Among the 14 tech occupations we track, median pay in May 2025 ranged from $61,860 for computer user support specialists to $175,140 for computer and information systems managers, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Eleven of the 14 are projected to grow from 2025 to 2035; three (computer programmers, systems administrators and computer support specialists) are projected to shrink.
All figures below come from the BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook. Pay is the May 2025 annual wage from the Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey. Jobs is 2025 employment. Outlook is the projected change in employment from 2025 to 2035. Each row links to the official BLS profile.
The full table
| Role | 2025 median | 10th percentile | 90th percentile | Jobs (2025) | Outlook 2025 to 2035 | BLS source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| IT manager | $175,140 | $107,550 | $297,510 | 685,800 | +16% | Profile |
| Computer research scientist | $140,300 | $82,200 | $230,630 | 38,600 | +22% | Profile |
| Network architect | $134,050 | $79,900 | $202,680 | 181,800 | +8% | Profile |
| Software developer | $135,980 | $82,460 | $214,670 | 1,717,800 | +10% | Profile |
| Information security analyst | $129,180 | $75,090 | $199,850 | 192,900 | +21% | Profile |
| Database administrator | $104,620 | $60,230 | $163,320 | 75,000 | 0% | Profile |
| Data scientist | $120,230 | $67,240 | $199,130 | 275,600 | +35% | Profile |
| Systems analyst | $105,850 | $67,340 | $167,710 | 544,400 | +8% | Profile |
| Project manager | $102,320 | $61,580 | $167,970 | 1,094,300 | +7% | Profile |
| Computer programmer | $100,390 | $57,710 | $160,460 | 110,800 | -7% | Profile |
| Web developer | $92,650 | $48,100 | $162,290 | 87,400 | +4% | Profile |
| Systems administrator | $99,130 | $62,640 | $155,050 | 323,600 | -4% | Profile |
| Technical writer | $90,390 | $57,440 | $145,270 | 46,400 | +1% | Profile |
| IT support specialist | $61,860 | $40,980 | $100,540 | 750,600 | -3% | Profile |
Notes on the table
The BLS publishes some of these jobs inside a combined group, with one headline median for the group but percentiles only for each detailed occupation. So that every number in a row describes the same people, we use the detailed occupation that matches the role:
- Software developer uses software developers (15-1252). The combined group with QA analysts and testers had 1,905,400 jobs and a $134,040 median; QA analysts and testers alone had a $104,300 median, a 10th percentile of $61,440 and a 90th percentile of $167,010.
- Database administrator uses database administrators (15-1242). Database architects, the other half of the group, had a $139,500 median, a 10th percentile of $86,240 and a 90th percentile of $204,000, and are projected to grow 9%.
- Web developer uses web developers (15-1254). Web and digital interface designers had a $104,000 median, a 10th percentile of $53,750 and a 90th percentile of $201,550, and are projected to grow 6%.
- IT support specialist uses computer user support specialists (15-1232), the help desk group. Computer network support specialists had a $76,220 median, a 10th percentile of $47,120 and a 90th percentile of $127,780, and are projected to grow 1%.
The role names in the first column are our shorthand. The BLS titles are longer: for example, "IT manager" is computer and information systems managers, and "project manager" is project management specialists, a category that covers project managers across all industries, not only tech.
For context, the BLS puts the May 2025 median for all computer occupations at $109,470 and for all occupations in the US economy at $50,980.
Why the spread is so wide
In every row, the 90th percentile is roughly two and a half times the 10th or more. For IT managers, the gap between the 10th and 90th percentile is close to $190,000. For web and digital interface designers, the 90th percentile is about 3.75 times the 10th, the widest ratio in the table.
The spread mostly reflects three things the headline median hides:
- Experience and scope. The survey counts everyone in the occupation, from the first year to the last. A junior web developer building marketing pages and a senior engineer running a checkout system may share a job title in the data.
- Industry. Each BLS profile lists median pay in the top industries for that occupation. Software developers at software publishers had a median of $164,550, against $136,330 in manufacturing. Data scientists in publishing, broadcasting and content providers had a median of $142,240, against $108,650 at insurance carriers.
- Job title mixing. Broad categories hold very different jobs. "Web developers and digital designers" covers both people writing production code and people designing interfaces, which helps explain why its range is the widest.
The practical reading: the median tells you where the middle of the market is. Your position in the range depends on the scope you can prove and the industry you work in, which is why two people with the same title can be $100,000 apart without either being underpaid for their situation.
Why some roles are projected to decline
Three roles show negative outlooks. The BLS gives specific reasons for each:
- Computer programmers (-7%). The BLS says programming work continues to be automated, including with AI, and that some higher-skilled programming tasks will likely shift to software developers.
- Systems administrators (-4%). Some of their tasks are increasingly done by software developers focused on DevOps, some are outsourced to companies providing networks as a service, and administrators are automating routine work.
- IT support specialists (-3%). The BLS expects user support employment to decline as organizations use automated tools such as chatbots for troubleshooting, while network support growth is limited by outsourcing.
A declining outlook does not mean no jobs. The BLS still projects about 4,400 openings a year for computer programmers, 13,400 for systems administrators and 48,700 for computer support specialists over the decade, all from people retiring or moving to other occupations. What it does mean is that new entrants compete for replacement openings rather than new positions, and that the skills behind these jobs are being absorbed into neighboring roles. A systems administrator who learns infrastructure as code is moving toward the work that is growing, not away from their field.
At the other end, data scientists (+35%), computer research scientists (+22%), information security analysts (+21%) and IT managers (+16%) have the fastest projected growth. In absolute terms, software developers dominate: about 106,100 openings a year are projected for the software developer, QA and tester group, more than any other row.
What this data cannot tell you
The BLS figures are the most reliable public pay numbers in the US, but they leave out things that matter for real decisions.
Location. These are national figures. Pay varies a lot by state and metro area. The BLS publishes state and metro wages for each occupation through its OEWS data, and each profile links to them under "State & Area Data." Use those when you are comparing a specific offer.
Company size and type. The survey reports by industry, not by company size, funding stage or whether the employer is a large tech company. A startup and a bank may both appear under the same industry code.
Equity and most bonuses. The OEWS program counts base rates, commissions and production bonuses as wages, but excludes nonproduction bonuses and stock bonuses. For roles where equity is a large part of pay, total compensation can be well above these numbers. Treat the BLS figures as a base pay benchmark.
Self-employment. OEWS covers wage and salary workers and excludes the self-employed. Freelance developers and independent consultants are not in these numbers.
Seniority. There is no breakdown by years of experience. The 10th and 90th percentiles are a rough proxy for junior and senior pay, not a definition.
Timing. The wages are for May 2025. They do not reflect any changes in the market since then.
How to use these numbers
If you are deciding between careers, compare the median and outlook together. A high median with a negative outlook (computer programmers) and a lower median with steady demand can both be reasonable choices, but they call for different plans.
If you are negotiating, use the percentiles to set realistic bounds, then the industry medians on the BLS profile to narrow them. Our salary negotiation guide walks through turning these figures into an anchor number.
If you are hiring, the median is a fair starting point for a mid-level range in a typical market, and the 90th percentile shows roughly what senior people in high-paying industries earn. If your range tops out near the national median for a senior role, expect a thin pipeline.
For the next step, open the role page for the job you are targeting and check the BLS state and area data for your metro. Those two numbers together, national range and local median, will give you a much better picture than either alone.