Software Jobs in the UK: Who's Hiring Right Now (Oct 2026)

You want a software job in the UK and you want to know who is actually hiring, not vague market talk. Here is what our live feed showed on 14 October 2026: 475 open software listings in the United Kingdom, on the JobRise software jobs hub for the United Kingdom. This is a count of live listings on our feed, not a market survey, so treat it as a dated snapshot.

Of those 475 listings, 355 went up in the last 30 days and 212 in the last 7 days. That is a lot of fresh hiring activity. If you have been waiting for a quiet moment to start applying, this is not it.

Who is hiring right now#

Ten employers hold the most open software listings in this snapshot. Some are tech companies, some are recruiters or staffing firms, so read the name on the listing carefully before you apply.

• Palantir: 23 open listings
• Anthropic: 19
• Neo4j: 17
• Elastic: 15
• Zopa: 14
• Spectrum IT Recruitment Limited: 11
• Spotify: 11
• Lanes Group: 10
• Stripe: 10
• Ocean Infinity: 9

Palantir is listing roles like "Forward Deployed Infrastructure Engineer, New Grad - UK Government" and "Forward Deployed Software Engineer, New Grad - Commercial". Stripe has "Software Engineer, New Grad" open. Scaleai is hiring a "Software Engineer - New Grad" too.

Beyond those ten, the feed shows named roles at other employers: "Automation Platform Engineer" at Jagex: The RuneScape Company, "Quantitative Developer" at Janus Henderson, "Lead Software Development Engineer - Services" at Capital One UK, "Oracle Fusion Software Developer (Payroll)" at Morson Edge, "Weights Engineer" at Safran Engineering Services UK Limited. In the quantum corner there is "Electronics Engineer - Analogue/Mixed-Signal" at Nu Quantum Ltd, "Associate Quantum Software Engineer" at Oxford Quantum Circuits, and "Quantum Software Engineer - Algorithms & Applications" at Infeqtion. That last cluster is small but real, and it is mostly around Oxford and Cambridge.

Where the jobs are#

London dominates: 208 of the 475 listings. Then it thins out fast. Manchester has 14, Cambridge 13, Belfast 11, Leeds 7.

That gap tells you something. If you are in London, you have volume on your side and you can afford to be picky about commute and salary. If you are outside London, you are competing for a much smaller local pool, so widen your search to remote-friendly roles and be ready to travel for interviews.

What the job-type mix says#

Full-time roles are 466 of the 475. Contract roles are 9. That is a market that wants permanent headcount, not short-term cover.

Look at the mix of employers and you can read the market's shape. Big tech is present and hiring: Anthropic, Spotify, Stripe, Palantir. Data and infrastructure companies are pulling too: Neo4j, Elastic. Fintech and consumer tech show up with Zopa. Recruiters like Spectrum IT Recruitment Limited, Morson Edge, Sanderson and Data Careers are placing contractors and permanent staff on behalf of clients, which usually means client-side demand they cannot fill alone. Public sector and defence-adjacent work appears through Palantir's UK Government role and Safran Engineering Services UK Limited. Lanes Group and Ocean Infinity suggest engineering and infrastructure firms building in-house software capability.

Startups are less visible in the top ten than you might expect, but the quantum roles at Nu Quantum Ltd, Oxford Quantum Circuits and Infeqtion are exactly that kind of small, specialised employer. Agencies and staffing firms are a real channel here, not a last resort.

What the pay data actually shows#

Only 81 of the 475 listings show a salary. That is worth knowing before you set your expectations. As posted:

• "Lead Software Development Engineer - Services" at Capital One UK: £60K-60K
• "Oracle Fusion Software Developer (Payroll)" at Morson Edge: £1K-1K
• "Contract Software Developer" at Spectrum IT Recruitment Limited: £67K-67K
• "Full Stack Software Developer" at Data Careers: £90K-90K
• "Software Developer" at Sanderson: £60K-65K
• "Senior Software Developer" at Noriker Power Ltd: £70K-70K

Some of these are clearly day rates or odd units posted as annual figures, like the Morson Edge listing. Read the listing text before you assume. Where pay is shown, the numbers vary a lot by role and employer, so verify current rates on the official listing or the employer's own careers page.

Entry-level roles exist, but they are few#

Ten of the 475 listings look entry-level by title: intern, graduate, junior, trainee and similar. Examples include "Junior IT Desktop Support" at Barfoots of Botley, "Junior Cyber Security Analyst" at Vix Technology & Kuba, "Software Engineer - New Grad" at Scaleai, "Software Engineer, New Grad" at Stripe, and two Palantir new-grad roles.

If you are early career, that ratio is the honest headline. You are fishing in a small pool, so apply to every one you qualify for and treat each application as high-effort.

How to apply this week#

Apply direct where you can. If the listing is on our software jobs hub, click through to the employer's own site and apply there as well as through the listing. Recruiters are fine to use, but a direct application keeps you in control of follow-up.

Mirror the listing's keywords in your CV and your answers. If the role says "Oracle Fusion", write "Oracle Fusion", not "enterprise ERP". If it says "Forward Deployed", use that phrase. Applicant tracking systems match words, and the fastest way to fail is to paraphrase everything into your own vocabulary. Run your CV through our free ATS checker before you hit submit, and fix what it flags.

For the wider picture across all categories, our Hiring Report for the United Kingdom shows 2,742 open listings, with 2,245 posted in the last 30 days. Software is a slice of that, not the whole thing.

A 7-step plan#

• Pick your top 10 target listings from the 475, including at least two you think are a stretch.
• Rewrite the top third of your CV for each one, mirroring the exact keywords in that listing.
• Run each tailored CV through the free ATS checker and fix formatting or keyword gaps.
• Apply direct on the employer's site first, then through the listing so you are covered both ways.
• If the listing is by a recruiter like Spectrum IT Recruitment Limited, Sanderson or Morson Edge, email the named consultant with your CV and the job reference.
• Track everything in a simple spreadsheet: company, role, date applied, contact name, next follow-up date.
• Follow up once, five working days after applying, with a two-line email that restates the role and your fit.

Free tools#

• Software jobs in United Kingdom
• JobRise Hiring Report: the UK
• free ATS resume checker

FAQ#

How current are these numbers?

They are a snapshot of open listings on the JobRise live jobs feed taken on 14 October 2026. Listings change daily, so check the live hub for what is open now.

Should I apply through a recruiter or direct?

Do both. Apply direct to the employer where possible, and if a recruiter like Spectrum IT Recruitment Limited or Sanderson holds the listing, stay in touch with the named consultant as well.

Are contract software roles worth chasing in the UK right now?

Only 9 of the 475 listings in this snapshot are contract, so the market is skewed to full-time. If you want contract work, be ready to move fast on the few that appear and check current tax and IR35 rules on the official government source.

Is London my only real option?

London has 208 of the 475 listings, but Manchester, Cambridge, Belfast and Leeds have openings too. Outside London, widen to remote-friendly roles and expect more travel for interviews.

What if I am a graduate with no experience?

Ten of the 475 listings look entry-level, including new-grad roles at Stripe, Scaleai and Palantir. Apply to all of them, tailor hard, and treat each application as high-effort rather than sending generic CVs.