Deerfoot is an IT recruitment agency placing permanent and contract technology staff across London, from the City to the M25 and M4 corridor, since 1997.
You deal with the consultant doing the search, from brief to offer, with no hand-off to an account manager.
The London technology market
London is the UK's largest and most crowded technology job market, and hiring here rewards knowing where you stand in it.
Finance runs through it, cited in 23% of London's permanent technology vacancies in the six months to September 2026, according to IT Jobs Watch. Around the City and Canary Wharf that means banks, insurers, and wealth and asset managers; around Shoreditch and King's Cross, start-ups, scale-ups and AI businesses; and around Westminster, government digital programmes, where security clearance now features in 6% of London vacancies, up from 4% a year earlier.
The practical consequence for employers: London pays the highest technology salaries in the UK, but demand is shifting. AI featured in almost one in seven London permanent tech vacancies in the six months to September 2026, up from one in seventeen two years earlier, while advertised medians for generalist roles such as business analysts and project managers fell year on year. Strong candidates are usually weighing several approaches at once, and good people are more often approached than found applying.
14.6%
of London permanent tech vacancies cited AI in the six months to September 2026, up from 5.9% two years earlier
94%
of our permanent placements still in post twelve months later, in our most recent audited period
1,274
Software Engineer vacancies advertised in London in the six months to September 2026, the capital's most in-demand technology role
The roles we fill in London
These are the areas where London employers most often come to us:
In the last twelve months we have placed technology professionals with a range of London employers, including a global bank, wealth and investment managers, and a major consultancy delivering government digital services. The roles ranged from IT support and endpoint engineering to business analysis, performance analysis, interaction design, data leadership, ServiceNow architecture and senior infrastructure programme management.
We also recruit across cloud and DevOps, product and specialist roles and technology leadership.
How we work
Our process is documented, externally audited and the same every time. See how we recruit.
INDEPENDENTLY ACCREDITED SINCE 1997
London hiring moves fast.
Strong candidates here rarely wait for a second call, and we have been recruiting technology people since 1997.
What London employers are paying
London pays the UK's highest technology salaries, but the spread is wide: the same job title can differ by tens of thousands between the City, fintech scale-ups and public sector digital teams. These medians come from advertised London vacancies, not our own placements.
London IT salaries and day rates
The six most-advertised technology job titles in London, medians from advertised vacancies, six months to September 2026
- Software Engineer
£100,000
Contract: £625/day (241 rates)
Salary down 9.1% · 865 salaries - Solutions Architect
£100,000
Contract: £650/day (512 rates)
Salary up 5.3% · 577 salaries - Data Engineer
£80,000
Contract: £525/day (621 rates)
Salary unchanged · 467 salaries - Business Analyst
£67,500
Contract: £525/day (641 rates)
Salary down 15.6% · 317 salaries - IT Manager
£65,000
Contract: £550/day (113 rates)
Salary unchanged · 342 salaries - Project Manager
£67,500
Contract: £575/day (482 rates)
Salary down 12.9% · 302 salaries
Source: IT Jobs Watch, London medians from advertised vacancies. Day rates shown only where at least 10 contract rates were advertised. Updated quarterly.
Who you will be dealing with
Nick Gordon · Founder · LinkedIn
Nick founded Deerfoot in 1997 and has been immersed in the recruitment industry for more than 25 years. He remains hands-on, and particularly enjoys advising organisations with complex hiring needs. Running an ethical recruitment service matters a great deal to him, and it shapes how Deerfoot works with clients and candidates alike.
Away from work you will usually find him heading out into the forest or onto the beach with his dog, playing tennis, doing yoga, or cooking something plant-based.
To talk to Nick, call us on 020 3701 5510 and ask for him, or email hello@deerfoot.co.uk and it will reach him.
Common questions about hiring in London
Do you have an office in London?
No. We are a remote-first business and do not rent a London office. Most clients ask for a video call or Teams meeting, but our team is happy to come to you whenever a face-to-face conversation helps, at your offices in the City, Canary Wharf or wherever suits.
What does a London recruitment agency cost?
Our fees are a percentage of first-year salary, set by how hard the role is to fill, and we agree a firm figure before any work starts. Behind it sits a six-month, 100% refund on our standard permanent terms, and one fee-free placement each month for a registered charity or non-profit.
How quickly can you fill a technology role in London?
The candidate pool is deep but heavily approached, so speed comes from reaching people first. For most mid-level roles expect a shortlist within a week to ten days and an offer within four to six weeks; senior and security-cleared roles take longer.
Do you recruit for fintech and regulated financial services?
Yes. Much of our London work is in banking, wealth management and fintech, where candidates need to understand regulation, controls and change governance as well as the technology.
Can you supply contractors in London?
Yes. We are an FCSA Recruiter Partner, so every contractor is engaged compliantly and their IR35 status is agreed before day one.
Which parts of London do you cover?
Central London and the City, out through the Home Counties and the M25 and M4 commuter belt. We also cover the rest of the UK, including IT recruitment across Hampshire and the South Coast, Manchester and the North West, Bristol and the South West, the Thames Valley and Surrey. Just outside London we also cover Hertfordshire and Cambridge.
How do I know what salary to offer in London?
Start with the medians on this page, then ask us for a benchmark for your exact role. London pay varies widely between the City, tech scale-ups and the public sector, so a like-for-like comparison is worth having. It is free and carries no obligation.
Why does it matter that our recruiter is a B Corp™?
More London employers now report on supply-chain standards, and B Lab’s assessment counts the businesses you buy from, so a certified recruiter is an easy, evidenced win if you are a B Corp or working towards it. Either way, it means an independent body has verified how we treat staff, candidates and the environment. In practice that means a fee-free placement each month for registered charities, a Living Wage Employer commitment and carbon offsetting on every placement.
Talk to us about a London role
Send us the brief or call the London line. Either way you will reach the consultant who does the work.
