Philadelphia Tech Roles See Largest Salary Increases in 2022

Last month, The Philadelphia Inquirer published an article about how individuals in the Philadelphia tech scene are seeing the largest increase in base salaries compared to any other city in the United States — including Silicon Valley.

As the Sr. Sales Manager for Mondo’s Philadelphia office and someone who has been working in the Philly staffing industry for 7+ years, this is a great accomplishment for Philly’s growing tech scene. 

Now, that doesn’t mean Philly has the highest numbers, but it means that individuals who live in the Greater Philadelphia Area are seeing the biggest YOY increase in their base pay.

So what are the main contributors to America’s favorite Underdog City finally getting its just reward? 

Bridging the Pay Gap to Combat the Great Resignation

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, compensation costs grew 4% between December 2020 to December 2021.

With the Great Resignation, the theme — or should we say plague? — of hiring and retention for 2021, was that many organizations implemented company-wide wage increases or salary bands.

This ensured that new employees coming in and retained employees were all making competitive and equitable amounts.

How much did Tech salaries increase in Philadelphia?

Mondo’s Philadelphia office ranked #2 in the company with the highest number of consultant pay raises — right behind New York City — with an average increase of 12% in base hourly pay to consultants and FTE employees in tech and marketing.

As a whole nationwide, Mondo has averaged year-to-date an average increase of + $8/hour to contract employees by working with clients to ensure they budget earlier on in the process for these raises to help ensure they stay competitive with every developing market. 

Tech is always going to stay in demand, but just exactly what positions are receiving the biggest base bump increase changes?

What Tech roles are seeing the largest base pay increase?

1. Media Specialist Tech salary increase

In 2021 the average base salary for Media Specialists (Buyers and Planners) was $45-55k.

Now, even fresh out of school college grads in the field are looking for minimum mid-50’s with the average range of $65-$110k base salary. 

2. Marketing Analyst Tech salary increase

Back in 2020, the average base salary for a marketing analyst was $80k.

Now, the average base salary we advise our clients on is $110k given the jump in demand from COVID for marketing research, data, and analysis. 

3. UI Developer Tech salary increase

In 2020, UI positions were typically $110-$120k. Now, tried and true UI resources are looking for $130-150k.

Additionally, these roles — even prior to COVID — were always advised to hire talent remotely especially if they needed certain expertise in languages like Ember, Node, Vue, etc.

Now, it’s remote or bust with many developers, so be sure to advocate for remote from the start when filing for development headcount. 

4. IT Support Tech salary increase

IT Support will always need to be a mix with onsite capabilities as it’s in the nature of the position.

In 2020 the typical base for Tier 1 IT support was $40-47k. Now, salaries are minimally starting at $50k and are going all the way up to $75k to ensure the front-line individuals for companies’ technology ecosystems are retained. 

Remote work is driving higher Tech salaries

Philadelphia has been my home city for the last 8 years but prior to that, I spent my entire life in New York.

As a fresh college grad, Philly stole my heart because it didn’t steal my wallet. The affordability and cost of living in Philly vs. New York City was exactly what I needed.

This has always been a selling point for individuals to live in Philly, but now with companies hiring remotely, Philadelphia-based tech employees are able to receive a higher base salary all while still enjoying their same cost of living.

Of the 78 permanent placements Mondo’s Philly staffing team has completed so far in 2022, 74% of those were filled with 100% remote talent, 23% hybrid, with only 3% fully onsite.

For the positions that were hybrid, we saw a minimum $10k increase in base salaries for those roles from the previous years we worked with those clients so they could stay competitive with remote hiring. 

Will Tech salaries continue to increase?

With EOY now here, we can certainly expect to see organizations continue to invest in their technology and marketing resources.

It’s great to see companies investing not just in their technology platforms and infrastructures post Covid, but embodying people-first mindsets and ensuring their talent is retained and new talent brought in is here to add value and feel valued.

Finally, one final consideration to make is that this is the time of year to truly plan ahead.

If you are looking at your budget and headcount for 2023 and have not taken these figures into account, make sure to file for wage gap salary increases, and mark up new salaried positions by minimally 8% — especially if you’re in Philadelphia! — and if you need further guidance on hiring, Mondo is always here to assist. 

Continued reading on employment industry trends for employers:

• How to Assess a Job Candidate’s Communication Skills, With Sample Questions
• What Is Backfilling? Reasons Why It’s Important & Necessary for Hiring Managers
• Why Employees Quit and How to Prevent It
• Mass Layoffs in 2022: What’s Next for Employees?
• The Evolution of Work: 9 Trends That Matter 
• Pay Transparency: What States Have It & Why It’s Important
• Take-Home Assignments: the Biggest Mistake for Hiring Managers