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Salary Survey: Java Still Hot
What recession? Annual survey finds top Java
skills pay more than ever
by Kay Keppler

June 2002 Issue

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Go figure—in a year when the economy dragged, unemployment boomed, cutbacks reigned, and profits soured, Java programmers made more money than ever and worked less to earn it. No wonder they're a happy lot.

The Java programming landscape is quite diverse, but some skill sets pay better than others. Are your skills putting as much money in your pocket as they could be? Read on.

Our 2002 career survey sampled Java programmers' work and compensation and compared it against geography and gender, education and training. The results—starting with total remuneration—were perhaps surprising, given what we've come to expect from a squeezed economy and lowered expectations. Last year, the programmers we surveyed in the United States earned on average $83,000, but this year the average total compensation—salary and benefits—of our sample was $93,500—11% more than last year. (The individuals in our sample this year reported earning smaller raises than this, however, which ranged from 5% to 8% overall.) The highest-paid programmers are still in the Northeast, where this year they earn $114,000, edging out Northern California programmers by less than $1K. Programmers in the middle of the country still earn the least—$84,000 in the Midwest and $82,000 in the Central/Mountain states. (Programmers in the Pacific Northwest also earned on average $84,000 a year; programmers elsewhere in the world were represented this year in numbers too small to be statistically accurate. You can see all these numbers and more here.)

How Much Do You Make?

Even better than getting a nice raise—most programmers didn't have to work as hard to get it. This year, the average number of hours worked per week by our poll was 45.9, almost an hour and a half less than the average 47.3 hours that programmers worked last year. That's not a big drop, but it's a trend we might not expect to see these days. People worked the longest in Northern California and the Northeast—48 hours—which correlates to their earning more, as well.

Who Are These People?
Our average Java programmer this year is a 36-year-old man (compared to 33 years old last year) with at least a bachelor's degree. He's been a professional programmer for nine years and a Java programmer for two and a half. (Californians have been programming in Java longer than any other demographic group, except for people with Sun certifications.) Our typical programmer has been with his current employer for 3–4 years.