UK Defence Standards (Def Stans)
UK
The table below provides summary statistics and salary benchmarking for jobs requiring Def Stans skills. It covers permanent job vacancies from the 6 months leading up to 7 March 2026, with comparisons to the same periods in the previous two years.
| 6 months to 7 Mar 2026 |
Same period 2025 | Same period 2024 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | 667 | 613 | 766 |
| Rank change year-on-year | -54 | +153 | +142 |
| Permanent jobs citing Def Stans | 16 | 54 | 63 |
| As % of all permanent jobs in the UK | 0.022% | 0.12% | 0.078% |
| As % of the Quality Assurance & Compliance category | 0.19% | 0.71% | 0.54% |
| Number of salaries quoted | 3 | 17 | 56 |
| 10th Percentile | - | £33,000 | £49,125 |
| 25th Percentile | £38,750 | £39,000 | £52,500 |
| Median annual salary (50th Percentile) | £42,500 | £42,000 | £55,000 |
| Median % change year-on-year | +1.19% | -23.64% | -12.00% |
| 75th Percentile | £50,625 | £52,000 | £71,563 |
| 90th Percentile | £53,250 | £76,500 | £75,000 |
| UK excluding London median annual salary | £42,500 | £41,000 | £55,000 |
| % change year-on-year | +3.66% | -25.45% | -12.00% |
All Quality Assurance and Compliance Skills
UK
Def Stans falls under the Quality Assurance and Compliance category. For comparison with the information above, the following table provides summary statistics for all permanent job vacancies requiring quality assurance or compliance skills.
| Permanent vacancies with a requirement for quality assurance or compliance skills | 8,434 | 7,573 | 11,598 |
| As % of all permanent jobs advertised in the UK | 11.66% | 16.35% | 14.31% |
| Number of salaries quoted | 4,751 | 3,752 | 8,443 |
| 10th Percentile | £30,370 | £31,250 | £27,500 |
| 25th Percentile | £42,250 | £43,290 | £36,750 |
| Median annual salary (50th Percentile) | £60,000 | £60,000 | £55,000 |
| Median % change year-on-year | - | +9.09% | -4.35% |
| 75th Percentile | £80,000 | £77,500 | £72,500 |
| 90th Percentile | £95,000 | £95,000 | £90,000 |
| UK excluding London median annual salary | £50,000 | £54,000 | £47,615 |
| % change year-on-year | -7.41% | +13.41% | -4.77% |
Def Stans
Job Vacancy Trend
Historical trend showing the proportion of permanent IT job postings citing Def Stans relative to all permanent IT jobs advertised.
Def Stans
Salary Trend
Salary distribution trend for jobs in the UK citing Def Stans.
Def Stans
Top 6 Job Locations
The table below looks at the demand and provides a guide to the median salaries quoted in IT jobs citing Def Stans within the UK over the 6 months to 7 March 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 | -28 | 16 | £42,500 | +1.19% | 24 |
| UK excluding London | -48 | 13 | £42,500 | +3.66% | 24 |
| South East | +1 | 6 | £42,500 | -5.56% | 6 |
| North West | -18 | 6 | - | - | |
| North of England | -33 | 6 | - | - | |
| South West | -24 | 1 | - | - | 13 |
Def Stans
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: