If you are looking for pharmacy work, where you search matters almost as much as what you search for. PharmSee's analysis of 606 pharmacy vacancies within 25 miles of nine major English city centres reveals that employer diversity — the number of different organisations actively hiring and the balance between them — varies dramatically from one city to the next.
Measuring concentration: the HHI approach
To move beyond simple "how many employers?" counts, PharmSee applied the Herfindahl-Hirschman Index (HHI) — the standard tool used by competition regulators to assess market concentration. An HHI below 1,500 indicates a competitive market; 1,500–2,500 is moderately concentrated; above 2,500 is highly concentrated.
The results split England's major pharmacy job markets into three tiers.
The numbers
| City | Vacancies | Distinct employers | Largest employer share | HHI score | Concentration |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Leeds | 92 | 11 | NHS Jobs 27% | 1,849 | Moderate |
| Manchester | 96 | 8 | NHS Jobs 26% | 1,976 | Moderate |
| Liverpool | 86 | 9 | NHS Jobs 35% | 2,133 | Moderate |
| Sheffield | 73 | 8 | Well 34% | 2,253 | Moderate |
| Nottingham | 53 | 7 | NHS Jobs 36% | 2,820 | High |
| Newcastle | 50 | 6 | Boots 44% | 3,056 | High |
| Plymouth | 30 | 6 | Well 43% | 3,355 | High |
| Oxford | 79 | 7 | Boots 48% | 3,896 | High |
| Birmingham | 47 | 6 | NHS Jobs 64% | 4,516 | High |
Source: PharmSee analysis of 606 pharmacy vacancies across 11 sources, captured 13 April 2026. HHI calculated on employer share of local vacancies within a 25-mile radius of each city centre. Vacancies capped at 200 per source per query; totals may undercount sources with very large national pools.
What the scores mean for job seekers
Leeds stands out as the most balanced market. All 11 of PharmSee's tracked sources have active listings within 25 miles of LS1, and no single employer holds more than 27% of vacancies. For candidates, this means more options, potentially more negotiating leverage, and less dependence on one chain's hiring cycle.
Manchester and Liverpool follow closely. Both benefit from large independent and regional-chain sectors — Cohens Chemist accounts for 22% of Manchester vacancies and 20% of Liverpool's, adding a third competitive pillar alongside NHS and national chains.
At the other end, Birmingham is the most concentrated. Nearly two-thirds of the 47 local vacancies come from a single source — NHS Jobs. This does not mean community pharmacy chains are absent from the city, but it does mean that candidates relying on public job boards will see an overwhelmingly NHS-skewed picture.
Oxford and Newcastle sit in a similar position, though for different reasons. Oxford's concentration is driven by one national chain holding 48% of local vacancies; Newcastle's by a chain holding 44%.
Why this matters
Employer concentration has practical consequences. In a highly concentrated market, a single employer's hiring freeze can remove a large share of available roles overnight. In a diverse market like Leeds, the same freeze barely registers. Pharmacists relocating for better prospects — or newly qualified professionals choosing where to start — may want to factor employer diversity into their decision alongside headline salary figures.
The concentration scores also highlight the difference between total vacancy count and effective choice. Oxford has 79 vacancies — more than Newcastle's 50 — but its higher HHI means those vacancies are less evenly spread across employers.
PharmSee tracks vacancies from Boots, NHS Jobs, Cohens, Well, Superdrug, Tesco, Asda, Morrisons, Weldricks, Rowlands, and Day Lewis. The full dataset is searchable at PharmSee Jobs. City-level salary breakdowns are available at PharmSee Salary Guides.
Methodology note
HHI is computed as the sum of squared market shares (expressed as percentages) across all employers with at least one active vacancy in the local radius. The 25-mile radius captures commutable catchment for each city. PharmSee's 200-listing cap per source means large national employers (notably NHS Jobs at 462 total, and Boots at 540) may be underrepresented in some city pulls; the concentration scores should be read as directional indicators rather than exact measurements.