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IT skill · Tool· Software Development

SOAP freelancers:
What the market really pays and wants.

Demand and trends for SOAP – calculated from 96 real project and job postings of the last 90 days. No survey, no guesswork without data.

As of: week 41/2026 · updated weekly
Listings (90 d)
96
Rank 180 of 531 skills
Trend (90 d)
▲ 9 %
Market share compared with the 90 days before. IT postings overall: ▲ 42 %
Of which must-have
4 %
Rated for 96 postings (AI analysis), otherwise “nice to have”
Remote possible
91 %
47 % fully remote · stated in 95 % of postings
The jury's verdict on SOAP

Growing, but still small.

SOAP sits at rank 180 of 531, in the solid middle of demand. Its market share is rising (▲ 9 % vs. the 90 days before).

Solid demandRank 180 of 531 skills, 96 postings in 90 days.
Growing marketMarket share ▲ 9 % vs. the 90 days before.
Remote possible91 % of postings allow remote work.
And how does your SOAP profile look?Check it for free

What is SOAP – and why do companies hire SOAP freelancers?

The postings that mention SOAP fall into these types of project (share of the classified postings):

New development61 %
Building new applications, platforms and products with SOAP.
Integration15 %
Connecting systems and interfaces and exchanging data around SOAP.
Consulting and design10 %
Consulting, concept work, architecture and project leadership around SOAP.
Modernization7 %
Replacing, migrating or rebuilding existing systems where SOAP plays a part.

Typical roles

The roles hired most often are Backend Developer (46 %), Fullstack Developer (24 %), Software Architect (10 %) and Project Manager (7 %). Of the postings that state an experience level, 75 % explicitly ask for senior profiles.

Demand over the last 12 weeks

new listings per week
W29W40
▲ 9 %
Market share vs. previous quarter
▲ 55 %
Postings vs. previous quarter
180 / 531
Rank among all skills

Weekly postings for SOAP are rising: from an average of 7 to 9 per week (+37 %). Volume is developing better than the IT market overall (▲ 42 %).

Which skills SOAP is wanted with – and which ones pay off

REST API appears in 91 % of SOAP postings.

Often named together

REST API91 %(opens in new tab)Java39 %(opens in new tab)Share of SOAP postings that also name the skill.

Who wants SOAP – and under which conditions

Seniority

Senior75 %
Mid-level22 %

Senior dominates (75 %). Pure junior roles are rare (2 %).

Stated in 100 % of listings

Industries

public_sector34 %
it_software32 %
banking_finance6 %
insurance6 %
manufacturing5 %

public_sector leads (34 %).

Stated in 65 % of listings

Contract type

Freelance89 %
Permanent8 %
Temp agency3 %

Freelance dominates (89 %).

Stated in 100 % of listings

Workplace

Fully remote47 %
Partly remote44 %
On site9 %

Fully remote grows the most (+39 % vs. the previous quarter).

Stated in 95 % of listings

Regions (on site)

Bern26 %
München6 %
Berlin4 %
Wiesbaden4 %
Nürnberg4 %

Bern leads (26 %).

Stated in 49 % of listings

Project language

German82 %
English18 %

German dominates (82 %).

Stated in 100 % of listings

Market dynamics: how contested is SOAP?

Typical duration12 monthsMedian of the postings that state it. 71 % run 12 months or longer.Basis: 38 postings with this information (40 % of all postings).
Full time required68 %Share of postings stating a workload that expect full time.Basis: 34 postings with this information (35 % of all postings).

Who posts SOAP projects

FERCHAU GmbH13
Postings of the last 90 days.

Current SOAP projects

Frequently asked questions about SOAP freelancing

How many SOAP projects are there right now?

In the last 90 days, 96 projects and jobs mentioning SOAP were posted. That is around 7 per week. The market share changed by ▲ 9 % compared with the previous quarter.

Is SOAP still in demand for freelancers?

SOAP ranks 180 of 531 skills.

Are SOAP projects possible remotely?

91 % of SOAP postings allow remote work. 47 % are fully remote.

Which skills should I learn as a SOAP freelancer?

REST API (91 %) and Java (39 %) are most often required together with SOAP. What actually pays off for your profile is shown by the free CV check.

Who posts SOAP projects?

The most active recruiter accounts for 14 % of all SOAP postings of the last 90 days.

Methodology: We count IT postings of the last 90 days that mention SOAP. Projects posted several times that are detected as duplicates count once; postings without an assignable IT category are missing, so the figures are a lower bound. The trend compares the share of all IT postings with the 90 days before and only appears with enough comparison data. We do not show figures based on fewer than 30 data points. The rating “must have” or “nice to have” comes from an AI analysis of the posting texts. Distributions only refer to postings that state the respective attribute; we state the coverage alongside. Recruiters are the posters of the listing according to the source, only above a minimum number of postings. An AI assigns the project type and role of each posting from its title, category and skills; the shares are counted postings, not estimates, and only appear with enough classified postings.

Basis: 10,565 IT listings in the window

You now know the SOAP market.
Now let the jury judge your profile.

Your CV against 96 SOAP listings – with findings, strengths and an hourly-rate check.

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