The UK jobs market showed further signs of cooling in September as advertised vacancies dropped -2.4% month-on-month to 826,205 jobs, echoing ONS data that highlights a 39th consecutive period of vacancy decline, according to the latest UK Job Market Report by job matching platform Adzuna.
This means open roles are now -4.1% lower than a year ago, and alarmingly, September records the lowest vacancy level this year, suggesting employers are continuing to scale back hiring plans after a strong start to the year. In addition to broader economic headwinds, many UK employers appear to be pausing recruitment activity as they await November’s Budget announcement.
While pay growth slows, pay packets continue to hold up. The average advertised salary rose slightly to £42,417 in September, a +0.12% month-on-month lift and +8.8% up year-on-year. While wage growth has eased from the rapid pace of late 2023, annual pay increases continue to outpace inflation (3.8%) and remain supported by April’s National Minimum Wage rise. Annual public sector wage growth now outstrips the private sector, up +6.0% compared to +4.4%, respectively.
Competition for roles is heating up. There are now over two jobseekers for every vacancy (2.06) – the highest ratio since early 2024 – as unemployment remains up at 4.8%. The North East continues to be the toughest region for jobseekers, with more than three people competing per role, followed by Northern Ireland (3.32) and the West Midlands (3.2).
This year’s Christmas hiring remains resilient, with 20,284 advertised Christmas jobs so far, accounting for 2.54% of all UK jobs – similar to last year’s level (2.57%), with Retail (+8.1%) and Logistics & Warehouse jobs (+3.0%) experiencing a clear uptick in hiring ahead of the festive season. The biggest employers offering Christmas jobs include Royal Mail (20,000), Amazon (15,000+ openings), Sainsbury’s (17,000), and Marks & Spencer (4,671). Healthcare remains under pressure, with vacancies down -5.4% month-on-month and -22% year-on-year, extending months of steady decline.
Salary transparency also continued to decline. Just 43.5% of UK job ads last month included pay details, down from 43.9% in August and 45.0% in July, reversing the modest gains made earlier in the summer. This means more than half (56.5%) of all listings still omit salary information – a trend that’s persisted for much of 2025 despite rising calls for greater clarity.
Hiring activity was mixed in September, with modest gains in a handful of frontline sectors offset by wider slowdowns elsewhere. Retail led the growth, with vacancies up +8.1% month-on-month, supported by early seasonal hiring. Manufacturing (+3.7%) and Logistics & Warehouse (+3.0%) also saw solid increases, suggesting continued resilience in supply chain and production roles.
Several major sectors saw further declines in September. Consultancy roles led the fall (-9.9%), followed by PR, Advertising & Marketing (-7.8%), and Legal (-5.5%). Healthcare & Nursing vacancies dropped -5.4% month-on-month and are now -22.3% lower year-on-year, highlighting continued challenges.
On the pay side, IT (+11.9%), Teaching (+10.1%), Manufacturing (+9.4%), Retail (+9.0%), Trade & Construction (+9.0%) and PR, Advertising & Marketing (+8.2%)saw modest annual rises, while only two sectors Charity & Voluntary (-2.4%) and Travel (-1.8%) posted small annual salary declines.
To highlight, there were a handful of sectors that saw simultaneous monthly growth in both hiring and pay in September, including Logistics & Warehouse (+3.0% vacancies; +1.4% salaries), Travel (+1.1%; +1.0%), and HR & Recruitment (+0.5%, +0.7%).
For early-career workers, conditions remain challenging. Graduate job ads fell -2.9% month-on-month to 13,754 jobs in September, leaving them -39.9% lower year-on-year, just slightly above during the Covid-19 pandemic. Average graduate pay held broadly steady at £25,906, down marginally -0.1% month-on-month, but still +4.7% higher than a year ago.
When it comes to hiring speed, Admin (31.3) and Legal (31.6) roles filled faster than the national average of 36.5 days, while hiring took the longest in Healthcare & Nursing (40.0 days), Energy, Oil & Gas (39.9) and Social Work (39.9), and Teaching (39.4).
Vacancies fell across almost every part of the UK in September, extending the cooling trend that has run through the second half of the year. The steepest monthly declines were seen in London (-4.55%), South East (-2.51%), and Eastern England (-2.4%), all of which have now posted three consecutive months of contraction. Northern Ireland (+1.16%) was the only region to hold steady.
Annually, Wales (-10.3%) and Scotland (-7.4%) saw the sharpest drops in job openings.
Salaries continued to trend upward across most regions. Wales (+12.7%) led the UK for annual pay growth, followed by Scotland (+11.2%) and Eastern England (+9.6%). London remains the highest-paying region overall, with average advertised salaries of £48,771, comfortably above the national average of £42,417.
Job competition remains highest in the North East, where there are now 3.38 jobseekers for every vacancy, a level that has held steady through recent months. Northern Ireland (3.32) and the West Midlands (3.2) follow closely behind, both reflecting slower hiring and above-average claimant numbers. At the other end of the scale, the South West remains the least competitive region, with just 1.36 jobseekers per vacancy, followed by the South East (1.50) and Eastern England (1.70).
Warehouse Worker retained its position as the UK’s most searched-for role in September, according to Adzuna’s Trending Jobs rankings, followed by Healthcare Assistant and Cleaner in second and third place. Both of which saw significant jumps from 5th and 8th place, respectively, the month prior. This ranking is based on the Interest Quotient, a metric that tracks how often job postings are viewed relative to other occupations. A higher quotient reflects a stronger interest among jobseekers.
Social Care Worker and Healthcare Support Worker rounded out the top five, reflecting continued interest in care and support roles despite hiring slowdowns in the wider healthcare sector. This was followed by Sales Assistant, which has been in the top 10 for 11 out of the past 12 months. Project Manager and Assistant also continue to hold steady in 7th and 8th, but the new additions of Delivery Driver and Manager completed the top ten. Delivery Driver hasn’t been in the Top 10 since April, while Manager last made an appearance a year ago.
Andrew Hunter, co-founder of job matching platform Adzuna, said, “September’s figures reflect a job market that’s steady but cautious.
“Vacancies fell -2.4% to 826,205, while average pay rose slightly to £42,417, +8.8% higher than a year ago.
“This suggests employers are still prepared to pay for the right people, but they’re taking longer to hire and being more selective about where they invest. For jobseekers, this all combines to bring more competition and a tougher fight for each role. In a highly competitive job market, timing is everything.
“Jobseekers who submit applications promptly and tailor them precisely are more likely to succeed. While job search can be demanding and stressful, many free AI tools, such as Adzuna’s brand-new AI search and job matching agent ApplyIQ, can streamline the process and take on much of the heavy lifting.”
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