2027 Salary Guide · Technology
Information security analysts, the BLS occupation that covers cybersecurity analysts, earned a median of $129,180 in May 2025. At current wage growth that is about $137,500 in 2027. Where you work matters: the Washington, DC area has about 16,560 of these jobs, more than any other metro, and in Seattle even the 10th percentile earned over $100,000.
Local pay
The Bay Area ($162,310) and Seattle ($161,780) have the highest medians. Washington, DC is third at $148,950 and has almost 1.5 times as many jobs as New York, the next largest market. Pittsburgh has the lowest median we track, $103,630, about $58,700 below the Bay Area. BLS does not publish a figure for Nashville.
| Metro area | Median | 10th – 90th | Jobs |
|---|---|---|---|
| San Francisco Bay Area | $162,310 +26% | $61,860 – $246,070 | 3,730 |
| Seattle | $161,780 +25% | $101,980 – $213,750 | 4,700 |
| Washington, DC | $148,950 +15% | $96,550 – $209,290 | 16,560 |
| Raleigh | $143,640 +11% | $78,870 – $168,050 | 2,510 |
| New York City | $140,470 +9% | $86,860 – $216,280 | 11,330 |
| Baltimore | $138,170 +7% | $78,110 – $218,620 | 4,600 |
| Denver | $136,670 +6% | $86,660 – $209,990 | 3,580 |
| Boston | $136,550 +6% | $86,970 – $225,300 | 5,220 |
| Austin | $134,100 +4% | $79,500 – $186,680 | 2,390 |
| Dallas-Fort Worth | $133,610 +3% | $82,140 – $178,000 | 7,080 |
| Metro area | Median | 10th – 90th | Jobs |
|---|---|---|---|
| Philadelphia | $132,560 +3% | $75,830 – $186,530 | 2,710 |
| San Diego | $132,120 +2% | $70,790 – $206,510 | 1,330 |
| Atlanta | $131,490 +2% | $79,200 – $186,180 | 4,550 |
| Charlotte | $131,440 +2% | $81,430 – $192,300 | 2,640 |
| Hartford | $131,410 +2% | $79,760 – $175,590 | 560 |
| Minneapolis-St. Paul | $130,710 +1% | $84,030 – $167,890 | 2,240 |
| Phoenix | $130,360 +1% | $79,280 – $178,000 | 2,590 |
| Los Angeles | $129,630 +0% | $54,230 – $195,820 | 4,820 |
| Houston | $126,370 -2% | $74,290 – $178,560 | 2,110 |
| Chicago | $125,310 -3% | $79,460 – $174,450 | 3,480 |
| Miami | $125,310 -3% | $76,620 – $170,690 | 3,300 |
| Tampa | $118,970 -8% | $76,810 – $171,390 | 2,460 |
| Buffalo | $116,290 -10% | $77,920 – $166,850 | 400 |
| Providence | $109,940 -15% | $74,870 – $185,270 | 710 |
| Detroit | $108,990 -16% | $67,350 – $167,580 | 1,520 |
| Albany | $103,890 -20% | $67,220 – $165,750 | 470 |
| Pittsburgh | $103,630 -20% | $66,500 – $158,140 | 1,130 |
BLS metro estimates, May 2025. Percent compares the metro median with the national median. "Jobs" is BLS estimated employment in the metro; blank where BLS does not publish it.
Who hires
The BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook reports these as the largest employers of information security analysts. Each one tends to look for something slightly different.
IT service firms, managed security providers and government contractors. Work is often client-facing, and clearances matter in the DC area.
Banks, insurers and payment companies with heavy regulatory oversight. Experience with audits, access reviews and fraud-related monitoring is valued.
Corporate headquarters running security for a group of businesses, usually with a broad in-house security team.
Software, telecom and media companies, where analysts work closely with engineering teams and cloud platforms.
Management, scientific and technical consulting firms. Risk assessments and compliance work are common.
Pay distribution
These are national BLS figures for about 192,900 information security analysts. The occupation runs from monitoring roles to senior specialists, so the shaded band is the middle half, $97,810 to $163,500.
Typical for the Cybersecurity Analyst title: $97,810 to $163,500 (25th to 75th percentile of Information Security Analysts)
| Percentile | BLS, May 2025 | 2027 planning estimate |
|---|---|---|
| 10th percentile | $75,090 | $80,000 |
| 25th percentile | $97,810 | $104,000 |
| Median | $129,180 | $137,500 |
| 75th percentile | $163,500 | $174,000 |
| 90th percentile | $199,850 | $212,500 |
Getting in and moving up
BLS says many analysts first work in an IT department, often as network and computer systems administrators. The analyst stages below map to the national percentiles for information security analysts.
BLS median for systems administrators: $99,130
Running servers, accounts and networks builds the knowledge of how systems fail and get attacked. Some workers enter with a high school diploma plus industry training and certifications, BLS notes.
About $98,000 to $129,000 (25th percentile to median)
Monitors alerts, investigates incidents, runs vulnerability scans and documents controls. SOC analyst roles are a common first security job.
About $129,000 to $164,000 (median to 75th percentile)
Leads investigations, owns a control area such as identity or cloud security, and mentors junior analysts.
About $164,000 to $200,000 (75th to 90th percentile)
Threat hunting, incident response leadership, security architecture or a team lead role. Many move from here into security engineering or management.
Outlook
BLS projects much faster than average growth for the occupation through 2035. Openings come from both new positions and people leaving the occupation, including those who move up into security engineering and management.
BLS Employment Projections via O*NET OnLine. Projections cover Information Security Analysts as a whole.
For hiring managers
Cleared candidates are a smaller pool, especially outside the Washington, DC area. If the role does not need one, say so.
BLS says many employers prefer certified candidates, and certifications range from entry level to experienced. Listing equivalents widens the pool without lowering the bar.
A national-median offer of $129,180 is below the median in the Bay Area, Seattle, Washington, DC, Raleigh, New York and several other markets.
Monitoring and incident response roles often include nights or weekends. Candidates price that in, so put it in the posting.
Compare
Security engineers share the analyst occupation in BLS data, so they show the same median. Penetration testers are counted in a broader group with a lower median, and network engineers sit just above analysts.
| Role | BLS median | 2027 estimate | Outlook |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cybersecurity Analyst | $129,180 | $137,500 | Much faster than average |
| Penetration Tester | $116,580 | $124,000 | Faster than average |
| Security Engineer | $129,180 | $137,500 | Much faster than average |
| Network Engineer | $134,050 | $142,500 | Much faster than average |
| Systems Administrator | $99,130 | $105,500 | Decline |
FAQ
BLS reports a median of $129,180 for information security analysts in May 2025, with the middle half earning $97,810 to $163,500. Applying two years of 3.1% wage growth gives a 2027 planning median of about $137,500. The top tenth earned more than $199,850.
Entry-level security pay is not a BLS statistic. The 10th percentile for information security analysts was $75,090 in May 2025, and the 25th percentile $97,810. Many people enter after IT jobs such as systems administration, so first security roles often pay closer to the 25th percentile than the 10th.
The BLS median for information security analysts equals $62.11 an hour. The 10th percentile was $36.10 an hour and the 90th $96.08. Contract security analysts are usually paid hourly, and contract rates generally exceed employee pay because they do not include benefits.
BLS says information security analysts typically need a bachelor's degree in a computer science field or a related subject such as engineering or math. It also notes that some workers enter with a high school diploma plus relevant industry training and certifications, and that many employers prefer certified candidates.
Among the 29 metros in this guide, the San Francisco Bay Area ($162,310), Seattle ($161,780) and Washington, DC ($148,950) had the highest medians in May 2025. Washington, DC also has by far the most jobs, about 16,560. Pittsburgh had the lowest median we track, $103,630.
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