Hardware Engineer Job Trends

Hardware Engineer
UK

The median Hardware Engineer salary in the UK is £60,000 per year, according to job vacancies posted during the 6 months leading to 16 May 2026.

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

6 months to
16 May 2026
Same period 2025 Same period 2024
Rank 586 605 507
Rank change year-on-year +19 -98 +251
Permanent jobs requiring a Hardware Engineer 129 49 424
As % of all permanent jobs in the UK 0.14% 0.11% 0.44%
As % of the Job Titles category 0.15% 0.13% 0.46%
Number of salaries quoted 70 30 309
10th Percentile £27,875 £33,775 £22,750
25th Percentile £35,000 £40,500 £35,250
Median annual salary (50th Percentile) £60,000 £49,000 £50,000
Median % change year-on-year +22.45% -2.00% +25.00%
75th Percentile £65,000 £57,500 £61,250
90th Percentile £75,000 £61,875 £69,000
UK excluding London median annual salary £57,500 £49,000 £50,000
% change year-on-year +17.35% -2.00% +16.28%

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 85,212 39,160 91,339
% of permanent jobs with a recognized job title 93.30% 89.49% 94.62%
Number of salaries quoted 56,182 22,791 67,021
10th Percentile £30,000 £30,000 £28,500
25th Percentile £40,000 £41,250 £38,500
Median annual salary (50th Percentile) £55,000 £57,500 £52,500
Median % change year-on-year -4.35% +9.52% -12.50%
75th Percentile £75,000 £77,500 £71,250
90th Percentile £95,000 £100,000 £90,000
UK excluding London median annual salary £50,000 £52,344 £50,000
% change year-on-year -4.48% +4.69% -5.66%

Hardware Engineer
Job Vacancy Trend

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

Hardware Engineer job vacancy trend in the UK

Hardware Engineer
Salary Trend

Salary distribution trend for Hardware Engineer job vacancies in the UK.

Salary distribution trend for Hardware Engineer job vacancies in the UK

Hardware Engineer
Salary Histogram

Salary distribution for jobs citing Hardware Engineer over the 6 months to 16 May 2026.

Salary histogram for Hardware Engineer in the UK

Hardware Engineer
Top 17 Job Locations

The table below looks at the demand and provides a guide to the median salaries quoted in IT jobs citing Hardware Engineer within the UK over the 6 months to 16 May 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 +8 109 £57,500 +17.35% 37
England +4 98 £58,750 +19.90% 36
South East 0 39 £60,000 +20.00% 14
Work from Home +36 32 £75,000 +57.89% 12
Midlands -16 16 £75,000 +76.47% 4
North of England -17 16 £27,500 -26.67% 2
West Midlands -26 14 £75,000 +76.47% 3
South West -38 14 £26,075 -49.86% 7
North West +12 11 £27,500 -26.67% 2
East of England -6 10 £35,000 -36.36% 10
Scotland -3 6 £50,000 - 3
Yorkshire -52 4 - -
Wales - 4 £80,000 -
Northern Ireland - 4 £65,000 -
London - 3 £70,000 - 4
East Midlands -32 2 £60,000 +54.84% 1
North East - 1 - -

Hardware Engineer Skill Set
Top 30 Co-Occurring Skills & Capabilities

For the 6 months to 16 May 2026, Hardware 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 Hardware Engineer in the job title.

1 30 (23.26%) Cybersecurity
2 28 (21.71%) Degree
3 16 (12.40%) BPSS Clearance
4 15 (11.63%) Coaching
5 13 (10.08%) Break/Fix
5 13 (10.08%) Security Cleared
6 12 (9.30%) HND
7 11 (8.53%) Firmware
7 11 (8.53%) MATLAB
7 11 (8.53%) Mentor Graphics
7 11 (8.53%) Simulink
8 8 (6.20%) Problem-Solving
8 8 (6.20%) Prototyping
8 8 (6.20%) Schematic Capture
8 8 (6.20%) Validation
9 7 (5.43%) C
9 7 (5.43%) EMC
9 7 (5.43%) Mentoring
10 6 (4.65%) Python
11 5 (3.88%) Embedded Firmware
12 4 (3.10%) C++
12 4 (3.10%) Embedded C
12 4 (3.10%) ISO 9001
12 4 (3.10%) Project Delivery
12 4 (3.10%) Software Testing
12 4 (3.10%) Technical Leadership
13 3 (2.33%) Agile
13 3 (2.33%) Business Development
13 3 (2.33%) Commercial Awareness
13 3 (2.33%) Continuous Improvement

Hardware 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 11 (8.53%) Simulink
2 2 (1.55%) Microsoft Office
2 2 (1.55%) OrCAD
3 1 (0.78%) SOLIDWORKS
Cloud Services
1 2 (1.55%) Microsoft 365
Communications & Networking
1 3 (2.33%) Structured Cabling
2 1 (0.78%) SAN
Development Applications
1 1 (0.78%) LabVIEW
1 1 (0.78%) Rational DOORS
General
1 46 (35.66%) Electronics
2 15 (11.63%) Manufacturing
3 14 (10.85%) Aerospace
4 9 (6.98%) Social Skills
5 6 (4.65%) Public Sector
6 4 (3.10%) Analytical Skills
6 4 (3.10%) Health Technology
6 4 (3.10%) Wearables
7 3 (2.33%) Finance
8 2 (1.55%) Presentation Skills
9 1 (0.78%) Advertising
9 1 (0.78%) Avionics
9 1 (0.78%) Legal
Miscellaneous
1 20 (15.50%) Analogue Electronics
2 7 (5.43%) FPGA
3 4 (3.10%) Acoustics
4 3 (2.33%) Data Centre
4 3 (2.33%) IoT
4 3 (2.33%) Self-Motivation
5 2 (1.55%) Algorithms
5 2 (1.55%) Device Driver
5 2 (1.55%) Driving Licence
5 2 (1.55%) Robotics
5 2 (1.55%) VHDL
6 1 (0.78%) Analytical Mindset
6 1 (0.78%) ARM Cortex
6 1 (0.78%) Embedded Systems
6 1 (0.78%) Smartphone
Operating Systems
1 3 (2.33%) Linux
2 1 (0.78%) Windows
Processes & Methodologies
1 30 (23.26%) Cybersecurity
2 15 (11.63%) Coaching
3 13 (10.08%) Break/Fix
4 8 (6.20%) Problem-Solving
4 8 (6.20%) Prototyping
4 8 (6.20%) Schematic Capture
4 8 (6.20%) Validation
5 7 (5.43%) Mentoring
6 4 (3.10%) Project Delivery
6 4 (3.10%) Software Testing
6 4 (3.10%) Technical Leadership
7 3 (2.33%) Business Development
7 3 (2.33%) Commercial Awareness
7 3 (2.33%) Continuous Improvement
7 3 (2.33%) Cost Management
7 3 (2.33%) Line Management
7 3 (2.33%) People Management
7 3 (2.33%) Stakeholder Engagement
7 3 (2.33%) Strategic Planning
7 3 (2.33%) Test Automation
Programming Languages
1 11 (8.53%) MATLAB
2 7 (5.43%) C
3 6 (4.65%) Python
4 4 (3.10%) C++
4 4 (3.10%) Embedded C
5 2 (1.55%) C#
5 2 (1.55%) Embedded C++
Qualifications
1 28 (21.71%) Degree
2 16 (12.40%) BPSS Clearance
3 13 (10.08%) Security Cleared
4 12 (9.30%) HND
5 3 (2.33%) DBS Check
6 2 (1.55%) HNC
6 2 (1.55%) SC Cleared
7 1 (0.78%) A+ Certification
7 1 (0.78%) CCNA
7 1 (0.78%) Cisco Certification
7 1 (0.78%) Master's Degree
7 1 (0.78%) MCSE
7 1 (0.78%) Microsoft Certification
7 1 (0.78%) Network+ Certification
Quality Assurance & Compliance
1 4 (3.10%) ISO 9001
2 3 (2.33%) ISO 14001
3 1 (0.78%) ISO/IEC 27001
3 1 (0.78%) PCI DSS
3 1 (0.78%) SLA
System Software
1 11 (8.53%) Firmware
2 5 (3.88%) Embedded Firmware
Systems Management
1 3 (2.33%) Functional Safety
Vendors
1 11 (8.53%) Mentor Graphics
2 7 (5.43%) EMC
3 2 (1.55%) Dell
3 2 (1.55%) Microsoft
4 1 (0.78%) Siemens
4 1 (0.78%) Snow