Embedded Software Engineer Job Trends

Embedded Software Engineer
UK

The median Embedded Software Engineer salary in the UK is £65,000 per year, according to job vacancies posted during the 6 months leading to 4 January 2026.

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

6 months to
4 Jan 2026
Same period 2025 Same period 2024
Rank 440 486 553
Rank change year-on-year +46 +67 +159
Permanent jobs requiring an Embedded Software Engineer 210 236 167
As % of all permanent jobs in the UK 0.36% 0.43% 0.32%
As % of the Job Titles category 0.39% 0.47% 0.33%
Number of salaries quoted 157 116 153
10th Percentile £45,000 £41,250 £42,500
25th Percentile £52,250 £47,500 £47,500
Median annual salary (50th Percentile) £65,000 £57,500 £57,500
Median % change year-on-year +13.04% - +3.60%
75th Percentile £70,000 £66,250 £65,000
90th Percentile £75,000 £70,000 £75,000
UK excluding London median annual salary £65,000 £60,000 £55,000
% change year-on-year +8.33% +9.09% -

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 53,448 50,590 50,228
% of permanent jobs with a recognized job title 90.53% 92.97% 95.23%
Number of salaries quoted 32,896 26,513 38,772
10th Percentile £28,500 £33,125 £31,250
25th Percentile £36,250 £44,738 £42,500
Median annual salary (50th Percentile) £55,000 £60,000 £59,000
Median % change year-on-year -8.33% +1.69% -1.67%
75th Percentile £75,000 £78,000 £77,500
90th Percentile £93,750 £97,500 £97,261
UK excluding London median annual salary £50,000 £52,500 £50,000
% change year-on-year -4.76% +5.00% -4.76%

Embedded Software Engineer
Job Vacancy Trend

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

Embedded Software Engineer job vacancy trend in the UK

Embedded Software Engineer
Salary Trend

Salary distribution trend for Embedded Software Engineer job vacancies in the UK.

Salary distribution trend for Embedded Software Engineer job vacancies in the UK

Embedded Software Engineer
Salary Histogram

Salary distribution for jobs citing Embedded Software Engineer over the 6 months to 4 January 2026.

Salary histogram for Embedded Software Engineer in the UK

Embedded Software Engineer
Top 15 Job Locations

The table below looks at the demand and provides a guide to the median salaries quoted in IT jobs citing Embedded Software Engineer within the UK over the 6 months to 4 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
UK excluding London +50 207 £65,000 +8.33% 259
England +68 161 £65,000 +8.33% 227
Work from Home +107 72 £60,000 -4.00% 180
South West +26 52 £70,000 +40.00% 33
Scotland +18 43 £60,000 +26.32% 29
South East +20 39 £65,000 +18.18% 62
East of England +12 32 £65,000 +4.00% 45
North of England +16 20 £55,000 -9.84% 46
Midlands +6 18 £57,500 -8.00% 38
West Midlands +26 10 £55,000 -14.40% 20
Yorkshire -3 10 £55,000 -4.35% 19
North East +4 9 £56,500 -7.38% 5
East Midlands -10 8 £60,000 +4.35% 16
Wales -4 3 - - 9
North West +25 1 £50,000 -28.57% 22

Embedded Software Engineer Skill Set
Top 30 Co-Occurring Skills & Capabilities

For the 6 months to 4 January 2026, Embedded 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 featuring Embedded Software Engineer in the job title.

1 210 (100.00%) Software Engineering
2 70 (33.33%) C
3 69 (32.86%) C++
4 47 (22.38%) Firmware
5 43 (20.48%) Security Cleared
6 34 (16.19%) Linux
7 30 (14.29%) Embedded Linux
7 30 (14.29%) SC Cleared
8 25 (11.90%) Embedded Firmware
8 25 (11.90%) Wireless
9 24 (11.43%) Agile
10 21 (10.00%) Embedded Software Development
11 17 (8.10%) RS-232
12 16 (7.62%) Digital Signal Processing
12 16 (7.62%) Signal Processing
12 16 (7.62%) Software-Defined Radio
13 15 (7.14%) Embedded C
14 13 (6.19%) Bluetooth
15 12 (5.71%) Degree
15 12 (5.71%) Innovative Thinking
15 12 (5.71%) Mentoring
16 10 (4.76%) MISRA
17 9 (4.29%) Ada
17 9 (4.29%) Software Testing
18 8 (3.81%) Cybersecurity
18 8 (3.81%) Functional Safety
18 8 (3.81%) IEC 61508
18 8 (3.81%) MISRA C
18 8 (3.81%) Safety Engineering
18 8 (3.81%) SDLC

Embedded Software Engineer 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:

Applications
1 1 (0.48%) Simulink
Communications & Networking
1 25 (11.90%) Wireless
2 17 (8.10%) RS-232
3 16 (7.62%) Software-Defined Radio
4 13 (6.19%) Bluetooth
5 3 (1.43%) Ethernet
6 2 (0.95%) 3G
6 2 (0.95%) GPRS
6 2 (0.95%) GSM
6 2 (0.95%) Modbus
6 2 (0.95%) RS-485
6 2 (0.95%) SSL
6 2 (0.95%) TCP/IP
7 1 (0.48%) UWB
7 1 (0.48%) Wideband
7 1 (0.48%) ZigBee
Development Applications
1 1 (0.48%) Git
1 1 (0.48%) JIRA
1 1 (0.48%) Rational DOORS
General
1 35 (16.67%) Electronics
2 12 (5.71%) Finance
2 12 (5.71%) Social Skills
3 5 (2.38%) Manufacturing
4 4 (1.90%) Automotive
5 2 (0.95%) Pharmaceutical
6 1 (0.48%) Advertising
6 1 (0.48%) Aerospace
Libraries, Frameworks & Software Standards
1 4 (1.90%) Qt
2 3 (1.43%) Yocto
Miscellaneous
1 50 (23.81%) Embedded Systems
2 14 (6.67%) RISC-V
3 13 (6.19%) e-Learning
4 12 (5.71%) MicroBlaze
5 8 (3.81%) CAN bus
6 6 (2.86%) IoT
7 4 (1.90%) Algorithms
7 4 (1.90%) Device Driver
8 2 (0.95%) ARM Cortex
8 2 (0.95%) Raspberry Pi
9 1 (0.48%) Robotics
Operating Systems
1 34 (16.19%) Linux
2 30 (14.29%) Embedded Linux
3 2 (0.95%) Android
3 2 (0.95%) FreeRTOS
3 2 (0.95%) Windows
Processes & Methodologies
1 210 (100.00%) Software Engineering
2 24 (11.43%) Agile
3 21 (10.00%) Embedded Software Development
4 16 (7.62%) Digital Signal Processing
4 16 (7.62%) Signal Processing
5 12 (5.71%) Innovative Thinking
5 12 (5.71%) Mentoring
6 9 (4.29%) Software Testing
7 8 (3.81%) Cybersecurity
7 8 (3.81%) Safety Engineering
7 8 (3.81%) SDLC
8 6 (2.86%) Physics
9 5 (2.38%) Systems Engineering
9 5 (2.38%) Unit Testing
9 5 (2.38%) Validation
10 4 (1.90%) Linear Algebra
10 4 (1.90%) Mathematical Modelling
10 4 (1.90%) Mathematics
10 4 (1.90%) Test Automation
11 3 (1.43%) Collaborative Engineering
Programming Languages
1 70 (33.33%) C
2 69 (32.86%) C++
3 15 (7.14%) Embedded C
4 9 (4.29%) Ada
5 7 (3.33%) Embedded C++
6 5 (2.38%) Python
6 5 (2.38%) Rust
7 2 (0.95%) Java
7 2 (0.95%) Kotlin
7 2 (0.95%) MATLAB
Qualifications
1 43 (20.48%) Security Cleared
2 30 (14.29%) SC Cleared
3 12 (5.71%) Degree
4 7 (3.33%) DV Cleared
5 5 (2.38%) Master's Degree
Quality Assurance & Compliance
1 10 (4.76%) MISRA
2 8 (3.81%) IEC 61508
2 8 (3.81%) MISRA C
3 2 (0.95%) ISO 9000
3 2 (0.95%) JTAG
System Software
1 47 (22.38%) Firmware
2 25 (11.90%) Embedded Firmware
Systems Management
1 8 (3.81%) Functional Safety