2025 Silicon Valley Tech Salary Guide

The 2025 IT Salary Guide offers salary ranges for 100+ IT positions in San Jose and the Silicon Valley area. With extensive data and insights into industry and workplace trends, this guide helps tech workers navigate the job market and hiring managers make informed recruiting decisions.

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IT Salaries and Tech Market Insights for Silicon Valley in 2025

Motion's 2025 IT Salary Guide for Silicon Valley provides key insights for tech job seekers and recruiters. The tech unemployment rate is 2.1%, much lower than the national average, with high demand for software engineering and data science roles. Average tech salaries in San Jose start at $163,000.

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Map Out Your 2025 Strategy for the Silicon Valley Tech Hiring Market

with Expert Insights & Salary Data

Silicon Valley, as the epicenter of the tech sector, has seen the same fluctuations over the past five years as the rest of the country. San Jose, the anchor of Silicon Valley’s innovation, is home to over 6,600 tech companies and generates an impressive $275 billion in tech GDP annually. Similar to other tech hubs, the region is moving toward stable and consistent growth in 2025.

 

For IT job seekers and hiring managers in San Jose, staying informed about the latest tech trends and salary data is essential. Motion's Silicon Valley Guide explores important topics in the tech job market as well as local starting salaries for leading tech positions.

 

Key insights include: tech job posting trends & their impact on hiring, as postings exceed 500,000 per month; the global shortage of 4 million cybersecurity workers; and how AI is helping grow, not diminish, the IT workforce.

17.9%

Above the national average

Silicon Valley tech salaries are 17.9% above the national average, which makes Silicon Valley/San Jose a region with some of the highest salaries in tech.

6.4 Million

The tech workforce continues to grow

The total number of US tech workers has increased to 6.4 million, and in 2024, for the first time, non-tech companies have hired more IT workers than tech companies.

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Emerging Tech in Silicon Valley: AI, Quantum Computing & Beyond

In Silicon Valley, artificial intelligence is a hot topic, drawing interest from innovators and investors eager to explore its potential. However, significant investment and job growth are also being seen in other emerging technologies, like quantum computing. With billions of dollars invested in space, quantum computing companies are rapidly hiring with the number of 100+ employee firms growing 300% year-over-year in 2024.

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Q: What Advice Would You Give Tech Silicon Valley Job Seekers and Hiring Managers in 2025?

From Scott Brosnan, Executive Director, Silicon Valley Office, Motion Recruitment:

"Any tech worker not implementing AI into their workflow will be at a substantial disadvantage in the job market. Candidates should highlight how they are adding AI technologies to their skillset, and businesses should look to upskill their workers on the latest tools to increase productivity and employee growth."

 

What will I find in Motion's IT Salary Guide?

What tech job data and trends are covered in the guide?
  • The state of tech employment in 2025, with the impact of layoffs, economic conditions, IT job creation and the tech talent shortage.

  • How the tech industry has finally stabilized after five years of peaks and valleys.

  • Emerging technology: the tech skills and sectors businesses are hiring for in 2025.

  • Tech hiring and workplace trends, including tech workers heading back to the office, the move to skills-based hiring, and the golden generation in tech.

  • Advice from market experts on what you can do to succeed in 2025.
What valuable insights into IT salary data can I discover?

You will find starting salaries for mid and senior level ranges for over 100 specific job titles across technology areas. There are also city-specific variances included, which you can use to measure the regional salary ranges per tech job.

 

You will see IT salaries for top roles from the most in demand technology areas: Software, Data & AI, Security, Infrastructure & DevOps, Mobile, Functional, Product & UX and Executive.

Previous Salary Guides

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Tech Salary Guide
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Frequently Asked Questions

What is a good IT Salary in San Francisco?

In San Francisco, a "good" IT salary can vary significantly based on the specific role and experience level. Here are some indicative salary ranges for various IT positions: 
 
Cloud Architect:  

  • Mid-Level: $149,615 to $176,666 
  • Senior-Level: The document provided does not include specific ranges for senior-level, but expectations can be similar or higher than mid-level. 
     

Cloud Engineer: 

  • Mid-Level: $122,241 to $152,930 
  •  Senior-Level: $137,396 to $177,349 

DevOps Engineer 

  • Mid-Level: $122,761 to $153,809 
  • Senior-Level: $146,559 to $173,590 

 
Software Development roles such as Python Developer, Java Developer, etc., have a range that starts from approximately $100,645 for developers and can go up to $210,000 for roles like .Net Architect. 
 
Site Reliability Engineer: 

  • Mid-Level: $125,210 to $150,000 
  • Senior-Level: $145,400 to $175,500 

 
Technical Support Analyst: 

  • Mid-Level: $68,055 to $83,611 
  • Senior-Level: $85,240 to $91,320 

These figures reflect a considerable range of salaries within the IT sector, signifying that a "good" salary is also dependent on the role and the level of expertise required. 
 

What IT job has the highest salary in San Francisco?

The IT job with the highest salary in San Francisco is the Chief Security Officer, with a salary range of $229,000 to $380,979.

Have IT salaries increased in San Francisco in 2024?

The latest data states that tech salaries have increased in 2024, continuing a trend of gradual but continuous growth. 

What impacted IT job growth in San Francisco?

San Francisco IT job growth in 2024 was influenced by several key factors: 

  1. Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning: AI and machine learning roles were among the highest priorities for many businesses looking to transform in the upcoming years. There was a significant focus on reskilling in AI and Big Data, driven by substantial investments and expected market revenue growth.

  2. Generative AI Technology: There's a marked growth in generative AI technologies, which impacted job growth through increased demand for tech professionals skilled in these areas. Companies were investing heavily in AI processors within data centers, leading to an estimated quadrupling of spending by 2025.

  3. Compensation and Talent Availability: High compensation for AI-focused roles was notable, with some roles offering significant salary boosts compared to non-AI roles. The availability of skilled candidates in AI, although challenging, improved year-over-year, which influenced job market dynamics. 

These trends highlight how technological advancements, particularly in AI, impacted the San Francisco IT job market in 2024.