Aberdeen ranks 7 in UK Top 10 for Women in STEM

Aberdeen ranks 7th in the UK for women working in STEM, according to a new CoworkingCafe study analysing career prospects ...

March 16, 2026

Aberdeen ranks 7th in the UK for women working in STEM, according to a new CoworkingCafe study analysing career prospects across 95 of the country’s largest cities and towns.

While women now hold over a quarter of STEM roles nationally, pay parity and access to opportunity still vary significantly by location. To identify the best places in the UK for women pursuing STEM careers, CoworkingCafe assessed 10 key indicators across workforce strength, earnings and affordability.

Here’s how Aberdeen performs across the key metrics:

The sixth-highest STEM job concentration in the UK, with 10.4% of all local employment in core scientific and technical occupations, underlining the city’s strong science and engineering base.
Steady labour demand for STEM jobs, averaging 20 new monthly STEM job adverts per 10,000 working-age residents (#18 nationally).
Moderate unemployment rate of 4% (just below the 4.3% national rate), pointing to stable labour market conditions.
Women hold 25.1% of local STEM roles (#22), reflecting solid — though more moderate — female representation compared with other Scottish cities.
Women’s STEM professional pay reaches £43,812 per year, reflecting competitive salaries within the regional market.
Women’s STEM associate pay stands at £31,213.
Exceptional regional pay parity: Scotland’s STEM gender pay gap shows women working as STEM professionals earn 99.2% of male hourly pay (#1 nationally), while those in associate roles earn 91.5% of men’s hourly pay (#4).
Just 25.4% of median full-time earnings goes towards rent in Aberdeen — one of the lower rental burdens among top-ranked cities.
The average home costs just 3.5 times the typical full-time annual salary, among the most accessible housing markets in the study.

Scotland performed particularly strongly overall, with Edinburgh (2nd), Glasgow (6th) and Aberdeen (7th) all placing in the national top 10, reinforcing the country’s position as a leading environment for women in STEM.

Across the whole of the UK, Cambridge came first, the North West of England secured three top-10 spots (Manchester (8th), Warrington (9th) and Liverpool (10th).

Greater London was assessed separately as a benchmark market and leads the UK in absolute STEM hiring demand. The capital has some of the highest salaries for women in professional STEM roles (£52,877), and has a high female representation at 30.7%, while it records the steepest housing cost burden in the study.

You can find the full study, data tables and methodology here: https://www.coworkingcafe.com/blog/most-efficient-cities-uk/.

I just wanted to follow up on our recent study examining the best UK cities for women in STEM, in case the findings for Aberdeen are useful for your coverage.

The analysis compares 95 of the UK’s largest cities and towns across 10 indicators spanning workforce strength, earnings and affordability — highlighting where women in science, technology and engineering roles have the strongest overall career prospects.

Aberdeen ranks #7 nationally, standing out for its high STEM job concentration and relatively accessible housing costs. This positions it as a strong STEM-focused market where earnings stretch further.

Key takeaways for Aberdeen

STEM workforce strength:

10.4% STEM employment share (#6 nationally)
4% unemployment rate (#16 nationally)
20 average monthly new STEM job postings per 10,000 working-age residents (#18 nationally)
25.1% female representation in STEM employment (#22 nationally)

STEM earnings:

£43,812 annual earnings for women working in STEM professional roles
£31,213 per year is the average pay for women in STEM associate roles
Women in STEM professional roles earn 99.2% of men’s hourly pay (the narrowest gap in the UK).
Among associate roles, women earn 91.5% of men’s hourly pay (#4 nationally)

Housing affordability:

25.4% of median earnings goes on rent, one of the lower rental burdens in the study.
Homes cost 3.5 times the median annual wage, among the most affordable housing markets analysed.

Scotland also shows notable depth, with Edinburgh (2nd) and Glasgow (6th) joining Aberdeen in the national top 10.

Nationally, the top three cities for women in STEM are Cambridge, Edinburgh and Stevenage, each combining strong hiring demand with competitive earnings — though affordability pressures vary.