UK contractor day rate index
What does a UK tech contractor cost per day in 2026?
In short: across the ten roles and skills we track, the median advertised UK contract day rate runs from £500 for a Data Engineer to £625 for a Solutions Architect (ITJobsWatch, six months to late September 2026), with Lead Data Scientist at £630 on a thin sample. AI Engineers sit at £600 a day, up 14.3% on a year earlier, the fastest rise in the index. These are independent market medians for contractor pay, not Hurren & Hope's rates. When you hire through us, we work to your budget and give you options across a range, so you decide what value looks like.
Every row links to its ITJobsWatch source page. Last reviewed .
This index covers the UK only, and our contract hiring is UK only. Hiring in New York or San Francisco? See our salary benchmarks and permanent recruitment.
In short
- Typical range: £500 to £625 a day is the median advertised UK rate across the rows in this index with a solid sample (ITJobsWatch, six months to 22 to 29 September 2026).
- Rising fastest: AI Engineer, £600 a day, up 14.3% on the same six months of 2025. Contracts citing AWS are up 4.8% to £550.
- Falling: Software Engineer, £560 a day on 536 quoted rates, down 10.4% on a year earlier.
- London premium: a Software Engineer is £625 a day in London against £525 in the rest of the UK, and a Data Engineer £525 against £475.
- Every figure is sourced: each row names its ITJobsWatch page, its period and how many quoted rates sit behind the median.
The indexUK tech contractor day rates, September 2026
Median day rate quoted in advertised UK contract vacancies, before agency margin, with the change on the same six months of 2025. The direction of travel matters more than any single number.
| Role or skill | Median day rate | vs same period 2025 | London / rest of UK | Rates quoted | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Solutions Architect | £625 | Up 0.4% | £650 / £625 | 1,251 | ITJobsWatch, to 29 Sep |
| Lead Data Scientist † | £630 | Down 3.1% | No reliable split | 16 | ITJobsWatch, to 24 Sep |
| AI Engineer * | £600 | Up 14.3% | No reliable split | Not shown (503 adverts) | ITJobsWatch, to 29 Sep |
| Software Engineer | £560 | Down 10.4% | £625 / £525 | 536 | ITJobsWatch, to 26 Sep |
| Contracts citing Cybersecurity | £550 | Up 1.9% | £575 / £550 | 1,698 | ITJobsWatch, to 29 Sep |
| Contracts citing AWS | £550 | Up 4.8% | £565 / £525 | 4,459 | ITJobsWatch, to 28 Sep |
| Contracts citing Python | £538 | Up 2.4% | £575 / £500 | 3,639 | ITJobsWatch, to 28 Sep |
| Contracts citing DevOps | £525 | Up 1.0% | £550 / £500 | 3,899 | ITJobsWatch, to 27 Sep |
| Contracts citing Azure | £525 | Up 1.6% | £550 / £510 | 5,776 | ITJobsWatch, to 22 Sep |
| Data Engineer | £500 | Flat | £525 / £475 | 1,283 | ITJobsWatch, to 29 Sep |
Lead Data Scientist rests on 16 quoted rates, so treat it as indicative only. We do not publish a median on fewer than 15 quoted rates.
ITJobsWatch's AI Engineer figures come from its index listing, which shows the median, the change and 503 adverts citing the title, but not the number of quoted rates.
"Contracts citing" rows are ITJobsWatch skill tags: any contract advert that mentions the skill, whatever the job title. "Rates quoted" is the number of adverts that gave a daily rate, which is the sample behind each median. London and rest of UK medians are as shown by ITJobsWatch; we have not captured the regional sample sizes, so treat the split as a guide.
Read this firstThis table is the market. It is not our quotation.
The figures are independent published medians for contractor pay, restated from market data rather than from our own billing. They are not a Hurren & Hope quotation and not a bill rate. We do not price from this table, and nor should you: it is here so you can see the shape of the market before you pick up the phone.
What a role actually costs on a live brief depends on IR35 status, location, duration, notice and how scarce the skill is that month.
What else goes into the cost?
Agency margin
A margin on the day rate for every day worked. Ours is agreed up front as a fixed figure, shown separately on the contract and fixed for the engagement, so it does not rise if the contractor's rate rises at extension.
Employer NI inside IR35
Where an engagement is inside IR35, the deemed employer pays employer NI at 15% above a £5,000 secondary threshold for 2026/27 (GOV.UK), plus the Apprenticeship Levy where it applies.
Umbrella costs
Any umbrella company costs are on top of these medians. From 6 April 2026, the agency that contracts with the client is jointly and severally liable with the umbrella for unpaid PAYE and NIC, or the client where there is no agency.
More on IR35, umbrella rules and right to work, with every rule linked to its source, in our hiring legislation hub.
MethodologySources and how we update it
- Source
- ITJobsWatch UK contract pages, one per row and linked in the table. ITJobsWatch is an independent job market statistics site, not a recruitment agency. Each row uses its own six-month rolling period, ending between 22 and 29 September 2026.
- What is measured
- The median daily rate quoted in advertised UK contract vacancies, before agency margin. Adverts may quote PAYE, umbrella or limited company rates, and the source does not separate them. Excludes employer NI where an engagement is inside IR35, and any umbrella costs.
- Sample
- The number of adverts quoting a daily rate in the period, shown for every row. Rows under 30 quoted rates are marked as indicative; we do not publish a median on fewer than 15.
- Direction of travel
- ITJobsWatch's own comparison with the same six months of 2025, rounded to one decimal place.
- What we removed
- Earlier versions of this index blended two ITJobsWatch periods with a ContractorUK report and showed single "highest observed" adverts. We have dropped both: single adverts cannot be re-checked, and every figure here now traces to one named page.
- Update cycle
- Checked against the market every month and fully restated every quarter, on 1 January, 1 April, 1 July and 1 October.
- Last reviewed
Want the number for your role, not the market's?
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UK contractor day rate questions
What is the average day rate for a UK tech contractor in 2026?
Across the rows in our index with a solid sample, the median advertised UK day rate runs from £500 (Data Engineer, 1,283 quoted rates) to £625 (Solutions Architect, 1,251 quoted rates), based on ITJobsWatch six-month medians to late September 2026.
How much does an AI Engineer contractor cost per day in the UK?
The median advertised rate is £600 a day, up 14.3% on the same six months of 2025, the fastest rise in the index (ITJobsWatch, 503 adverts, six months to 29 September 2026). That is contractor pay, before agency margin and any employer NI or umbrella costs.
How much more do contractors cost in London?
London carries a premium on every row where ITJobsWatch shows a split: a Software Engineer is £625 a day in London against £525 in the rest of the UK, and a Data Engineer £525 against £475. Treat the split as a guide, because we have not captured the regional sample sizes.
Are these the rates Hurren & Hope charges?
No. They are independent market medians for contractor pay, not our quotation and not a bill rate. On a live brief we agree the contractor's rate and our margin with you up front, with the margin shown separately on the contract.
What does an agency add on top of the day rate?
A margin for every day worked. We agree ours as a fixed figure, not a percentage, and fix it for the engagement. Inside IR35 engagements also carry employer NI, and umbrella costs can apply.
Why is Lead Data Scientist marked with a dagger?
Its median of £630 rests on only 16 quoted rates in the period, so treat it as indicative. Every other row with a published sample rests on more than 500 quoted rates.
How often is this index updated?
It is checked against the market every month and fully restated every quarter, on 1 January, 1 April, 1 July and 1 October. It was last reviewed on 29 September 2026.
Do inside IR35 contracts pay a different day rate?
Often, because inside IR35 the deemed employer deducts tax and National Insurance and pays employer NI. ITJobsWatch does not split rates by IR35 status, so we do not publish an inside versus outside figure.
Do you supply contractors outside the UK?
No. Our contract hiring is UK only. We place permanent staff in New York and San Francisco.
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The index in numbers