Software developer salaries are surging in the UK as AI skills gaps drives demand

UK software developer salaries are surging according to new research, driven largely by growing demand for AI skills.

Figures from Stack Overflow show that while US-based developers still boast the highest global pay, their counterparts across the Atlantic are closing the gap at a notable pace.

According to Stack Overflow, AI and machine learning engineers now command a median salary of £112,000, while engineering manager pay stands at around £102,000.

Elsewhere, median salaries for cloud infrastructure engineers have reached £98,500.

The study noted that salary growth rates are a welcome sign and underscore the growing influence of the country’s tech sector. Despite this, they still lag behind US pay rates, with leading development roles often exceeding $189,000 (£141,900).

There are positive signs in terms of future growth, however. Stack Overflow noted that recent investment pledges from companies such as Microsoft and Google could “finally put [UK developer salaries] on a par with the US”.

In-demand roles and “uneven” salary growth

Stack Overflow identified a host of in-demand roles that enterprises have been crying out for in 2025. Back-end developers, for example, earn a median salary of £81,000, marking a 6.5% increase compared to £76,000 just last year.

Looking at global salary growth rates, Stack Overflow said there has been “uneven growth” in several areas. Product managers, for example, recorded the largest increase in pay from last year (29.3%) alongside game developers and front-end devs.

Conversely, established developer roles are experiencing lower salary growth rates, potentially signaling a "stabilization in mature technical disciplines”.

“More established roles such as data engineers, cloud infrastructure engineers, and QA or test developers, recorded only marginal increases,” the company said in a blog post.

The UK has developer talent challenges

While salary growth rates are a positive signal of the strength of the UK’s developer community, concerns have been rising over long-term sustainability of talent pipelines.

Previous figures from Stack Overflow found the average age of UK developers stands at 39 years old, with the company’s 2025 Developer Survey noting that 74% of professionals had more than a decade of coding experience.

Naturally, this was a cause for celebration which underlined the workforce’s strong technical capabilities. Yet speaking to ITPro in the wake of the study’s release, Stack Overflow warned the UK’s aging developer workforce could struggle to keep pace as a result of skills shortages.

Jody Bailey, chief product and technology officer at Stack Overflow, told ITPro the developer workforce will require more support from industry, academia, and government in the coming years to ensure a steady flow of new talent.

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