Labor Market Pulse · Information Technology · September 2026
Information Technology Labor Market Report: Billings, MT MSA — September 2026
Billings IT pay splits sharply: security up, networking down.
Cybersecurity Analyst and Systems Administrator advertised pay rose significantly in Billings (to $104,064 and $81,938) while Network Engineer pay fell significantly to $90,854, even as metro unemployment held at 2.9% against a 4.1% national rate.
Free archive edition. Published by WageScape as sent to subscribers; data as of September 2026.
Key indicators
- Billings MSA unemployment: 2.9% — vs 4.1% national, 3.2% Montana statewide
- Yellowstone County wage growth: 4.2% YoY — Weekly wage $1,285, Q1 2026, outpaces national 3.2%
- Montana WARN activity: 4 notices / 173 workers — Through Sept 2026, minimal spillover vs national layoffs
- Montana annual employment change: Down (2025) — First annual decline since 2020
Key takeaways
Systems Administrator pay is surging while Network Engineer pay falls.
Systems Administrator advertised pay rose significantly to a metro median of $81,938, even as Network Engineer pay dropped significantly to $90,854. This split is consistent with national signals that traditional network admin roles face demand compression while adjacent infrastructure roles tied to cloud and systems management hold value.
Cybersecurity pay gains outpace a tight statewide labor pool.
Cybersecurity Analyst advertised pay climbed significantly to $104,064 locally, tracking national momentum (CompTIA reports cybersecurity job growth 346% above average). With Montana unemployment near historic lows, this role is becoming the clearest case for permanent investment over outsourcing.
Help Desk compression may reflect AI-driven role redesign, not just slack.
Help Desk/IT Support advertised pay fell moderately to $46,528, well below the stable national figure of $53,644. National reporting ties lower-level IT role erosion to AI adoption absorbing routine support work — local employers may be testing whether support headcount can be reduced rather than repriced.
IT Project Manager demand looks like a hedge against execution risk.
IT Project Manager pay rose significantly to $116,337, nearly matching the Data Scientist figure and exceeding most other local IT roles. Rising demand for this role amid softening state employment may signal organizations prioritizing delivery oversight over expanding build capacity.
Median advertised pay by role — Billings, MT MSA
| Role | 25th percentile | Median advertised pay | 75th percentile | Metro trend | National median |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Data Scientist | $86,135 | $113,895 | $116,594 | Moderate decline | $148,250 |
| Systems Administrator | $66,943 | $81,938 | $97,500 | Significant increase | $101,168 |
| Network Engineer | $80,516 | $90,854 | $91,626 | Significant decline | $114,400 |
| Software Engineer | $84,872 | $141,347 | $164,665 | Stable | $153,652 |
| Help Desk/IT Support Specialist | $41,600 | $46,528 | $54,067 | Moderate decline | $53,644 |
| Cybersecurity Analyst | $85,000 | $104,064 | $131,934 | Significant increase | $106,790 |
| IT Project Manager | $106,066 | $116,337 | $119,400 | Significant increase | $117,530 |
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
Billings MSA unemployment held at 2.9% in August against a 4.1% national rate, underscoring a labor pool that remains structurally thin even as statewide employment edged down for the first time since 2020. Yellowstone County average weekly wages rose 4.2% year-over-year to $1,285, a pace that continues to outstrip national wage growth of 3.2% and signals wage pressure persists despite softer overall job creation.
What it means
Tight local labor supply combined with diverging role-level pay movements — Systems Administrator and Cybersecurity Analyst advertised pay both up significantly while Network Engineer and Help Desk pay compressed — suggests the metro market is actively repricing which IT functions carry strategic value versus which are commoditizing. This divergence strengthens the case for shifting commodity infrastructure and support work to contract or managed-service arrangements while reserving permanent headcount investment for cloud, security, and administration roles where local competition for talent is intensifying. Consider reviewing whether current infrastructure staffing mixes still match this repricing, particularly where Network Engineer roles may be over-resourced relative to shrinking local demand.
Looking ahead
Worth watching: Montana's first annual employment decline since 2020 may ease hiring competition into Q4, particularly for infrastructure roles already seeing pay compression. Watch whether Network Engineer and Help Desk advertised pay stabilizes or continues falling as a signal of true demand softening versus temporary budget caution.
Emerging pressure point: National WARN filings from Amazon, Meta, Verizon, and Oracle have not yet produced meaningful Montana spillover (only 4 state WARN notices, 173 workers, through September). A larger regional tech layoff wave could unexpectedly deepen the local cybersecurity and cloud talent pool.
Potential inflection point: Cybersecurity and Systems Administrator pay gains locally outpace national moderate growth, suggesting Billings employers are bidding aggressively for a thin specialist pool. Sustained divergence from national trend lines over the next two cycles would support building retention premiums into 2027 budget planning now rather than reactively.
Early indicator: Montana's apprenticeship pipeline is training workers across 65 high-demand occupations including computer programmers, but output remains limited relative to demand. Track whether this pipeline meaningfully affects entry-level IT advertised pay before committing to build-over-buy strategies for junior technical roles.
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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