Labor Market Pulse · Information Technology · October 2026
Information Technology Labor Market Report: Niles-Benton Harbor, MI MSA — October 2026
Niles software pay converges with national rates as network pay diverges
Metro Software Engineer pay climbed to $142,663 — near the $154,403 national figure — while Network Engineer pay fell to $98,191 even as the national median rose to $115,757.
Free archive edition. Published by WageScape as sent to subscribers; data as of October 2026.
Key indicators
- Niles metro unemployment: 4.2% — Down from 4.8% in August; below Michigan's 5.0%
- Michigan labor force change: -26,000 — September month-over-month decline statewide
- Software Engineer pay, metro: $142,663 — vs $154,403 national; up significantly locally
- Network Engineer pay, metro: $98,191 — Down locally vs up to $115,757 nationally
Key takeaways
Software engineering pay is closing the gap with national rates.
Metro Software Engineer pay rose significantly to $142,663, within 8% of the national median of $154,403 — a compression unusual for a manufacturing-heavy, sub-metro labor market. Retention budgets for engineering talent should assume competitive pressure closer to national benchmarks than historical metro discounts would predict.
Network Engineer pay is moving against the national grain.
Metro Network Engineer pay declined to $98,191 even as the national median climbed to $115,757, a divergence that may reflect softer local infrastructure hiring demand or a shrinking local candidate pool for the role. Current conditions suggest evaluating whether local postings are pricing the role below what it would take to retain incumbents against remote or hybrid offers.
Help desk pay gap signals an outsourcing opening.
Metro Help Desk/IT Support pay sits at $38,480 against a national median of $53,129 — a 28% discount that, combined with Michigan's statewide IT Support Technician average of $51,120, points to commodity support work as a strong candidate for managed services or RPA investment. Freeing that headcount may let organizations redirect budget toward higher-growth functions like data and cybersecurity.
Tight local unemployment masks a shrinking labor pool.
Niles metro unemployment fell to 4.2% even as Michigan's labor force declined 26,000 in September and statewide labor force levels dropped a median 6.8% year over year across all 18 labor market areas. Low unemployment here may reflect fewer job seekers rather than stronger hiring, meaning sourcing for IT roles should account for a candidate pool that is both shrinking and tight.
Median advertised pay by role — Niles-Benton Harbor, MI MSA
| Role | 25th percentile | Median advertised pay | 75th percentile | Metro trend | National median |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Data Scientist * | $109,397 | $141,000 | $163,300 | Stable | $145,881 |
| Systems Administrator * | $74,948 | $90,712 | $103,750 | Moderate increase | $102,503 |
| Network Engineer | $81,200 | $98,191 | $104,967 | Moderate decline | $115,757 |
| Software Engineer | $103,431 | $142,663 | $173,178 | Significant increase | $154,403 |
| Help Desk/IT Support Specialist | $34,320 | $38,480 | $39,655 | Stable | $53,129 |
| Cybersecurity Analyst * | $84,765 | $99,237 | $120,000 | Moderate increase | $107,327 |
| IT Project Manager * | $85,840 | $112,166 | $124,800 | Stable | $118,150 |
* 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
Niles-Benton Harbor unemployment fell to 4.2% in September, down 0.6 points from August and now below both the national 4.1-4.2% range's state counterpart — Michigan sits at 5.0% — signaling a metro labor market tightening faster than the state it sits in. Manufacturing remains the dominant local employer base at 13,370 jobs, but Michigan's broader IT employment growth of 8% over five years, against 1% statewide job growth overall, means local tech talent competes against a state-level draw toward Detroit, Lansing, and Grand Rapids tech hubs, extending beyond competition with Niles-specific peers.
What it means
Metro Software Engineer pay rose significantly to $142,663, nearly matching the national median of $154,403, while Network Engineer pay moved in the opposite direction locally — down to $98,191 against a national figure climbing to $115,757 — a divergence that complicates any assumption that local roles track national trends uniformly. This split suggests build-vs-buy decisions should be evaluated role by role: competing directly for engineering talent may be justified given local wage momentum, while infrastructure and network roles may be better suited to managed services given softening local demand signals. Consider reviewing network and systems administration staffing models against regional managed-services alternatives before the next budget cycle.
Looking ahead
Worth watching: Michigan's IT employment is projected to grow another 5% against 1% overall state job growth, intensifying statewide competition for talent that metro Niles employers draw from. Watch whether Detroit, Lansing, or Grand Rapids wage movements pull candidates away from Berrien County postings over the next quarter.
Emerging pressure point: National tech layoffs have already exceeded 133,000 workers through October 21, surpassing all of 2025, concentrated in large tech hubs, with limited spread so far to manufacturing-adjacent metros like Niles. Watch whether any of that displaced talent, particularly in infrastructure or cybersecurity, begins appearing in regional candidate pools.
Early indicator: Local Network Engineer pay has moved down while the national figure moved up, a divergence worth tracking through the next one to two pay cycles to determine if it reflects a lasting demand shift or short-term posting noise. A continued split would strengthen the case for regional managed-services sourcing over direct hiring.
Potential inflection point: Michigan's data scientist roles are projected to grow fastest among IT occupations at 28.3%, yet metro Niles Data Scientist pay has stayed flat at $141,000 for several months. Watch whether that stability holds as statewide demand accelerates, or whether metro employers will need to move pay to stay competitive for scarce analytics talent.
Sources
- Michigan Department of Career Development — Niles MSA unemployment rate fell to 4.2% in September 2026
- Michigan labor market research notes — Michigan IT employment grew 8% over five years, projected 5% more
- Bureau of Labor Statistics / Michigan DTMB — Michigan labor force declined 26,000 in September; 6.8% median YoY decline statewide
- Layoffs.fyi / industry tracking — Tech layoffs exceeded 133,000 workers through October 21, 2026
- Michigan labor market research notes — Michigan data scientist roles projected to grow 28.3%, fastest among IT occupations
- Bureau of Labor Statistics — Michigan statewide unemployment at 5.0% in September 2026
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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