“When a man is tired of London, he is tired of life; for there is in London all that life can afford.”
Hear, hear. Good ol’ chap that Samuel Johnson. As true in the 18th Century as it is today.
London’s got something for everyone. Wide-open patches of nature in the many large parks? Yup. Sight-packed strolls along the Thames? You bet.
London also has literally everyone. You probably won’t find any other city as well-known for its multiculturalism as this one, and that’s exactly why you’ll fit right in and not feel like an outcast. A third of all Londoners are foreign born, representing 270 different nationalities who are united by the 1,400 year-old English language. Flabbergasting. Try getting a decent translation of that word.
Keep Calm and Move to London
London, however, is much more than Big Ben’s hourly ring, the birthplace of sandwiches (really) or the departure for Hogwarts. London is where you can boost your tech career.
The city lives up to what it’s been striving to be: the centre of technology, innovation and entrepreneurship. London technology companies are pushing to narrow the gap with Silicon Valley and become Europe’s tech hub. Just last year, startups in the city attracted about $800 million of funding from U.S. investors alone.
This enormous investment and effort to make London’s tech scene stand out is largely owed to the UK government and was taken even further by the city’s Mayor, Boris Johnson.
It all started five years ago with the launch of Tech City, a programme set up by Prime Minister David Cameron aiming to support the East London tech cluster known as Silicon Roundabout, later extended to Greater London and other major cities in the country.
It focuses on creating the best conditions for digital technology businesses and entrepreneurs to thrive across the UK. Through their own policy work and programmes ranging across the entire lifecycle of digital businesses, Tech City aims to accelerate their growth.
Since the launch of this project, London’s digital technology industry has grown by 46% and tech firms now employ almost 200k people, 17% more than in 2010.
Sitting on a Gold Mine
All these figures are proof that London’s thriving tech cloud isn’t evaporating anytime soon. In fact, by 2017 more than 745k digitally skilled professionals will be needed to meet demand from employers in the UK. Speaking of figures, let’s get to the ones that interest you the most: salaries.
Generally speaking, the average London salary is about £34k. If you’re an IT professional in the city, that average increases to around £57k — that’s 68% higher. London IT salaries are amplified by the high demand for tech professionals in the capital, from startups to large international companies.
Breaking it down by category and experience, this is what you can expect to land on your bank account if you move to London:
TitleLevelUK — Full time
(per year)
Back-endJunior£20k-£30kMid-weight£35k-£45kSenior£45k-£50kBusiness IntelligenceManager£55k-£70kFront-endJunior£20k-£30kMid-weight£30k-£40kSenior£45k-£60kMobile Developer (iOS/Android)-£30k-£65kProduct/project managerMid-weight£50k-£65kSenior£65k-£80kQA/TestingMid-weight£30k-£40kSenior£50k-£55kUX designerJunior£20k-£30kMid-weight£30k-£45kSenior£50k-£60kDigital marketing managerMid-weight£25k-£35kSenior£35k-£60k
Take a look at those numbers. Probably a pretty big difference than what you’re earning right now, innit?
Currently in London, Front-End Developers with solid JavaScript experience (with AngularJS and backbone.js added) are met with an ongoing demand. From a Back-End Development perspective, there is a continuing demand for both Python and node.js.
My kingdom for a boost
Flying off to Her Majesty’s land to live and work can feel daunting, especially if your career is just starting off. If you’re employed in your home country, chances are everyone (ie. your mum) around you thinks you’re mental about giving it up and wasting an opportunity.
However, moving to another country can offer plenty of new opportunities to boost your career by gaining new skills and an international network that can really pay off in the long run. Besides, travelling develops and increases your sense of independence and adaptability, which are always top qualities to have. It’s also much easier to do it early on in your career rather than later down the line, when you are likely to be tied down by family commitments.
Consider the four key factors we’ve mentioned. You can have them all in London: plenty of job offers to choose from and a bulky salary figure because of high demand; government programmes that are supporting new businesses and turning the city of London into an accepting multicultural Silicon Valley; and huge investments set to build the next big startups you can work at. Nice one, eh?
Land in London
If you’ve made it this far, we’ve probably caught your eye. Check out the startups featured on Landing.jobs that are hiring for a spot in London:
- DigitasLBi
- Moonpig
- TransferWise
- Quiqup
- We Got POP
- Network Locum
- Akkroo
- Curve
- Veni Technology
- DrED.com
- Skimlinks
If you’re from a Southern European country, you might have to kiss the sun goodbye and accept the rain as a constant weather condition. But, as they say, “London is a bad habit one hates to lose”.
So pack your bags. London’s calling.
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