February 2026 – South East UK – IT, Tech and AI Salary & Contractor Rates
South East Market Insights
This region is currently a “battleground” for talent. South East firms are caught between the gravity of London salaries and the lower overheads of the North. To retain the “Top 5%,” firms here often have to push toward the “Yearly High” to prevent their best people from commuting into the City.
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The Commuter Premium: The South East is currently experiencing “Salary Leakage.” A Senior Software Developer in Reading or Guildford can earn £93.5k locally, but the £103.7k London median is only a 45-minute train ride away. This is why South East day rates are often closer to London levels than Northern levels.
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Infrastructure Strategy: In the South East, IT* Support Managers are commanding a median of £64,350. This is significantly higher than the North West, reflecting the higher cost of living and the density of corporate HQs in the M4/M3 corridors.
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AI/Tech* Growth: We are seeing a cluster of AI/Machine Learning hubs in the South East (notably around Oxford and Cambridge). This is driving the £104,500 median for AI Engineers, as these specialist firms compete globally for talent.
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The Interim Solution: Because permanent talent is so competitive in this region, the £700–£900 day rate for Project Managers and Architects is the primary way our South East clients are meeting their Q1 transformation deadlines.
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CategoryJob TitleYearly Low (SE)Yearly Median (SE)Yearly High (SE)Contractor Day Rate (SE)LeadershipChief Transformation Officer (CTRO)£145,000£182,050£215,000£1,300Chief Technology Officer (CTO)£140,000£176,550£210,000£1,250Chief Information Officer (CIO)£130,000£165,275£195,000£1,200Chief Info Security Officer (CISO)£115,000£148,775£175,000£1,150IT Director£88,000£105,600£125,000£850Head of Data / AI£105,000£132,000£160,000£1,050Head of IT£78,000£89,650£105,000£775Operations3rd Line Support (SysAdmin)£46,000£57,200£68,000£4002nd Line Support£35,000£41,800£49,000£3001st Line Support£26,000£31,350£36,000£225IT Support Manager£52,000£64,350£78,000£550ArchitectureEnterprise Architect£88,000£104,775£125,000£1,000Solution Architect£84,000£99,000£115,000£900Cloud Architect (AWS/Azure)£92,000£112,750£145,000£950Security Architect£98,000£121,000£155,000£1,100Data Architect£84,000£98,725£115,000£950EngineeringAI / Machine Learning Engineer£85,000£104,500£135,000£950DevOps / SRE Engineer£72,000£93,500£125,000£800Cyber Security Engineer£62,000£82,500£110,000£750Software Developer (Senior)£72,000£93,500£125,000£700Data Engineer£68,000£85,800£108,000£750Network Engineer£50,000£63,800£80,000£550Data & PMData Scientist (Senior)£78,000£96,800£130,000£875Data Analyst£42,000£52,800£68,000£475IT Project Manager£62,000£79,200£102,000£700Business Analyst (Technical)£54,000£66,000£85,000£600
If your company is thinking of hiring, do it now. As demand rises, so too with the rates of pay and the difficulty levels of attracting and securing the right talent.
If, however, your company is slowing down – beware! If your IT staff start to feel insecure, talent competitors and recruiters will find it very easy to persuade your staff to interview elsewhere. Despite the stress and negativity that may exist, take the time to focus on reassuring your team and, where appropriate, reward their loyalty. It’s a false economy to avoid salary increases for your best people. Doing so risks leave yourself vulnerable to losing key staff and the larger costs in both time and money of replacing them.
Should you be considering recruitment or simply would like some advice on anything recruitment related, please do not hesitate to give us a call and see how we can really help you to Recruit Someone Worth Recruiting.