Salary Survey Extra is a series of dispatches that give added insight into the findings of our annual Salary Survey. These posts contain previously unpublished Salary Survey data.‍

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‍There is no one Linux — the open-source nature of Linux has led creative minds to devise more than 600 unique distributions, or distros — so it's a little disingenuous to talk about Linux in terms of unified statistics like the one about how all of the 500 fastest supercomputers in the world run "Linux." There is enough common ground between the myriad distros, on the other hand, that a given IT pro can credibly become a Linux expert.

The Linux+ credential (no. 35 on our most recent Salary Survey 75 list) managed by IT industry association CompTIA validates knowledge of Linux that can be applied across the broad and colorful Linux spectrum. Here’s what the salary picture looks like for CompTIA Linux+ holders who responded to the Salary Survey:

All U.S. Respondents
Average Annual Salary: $118,080
Median Annual Salary: $113,750
How satisfied are you with your current salary?
Completely Satisfied: 16.3 percent
Very Satisfied: 24 percent
Satisfied: 39.1 percent
Not Very Satisfied: 15.2 percent
Not At All Satisfied: 5.4 percent

All Non-U.S. Respondents
Average Annual Salary: $75,650
Median Annual Salary: $65,000
How satisfied are you with your current salary?
Completely Satisfied: 9.1 percent
Very Satisfied: 22.7 percent
Satisfied: 27.3 percent
Not Very Satisfied: 18.2 percent
Not At All Satisfied: 22.7 percent

The largest single body of Linux+ holders to participate in the survey is made up of U.S. residents (80.7 percent), but we also heard from credential holders in 16 other countries: Albania, Australia, Canada, Costa Rica, Croatia, Djibouti, Ireland, Jamaica, Japan, Kuwait, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, and Vietnam.

Most of the Linux+ holders who responded to the survey are men (74.3 percent of respondents), but we did hear from a double handful (16.2 percent) of female credential holders, as well as a tiny group who either chose not identify their gender (4.7 percent), are transgender male (1.4 percent), are transgender female (0.7 percent) or are gender variant/nonconforming (2.7 percent). We heard from credential holders of many different ages, but most are either between the ages of 25 and 34 (16.7 percent of respondents), between the ages of 35 and 44 (40.4 percent), or between the ages of 45 and 54 (26.3 percent). The rest are either between the ages of 19 and 24 (0.8 percent of those surveyed), between the ages of 55 and 64 (14 percent), or between the ages of 65 and 74 (1.8 percent).

More than 95 percent of the Linux+ holders who participated in the survey have an educational background that includes time spent at a college or university. The highest level of education completed by most Linux+ holders is either a bachelor’s degree (47.4 percent of those surveyed), master’s degree (30.7 percent), associate’s degree (11.4 percent), doctorate (4.4 percent), or professional degree (3.5 percent). The outliers are the 1.8 percent of respondents who exited the realm of formal education after completing some level of post-high school technical training, and the 0.8 percent whose highest educational attainment is a high school diploma.

A sturdy 77 percent of Linux+ holders who responded to the survey are employed full-time. The rest either have part-time jobs (10.1 percent of respondents), are students (5.4 percent), are on sabbatical (2 percent), or are unemployed (5.5 percent). Among those who have full-time jobs, most either put in the standard 40 hours per week (40.2 percent) or are on the clock for between 41 and 50 hours per week (30.4 percent). The rest have a full-time work schedule that consists of either more than 50 hours per week (13.4 percent of respondents), between 31 and 39 hours per week (9.8 percent), between 20 and 30 hours per week (1.8 percent), or fewer than 20 hours per week (4.4 percent).

In the post-COVID working world, about 46 percent of Linux+ holders are spending the lion’s share of those hours in a traditional workplace setting, working from home either fewer than 10 hours per week (33.3 percent of respondents) or between 10 and 20 hours per week (13.2 percent). The rest are notably more familiar with what has become the norm for many, working from home either between 21 and 30 hours per week (13.2 percent), between 31 and 39 hours per week (7.9 percent), 40 hours per week (17.5 percent), or more than 40 hours per week (14.9 percent).

In terms of workplace standing, the largest single group of Linux+ holders we heard from (24.3 percent of those surveyed) are employed at the senior specialist level. The rest, in descending order, are either specialists (16.9 percent of respondents), senior managers (16.2 percent), managers or directors (both 14.2 percent), rank-and-file employees (7.4 percent), or executives (6.8 percent).

A notable 41.2 percent of the Linux+ holders who participated in the survey are IT veterans, having worked in a role that directly utilizes one or more of their certified skills for more than a decade. The rest have been plying their certified skills for either between zero years (1 to 11 months) and 2 years (7.4 percent of respondents), between 3 and 5 years (19 percent, between 6 and 8 years (24.3 percent), or between 9 and 10 years (8.1 percent).

Finally, here’s the view of CompTIA Linux+ holders on key questions from the survey about how certification impacts job performance:

At my current job I use skills learned or enhanced through certification:
Several times a day: 45.3 percent
Several times a week: 29.1 percent
Several times a month: 12.2 percent
Occasionally: 7.4 percent
Rarely: 6 percent

Since becoming certified, I feel there is greater demand for my skills.
Strongly agree: 43.9 percent
Agree: 29.1 percent
Neither Agree nor Disagree: 14.2 percent
Disagree: 3.4 percent
Strongly Disagree: 9.4 percent

Becoming certified has increased my problem-solving skills.
Strongly agree: 35.1 percent
Agree: 34.5 percent
Neither Agree nor Disagree: 16.9 percent
Disagree: 7.4 percent
Strongly Disagree: 6.1 percent

Becoming certified has increased my workplace productivity.
Strongly agree: 28.4 percent
Agree: 39.2 percent
Neither Agree nor Disagree: 14.2 percent
Disagree: 10.1 percent
Strongly Disagree: 8.1 percent

PAST LINUX+ DEEP FOCUS FEATURES

2019

2018

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