Why Everyone in Tech is Moving to Austin
Parallel uncovers the truth about why Austin has, and is still, the place to be if you are in Software Engineering & Development.September 2018
Parallel uncovers the truth about why Austin has, and is still, the place to be if you are in Software Engineering & Development.
Austin outpaces other major Texas metro areas in terms of median Software Engineering compensation. The city boasts a median of $103K per annum for Software Engineering jobs, whereas Dallas/Fort Worth has a median compensation of $97K per annum and Houston $96K per annum.
Software Engineers are open to new opportunities, but are not actively seeking new employment opportunities…
According to a LinkedIn survey, Engineers say that they apply to jobs less frequently than the average professional. Parallel’s Technology team has noticed that Engineers are more likely to engage in more passive job searching activities. LinkedIn also noticed this trend, claiming that Engineers participate in activities such as learning new skills and responding to recruiters when they are directly contacted about opportunities that enable them to keep up-to-date with new trends.
So why is Austin so attractive to software engineers right now?
Austin is only 7% above the national average cost of living in the United States with solid opportunities for Software Developers and Engineers in terms of salary. In terms of the highest developer salaries adjusted to the cost of living, Glassdoor ranked Austin 6th and according to InfoWorld, the highest adjusted median salaries for Software Developers, Austin ranked 3rd. According to Zip Recruiter, Austin is ranked first in up-and-coming tech city rankings!
According to mystateman, you can “expect to see the world’s biggest tech giants continue their multimillion dollar expansion pushes in Central Texas, where the companies are tapping into the region’s tech savvy talent pool and a lower cost of living. Apple, Facebook, Google, Oracle, and Amazon have opened fast-growing campuses and downtown offices in Austin, and they will be filling their cubicles.”
Austin is also located in one of the most digitalized job markets in the country, both among its tech-producing and its tech-using industries, according to a report from the Brookings Institution. Measured by the average penetration of digital tasks into jobs, Austin ranked seventh out of 379 metro areas in the country.
Austin has much more to offer than just being the tech hub of Texas – with an amazing music scene, cultural scene and, dare we say it, fantastic weather! There is a lot of appeal to living in the location alongside the high Developer salaries that are adjusted to the cost of living.
