Contractor day rate benchmarks for tech roles in Riyadh. Median rates, typical ranges, and links to take-home calculators.
Cloud & Cybersecurity
Cloud Security Specialist
SAR39K/mo
Range: limited data
Web3 Blockchain & Payments
Web3 Security Engineer
SAR39K/mo
Range: limited data
Quant & FinTech
Algorithmic Trading Systems Engineer
SAR39K/mo
Range: limited data
Data & Analytics
MLOps Engineer
SAR39K/mo
Range: limited data
Software Engineering
Principal Software Engineer
SAR39K/mo
Range: limited data
Software Engineering
Enterprise Architect
SAR39K/mo
Range: limited data
Quant & FinTech
Quantitative Developer (C++ / Python)
SAR39K/mo
Range: limited data
Artificial Intelligence
AI Product Manager
SAR39K/mo
Range: limited data
Artificial Intelligence & Machine Learning
AI Research Scientist
SAR39K/mo
Range: limited data
Cloud Infrastructure
Senior Cloud & Infrastructure Lead
SAR39K/mo
Range: limited data
Smart City & Deep Tech
AI Strategy & Solutions Architect
SAR39K/mo
Range: limited data
Security & Risk
Cybersecurity Specialist / Architect
SAR39K/mo
Range: limited data
Smart City & Deep Tech
Data Center Facilities Manager / Architect
SAR39K/mo
Range: limited data
Cybersecurity & GRC
Chief Information Security Officer (CISO)
SAR38K/mo
SAR36K–SAR39K/mo
Product, Design & IT Leadership
Chief Technology Officer (CTO)
SAR37K/mo
SAR36K–SAR39K/mo
Web3 Blockchain & Payments
Virtual Asset Payment / API Engineer
SAR33K/mo
Range: limited data
Security & Risk
Incident Response Specialist
SAR33K/mo
Range: limited data
Cloud & Cybersecurity
Application Security (AppSec) Engineer
SAR33K/mo
Range: limited data
Data AI & Analytics
Data Governance & Privacy Lead
SAR33K/mo
Range: limited data
FinTech & Payments
Payments Platform Engineer
SAR33K/mo
Range: limited data
Quant & FinTech
Core Banking Systems Specialist (Temenos / Mambu)
SAR33K/mo
Range: limited data
Enterprise Systems
Salesforce / CRM Architect
SAR33K/mo
Range: limited data
Data AI & Analytics
Business Intelligence (BI) Lead
SAR33K/mo
Range: limited data
Artificial Intelligence & Machine Learning
NLP Specialist
SAR33K/mo
Range: limited data
Security & Risk
GRC Lead
SAR33K/mo
Range: limited data
Security & Risk
Security Operations Center (SOC) Lead
SAR33K/mo
Range: limited data
Web3 Blockchain & Payments
Smart Contract / Solidity Developer
SAR33K/mo
Range: limited data
Product Delivery & Design
IT Program / Project Manager
SAR33K/mo
Range: limited data
Enterprise Systems
SAP / Oracle ERP Cloud Consultant
SAR33K/mo
Range: limited data
Artificial Intelligence & Machine Learning
Deep Learning Scientist
SAR29K/mo
SAR28K–SAR30K/mo
Artificial Intelligence & Machine Learning
Generative AI Specialist
SAR29K/mo
SAR28K–SAR29K/mo
Data & Analytics
Data Architect
SAR27K/mo
SAR26K–SAR33K/mo
Software Engineering
Engineering Manager
SAR27K/mo
SAR27K–SAR33K/mo
Artificial Intelligence & Machine Learning
AI Infrastructure Engineer
SAR27K/mo
SAR27K–SAR28K/mo
Enterprise Systems, ERP & Specialized Tech
Quantum / HPC Computing Specialist
SAR27K/mo
SAR27K–SAR28K/mo
Cybersecurity & Risk
Penetration Tester / Ethical Hacker
SAR27K/mo
SAR24K–SAR30K/mo
Cloud Infrastructure
Network & Cloud Connectivity Engineer
SAR27K/mo
Range: limited data
Software, Platform & SaaS Engineering
QA Automation Lead
SAR27K/mo
Range: limited data
Enterprise Applications
Business Systems Analyst
SAR27K/mo
Range: limited data
Smart City & Deep Tech
IoT & Embedded Systems Engineer
SAR27K/mo
Range: limited data
Data AI & Analytics
Analytics Engineer (dbt / SQL)
SAR27K/mo
Range: limited data
Quant & FinTech
Front-Office / Trading Floor Application Support
SAR27K/mo
Range: limited data
Software Engineering
Solutions Architect
SAR27K/mo
SAR26K–SAR30K/mo
Cloud Infrastructure
Cloud Architect (AWS / Azure / GCP)
SAR27K/mo
SAR26K–SAR33K/mo
Cybersecurity & Risk
Cloud Security Architect
SAR27K/mo
SAR26K–SAR27K/mo
Artificial Intelligence & Machine Learning
AI / ML Engineer
SAR26K/mo
SAR25K–SAR28K/mo
Cybersecurity & Risk
Identity & Access Management (IAM) Engineer
SAR25K/mo
SAR23K–SAR29K/mo
Software Engineering & Development
Site Reliability Engineer (SRE)
SAR25K/mo
SAR25K–SAR32K/mo
Software Engineering
Software Architect
SAR25K/mo
Range: limited data
Infrastructure & Cloud
Platform Engineer
SAR25K/mo
SAR23K–SAR32K/mo
Cybersecurity & GRC
Cybersecurity Engineer
SAR24K/mo
SAR24K–SAR25K/mo
Enterprise Systems, ERP & Specialized Tech
Blockchain / Smart Contract Engineer
SAR24K/mo
SAR24K–SAR25K/mo
Product, Design & Delivery
Technical Product Manager (TPM)
SAR24K/mo
SAR24K–SAR29K/mo
Data Science, Analytics & Engineering
Data Engineer (Databricks/Snowflake)
SAR24K/mo
SAR23K–SAR29K/mo
Enterprise Systems, ERP & Specialized Tech
SAP Functional / Technical Consultant
SAR24K/mo
Range: limited data
Infrastructure & Cloud
DevOps Engineer
SAR23K/mo
SAR23K–SAR28K/mo
Data & Analytics
Data Scientist
SAR23K/mo
SAR23K–SAR28K/mo
Enterprise Systems, ERP & Specialized Tech
FinTech Systems Integration Specialist
SAR23K/mo
SAR23K–SAR24K/mo
Cloud, Platform & Infrastructure
Kubernetes / Container Engineer
SAR23K/mo
SAR22K–SAR23K/mo
Product, Design & IT Leadership
Enterprise IT Project Manager
SAR22K/mo
SAR22K–SAR23K/mo
Cybersecurity & GRC
Security Operations (SecOps) Engineer
SAR22K/mo
SAR21K–SAR24K/mo
Enterprise Applications
Salesforce Developer / Architect
SAR22K/mo
SAR22K–SAR23K/mo
Enterprise Systems, ERP & Specialized Tech
Workday / ERP Specialist
SAR22K/mo
SAR22K–SAR23K/mo
Data & Analytics
Analytics Engineer
SAR21K/mo
Range: limited data
Software Engineering & Development
Embedded Systems / IoT Engineer
SAR21K/mo
Range: limited data
Software Engineering & IT Leadership
Back-End Developer (Java / Go / Node.js)
SAR21K/mo
SAR21K–SAR27K/mo
Enterprise Applications
ERP/CRM Specialist
SAR21K/mo
Range: limited data
Cybersecurity & GRC
Information Security Analyst
SAR21K/mo
SAR20K–SAR21K/mo
Cloud Infrastructure
Database Administrator (Oracle / PostgreSQL / NoSQL)
SAR21K/mo
SAR20K–SAR24K/mo
Infrastructure & Cloud
Infrastructure Engineer
SAR20K/mo
SAR20K–SAR21K/mo
Software Engineering
Mobile Developer
SAR20K/mo
SAR19K–SAR24K/mo
Software Engineering
Full-Stack Engineer (React / Next.js / TypeScript)
SAR20K/mo
SAR20K–SAR27K/mo
Product & Design
Product Owner
SAR20K/mo
Range: limited data
Design & IT Leadership
UI/UX Designer
SAR19K/mo
SAR18K–SAR23K/mo
Architecture & Integration
API & Integration Architect
SAR19K/mo
SAR19K–SAR26K/mo
Design & IT Leadership
Scrum Master / Agile Coach
SAR19K/mo
Range: limited data
Data Engineering & Analytics
Business Intelligence (BI) Developer
SAR19K/mo
Range: limited data
Software Engineering & Development
Frontend Engineer (React/Vue/Next.js)
SAR19K/mo
Range: limited data
Software Engineering
QA Automation Engineer
SAR18K/mo
Range: limited data
Software Engineering
Android Developer
SAR18K/mo
SAR18K–SAR19K/mo
Local contractor market
Market overview
Riyadh is part of the Saudi Arabia contractor market, with 80 tracked tech roles in 2026. Rates reflect published market data for freelance and fixed-term contract engagements across software, data, cloud, and infrastructure disciplines.
Take-home and structure
Rates shown are gross. Your net take-home depends on IR35 status. Outside IR35 through a limited company significantly increases your retention vs an umbrella inside IR35. Use the IR35 calculator below to compare.
IR35 inside vs outside comparison
See exactly how much more you keep outside IR35 vs an umbrella
Riyadh contractor day rates cover a range of tech roles in 2026, spanning software engineering, data, cloud, and infrastructure disciplines. Rates vary by specialism, seniority, and IR35 status (for UK roles). See the role-by-role breakdown above for specific median rates and typical ranges.
Riyadh sits within the Saudi Arabia contract market. Day rates can vary meaningfully by city, particularly between financial centres and regional hubs. Browse other city pages under the Saudi Arabia contract rates section to compare.
Cloud Security Specialist commands the highest contractor day rate in Riyadh in 2026, with a median of SAR39K/mo. See the full role breakdown above for the complete list of contract rates by discipline.
Your take-home from any day rate in Riyadh depends on your IR35 status. Outside IR35 through a limited company retains significantly more than inside IR35 via an umbrella. Use the IR35 calculator linked from each role card above for a precise inside vs outside comparison under 2026/27 HMRC rates.
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