (0.35%) Power Platform
9 1 (0.17%) Datadog
9 1 (0.17%) GCP
9 1 (0.17%) Power Automate
Communications & Networking
1 131 (22.70%) Firewall
2 129 (22.36%) DNS
3 121 (20.97%) DHCP
4 111 (19.24%) VPN
5 81 (14.04%) TCP/IP
6 69 (11.96%) VLAN
7 63 (10.92%) WAN
8 61 (10.57%) LAN
9 49 (8.49%) Remote Desktop
9 49 (8.49%) Wi-Fi
10 32 (5.55%) VoIP
10 32 (5.55%) Wireless
11 9 (1.56%) Unified Communications
12 8 (1.39%) IPsec
12 8 (1.39%) PBX
13 7 (1.21%) DECT
13 7 (1.21%) DSL
13 7 (1.21%) Internet
13 7 (1.21%) Wireshark
14 5 (0.87%) Kerberos
Database & Business Intelligence
1 20 (3.47%) SQL Server
2 10 (1.73%) Amazon RDS
3 5 (0.87%) MySQL
4 3 (0.52%) Oracle Database
5 2 (0.35%) Power BI
5 2 (0.35%) Relational Database
6 1 (0.17%) FileMaker
Development Applications
1 21 (3.64%) JIRA
2 1 (0.17%) Git
General
1 271 (46.97%) Social Skills
2 58 (10.05%) Retail
3 53 (9.19%) Analytical Skills
4 52 (9.01%) Law
5 50 (8.67%) Marketing
6 33 (5.72%) Telecoms
7 23 (3.99%) Organisational Skills
8 21 (3.64%) Manufacturing
9 17 (2.95%) Finance
10 16 (2.77%) Advertising
11 14 (2.43%) Legal
12 6 (1.04%) Electronics
12 6 (1.04%) Public Sector
13 5 (0.87%) Pharmaceutical
14 4 (0.69%) Back Office
14 4 (0.69%) Dutch Language
14 4 (0.69%) French Language
14 4 (0.69%) German Language
14 4 (0.69%) Spanish Language
15 3 (0.52%) Games
Libraries, Frameworks & Software Standards
1 5 (0.87%) LDAP
2 3 (0.52%) Middleware
Miscellaneous
1 111 (19.24%) Driving Licence
2 59 (10.23%) Onboarding
3 15 (2.60%) Self-Motivation
4 12 (2.08%) Data Centre
5 8 (1.39%) EPoS
5 8 (1.39%) IoT
6 7 (1.21%) Web Conferencing
7 5 (0.87%) PKI
8 4 (0.69%) Client/Server
8 4 (0.69%) iPhone
8 4 (0.69%) Management Information System
9 3 (0.52%) Clustering
9 3 (0.52%) Linux Command Line
9 3 (0.52%) Video Conferencing
10 2 (0.35%) Cyber Threat
10 2 (0.35%) Data Protection Act
10 2 (0.35%) Hybrid Cloud
10 2 (0.35%) Low-Code
10 2 (0.35%) Mobile App
10 2 (0.35%) Video\Live Streaming
Operating Systems
1 296 (51.30%) Windows
2 156 (27.04%) Windows Server
3 107 (18.54%) Windows 10
4 44 (7.63%) Windows Server 2019
5 38 (6.59%) Mac OS
6 31 (5.37%) Android
6 31 (5.37%) Apple iOS
7 26 (4.51%) Windows Server 2016
8 22 (3.81%) Linux
9 11 (1.91%) Windows Server 2012
10 7 (1.21%) Windows 7
11 6 (1.04%) Windows 8
12 3 (0.52%) AIX
12 3 (0.52%) Unix
13 1 (0.17%) Windows Server 2008
Processes & Methodologies
1 188 (32.58%) Problem-Solving
2 173 (29.98%) Customer Service
3 111 (19.24%) Mentoring
4 96 (16.64%) Continuous Improvement
5 86 (14.90%) ITIL
6 46 (7.97%) CRM
7 45 (7.80%) Service Delivery
8 43 (7.45%) Logistics
9 41 (7.11%) ERP
9 41 (7.11%) Root Cause Analysis
10 37 (6.41%) Data Privacy
10 37 (6.41%) ITSM
11 36 (6.24%) Analytical Thinking
11 36 (6.24%) E-Commerce
11 36 (6.24%) Mobile Device Management
12 32 (5.55%) Cybersecurity
13 30 (5.20%) Incident Management
14 29 (5.03%) Service Management
15 26 (4.51%) Remote Monitoring and Management
16 20 (3.47%) Project Delivery
Programming Languages
1 74 (12.82%) SQL
2 36 (6.24%) C#
3 29 (5.03%) PowerShell
4 5 (0.87%) VB
5 4 (0.69%) T-SQL
6 3 (0.52%) Bicep
7 1 (0.17%) Python
7 1 (0.17%) VBA
Qualifications
1 52 (9.01%) Security Cleared
2 49 (8.49%) SC Cleared
3 30 (5.20%) Microsoft Certification
4 23 (3.99%) Degree
4 23 (3.99%) MCP
5 14 (2.43%) Azure Certification
6 11 (1.91%) CCNA
6 11 (1.91%) Cisco Certification
6 11 (1.91%) MCSE
7 10 (1.73%) CCA
7 10 (1.73%) Citrix Certification
7 10 (1.73%) MCSA
8 9 (1.56%) Network+ Certification
9 8 (1.39%) ITIL Foundation Certificate
10 7 (1.21%) A+ Certification
11 6 (1.04%) BPSS Clearance
11 6 (1.04%) Computer Science Degree
11 6 (1.04%) MCITP
12 5 (0.87%) AWS Certification
12 5 (0.87%) CompTIA Security+
Quality Assurance & Compliance
1 111 (19.24%) SLA
2 35 (6.07%) QA
3 21 (3.64%) GDPR
4 20 (3.47%) Cyber Essentials
5 11 (1.91%) ISO/IEC 27001
6 4 (0.69%) Cyber Essentials PLUS
6 4 (0.69%) NIST
7 3 (0.52%) PCI DSS
8 1 (0.17%) Accessibility
System Software
1 212 (36.74%) Active Directory
2 65 (11.27%) Hyper-V
3 43 (7.45%) VMware Infrastructure
4 10 (1.73%) Virtual Desktop
5 5 (0.87%) BitLocker
5 5 (0.87%) Firmware
6 4 (0.69%) Virtual Machines
6 4 (0.69%) vSphere
7 3 (0.52%) Docker
7 3 (0.52%) VMware ESXi
Systems Management
1 81 (14.04%) Microsoft Intune
2 23 (3.99%) SCCM
3 21 (3.64%) Jamf Pro
4 14 (2.43%) Autotask
5 10 (1.73%) Active Directory Federation Services
6 5 (0.87%) WSUS
7 3 (0.52%) FortiGate
7 3 (0.52%) Kubernetes
7 3 (0.52%) MaaS360
7 3 (0.52%) Netcool
7 3 (0.52%) vCenter Server
8 2 (0.35%) PaperCut
9 1 (0.17%) AirWatch
9 1 (0.17%) EMC NetWorker
Vendors
1 265 (45.93%) Microsoft
2 61 (10.57%) VMware
3 44 (7.63%) Apple
4 31 (5.37%) Cisco
5 21 (3.64%) Google
6 19 (3.29%) Samsung
7 15 (2.60%) Citrix
8 14 (2.43%) Datto
8 14 (2.43%) Meraki
9 12 (2.08%) Sophos
10 10 (1.73%) Veeam
11 9 (1.56%) ServiceNow
11 9 (1.56%) SolarWinds
12 7 (1.21%) Adobe
12 7 (1.21%) HP
13 6 (1.04%) ConnectWise
13 6 (1.04%) Fortinet
13 6 (1.04%) Oracle
13 6 (1.04%) SAP
14 5 (0.87%) McAfee