AWS vs Azure vs GCP: The Cloud Skills European Employers are Prioritising in 2026

In 2026, European employers prioritise cloud specialists with AWS (Lambda, EC2), Azure (Kubernetes, DevOps), and GCP (BigQuery, AI/ML) expertise, combined with soft skills such as FinOps and stakeholder interaction. Salaries for these high-demand roles range from €85,000 to €170,000 across major European technology hubs.

The Cloud Market in 2026: A Triple-Threat Landscape

The European cloud market in 2026 is dominated by three platforms: AWS, Azure, and GCP. While many organisations previously relied on a single provider, the shift toward multi-cloud strategies has changed the hiring mandate.

According to recent industry reports, more than 60% of European enterprises have adopted a multi-cloud approach since 2023, driven by the need for flexibility and risk reduction. Companies now seek architects and engineers who can navigate cross-platform integration to avoid vendor lock-in and ensure regulatory compliance with European data laws.

For someone looking to build a career in cloud engineering, deciding where to focus your efforts and learning is key. For some businesses, it is a case of AWS vs Azure vs GCP, while others are happy to take what they need from each cloud platform. Either way, gaining cloud certifications in all three gives you a strong foundation to build your career from.

High-Demand Cloud Roles European Employers Are Hiring For

The traditional cloud engineer role has evolved. In 2026, European hiring managers focus on these six specialised functions:

Cloud Security Engineer: Experts in Zero Trust and IAM (Identity & Access Management).
Platform Engineer: Professionals dedicated to enhancing developer experience and managing internal infrastructure.
FinOps Specialist: Experts in cost optimisation and cloud financial management.
Data/Machine Learning Engineer: Specialists in scaling AI and machine learning models with Vertex AI or SageMaker.
Multi-Cloud Architect: Strategic leaders who design systems spanning AWS, Azure, and GCP.
DevOps Engineer: The backbone of CI/CD pipelines and container orchestration.

Learn more about relevant Cloud certifications to undertake to broaden your technical skills.

AWS: The Market Leader’s Skills Demand

AWS remains the dominant force in the European market. Employers esteem candidates who move beyond basic computing into high-level automation.

Core Infrastructure: EC2, S3, and VPC networking.
Serverless & Containers: AWS Lambda, EKS (Elastic Kubernetes Service), and Fargate.
AI & Data: AWS SageMaker for machine learning and Redshift for analytics.
Certification Signal: AWS Certified Solutions Architect (Associate/Professional) and AWS DevOps Engineer remain the gold standards for validating expertise.

Microsoft Azure: The Enterprise & Hybrid Choice

Azure’s integration with Microsoft’s massive enterprise ecosystem makes it the favoured option for regulated sectors and large-scale corporate migrations.

Infrastructure as Code (IaC): Mastery of Bicep and Terraform.
DevOps: Expert knowledge of Azure DevOps and AKS (Azure Kubernetes Service).
Security: In-depth knowledge of Azure Active Directory (Entra ID) and cloud security procedures.
Certification Signal: Azure Solutions Architect Expert and Azure Administrator Associate are highly regarded by hiring managers.

Google Cloud Platform (GCP): The Data & AI Specialist

GCP has established a significant presence among Europe’s data-driven startups and AI research firms.

Data Analytics: BigQuery is a top-tier required skill.
AI/MLOps: Google Vertex AI and advanced machine learning operations.
Containerisation: As the origin of Kubernetes, GCP roles require advanced GKE (Google Kubernetes Engine) skills.
Certification Signal: Google Professional Cloud Architect and Professional Data Engineer are the highest-intent boosters for GCP-focused roles.

2026 Salary Benchmarks: Cloud Roles in Europe

Salaries vary across Europe, with Eastern European countries such as Poland and Serbia currently topping the list.

Title	Years Experience	Salary Range
Cloud Engineer	3-5	€85,000 - €105,000
DevOps / Platform Engineer	5+	€100,000 - €130,000
Cloud Security Architect	7+	€120,000 - €155,000
Data/ML Engineer	3-5	€95,000 - €125,000
Multi-Cloud Architect	10+	€140,000 - €175,000+

Source*

Why Multi-Cloud Skills are the New Hiring Default

Modern European enterprises rarely rely on a single provider. Candidates with multi-cloud expertise stand out by addressing four critical business needs:

Regulatory Compliance: Meeting GDPR and Data Residency requirements by choosing the right region and provider.
Vendor Lock-in: Creating portable architectures with Docker and Kubernetes.
Cost Optimisation: Leveraging various pricing models, such as Spot and Reserved instances, across providers.
Resilience: Ensuring high availability through cross-cloud disaster recovery.

How Candidates Stand Out in 2026

Technical skills are essential, but not sufficient. Candidates advance by demonstrating business acumen alongside their technical expertise.

Build a Cloud Portfolio: Use GitHub to showcase Terraform scripts and Linux configurations.
Master Soft Skills: Engage stakeholders, explain Shared Responsibility Models to non-technical leaders, and develop a security-first mindset.
Focus on Business Impact: Demonstrating how a project reduced latency or lowered monthly cloud costs by 15% is more effective than listing tools alone.

The European cloud market is highly competitive, but professionals who connect technical execution with business value will find limitless opportunities in 2026.

Connect with Source Group International to discuss our cloud hiring strategies, or speak to our team to learn more about the market in 2026.