Principal Software Engineer Job Trends in England
Principal Software Engineer
UK > England
The median Principal Software Engineer salary in England is £90,000 per year, according to job vacancies posted during the 6 months leading to 17 October 2026.
The table below compares current salary benchmarking and summary statistics with the previous two years.
| 6 months to 17 Oct 2026 |
Same period 2025 | Same period 2024 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | 398 | 578 | 555 |
| Rank change year-on-year | +180 | -23 | +94 |
| Permanent jobs requiring a Principal Software Engineer | 437 | 52 | 169 |
| As % of all permanent jobs in England | 0.41% | 0.12% | 0.27% |
| As % of the Job Titles category | 0.45% | 0.13% | 0.28% |
| Number of salaries quoted | 274 | 38 | 121 |
| 10th Percentile | £75,000 | £68,525 | £67,500 |
| 25th Percentile | £80,000 | £73,125 | £75,000 |
| Median annual salary (50th Percentile) | £90,000 | £100,000 | £95,000 |
| Median % change year-on-year | -10.00% | +5.26% | +15.15% |
| 75th Percentile | £100,000 | £113,750 | £116,250 |
| 90th Percentile | - | £125,000 | £147,500 |
| UK median annual salary | £90,000 | £97,500 | £92,500 |
| % change year-on-year | -7.69% | +5.41% | +15.63% |
All Permanent IT Job Roles
England
For comparison with the information above, the following table provides summary statistics for all permanent IT job vacancies in England. 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.
| 6 months to 17 Oct 2026 |
Same period 2025 | Same period 2024 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Permanent vacancies in England with a recognized job title | 97,344 | 38,609 | 59,519 |
| % of permanent jobs with a recognized job title | 92.39% | 90.75% | 95.18% |
| Number of salaries quoted | 67,910 | 23,218 | 34,173 |
| 10th Percentile | £30,250 | £28,250 | £31,250 |
| 25th Percentile | £41,250 | £35,750 | £42,394 |
| Median annual salary (50th Percentile) | £59,000 | £54,793 | £57,500 |
| Median % change year-on-year | +7.68% | -4.71% | -4.17% |
| 75th Percentile | £77,500 | £75,000 | £75,000 |
| 90th Percentile | £100,000 | £95,000 | £95,000 |
| UK median annual salary | £58,500 | £53,000 | £56,000 |
| % change year-on-year | +10.38% | -5.36% | -6.67% |
Principal Software Engineer Job Vacancy Trend in England
Historical trend showing the proportion of permanent IT job postings featuring 'Principal Software Engineer' in the job title relative to all permanent IT jobs advertised in England.
Principal Software Engineer Salary Trend in England
Salary distribution trend for Principal Software Engineer job vacancies in England.
Principal Software Engineer Salary Histogram in England
Salary distribution for jobs citing Principal Software Engineer in England over the 6 months to 17 October 2026.
Principal Software Engineer Job Locations in England
The table below looks at the demand and provides a guide to the median salaries quoted in IT jobs citing Principal Software Engineer within the England region over the 6 months to 17 October 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| London | +24 | 110 | £100,000 | -11.11% | 56 |
| South West | +7 | 88 | £100,000 | - | 17 |
| North of England | +1 | 72 | £90,000 | +5.88% | 28 |
| South East | -6 | 67 | £85,000 | +25.00% | 25 |
| East of England | +27 | 62 | £80,000 | -20.00% | 26 |
| North West | +7 | 50 | £90,000 | +5.88% | 19 |
| East Midlands | +4 | 38 | £70,000 | -6.67% | |
| Midlands | -24 | 38 | £70,000 | -6.67% | 6 |
| North East | - | 17 | £100,000 | - | 5 |
| Yorkshire | - | 5 | £100,000 | - | 5 |
| Principal Software Engineer UK |
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Principal Software Engineer Skill Set Top 30 Co-Occurring Skills & Capabilities in England
For the 6 months to 17 October 2026, Principal 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 across the England region featuring Principal Software Engineer in the job title.
| Rank | Skill | Share | Job Ads |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Software Engineering | 100.0% | 437 |
| 2 | Technical Leadership | 12.1% | 53 |
| 3 | Security Cleared | 11.2% | 49 |
| 4 | SC Cleared | 11.0% | 48 |
| 5 | AI | 9.2% | 40 |
| 6 | Agile | 8.7% | 38 |
| 7 | Degree | 8.5% | 37 |
| 8 | C++ | 7.8% | 34 |
| 9 | Java | 7.1% | 31 |
| 10 | Computer Science | 5.9% | 26 |
| 10 | TypeScript | 5.9% | 26 |
| 12 | Python | 5.7% | 25 |
| 13 | Full-Stack Development | 5.5% | 24 |
| 14 | AWS | 4.8% | 21 |
| 14 | BPSS Clearance | 4.8% | 21 |
| 14 | Mentoring | 4.8% | 21 |
| 17 | DV Cleared | 4.6% | 20 |
| 18 | CI/CD | 4.3% | 19 |
| 18 | Computer Science Degree | 4.3% | 19 |
| 18 | Mathematics | 4.3% | 19 |
| 21 | Machine Learning | 4.1% | 18 |
| 21 | React | 4.1% | 18 |
| 23 | Linux | 3.9% | 17 |
| 23 | Rust | 3.9% | 17 |
| 23 | SDLC | 3.9% | 17 |
| 23 | Software Architecture | 3.9% | 17 |
| 23 | Validation | 3.9% | 17 |
| 28 | C | 3.7% | 16 |
| 28 | Continuous Improvement | 3.7% | 16 |
| 28 | DevSecOps | 3.7% | 16 |
Principal Software Engineer Skill Set Co-Occurring Skills & Capabilities in England by Category
The table below expands on the one above by listing co-occurrences one category at a time. It covers the same employment type, locality and period, with up to 20 co-occurrences in each category.
Job Titles
| Rank | Job Title | Share | Job Ads |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Principal Embedded Software Engineer | 10.3% | 45 |
| 2 | Senior Software Engineer | 8.5% | 37 |
| 3 | Lead Software Engineer | 4.8% | 21 |
| 4 | C++ Software Engineer | 4.3% | 19 |
| 5 | Electronics Engineer | 3.4% | 15 |
| 6 | Full-Stack Software Engineer | 2.3% | 10 |
| 7 | DevSecOps Engineer | 2.1% | 9 |
| 8 | Java Software Engineer | 1.8% | 8 |
| 8 | Principal Java Engineer | 1.8% | 8 |
| 8 | Python Software Engineer | 1.8% | 8 |
| 8 | Rust Software Engineer | 1.8% | 8 |
| 12 | AWS Software Engineer | 1.4% | 6 |
| 13 | Senior C++ Software Engineer | 1.1% | 5 |
| 14 | C# Software Engineer | 0.9% | 4 |
| 14 | Mobile Software Engineer | 0.9% | 4 |
| 16 | .NET Software Engineer | 0.7% | 3 |
| 17 | Artificial Intelligence Engineer | 0.5% | 2 |
| 17 | Control Systems Engineer | 0.5% | 2 |
| 17 | Power Platform Engineer | 0.5% | 2 |
| 17 | Principal Systems Engineer | 0.5% | 2 |