UK ranks 15th globally for tech salaries as AI augments roles rather than replacing them, Hays report finds
British tech professionals rank 15th out of 34 countries for average salaries and 16th for contractor day rates, with artificial intelligence reshaping tasks within roles rather than eliminating jobs, according to recruitment firm Hays' Tech Talent Explorer published on April 8.
The report, based on data from almost 10,000 tech professionals across 34 countries, found that software-heavy roles such as software developers, data engineers and AI engineers face the highest exposure to automation. However, the overall impact remains "modest", with AI removing specific tasks rather than entire positions.
Roles requiring judgement, coordination and organisational oversight, including project and change managers, showed lower levels of AI exposure. Infrastructure-focused positions such as security and network engineering were least affected and remain critical to safe AI deployment.
"AI isn't replacing human talent but amplifying it," said David Curtis, STEM senior managing director at Hays UK and Ireland. "As automation accelerates routine tasks, the roles that thrive are those grounded in judgement, coordination and strategic oversight."
The UK performs well in specialist areas. Security engineers rank fourth globally for permanent salaries, while Java developers, DevOps engineers, solutions architects and .NET developers all place 10th. In the contractor market, UK Java developer day rates rank third globally and cloud engineers fifth.
The highest-paid permanent roles in the UK are solutions architect (£84,249), security engineer (£75,702) and DevOps engineer (£67,532). Top contractor day rates go to Java developers (£695), cloud engineers (£684) and security engineers (£659).
At the lower end, project managers earn an average of £41,736, test analysts £43,971 and data analysts £44,415.
The top five countries for permanent tech salaries are the United States, Switzerland, Denmark, the UAE and Saudi Arabia. For contractor day rates, Switzerland, Denmark, Australia, Germany and Japan lead the table.
Curtis said the UK must continue to position itself as an attractive destination for global tech talent. "Competitiveness is measured not only by pay, but by how effectively a country supports and invests in its people," he said.
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