Labor Market Pulse · Information Technology · October 2026
Information Technology Labor Market Report: Greensboro-High Point, NC MSA — October 2026
Security pay falls in Greensboro as national rates climb.
Cybersecurity Analyst advertised pay in Greensboro dropped to $86,000, more than $21,000 below the rising national median of $107,327, while local Systems Administrator pay jumped significantly to $86,709.
Free archive edition. Published by WageScape as sent to subscribers; data as of October 2026.
Key indicators
- Metro unemployment rate: 4.0% — vs 4.2% national, 3.4% NC statewide (Aug/Sept 2026)
- Cybersecurity Analyst pay gap: -$21,327 — Metro $86,000 vs national $107,327, local trend down
- Network Engineer pay divergence: -$11,921 — Metro down moderately, national up moderately
- NC information-sector employment: Negative for 2025 — vs 8% growth in 2022
Key takeaways
Security pay is falling locally while national demand rises.
Cybersecurity Analyst advertised pay dropped moderately in Greensboro to $86,000 against a national median of $107,327 that moved up. Metros that let this gap widen risk losing analysts to remote roles or regional competitors paying closer to national rates.
Systems Administrator pay signals an infrastructure retention push.
Metro Systems Administrator pay rose significantly to $86,709, outpacing the national gain and now closing in on local Network Engineer and Cybersecurity Analyst medians. Consider whether this reflects deliberate investment in on-prem and hybrid infrastructure staffing or reactive counter-offers against poaching.
Network Engineer pay moving opposite the national trend.
Local Network Engineer advertised pay fell moderately to $103,836 while national pay rose moderately to $115,757, a nearly $12,000 gap. That divergence may suggest local employers are testing whether automation or managed-services providers can absorb network work, easing pressure to compete for scarce engineering talent.
Manufacturing-linked layoffs may expand the local IT candidate pool.
Statewide WARN activity includes Prepac Manufacturing (Whitsett) and other industrial filings near Greensboro, adding to a regional pattern of manufacturing contraction. IT leaders hiring for infrastructure or support roles may find an uptick in candidates with operational technology or plant-systems experience worth screening for cross-training potential.
Median advertised pay by role — Greensboro-High Point, NC MSA
| Role | 25th percentile | Median advertised pay | 75th percentile | Metro trend | National median |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Data Scientist | $97,971 | $114,518 | $138,933 | Stable | $145,881 |
| Systems Administrator | $76,718 | $86,709 | $97,151 | Significant increase | $102,503 |
| Network Engineer | $86,000 | $103,836 | $112,490 | Moderate decline | $115,757 |
| Software Engineer | $106,146 | $144,875 | $156,518 | Moderate increase | $154,403 |
| Help Desk/IT Support Specialist | $39,935 | $47,711 | $50,369 | Moderate decline | $53,129 |
| Cybersecurity Analyst | $75,000 | $86,000 | $93,300 | Moderate decline | $107,327 |
| IT Project Manager | $87,331 | $107,210 | $117,205 | Moderate 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
Greensboro-High Point's 4.0% August unemployment rate sits below the national 4.2% but trails Raleigh and Charlotte, reflecting the metro's heavier exposure to manufacturing and logistics employment that continues to soften even as professional services hold steadier. Statewide information-sector job losses and a widening gap between upper-wage growth (4.2%) and bottom-quartile gains (3.5%) are compounding local pressure on employers trying to retain scarce technical talent without full visibility into September or October MSA-level figures.
What it means
Local Systems Administrator pay is up significantly while Network Engineer and Cybersecurity Analyst advertised rates are both down, a divergence that signals employers are concentrating retention dollars on infrastructure roles while deprioritizing security and network talent relative to national trends moving the opposite direction. That pattern creates exposure: Greensboro's Cybersecurity Analyst median of $86,000 sits more than $21,000 below the national figure even as NC's automation skills gap runs deeply negative, suggesting local employers may be underpricing scarce security expertise relative to where national demand is heading. Consider reviewing security and network engineering pay bands against national movement before budget cycles lock in, to avoid anchoring to this year's local softness.
Looking ahead
Expected release: September 2026 MSA-level employment data publishes in late October, offering the first clean read on whether Greensboro's 4.0% unemployment rate held or moved following August's modest improvement. Compare against the 3.4% statewide rate to gauge whether the metro continues lagging Raleigh and Charlotte.
Emerging pressure point: North Carolina's negative information-sector employment trend through 2025 has not reversed, and immigrant workers comprising one-third of the state's software development workforce face elevated policy risk. Watch whether local employers report any disruption to technical hiring pipelines tied to this exposure.
Worth watching: National cybersecurity and network engineer pay is rising while Greensboro's local rates move opposite that trend. If the gap persists into November budget planning, expect increased attrition risk among security and network staff fielding outside offers.
Potential inflection point: Regional manufacturing WARN notices, including Prepac Manufacturing's May layoff and continued sector contraction, may feed displaced operational and IT-adjacent workers into the Triad candidate pool. Track whether advertised pay for Systems Administrator and Help Desk roles softens further as supply increases.
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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