With “tech jobs” appearing in 255,000 Google searches globally every month and the number of tech job listings increasing by 25% in the US, which are the best cities to pursue a career in tech?

To find out, cloud cost intelligence platform CloudZero has looked at the world’s top 30 digital cities, uncovering the number of job vacancies and average salaries across five of the most in-demand tech jobs. This data, coupled with the number of tech companies, average broadband speed, average rent for central one-bedroom apartments and rent as a percentage of annual salary, revealed the best cities in the world for tech careers.

• Washington, D.C. ranks as the world’s best city for tech workers, boasting the second-highest salary of $132,732. Washington, D.C., also has the second-highest number of available tech jobs (9,370) and tech companies (8,348)
• Tokyo ranks as the world’s second-best city for tech workers, with the highest number of available jobs in the field (36,785) and the fourth-highest number of tech companies (5,908) – it also helps that the average monthly rent is under $1,000.
• New York City offers tech workers the world’s highest average salary of $147,665. This is $14,933 higher than Washington’s average tech salary and $24,964 higher than Dallas’.
• Washington, D.C., was declared the best city for software engineers, providing an average salary of $136,696

The study also compares the average salaries of the five tech roles, revealing Washington, D.C., as the best city for software engineers. The US capital sports the third-highest job vacancies (4,143) and a generous average salary of $136,696. 

Singapore takes second place, offering software engineers many job vacancies (3,878) and an average salary of $126,301. New York City follows closely behind with the second-best average salary of $146,437.  

Three US cities rank in the top five best global cities for cloud engineers 

• Washington, D.C., comes out on top again, with the highest available jobs (2,944) and the second-largest average salary of $143,288 for cloud engineers.
• The study hails Singapore as the second-best city, where the third-highest number of available jobs was discovered (2,501).  
• Another US city follows in third, as New York City boasts the world’s highest average salary for Cloud Engineers ($164,954). London comes in fourth, with the second-highest vacancies in Cloud Engineering (2,590) and Dallas in fifth, with a generous average salary of $138,563. 

Software engineering offers the most remote opportunities, with 9,115 remote jobs advertised

Data has revealed that 62% of workers feel more productive when working remotely. Therefore, the study has revealed which of the five in-demand roles has the most remote opportunities. 

Software engineering has the highest number of remote work opportunities, with 9,115 remote jobs advertised worldwide. 

The second highest number of remote work opportunities is found in cloud computing, with 5,203 worldwide jobs advertised as remote. Machine Learning Engineering has the third highest, with 1,509 available remote jobs. 

Bill Buckley, senior vice president of product and engineering at CloudZero, comments: “With industries racing to digitalize, the world is seeing a high demand for tech workers. From start-ups to established companies, skilled professionals are being sought after to meet their needs, particularly in cloud computing, software engineering, and artificial intelligence.

“Tech workers need to be highly skilled, but there are many paths to build those skills. Identify a field in tech that piques your interest, pinpoint the skills you need, and work on gaining those skills via affordable courses or entry-level position experience

“Having a network also plays a big role in your career’s success. Search online platforms for groups that will immerse you in the tech world and support you along your journey. The other hurdle you’ll face is getting noticed by hiring managers. You’ll have a better chance of standing out the more experience you have, even from consulting work in those areas, or if you can have someone in your network who works at the company bring you into the process.”