It paid to be a technologist entering the tech industry in 2020 and 2021, according to the just-released Dice Tech Salary Report. As many businesses adjusted their budgets to accommodate the abrupt shift in demand for products and services, there was a renewed focus on hiring technologists with less experience at lower salaries (at least lower than what more experienced technologists expect to earn).  

Between 2019 and 2021, technologists with less than one year of experience saw the greatest rise in salary of all groups (up 24.4 percent to $68,693). That increase amounted to an average bump in salary to the tune of $13,462 over the two years. Check out the full chart:

On the other end of the spectrum, organizations also rewarded those with more tenured technology experience.Technologists with 11-15 years of experience saw their salaries increase an average of 9.1 percent from 2019 to 2021, while those with 6-10 years of experience enjoyed a 8.9 percent bump. Technologists with 15 years of experiencereceived a 7.5 percent increase compared to 2019.  

But not all groups enjoyed big salary increases over this two-year period. Technologists with 3-5 years of experience saw a salary decrease of 0.4 percent between 2019 and 2020, although their collective situation turned around with an increase in 2021; nonetheless, the group still had the lowest two-year increase among all types of technologists (up 2.9 percent to $76,898). With technologists new to the workforce quickly catching up to their counterparts in terms of compensation, we could see some friction as those with 3-5 years of experience try to maintain their current positions (or snag promotions) amid competition.  

What’s the best way to land a job if you don’t have a lot of experience? Fortunately, there are a number of ways to highlight how you can benefit a potential employer. For example, if you’re applying for a management position, describe how you’ve guided projects or brought stakeholders together despite relatively few (or no) stints as a manager. Showing off your side projects is also a good way to convince hiring managers and recruiters that you know what you’re doing.