Just four years ago, in 2020, the percentage of people who worked from home was 13% worldwide. Now, that number has risen to 28%. “This 15% jump is staggering considering the small time frame involved,” says Matthew Woodward from Search Logistics, an SEO Agency specializing in tailored strategies. “Remote work is now mainstream, and to be good at it, you need a particular skill set.”
To see which skills are most in demand in the world of remote work, we worked with Matthew and the Search Logistics team to use data from LinkedIn, Upwork, and Glassdoor to identify the most in-demand skills. Then we ranked the skills by the percentage of remote jobs on LinkedIn that list them as a requirement.
Table 1: The Top 10 Most In-Demand Remote Work Skills, Ranked By Demand Percentage
This table ranks the ten skills using demand percentage. The demand percentage was calculated by taking the number of remote jobs requiring that skill and dividing it by the total number of remote work jobs, using LinkedIn as a source for the data.
The table uses data from Upwork to classify each skill into generalized job groups, based on job categories on UpWork. It also lists the number of jobs requiring that skill available on LinkedIn and uses data from Glassdoor to provide an average annual salary.
| Rank | Skill | Category | Demand Percentage | Average Annual Salary ($) | Remote Job Availability (LinkedIn) |
| 1 | Teamwork | Admin Support | 49.98% | 116,000 | 294,600 |
| 2 | Analytical thinking | Engineering and Architecture | 37.24% | 62,000 | 219,490 |
| 3 | Software development | IT & Network Admin | 31.47% | 131,000 | 185,469 |
| 4 | Problem-Solving Skills | Sales and Marketing | 29.04% | 59,000 | 171,157 |
| 5 | Java, Java Script | IT & Network Admin | 21.73% | 122,000 | 128,090 |
| 6 | SQL, Python | IT & Network Admin | 19.05% | 116,000 | 112,277 |
| 7 | Data Analysis | Data Science and Analysis | 18.57% | 109,000 | 109,435 |
| 8 | Leadership Skills | Admin Support | 15.16% | 117,000 | 89,333 |
| 9 | Sales | Sales and Marketing | 13.52% | 149,000 | 79,666 |
| 10 | Customer Service | Customer Service | 13.24% | 44,000 | 78,013 |
The Most In-Demand Skills
The most in-demand skill is teamwork. Nearly half of all remote jobs require this skill, at 49.98%. “One of the most challenging things about remote work is creating a team feeling among employees,” says Matthew. “Since there’s no physical contact, it can be hard to make sure everyone’s working toward the same goal. That’s why teamwork is so critical in the remote workplace.”
The second most in-demand skill was analytical thinking. This skill was required in 37.24% of jobs, especially in engineering and architecture. That’s almost 13% lower than teamwork.
The third highly in-demand skill was software development, with 31.47%. “Software development is obviously very important in tech and programming roles, but with the rise of the internet and interconnectivity, software development is a skill you can use in any industry these days,” says Matthew.
Problem-solving skills scored fourth on the table, with a percentage of 29.04%. “This is unsurprising to me,” Matthew says. “Every business faces problems, whether they’re online or in-person. Being able to solve them well is a cornerstone of being a good employee, period.”
The fifth and sixth most in-demand skills on the table were both coding languages. Java Script came in fifth with 21.73%, while SQL and Python scored 19.05%. “Again, this just underscores how important digital development is to businesses,” says Matthew. “Learning a coding language can land you a job in nearly any industry.”
The category with the most in-demand skills overall was tech and programming, with three skills out of ten. Admin support and sales and marketing both had two skills out of ten. “These roles are required in most companies, so it makes sense that they’re most in demand,” Matthew says.
Matthew Woodward comments: “It’s unsurprising that teamwork, problem-solving, leadership skills, and customer service are in the top ten. These skills are useful in basically every industry or position you could think of, so if you’re stuck on how to improve your job performance, building your proficiency in any of these skills is a great place to start.
“Employees who can solve problems and work for the team are always valued because they make businesses’ processes easier and more efficient. Displaying great leadership skills is a great way to get noticed and potentially entrusted with more responsibilities, which could lead to a promotion or pay rise.
“Software development, specific coding languages, and sales skills can open up avenues to work in a specific industry or let you pick between positions based on location and pay. These skills give you flexibility, but also a specific, demonstrable skill set.”
