Oct 25, 2021 - Technology

Charted: What techies make around the country

Data: Hired.com; Chart: Will Chase/Axios

Tech jobs are scattered across the country, but salaries vary widely by city, per a new report from Hired.

Why it matters: The pandemic normalized teleworking, and now workers — especially those in remote-capable tech jobs — are increasingly likely to live in one city but work for a company based in another. But that might affect compensation.

  • Philly is in the bottom tier, but salaries there are "comparable to general tech job salaries in other emerging tech hubs like Austin, San Diego and Washington, D.C.," Axios Philadelphia's Taylor Allen writes.
  • Chicago's average (not charted) is even lower than Philly, at $133,000. "Despite a decade of municipal efforts to build up Chicago as a Midwest Silicon Valley, local tech salaries lag behind many of the top cities in the nation," writes Axios Chicago's Monica Eng.

What to watch: 52% of tech workers surveyed by Hired said they preferred a remote-first working model. And 74% of tech workers said they'd start looking for new jobs if their salaries didn't increase or if they were denied raises in six months.

  • A number of tech companies, including Reddit and Basecamp, have said they will no longer tie compensation to place, paying employees Bay Area salaries no matter where they live. Look for more tech firms to follow suit in order to stay competitive in the war for talent.
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