Average Salaries ($K)
Manchester 2020-2024
Data Salary review
Manchester
2020 - 2024
- 63% Average Cost Of Living Rise
- #15/23 Cheapest City To Live
- 25% Average Salary Rise
- #6/23 Salary Growth - All Roles
- #2/23 Salary Growth For Heads Of Data
- #4/23 Salary Growth For Data Engineers
- #3/23 Salary Growth For Data Analysts
- #23/23 Salary Growth For Data Scientists
Overview
Manchester is rapidly emerging as a major tech hub, with a growing talent pool, strong wage growth, and a thriving data sector that makes it an attractive destination for both new and experienced professionals. Over the past five years, the city has seen significant advancements in its tech landscape, particularly in data-related roles, fuelled by the expansion of sectors such as finance, e-commerce, and digital health. The city’s talent base is diversifying, with increasing numbers of professionals attracted by the competitive salaries and dynamic career opportunities available.
However, Manchester faces competition from other northern cities like Leeds and Sheffield, which are also investing heavily in their tech ecosystems. Additionally, the cost of living in Manchester has surged over the past two years, leading to more commuters and putting pressure on housing and living expenses. To retain top talent, especially for those seeking a balance between work and family life, offering flexible working conditions has become crucial.
For Manchester to solidify its position as a leading tech hub in the north, further investment in the data sector is essential. This investment will help stabilise wage growth, attract high-level talent, and foster a more competitive yet sustainable tech ecosystem. With the right focus and support, Manchester has the potential to rival cities like London and Edinburgh as a major destination for data and tech professionals.
Heads Of Data
When comparing Manchester to London, it is hard not to notice the greater volatility in the city’s leadership roles. Wages tend to fluctuate more significantly in Manchester, which can have a much larger impact on earnings, especially if you are job hunting at an inopportune time. This volatility is largely due to the difference in the types of companies hiring in each city. While London is firmly rooted as a global financial hub, Manchester’s data landscape is more diverse, with a strong emphasis on tech startups, digital media, retail, and health tech.
As a result, Heads of Data in Manchester are often tasked with driving data insights for smaller and medium-sized businesses, focusing on regional growth rather than leading global enterprises. The talent pool in Manchester is growing but remains smaller and more regionally focused compared to London. As such, Heads of Data in Manchester are expected to wear multiple hats, with responsibilities spanning both technical and managerial domains. They often play a crucial role in building teams, driving data transformation, and shaping data strategies at a regional level. While salaries in Manchester are generally lower than in London, the difference is not as stark as you might expect, and Heads of Data in Manchester often enjoy more autonomy. In contrast, London’s roles can be more narrowly defined, often within larger teams and more complex organisational structures.
We see a 38.09% rise at beginner level, 37.03% at intermediate level and 28.57% at expert level in terms of average salary growth comparing 2020 to 2024. Manchester ranking #2/23 in our review.
Average Salaries ($K) By Experience
Data Engineers
The data engineering market in Manchester is growing, but it comes with its challenges. Many roles require broad skill sets, and data engineers are often expected to manage end-to-end systems without the same level of support seen in larger teams. Additionally, the city’s tech ecosystem is still catching up in terms of data maturity, meaning engineers may often have to work with legacy systems and less sophisticated data environments, which could limit the appeal for those looking to work on cutting-edge technologies or high-impact projects.
Salary-wise, data engineers in Manchester typically earn less than their counterparts in London, which can make it challenging as the cost of living and housing prices in the city rise. While there is a vibrant tech scene, the competitive pressure is also intensifying, with more companies entering the space, which could lead to wage stagnation or volatility if there is no clear upward mobility. As a result, data engineers in Manchester may find themselves juggling a wider range of responsibilities but with fewer opportunities for specialisation.
In Manchester we have seen increased competition for new talent entering the workforce, which has driven up salaries faster than other parts of the UK. For Data Engineers this represents a double-edged sword however in that whilst they may enjoy higher salaries earlier in the careers, wage growth is somewhat stagnant until they get to those more senior roles. This being said, wage growth was still very strong in Manchester ranking #4/23 in our review with an average increase in salary over the last half decade being 30.49%.
Average Salaries ($K) By Experience
Data Analysts
Data analyst roles in Manchester have become increasingly important as the city’s tech scene grows, especially with a focus on sectors such as retail, e-commerce, healthcare, and digital media. Companies in these industries are heavily investing in data-driven decision-making, creating strong demand for skilled analysts. Candidates with expertise in advanced analytics tools (e.g. Python, R, SQL), machine learning, and business intelligence platforms (e.g.Power BI, Tableau) can stand out in the background of a maturing data space. There is also a growing need for analysts who can not only handle complex datasets but also offer strategic insights that can influence business outcomes.
Manchester as a job market offers a more balanced lifestyle with a growing number of opportunities in smaller to mid-sized companies where analysts can take on a variety of tasks, from building dashboards to conducting predictive analytics. That said, the broader range of responsibilities means data analysts in Manchester are expected to wear many hats, often bridging technical and business functions. While this offers the chance for accelerated learning and autonomy, it can also lead to less clear career progression compared to larger organisations with more defined roles.
We see a dramatic rise in average salaries post-pandemic with a 38% rise, but since then there has largely been stagnation. That rapid rise does mean that Manchester ranks #3/23 in wage growth but only because we are comparing 2020 to 2024.
Average Salaries ($K) By Experience
Data Scientists
Manchester reflects a global trend in which wages for Data Scientists have stagnated. We can certainly attribute this to the role being seen as a key differentiator back in 2020, when talent was limited and so competition and wages went up. The small rise in 2024 is no doubt in reaction to companies wishing to leverage AI.
It is important to note that whilst Manchester is last in terms of wage growth over the last five years, average wages in 2020 were $106k, actually higher than London and so lower wages may reflect a market correction when competition for hires in that year were particularly fierce. We could speculate that as most Data Scientists are drawn towards the advertising sector in Manchester, and 2020 saw the announcement that third-party cookies were ending, perhaps more people were hired so as to come up with a solution to this problem.
There is also a noticeable gap in experience in Manchester. A lack of expert-level talent (with most being soaked up by London) has pushed wages higher. In fact in 2024 there is a 66.66% gap between intermediate and expert levels. This can make it a very attractive place to be if you fall into that category.
Average Salaries ($K) By Experience
Hiring Data Roles For Manchester Companies
Manchester’s data talent pool has expanded significantly in recent years, particularly in sectors like retail, e-commerce, healthcare, and digital media. However, it still lags behind larger cities like London in terms of both the number of skilled professionals and the depth of specialised talent. While the city offers a competitive advantage in cost of living, it also means wages are generally lower than in other major tech hubs, which can make attracting top-tier talent from outside the region more difficult. Roles in high-demand areas like machine learning, and data engineering are especially challenging to fill, with many candidates lacking advanced technical skills like proficiency in machine learning algorithms, cloud-based platforms, and big data tools.
If you are struggling to fill senior-level data roles, or if you need to ramp up a data-driven project quickly, working with a data agency like 173tech can be a more efficient and cost-effective solution. Hiring an agency allows you to tap into a wider talent pool without the overhead costs associated with full-time hires, and ensures you are working with professionals who have the right skillsets for specific tasks or projects. By leveraging an agency, employers can maintain flexibility and agility while ensuring they have the right expertise to drive their data initiatives forward.
173tech Direct Comparison
- Head Of Data (5+ yrs) $225k
- Data Engineer (5+ yrs) $120k
- Data Engineer (0-3 yrs) $70k
- Data Analyst (3-5 yrs) $72k
- $487k per yr + Tax + Pension + Holidays
- Candice (15+ yrs) Ruben (8+ yrs) Oliver (10+ yrs)
- Adrian (15+ yrs)
- Oscar (2+ yrs)
- Emeric (3+ yrs) Mai (4+ yrs) Noel (2+ yrs) Amy (2+ yrs)
- $240k
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