Role profile
Computer programmer
Also called: Programmer analyst · Application programmer · Mainframe programmer (COBOL) · PLC programmer (overlaps) · Junior developer (overlaps)
Computer programmers write, test and fix code that turns designs from developers and engineers into working software. Today the title survives mostly in government, finance, insurance and manufacturing, often on long-lived systems such as mainframes and business applications.
- Median pay, 2025
- $100,390
- $57,710 to $160,460 (10th to 90th percentile)
- US jobs, 2025
- 110,800
- Computer Programmers
- Outlook, 2025-35
- -7%
- Decline
- Typical entry
- Bachelor's degree
- No prior experience required
What the work looks like
- Write code to a specification produced by a developer, analyst or architect.
- Maintain and patch older applications, including COBOL, RPG or legacy Java systems that still run payroll or claims.
- Test changes, fix bugs and update code when a regulation or business rule changes.
- Convert or migrate code between platforms or languages.
- Write and update technical documentation for the programs they maintain.
- Use code generation and AI tools for routine changes, and verify the output carefully against existing behavior.
How people get in
The BLS lists a bachelor's degree in computer science or a related field as typical, though some employers hire people with other degrees who know the specific languages they use. Internships help, as they do in software development.
Most new graduates today are hired under the software developer or engineer title rather than programmer. If you want the programmer route specifically, look at government agencies, banks and insurers with legacy systems, where COBOL and mainframe skills are scarce and still needed.
Plan to grow beyond the narrow version of the role. Learning design, testing and system ownership moves you toward software developer work, which the BLS projects to grow while programmer jobs shrink.
Skills employers ask for
- One or more languages in depth (Java, C#, C++, COBOL)
- Debugging
- Unit testing
- Git
- SQL
- Reading and maintaining legacy code
- Mainframe tools such as JCL (for legacy roles)
- Technical documentation
- AI coding assistants, used with review
Outlook to 2035
The BLS projects a 7% decline from 2025 to 2035, while still expecting about 4,400 openings a year, all from people retiring or changing jobs. The BLS points to automation, including AI, taking over routine code writing, and much of the remaining work is being done under the software developer title. The skill is not disappearing; the job of writing code purely from someone else's design is.
How the pay compares
Computer programmer highlighted against the other 13 roles we track.
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Outlook Handbook, Computer Programmers. Pay is 2025 median annual wage; outlook is projected employment change 2025-35.