News

Cloud, Security Dominate List of Highest-Paying Tech Certs

• By David Ramel
• 10/31/2024

New research reaffirms the importance of cloud expertise in higher-paying IT positions.

In its annual IT skills and salary survey, Skillsoft, an educational technology company that provides cloud-based learning management systems and content, examined the reported salaries of individuals around the world to find the highest-paying certifications in the IT industry, sharing the findings in a blog post last week.

"This year's list shows that cloud computing skills remain in high demand and can be quite lucrative for tech professionals," the post quoted Greg Fuller, vice president of Codecademy Enterprise, as saying. "Overall, the IT job market is characterized by a significant imbalance between supply and demand, which continues to drive salaries higher. Our data suggests that tech professionals skilled in cloud computing, security, data privacy, and risk management, as well as able to handle complex, multi-faceted IT environments, will be well positioned for success."

Here are the top 20:

1. AWS Certified Security -- Specialty averages $203,597
2. Google Cloud -- Professional Cloud Architect averages $190,204
3. Nutanix Certified Professional -- Multicloud Infrastructure (NCP-MCI) v6.5 averages $175,409
4. CCSP -- Certified Cloud Security Professional averages $171,524
5. CCNP Security averages $168,159
6. CISSP -- Certified Information Systems Security Professional averages $168,060
7. CCIE Enterprise Infrastructure averages $166,524
8. CRISC -- Certified in Risk and Information Systems Control averages $165,890
9. AWS Certified Developer -- Associate averages $165,171
10. CIPP -- Certified Information Privacy Professional averages $161,439
11. Microsoft 365 Certified: Administrator Expert averages $160,044
12. CISM -- Certified Information Security Manager averages $157,189
13. CIPM -- Certified Information Privacy Manager averages $155,976
14. AWS Certified Solutions Architect -- Associate averages $155,597
15. CISA -- Certified Information Systems Auditor averages $155,362
16. CGEIT -- Certified in the Governance of Enterprise IT averages $152,838
17. Microsoft Certified: Azure Administrator Associate averages $148,849
18. Google Cloud -- Associate Cloud Engineer averages $146,533
19. CEH -- Certified Ethical Hacker averages $146,260
20. CDPSE -- Certified Data Privacy Solutions Engineer averages $146,033

Security skills, of course, are also well-represented. "Cybersecurity is among the top skill areas they [IT leaders] plan to invest in more," said Skillsoft. "This is because it's exceedingly tough to hire candidates with the skills they need, according to the survey results. And when asked to assess their team's security skills, the lion's share feel ambivalent about their abilities."

The most valuable Microsoft certification on the list -- the Microsoft 365 Certified: Administrator Expert -- just missed the Top 10. However, according to Skillsoft, "Microsoft continually proves to be one of the most popular certification providers represented in the survey."

Moreover, IT pros typically invest more in their Microsoft skills than they do in other vendors. "It's the top vendor IT leaders plan to invest in -- which has been true for several years running," Skillsoft said of Microsoft.

However, for at least the near-term, AWS has the lion's share of attention. "Globally, AWS is the vendor most IT leaders plan to prioritize in the year ahead, just behind Microsoft," Skillsoft said.

Read the post for more details on each one of those certs and associated skills, along with IT educational advice.