Compensation
Tech salary benchmarks: advertised ranges in the US, UK, and Europe
We normalized advertised annual salary ranges in 1,228 listings. The result is useful for offer calibration, but it is not a population-level salary survey.
- 1,228
- salary samples
- $238.5k
- US median midpoint
- €103.8k
- Europe median midpoint
Across three currency groups
1,128 USD-denominated ranges
61 EUR-denominated ranges
First, understand exactly what these numbers measure
For each listing with an annual salary range, JobToaster calculates the midpoint between the advertised minimum and maximum. It then takes the median of those midpoints within a region and currency. A $180,000–$220,000 posting therefore contributes a midpoint of $200,000.
This method answers a narrow but useful question: what does the center of currently advertised compensation look like in JobToaster’s employer mix? It does not estimate what the typical worker earns. The sample overrepresents senior roles and high-paying technology companies, excludes listings without salary data, and does not normalize equity, bonus, benefits, or purchasing power.
The three currency groups should be read separately
The US sample is large enough to break down by role family. The UK and euro samples are much smaller and should be treated as directional. We deliberately do not convert currencies: a spot exchange rate would imply comparability while ignoring tax, benefits, labor protections, and local cost structures.
The US median midpoint is $238,500 across 1,128 ranges. The UK median is £128,000 across 39 ranges, and the European euro-denominated median is €103,800 across 61 ranges.
| Market | Listings | Median midpoint |
|---|---|---|
| United States, USD | 1,128 | $238,500 |
| United Kingdom, GBP | 39 | £128,000 |
| Europe, EUR | 61 | €103,800 |
US compensation varies by role, but seniority drives the sample
Data & AI has the highest median midpoint in the US sample at $250,000, followed by Engineering at $242,375 and Product at $233,250. Design sits at $208,500. IT Support is lowest at $147,825, though that remains high relative to the national occupation market because of the companies and levels represented.
A useful reality check comes from the US Bureau of Labor Statistics. Its May 2024 median annual wage for software developers was $133,080, and for information security analysts it was $124,910. Those figures cover employed workers across industries and experience levels. The large gap from JobToaster’s advertised midpoint is not a contradiction; it demonstrates sample selection.
| Job family | Listings | Median midpoint |
|---|---|---|
| Data & AI | 164 | $250,000 |
| Engineering | 598 | $242,375 |
| Product | 198 | $233,250 |
| Security | 79 | $219,000 |
| DevOps | 30 | $213,128 |
| Design | 41 | $208,500 |
| IT Support | 16 | $147,825 |
A posted range is a negotiating boundary, not a predicted offer
Many US employers publish broad bands spanning several internal levels or geographic zones. The offer point depends on scope, level calibration, location, and competing compensation—not simply years of experience. A candidate near the top of the requirements should still ask which level and location band the recruiter is using.
For UK and European roles, the absence of a salary can be as informative as the published numbers. Only a small subset of JobToaster’s European listings included normalized annual compensation. Candidates should ask about base, variable pay, equity, pension, vacation, notice period, and employment model before comparing offers.
- Compare base salary in the original currency.
- Separate recurring cash, variable cash, and equity.
- Ask whether the range covers multiple levels or locations.
- Use the job’s scope and leveling criteria to argue for position in the band.
- Do not use a high-paying job-board sample as a national market median.
How to use these benchmarks without fooling yourself
Use a three-point reference: the posted range for the exact role, comparable live ranges for adjacent employers, and an occupation-level source such as BLS. The first sets the negotiation boundary, the second tests whether it is competitive, and the third prevents a specialized sample from becoming your entire model of the market.
JobToaster only displays compensation when a source provides it. It does not infer missing salaries. That restraint makes the sample smaller, but it keeps an employer’s published information distinct from an estimate.
Sources
- 01US Bureau of Labor Statistics: Software Developers, QA Analysts, and Testers
- 02US Bureau of Labor Statistics: Information Security Analysts