MLOps and platform
Owns the pipelines, deployment, monitoring and cost of models in production.
A direct reading with a real sample on both the contract and permanent side. This is the best-evidenced discipline in the guide.
The published figures
One title stands behind this discipline.
MLOps
as the source names it| Basis | Lower (10th) | Middle | Upper (90th) | Sample | Weight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Contract, per day | £450 | £575 | £790 | 239 rates quoted | strong |
| Permanent, per year | £56,750 | £87,500 | £118,750 | 196 salaries quoted | strong |
The highest permanent median of any reading here, and the highest tenth percentile by a wide margin. The floor is what is interesting: almost nobody advertises this work cheaply.
As a fractional engagement
Built on £575 a day, the lowest advertised middle of the titles above. Lowest, not highest, because the number that matters to a buyer setting a budget is the one they are least likely to be surprised by.
| Commitment | Days a month | Per month | Per year |
|---|---|---|---|
| One day a week | 4 | £2,300 | £27,600 |
| Two days a week | 8 | £4,600 | £55,200 |
| Three days a week | 12 | £6,900 | £82,800 |
£575 a day multiplied by the commitment, and nothing else. No seniority uplift, because any uplift would be invented.
Why this one is hard to judge
The work is invisible when it is done well, so the evidence is in incidents and spend, not in features.
That is the reason a rate alone tells you very little here. Two people quoting the same day rate for this work can be worth wildly different amounts to you, and the difference does not show up in either of their profiles.
Figures from IT Jobs Watch, UK contract rates and IT Jobs Watch, UK permanent salaries, six months to 8 August 2026, read on 2026-08-08. They are rates and salaries advertised, not paid.