Silicon Valley Tech Salaries Average $133,204

Silicon Valley remains the top hub for technology salaries with average pay of $133,204, up 5.0% from a year ago, according to the 2022 Dice Tech Salary Report.

The average technology salary nationwide is the highest ever recorded by Dice at $104,566, up 6.9% from the previous year.

“With average tech salaries breaking the six-figure mark for the first time in the 17 years we’ve been conducting this survey, and a revolution in workplace flexibility and wellness well underway, there’s never been a better time to be a technologist,” said Art Zeile, CEO of Dice. “Our Tech Salary Report shows that organizations are responding to the heightened need for tech talent. However, we’re still seeing a gap between what benefits technologists want and what they receive, presenting an opportunity for employers everywhere to better understand this all-important group of professionals, and to build environments where they will thrive.”

Based on a survey of more than 7,200 technologists, the 2022 Salary report includes data and analysis on salary by location, occupation, skill and experience level, as well as technologist perception on compensation-related items, such as salary satisfaction and benefits received.

A Diverse Mix of U.S. Cities See Tech Salary Growth
Both established and emerging tech hubs saw notable salary increases between 2020-2021. Long-standing tech hubs continued to see impressive year-over-year (YoY) increases, including Seattle (11.2%), Los Angeles (10.2%), Silicon Valley (5.0%) and Boston (3.5%), indicative of the high demand that comes with robust tech scenes in these established areas.

Among up-and-coming tech hubs, technologists in Atlanta enjoyed significant salary increases (13.9% YoY), as did those in Miami (11.4%), Philadelphia (10.6%), and Detroit (10.3%). With tech unemployment notably low across the nation, employers are willing to pay more for talent with the right combination of skills and experience. These smaller hubs have well-established business and academic communities, driving a need for technologists with all kinds of skill sets.

At the state level, established tech regions like Washington (12.2%) and California (6.3%) continued to see salary increases indicative of strong local demand. Georgia, home of rapidly-growing tech center Atlanta, saw salaries increase 12.1% year-over-year. Continuing to attract California companies and technologists with both low taxes and a reasonable cost-of-living, Texas saw salaries increase 5.1%.

Occupations and Skills: Highest Growth
The tech occupations that saw the fastest-growing salaries included web developers (21.3% to $98,912), database administrators (12.4% to $111,362), technical support engineers (12.4% to $77,169) and data analysts (11.5% to $84,779). The all-consuming need to store, clean, and analyze data and enhance cloud applications all drove increased salaries.

For those employers building their businesses, an equivalent investment in internal processes and tech stacks is crucial. Salaries for systems administrators (6.2% to $88,642) and systems architects (5.1% to $147,901) significantly increased year-over-year as organizations sought technologists capable of structuring, maintaining, and scaling tech stacks in a variety of environments. As more organizations migrate to the cloud, roles that focus on building out company web properties, like software developers (8.0% to $120,204), will continue to see marked increases.

The highest average salaries by skill include those that are highly specialized, given they are mastered by only a relative few.