The number of technology professionals earning six-figure salaries has increased for the sixth year in a row, according to new data from Dice.
Some 32 percent of full-time tech pros took home more than $100,000 in 2013, according to the findings, up from 30 percent in 2012 and 26 percent in 2011. For contractors, the data is even better: In 2013, a staggering 54 percent of them earned more than $100,000 a year, up from 51 percent the previous year and 50 percent in 2011. Here’s the full breakdown:
Full Time, Percent Earning $100k or More:
2010: 23%
2011: 26%
2012: 30%
2013: 32%
Contractors, Percent Earning $100k or More:
2010: 45%
2011: 50%
2012: 51%
2013: 54%
The graph at the top of this page combines the results from full-time employees and contractors—in other words, all the tech professionals out there.
“Technology is now driving the customer experience for companies,” said Shravan Goli, president of Dice. “The more technology professionals can impact the financial performance of a company, the more they deserve to be paid.” Six-figure salaries are “table stakes,” he added, for any firm that wants to attract the right software engineers, designers, and data professionals: “We see it every day on Dice—companies from every industry are pulling out all the stops to recruit talent that enables them to become truly tech-powered companies.”
According to Fortune, more companies have turned to tech contractors over the past few years, expanding the opportunities for that segment—provided the contractors themselves have the right skillsets.
Dice’s previous analysis of data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics found that the average hourly salary for tech consultants hit $42.17 in February, the latest all-time high for a job segment that’s enjoyed steady gains in monetary rewards over the past several years. (In 2006, the average tech consultant earned $36-$37 per hour, a number that rose in fits and starts to $40 before gusting up to $42.) Tech consultants are working an average of 38.8 hours per week, also a high.