Best city in Europe for IT contracting

[pippo]

This is something I've been asking myself recently...

Is London still the best city in Europe for IT contracting ? Mainly considering number of opportunities and level of rates paid, but also cost of living/commuting, taxes, strength of the pound £ relative to the Euro (or Swiss Franc) and also quality of life.

I wonder whether Switzerland (or Germany) might become the next "place to be" for IT contracting in Europe in the next few years. Or maybe it is already ?

I've only been contracting in the UK until now but I'm seeing more and more contract opportunities advertised for roles in Germany, Switzerland, Belgium, etc. Still the majority of jobs advertised on Jobserve appear to be in London so that makes me think London is still the city with most opportunities. I guess other factors should be considered, like the British Pound is gradually losing value against the Euro. And also another thing that puts me off quite a lot are all the bad / unprofessional agencies that one has to deal with in the UK to secure a contract. But is this any different in other major European cities ?

Just curious to know what anyone else think on this subject.

[BA to the Stars]

Depends what you want

Quality of life?

Rate for the role?

Liklihood of continous employment i.e. number of roles available over a prolonged period

The are many variables such as contractor with a family may place the fact that he / she can work from home frequently and only have a short commute into the client site, other contractors may want to chase the biggest payers and go wherever that takes them.

For me, Leeds has lots of government contracts (as well as financial institions in the locality) and is close to home and allows me decent rates as well as a good quality of life

[Dow Jones]

Europe

Germany/Switzerland/Belgium/Holland have always offered an alternative to UK, more so in the past few years rather than now. The advantage the UK offers is the tax status (for now anyway) and the flexibility of work. Most europeans shy away from contracting as the risk/reward balance is a lot less attractive. Quality of life is much better though. Lingo may be necessary, depending on what level of work you do. A good knowledge of French or German will help.

[VectraMan]

Cambridge seems to be the place for jobs for me. Though the rates seem a little lower than the south east. I suspect I'll end up there sooner or later.

[PAH]

Cambridge seems to be the place for jobs for me. Though the rates seem a little lower than the south east. I suspect I'll end up there sooner or later.

How much lower, typically?

I've noticed the north is roughly at least £10-20/hour less than the south, so is there a sliding scale, therefore around the midlands will be somewhere inbetween and a reasonable compromise of distance v money?

[VectraMan]

Not much: maybe £5/hr less than outside London SE jobs (e.g. Surrey/Hampshire/Berkshire), and a lot less than the city financial jobs, obviously. The Midlands seems to be about the same as Cambridge,

That's my rough impression of C++ jobs on CWJobs anyway. Your mileage may vary. Have a look at ITJobsWatch.co.uk.

[AlfredJPruffock]

Finland can be surprisingly intruiging at this time of year - I remain sworn to secrecy over the rate.

[oracleslave]

Finland can be surprisingly intruiging at this time of year - I remain sworn to secrecy over the rate.

That's an intriguing spelling of intriguing.

[AlfredJPruffock]

That's an intriguing spelling of intriguing.

Intreeging even ?

Ha - bet you thought I wouls slip up over the 5euros per hour rate there ? You'll never take me alive !

Shorly shim mushtake ?

[pippo]

Finland can be surprisingly intruiging at this time of year - I remain sworn to secrecy over the rate.

So... would you say that you are getting a better rate (converted in British Pounds) after tax in Finland than you would get if you were based in London ? Based on your expertise / skills ? I've heard that taxes are quite high in Finland, similar to other European countries like Sweden and Norway.