Sales & marketing jobs top UK demand, but roles in decline

New analysis of Office of National Statistics (ONS) data has identified sales and marketing professionals as the UK's most in-demand skill set, with over 78,000 job adverts live in May 2025.

The figures, compiled by Digital Marketing agency Dark Horse, examined a total of 104 separate occupation categories to provide a detailed breakdown of the job market across the country. In May 2025, a total of 1,388,986 live job ads were recorded, of which 78,214 were for "Sales, Marketing and Related Associate Professionals". This equates to 56 openings per 1,000 job adverts - the highest proportion among all listed occupation categories.

Roles in this group include estate agents, business development managers, and events managers. Despite leading in relative demand, job adverts for sales and marketing professionals have experienced a decline over the past three years. In May 2022, the same occupation accounted for 60 out of every 1,000 job ads (125,358 out of 2,058,903), meaning the occupation's relative demand has dropped by 7.52% over the period.

Other top roles

Caring Personal Services is the second most sought-after category, with 60,681 job ads live in May 2025. This represents a rate of 43 job postings per 1,000. The vast majority of these roles are for care workers and home carers, but also include nursing auxiliaries, assistants, and dental nurses. The proportion of jobs in this category has remained largely stable since 2022, moving from 44 to 43 per 1,000, representing a decrease of just 0.77%.

Information Technology Professionals made up the third most in-demand category, based on 56,800 job adverts or 41 per 1,000. Unlike the top two categories, the demand for IT professionals has experienced a significant decline over the three-year period. In 2022, IT roles accounted for the largest share of job ads, with 70 out of every 1,000 postings. This reflects a drop of 41.39% over three years.

Teaching Professionals, covering roles from nursery staff to higher education lecturers, ranked fourth. The category comprised 37 job ads per 1,000 in 2025, up from 27 per 1,000 in 2022-a 38.31% rise, indicating growing demand for staff in educational institutions.

The fifth most in-demand skills group in the UK is within education as well: Teaching and Childcare Support Occupations. These roles include teaching assistants, childminders, and au pairs. There were 30 job adverts per 1,000 in May 2025 for these positions, a rise of 44.69% compared to three years prior when there were 21 job ads per 1,000.

Roles in decline

Elementary Sales Occupations experienced the largest fall in relative demand, with job ads per 1,000 dropping by 50.13% since May 2022. Web and Multimedia Design Professionals followed closely behind, experiencing a 42.13% fall in advert numbers per 1,000. Despite significant overall demand for professionals in sales, marketing, and IT, some sub-categories within these fields are encountering notable declines in advertising activity.

Insights on recruitment

"Job seekers often have to compete with hundreds of other applicants for a role, but this research reveals that the competition is just as fierce for employers. The data shows that for many occupations there are hundreds if not thousands of other companies recruiting.

Libby Mayfield, Head of Marketing at Dark Horse, commented on the implications for recruitment strategies. She stated, "The key for industry leaders to stay ahead is to ensure that their businesses are well represented through all marketing opportunities, including recruitment. Consistent and clear brand identity is what will grab the attention of the talent that will fit within your business. Making sure that business culture and ethos are accessible to prospective team members who might be overwhelmed by thousands of opportunities."

The study provides an overview of the current labour market, highlighting sectors with both increased and declining demand for skilled professionals, and offers guidance for companies seeking to attract talent amid a competitive recruitment landscape.