Hey friends:

It’s that time of year, our 2025 IT Salary Results are LIVE!

If you didn’t know, every year, we poll IT professionals from this community about all kinds of stuff.

What they make

where they live

if certs matter or not.

You get the idea.

People participate, then they get access to the data. Pretty simple.

The data is raw and unfiltered, all you’re getting are the answers from respondents. Feel free to chop it up, parse it, make maps, etc.

Last year, I made a neat Salary Map with the data across the world…I might do that again :-)

I through the full spreadsheet into Claude and asked for some insights, here’s what I got back:

<AI ANALYSIS>

Salary Range and Distribution:

• There's a wide range of salaries in IT, from entry-level positions around $30-40K to senior positions exceeding $200K

• The median salary appears to be around $75-85K

• Higher salaries are typically associated with management, architecture, and specialized security roles

Experience Impact:

• There's a clear correlation between years of experience and salary

• The largest salary jumps appear to happen between 3-5 years and 6-10 years of experience

• Professionals with >15 years of experience command significantly higher salaries, often 50%+ more than those with <5 years

Role-Based Observations:

• Management and director-level positions consistently earn the highest salaries

• Security-focused roles (Security Engineers, CISOs) tend to command higher salaries

• Help desk and support roles typically start at lower salaries but show good progression potential

Geographic Variations:

• US salaries tend to be highest, particularly in tech hubs

• Significant variations exist between countries (US, UK, Australia, Canada)

• Cost of living appears to be a major factor in salary differences

Remote Work Impact:

• Fully remote positions often offer competitive salaries

• Hybrid arrangements are becoming increasingly common

• Many higher-paying positions offer flexible work arrangements

Education and Certification Insights:

• Having certifications correlates with higher salaries

• Formal education (degrees) appears less important than experience and certifications

• Many successful professionals report having no formal IT education but extensive certifications

Common Pain Points:

• Many respondents mention challenges with end users

• Work-life balance is a common concern, especially in on-call positions

• Career progression and skill development are ongoing challenges

AI and Future Skills:

• Many professionals are actively using or learning AI tools

• Cloud, security, and automation skills are frequently mentioned as valuable

• There's a strong emphasis on continuing education and adaptation to new technologies

This data suggests that IT remains a well-paying field with strong growth potential, particularly for those who maintain current skills and gain specialized expertise. The industry appears to be evolving rapidly with increasing emphasis on cloud, security, and AI-related skills.

</AI ANALYSIS>

I tend to agree.

What did you think of this year’s salary survey?

Hit reply and lemme know.

-Stetson

BTW and PS…🙈 🤫

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-Stetson