Labor Market Pulse · Information Technology · September 2026
Information Technology Labor Market Report: Mankato-North Mankato, MN MSA — September 2026
Mankato IT pay splits: infrastructure up, software and support down.
Mankato Network Engineer pay rose to $111,142 and Cybersecurity Analyst pay hit $115,450 — above the national figure — while Software Engineer pay fell to $112,089, nearly $41,500 below the national median.
Free archive edition. Published by WageScape as sent to subscribers; data as of September 2026.
Key indicators
- Metro unemployment rate: 3.9% — July 2026, vs 4.1% national, 4.4% Minnesota
- Metro job growth deceleration: 100 jobs — August 2026, down from 500 in July
- Software Engineer pay gap: -$41,563 — Metro $112,089 vs national $153,652
- Minnesota unfilled tech jobs: 10,000+ — Statewide, per capita recruiting cost exceeds $20K
Key takeaways
Network Engineer pay is pulling away from the pack.
Metro median advertised pay for Network Engineers rose significantly this month to $111,142, nearly closing the gap with the $114,400 national figure. Relative to flat or declining pay in software and support roles, this looks like targeted retention spend rather than broad-based wage inflation — a signal to benchmark infrastructure roles separately from the rest of the IT function.
Help Desk pay compression looks structural, not seasonal.
Metro Help Desk advertised pay fell significantly to $52,967, well under the stable national median of $53,644, and this tracks the national pattern of AI-driven compression in lower-tier IT operations roles. Organizations should evaluate whether this role is being quietly deprioritized for contract staffing or automation rather than treated as a standard annual adjustment.
Software Engineer pay diverging sharply from the national trend.
Metro median fell to $112,089 against a stable national figure of $153,652 — a gap approaching $41,500 that's far wider than typical cost-of-living differentials. This may suggest local demand is concentrated in less senior or less specialized development work, or that Mankato employers are increasingly sourcing senior engineering talent remotely rather than competing on local pay.
Cybersecurity demand is outpacing the metro's talent supply.
Metro Cybersecurity Analyst pay rose to $115,450, now exceeding the national median of $106,790 — an unusual inversion for this metro. Current conditions suggest Mankato employers are paying a premium to secure scarce local security talent rather than lose ground to Twin Cities competition.
Median advertised pay by role — Mankato-North Mankato, MN MSA
| Role | 25th percentile | Median advertised pay | 75th percentile | Metro trend | National median |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Data Scientist * | $113,435 | $144,000 | $162,774 | Moderate increase | $148,250 |
| Systems Administrator * | $76,932 | $97,138 | $106,837 | Moderate increase | $101,168 |
| Network Engineer * | $74,968 | $111,142 | $129,228 | Significant increase | $114,400 |
| Software Engineer | $99,782 | $112,089 | $116,147 | Moderate decline | $153,652 |
| Help Desk/IT Support Specialist | $41,741 | $52,967 | $62,560 | Significant decline | $53,644 |
| Cybersecurity Analyst * | $90,671 | $115,450 | $129,500 | Moderate increase | $106,790 |
| IT Project Manager * | $90,000 | $117,942 | $129,387 | Stable | $117,530 |
* State-level figure shown where metro postings were too few.
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
Mankato's unemployment rate held at 3.9% in July 2026, still below the national 4.1% and Minnesota's 4.4%, even as the metro's monthly job gains decelerated sharply from 500 in July to 100 in August — a pattern consistent with statewide labor force participation decline tied to an aging workforce and slower in-migration. Software Engineer and Help Desk advertised pay both fell locally this month even as national cybersecurity and network engineering pay climbed, suggesting Mankato employers are recalibrating toward infrastructure and security roles while commodity technical roles soften faster than they would in a larger Twin Cities-adjacent labor pool.
What it means
Mankato's tight headline unemployment number masks a bifurcated IT labor market: Network Engineer pay rose significantly locally while Software Engineer and Help Desk pay both declined, indicating employers are concentrating retention spend on infrastructure-critical roles and letting advertised pay slide for roles more exposed to automation or outsourcing. With Minnesota reporting 10,000+ unfilled tech jobs statewide and recruiting costs exceeding $20,000 per hire, Mankato IT leaders operating with a smaller regional talent pool face a sharper build-vs-buy tradeoff than metro peers. Consider reviewing whether current compensation allocation across infrastructure, security, and support functions matches where local advertised pay is actually moving, rather than last year's org chart.
Looking ahead
Worth watching: Minnesota's labor force participation rate has declined every month of 2026, down to 66.9% statewide. Watch whether Mankato's smaller labor pool tightens further through year-end, which would strengthen the case for remote/hybrid sourcing of software engineering talent given the metro's already-wide pay gap versus national rates.
Emerging pressure point: Minnesota WARN filings remain low in raw count (140 notices, 1,473 workers in 2026) but Information sector jobs fell 4.1% statewide in August, the sharpest sectoral decline reported. Monitor whether any released tech talent surfaces in the Mankato candidate pool over the next two months.
Potential inflection point: August's metro job growth slowed to 100 jobs after July's 500, a pace below Mankato's five-year average of roughly 87 monthly — meaning August still beat trend despite the slowdown narrative. Confirm whether September data shows a genuine deceleration before adjusting hiring plans on the assumption of a cooling market.
Early indicator: Minnesota's Paid Leave law is reportedly driving increased use of interim IT professionals to cover skill and coverage gaps. Watch whether Mankato employers follow suit for infrastructure and security roles where permanent hiring has lagged advertised pay 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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