Labor Market Pulse · Information Technology · October 2026
Information Technology Labor Market Report: Albuquerque, NM MSA — October 2026
Albuquerque IT pay splits: infrastructure up, security and analytics down.
Metro Network Engineer pay rose to $120,041 against a national $115,757, while Cybersecurity Analyst pay fell to $102,799 even as national security pay climbed to $107,327.
Free archive edition. Published by WageScape as sent to subscribers; data as of October 2026.
Key indicators
- Metro unemployment rate: 5.5% — July 2026, vs 4.1% national rate
- Metro job growth: 0.1% — Year-over-year nonfarm employment, Albuquerque MSA
- NM average weekly wage rank: 46th — Nationally, at $1,235/week early 2026
- National tech layoffs: 133,417 — Through Oct 21, 2026, already exceeds all of 2025
Key takeaways
Network Engineer pay is outrunning the national market.
Metro median advertised pay of $120,041 now exceeds the national figure of $115,757, with significant local upward movement against moderate national growth. Data center and infrastructure buildout appears to be pulling this role's compensation locally ahead of national trends, a signal worth weighing against any plan to centralize infrastructure talent in lower-cost secondary markets.
Cybersecurity Analyst pay is softening locally while national demand hardens.
Metro median pay fell moderately to $102,799 even as the national median rose to $107,327, a divergence that cuts against New Mexico's own data showing SOC Analyst wages climbing 8.8% year-over-year. Local employers may be able to source entry- and mid-level security talent at a discount to national rates, but retention risk rises if candidates benchmark against national postings.
IT Project Manager demand signals infrastructure-heavy hiring priorities.
Metro advertised pay rose significantly to $103,969, closing ground on the $118,150 national median. Growth in this role alongside Network Engineer gains is consistent with data center and infrastructure project activity driving current local IT hiring, measured by job ads, which track demand and often cover several openings each.
Data Scientist pay decline may reflect retreat from exploratory analytics investment.
Metro median pay dropped significantly to $130,654, moving further from the stable $145,881 national figure. Combined with metro-wide private payroll contraction, this suggests employers are deferring analytics headcount in favor of roles tied directly to infrastructure delivery and security operations.
Median advertised pay by role — Albuquerque, NM MSA
| Role | 25th percentile | Median advertised pay | 75th percentile | Metro trend | National median |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Data Scientist | $90,473 | $130,654 | $146,359 | Significant decline | $145,881 |
| Systems Administrator | $80,000 | $97,500 | $106,283 | Moderate increase | $102,503 |
| Network Engineer | $86,000 | $120,041 | $130,770 | Significant increase | $115,757 |
| Software Engineer | $99,663 | $147,586 | $170,000 | Stable | $154,403 |
| Help Desk/IT Support Specialist | $42,460 | $52,082 | $53,235 | Stable | $53,129 |
| Cybersecurity Analyst | $89,231 | $102,799 | $113,000 | Moderate decline | $107,327 |
| IT Project Manager | $84,738 | $103,969 | $108,919 | Significant increase | $118,150 |
WageScape's median is calibrated to correct for spurious low-value postings (reported as the 60th percentile of raw advertised pay). Download: CSV · JSON
Local market conditions
Albuquerque MSA unemployment climbed to 5.5% in July before preliminary August data eased to 4.8%, while total nonfarm employment grew just 0.1% year-over-year and private-sector payrolls contracted slightly, signaling a metro labor market softening faster than the national 4.1% rate. Federal employment reductions and tepid private hiring are colliding with structural skills shortages in security and infrastructure roles, producing a market where overall slack coexists with acute tightness in specialized IT functions.
What it means
Softening headline employment numbers mask a bifurcated IT labor market locally: Network Engineer and IT Project Manager advertised pay are rising significantly even as Data Scientist and Cybersecurity Analyst pay moves down, suggesting employers are reallocating budget toward infrastructure buildout ahead of exploratory analytics and standard security hires. Build-vs-buy decisions for security operations look increasingly favorable toward managed services given New Mexico's 46th-place national wage ranking and limited local Cybersecurity Analyst supply, while infrastructure and network roles may warrant in-house investment given sustained local demand. Consider reviewing whether current security staffing models rely too heavily on direct hires in a market where premiums for specialized talent are rising nationally but local advertised pay is declining.
Looking ahead
Worth watching: August's preliminary unemployment drop to 4.8% from July's 5.5% needs confirmation in next month's revision. A sustained decline would ease the labor supply pressure currently pushing up Network Engineer and IT Project Manager pay.
Emerging pressure point: New Mexico's 46th-place national wage ranking combined with falling local Cybersecurity Analyst pay may accelerate movement of security talent toward remote roles paying national rates. Watch attrition data for security teams over the next two review cycles.
Early indicator: National data center job postings grew 20% in three months while tech hubs pull back hiring. Track whether Albuquerque's relatively lower-cost market begins attracting infrastructure investment and associated Network Engineer and Systems Administrator demand that could further tighten local pay.
Potential inflection point: Federal employment reductions have weighed on metro payrolls through mid-2026. Monitor whether displaced federal IT and technical staff enter the local candidate pool, which could temporarily ease pressure on Systems Administrator and Help Desk hiring.
Methodology
Advertised pay from active employer job postings, not survey data. WageScape's median is calibrated to correct for spurious low-value postings: distribution analysis shows roughly the lowest 10% of raw values are erroneous entries, so the reported median is the 60th percentile of raw advertised pay. WageScape observes 98% of U.S. job openings daily.
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