DevOps

Salary Report
Contents
About this report 5
Who took the survey 6
Examining global salaries 8
Industry and department effects on salaries 14
Diving deeper into global salary data for practitioners 18
Comparing salaries for managers and practitioners 21
Does strong support from senior leadership for DevOps correlate to higher salaries? 26
Summary of our findings 28


Puppet | 2018 DevOps Salary Report

It’s that time of year again. We've conducted and

compiled the results of our State of DevOps survey to
illustrate how your job, salary, and industry compare to
other professionals in your field.
This is our fifth annual DevOps salary report, and each
year we learn more about how DevOps practices impact
organizations globally and how the people who produce
those results and how they're compensated. This report
examines a myriad of factors impacting salary levels,
which include region, role, demographics, industry, and
size of organization.
We had over 3,000 technology professionals from around
the world respond to our survey. As before, we broke
down the data by geographic region — but this time with
an international focus on the UK, Asia, and Europe.

 3
We also went in a different direction with our targeted
areas of analysis this year. In addition to measuring
manager salary data versus those in a practitioner role,
we also analyzed salary trends by:
• Department
• Industry
• Region
• Gender
• Those part of a minority group
• Company revenue
We yielded a higher response volume for each global
region this year. Each area targeted came in above our
200-response threshold for confident trend reporting.
To help us more accurately report on the state of DevOps
work around the world, please send feedback and ideas
for improving our data to devopssurvey@puppet.com
Please note this survey is intended to broadly reflect trends in tech pay by
salary band, by role, by org size, and by broad region. The data is not specific
enough to determine pay level for an individual role in a specific region.
Key findings
• Overall, reported U.S. salaries are up from last year.
• Manager salaries have continued their decline,
falling below those of practitioners except at the
executive level.
• Salaries for minority groups and women continue
to lag behind others, though the gap is narrowing.
• Salaries for women in the US outpace those of
women in the UK, Asia, and Europe.
• The healthcare and pharma industry has more
professionals earning more than $100,000 than
any other industry.
• Salaries in the US and UK are trending higher than
those in Europe and Asia.
4
About this report
We asked survey respondents to identify where they fell within certain salary ranges. United States
Salary ranges are expressed in U.S. dollars, including those for international respondents. >$250K 4%
We did not adjust for variations in labor costs across different geographies. On graphs, $150K–250K 19%
$125K–150K 18%
each salary-range bar has a percentage figure — that’s the percentage of respondents
$100K–125K 23%
whose earnings fall within that salary range. $75K–100K 20%
$50K–75K 10%
When reviewing this report, it's important to note two things:
$35K–50K 2%
• Geographic differentials can play a huge part in how salaries fall within these ranges. $25K–35K 2%
<$25K 2%
• Our findings group people with different levels of experience together.

About this report 5

Puppet | 2018 DevOps Salary Report

Who took the survey

Department and team Principal industry
Over half (55 percent) of respondents reported working in an IT
department, with 21 percent in an IT operations team and 14 percent in 2% 1%
a DevOps team. Another 36 percent of respondents reported working in
an engineering or development team, with 15 percent in a DevOps team
3% 6%
and 12 percent in an application development team. We've seen a steady
increase in survey responses from people on DevOps teams, from just
16 percent in 2014 to 29 percent this year. It's interesting to note that
DevOps teams reside equally in both IT and engineering departments. 5% Technology
Financial Services

Department Team 5% Industrials/Manufacturing

Retail/Consumer/eCommerce 38%
21% IT operations Education
55% 14% DevOps Life Sciences/Healthcare/Pharma
7% IT general 6% Government

IT 2%
2%
2%
Network operations
Site reliability engineering
Database
Media, Telecommunications
Media, Entertainment

1% Release engineering 6% Energy and Resources

Non-Profit
15% DevOps Other
36% 12% Application development
Development 3% Site reliability engineering 7%
or engineering 2% Quality assurance
2% Quality engineering 8% 12%
Information 2% Release engineering
3% security
5% Other 15% Other

6
Puppet | 2018 DevOps Salary Report

Responses by global region

Canada Europe
5% 29%
7%
Germany

8%
U.K.

7% 7%

39%
France Japan
Japan

U.S.
3% 18%
3% India Asia

Mexico
Central America
1%
Africa and
7%
Singapore
Australia and
and South America New Zealand
Middle East

5%

Who took the survey 7

Puppet | 2018 DevOps Salary Report

Examining global salaries
Where you work in the world matters. Salaries can
vary dramatically from one part of the world to
another and by location within a specific region.

8
Puppet | 2018 DevOps Salary Report

Global salaries for United States United Kingdom, Ireland, Isle of Man

managers and practitioners >$250K

$150K–250K
4%
19%
>$250K
$150K–250K
3%
8%
Though the gap is narrowing, practitioners and managers in $125K–150K 18% $125K–150K 7%
$100K–125K 23% $100K–125K 13%
the United States continue to earn higher salaries than their
$75K–100K 20% $75K–100K 24%
counterparts around the world. $50K–75K 10% $50K–75K 25%
$35K–50K 2% $35K–50K 10%
For the third year in a row, respondents from the U.S.
$25K–35K 2% $25K–35K 8%
reported the highest percentage of salaries over $100,000 <$25K 2% <$25K 4%
at 64 percent. No other region was above 30 percent and
Europe lagged considerably with just over 14 percent of
those surveyed reporting an income over $100,000. Europe (not including the UK) Asia

>$250K 2% >$250K 2%
Once again, the most common U.S. salary range was $150K–250K 2% $150K–250K 7%
between $100,000 and $125,000, the highest of any region. $125K–150K 5% $125K–150K 7%
Europe’s Practitioners and managers still most frequently $100K–125K 7% $100K–125K 12%

earn between $50,000 and $75,000 annually. In Asia, $75K–100K 17% $75K–100K 26%
$50K–75K 25% $50K–75K 19%
it’s between $75,000 and $100,000, driven by survey $35K–50K 19% $35K–50K 11%
respondents in Japan and Singapore. $25K–35K 16% $25K–35K 8%
<$25K 8% <$25K 8%

Note: These regions did not produce enough respondents to meet

the minimum threshold for confident reporting: Middle East & Africa,
Australia & New Zealand, Canada, Mexico, Central & South America. These charts show the salary ranges for both practitioners and managers.

Examining global salaries 9

Puppet | 2018 DevOps Salary Report

Salary differences in Asia Asia Japan

>$250K 2% >$250K 4%
We received enough response volume from some individual $150K–250K 7% $150K–250K 8%
countries to determine how each impacted the numbers $125K–150K 7% $125K–150K 7%
for larger regions. In Asia for example, only 7 percent of $100K–125K 12% $100K–125K 16%
$75K–100K 26% $75K–100K 35%
respondents from that region reported salaries between
$50K–75K 19% $50K–75K 21%
$100,000 and $125,000. In Japan, 16 percent of those $35K–50K 11% $35K–50K 7%
surveyed were in that range, raising the number for the $25K–35K 8% $25K–35K 1%
entire region. <$25K 8% <$25K 1%

Both Singapore and Japan reported salaries that were higher

than those in the region overall. This is to be expected Singapore
since these are smaller, more developed countries where >$250K 2%
even entry level incomes are higher. For both Practitioners $150K–250K 7%

and managers, in Asia, 27 percent reported salaries below $125K–150K 8%

$100K–125K 10%
$50,000. In Japan, only 9 percent of respondents were $75K–100K 25%
below this threshold. $50K–75K 20%
$35K–50K 15%
$25K–35K 7%
<$25K 5%

These charts show the salary ranges for both practitioners and managers.

Examining global salaries 10

Puppet | 2018 DevOps Salary Report

Europe (not including the UK) Germany

>$250K 2% >$250K 3%
$150K–250K 2% $150K–250K 4%
$125K–150K 5% $125K–150K 5% Salary differences in Europe
$100K–125K 7% $100K–125K 8%
$75K–100K 17% $75K–100K 19%
In Europe, we found that incomes in France — especially
$50K–75K 25% $50K–75K 24% in the lower ranges — were below those reported in the
$35K–50K 19% $35K–50K 16% whole of the region. Germany, on the other hand, reported
$25K–35K 16% $25K–35K 15%
more managers and practitioners in the higher ranges.
<$25K 8% <$25K 6%
Forty-three percent of European respondents make less
than $50,000. In France, 57 percent report salaries below
United Kingdom, Ireland, Isle of Man France
that benchmark, but in Germany, it is only 37 percent.
>$250K 3% >$250K 1%
At the higher end, 30 percent of German respondents
$150K–250K 8% $150K–250K 1%
$125K–150K 7% $125K–150K 3%
report salaries over $100,000 compared to only 12 percent
$100K–125K 13% $100K–125K 7% in France and 16 percent across Europe. These deltas can
$75K–100K 24% $75K–100K 11% perhaps be explained by the larger number of international,
$50K–75K 25% $50K–75K 19% enterprise-level corporations headquartered in Germany.
$35K–50K 10% $35K–50K 25%
$25K–35K 8% $25K–35K 22%
<$25K 4% <$25K 10%

These charts show the salary ranges for both practitioners and managers.

Examining global salaries 11

Puppet | 2018 DevOps Salary Report

Practitioner salaries from around

the world United States United Kingdom, Ireland, Isle of Man
For practitioners, salaries increased internationally in 2018, but >$250K 1% >$250K 1%
in the U.S. aggregate numbers have not changed substantially $150K–250K 12% $150K–250K 3%
from 2017. Digging deeper into the U.S. figures, we discover $125K–150K 19% $125K–150K 8%

fewer than six percent of U.S. respondents report making less $100K–125K 24% $100K–125K 6%
$75K–100K 25% $75K–100K 27%
than $50,000 — indicators of a tight labor market with higher $50K–75K 12% $50K–75K 30%
entry level compensation. $35K–50K 2% $35K–50K 12%
$25K–35K 2% $25K–35K 10%
The UK is experiencing similar salary trends, though with <$25K 3% <$25K 4%
less upward pressure in the lower salary ranges. We are seeing
marked increase in the middle of the range, however. This year,
26 percent of practitioners in the UK fall in the $75,000 to Europe (not including the UK) Asia

$100,000 range, up from just 17 percent last year. >$250K 0% >$250K 1%

$150K–250K 0% $150K–250K 1%
In Asia, far more practitioners fall below the $50,000 threshold $125K–150K 4% $125K–150K 2%
than in other regions, but salaries are increasing rapidly at every $100K–125K 3% $100K–125K 7%
level. Last year, half of those surveyed in Asia reported making $75K–100K 13% $75K–100K 15%
$50K–75K 27% $50K–75K 18%
less than $25,000. This year, only 20 percent report income
$35K–50K 24% $35K–50K 17%
below that level. Less than 10 percent of respondents reported $25K–35K 19% $25K–35K 19%
salaries above $100,000 in 2017. This year, close to 30 percent <$25K 9% <$25K 20%
are above that threshold. This can partially be explained by a
notably increased number of respondents this year from Japan
and Singapore. These charts show the salary ranges for practitioners only.

Examining global salaries 12

Puppet | 2018 DevOps Salary Report

When we take a closer look at the salaries in Europe, the

Europe, Western Europe, Central and Eastern
income delta between east and west is revealed. In the west,
>$250K 1% >$250K 0%
48 percent of salaries fall between $50,000 and $100,000 $150K–250K 0% $150K–250K 1%
compared to just 31 percent in central and eastern Europe. $125K–150K 3% $125K–150K 4%
$100K–125K 4% $100K–125K 2%
There are also more central and eastern European $75K–100K 16% $75K–100K 9%
respondents reporting incomes below $50,000. In $50K–75K 32% $50K–75K 22%
western Europe, only 44 percent of those surveyed fall $35K–50K 22% $35K–50K 26%

below this benchmark. In central and eastern Europe, $25K–35K 15% $25K–35K 24%
<$25K 7% <$25K 12%
62 percent of respondents make less than $50,000.

Examining global salaries 13

Puppet | 2018 DevOps Salary Report

Industry and department

effects on salaries
Unsurprisingly, some industries pay better than others.
For example, while most industries demonstrate
the type of symmetrical distribution we’ve come to
expect, manufacturing and education both have a
disproportionate number of salaries at the lower end
of the range. This section takes a look at who makes
more, and where they do it.

14
Puppet | 2018 DevOps Salary Report

Only 20 percent of respondents working in education
reported salaries above $100,000. Less than 15 percent
of those surveyed from the industrial and manufacturing
sector were above that threshold and almost 50 percent
fall below $50,000 — far more than any other industry
surveyed. Given the industry’s rapidly increasing focus
toward online and omnichannel customer engagement,
Technology Financial Services
retail appears to be a lucrative sector for practitioners.
Forty-seven percent of those surveyed in retail make
more than $100,000, about 10 percent more than any
other vertical including healthcare, financial services, and
technology. Note that the retail data does represent a
significant departure from what we saw last year when the
sector’s salary data was right in line with other industries.
Industrials & Manufacturing Retail

>$250K 0% >$250K 0% >$250K 0% >$250K 1%

$150K–250K 8% $150K–250K 6% $150K–250K 6% $150K–250K 7%
$125K–150K 12% $125K–150K 13% $125K–150K 4% $125K–150K 16%
$100K–125K 13% $100K–125K 18% $100K–125K 5% $100K–125K 23%
$75K–100K 21% $75K–100K 30% $75K–100K 15% $75K–100K 16%
$50K–75K 17% $50K–75K 17% $50K–75K 21% $50K–75K 18%
$35K–50K 9% $35K–50K 5% $35K–50K 24% $35K–50K 6%
$25K–35K 10% $25K–35K 6% $25K–35K 19% $25K–35K 10%
<$25K 10% <$25K 5% <$25K 5% <$25K 4%

Education Healthcare & Pharma Government Telecommunications

>$250K 0% >$250K 2% >$250K 2% >$250K 0%

$150K–250K 4% $150K–250K 6% $150K–250K 8% $150K–250K 8%
$125K–150K 5% $125K–150K 9% $125K–150K 14% $125K–150K 12%
$100K–125K 11% $100K–125K 23% $100K–125K 14% $100K–125K 13%
$75K–100K 23% $75K–100K 16% $75K–100K 25% $75K–100K 20%
$50K–75K 23% $50K–75K 18% $50K–75K 19% $50K–75K 17%
$35K–50K 18% $35K–50K 15% $35K–50K 8% $35K–50K 11%
$25K–35K 7% $25K–35K 7% $25K–35K 8% $25K–35K 13%
<$25K 7% <$25K 4% <$25K 1% <$25K 5%

Industry and department effects on salaries 15

Puppet | 2018 DevOps Salary Report

Technology

>$250K 2%
Technology sector pays better in the United States $150K–250K 12%
$125K–150K 11%
Because of the response volume from this vertical, we were able to ascertain $100K–125K 14%
that in the U.S., the technology sector pays slightly better than it does elsewere. $75K–100K 20%
$50K–75K 16%
Thirty-seven percent of respondents report a salary of at least $125,000 $35K–50K 10%
compared to 28 percent when the global data is integrated into the reporting. $25K–35K 8%

International data has an equally stark impact at the lower end of the salary <$25K 7%

range —with only 7 percent of reported U.S. salaries falling below $50,000
compared to 25 percent in below that benchmark internationally. Technology: United States

The salary numbers for technology professionals mirrors the overall delta >$250K 4%
between U.S. and international numbers. In general, we can surmise that $150K–250K 23%
$125K–150K 17%
Practitioners and managers earn more in the U.S. than in other countries.
$100K–125K 20%
$75K–100K 20%
Note: The cost of living in the U.S., specifically in urban tech centers, potentially offsets the salary delta between $50K–75K 9%
U.S. and international professionals. $35K–50K 2%
$25K–35K 2%
<$25K 3%

These charts show the salary ranges

for both practitioners and managers.

Industry and department effects on salaries 16

Puppet | 2018 DevOps Salary Report

Companies with more revenue pay more Salaries by organization annual revenue
Revenue >$2B 7%
5%
Unsurpristingly, companies with more revenue have more $1B–$2B
>$250K 1%
2%
$500M–$1B 1%
high-paying positions than those with less revenue. Among our $250M–$500M
2%
2%

respondents who work for companies with more than $2 billion in $100M–$250M
$50M–$100M 17%
21%
9%
annual revenue, 63 percent make more than $100,000. However, Revenue <$50M $150K–250K 8%
8%
7%
among those who work for companies with less than $50 million 7%

17%
in annual revenue, only 29 percent more than $100,000. 13%
13%
15%
$125K–150K 9%
8%
This inversion makes sense when when you consider higher- 7%

revenue businesses often have more complex technology 15%

18%
20%
20%
infrastructure requiring more experience and more diverse $100K–125K 13%
14%
13%
skill sets, as well as more high-level managers. Enterprise 16%
21%
organizations are also more fully automated and require fewer $75K–100K 24%
27%
30%
lower skill personnel to sustain IT initiatives. 17%
19%

12%
10%
18%
$50K–75K 15%
20%
21%
18%

4%
6%
6%
$35K–50K 9%
11%
12%
13%

3%
5%
5%
$25K–35K 4%
7%
11%
10%

3%
3%
4%
<$25K 3%
2%
5%
13%

Industry and department effects on salaries 17

Puppet | 2018 DevOps Salary Report

Diving deeper into

global salary data
for practitioners
In this section, we evaluate the pay gaps in
salary based on gender and underrepresented
minority status — examining which parts of
the world experience the most improvement
and by how much.

18
Puppet | 2018 DevOps Salary Report

Gender pay gaps — U.S. compared

with the rest of the world Men Women

>$250K 1% >$250K 2%
While male respondents certainly outnumbered women $150K–250K 7% $150K–250K 3%
again this year, we are pleased to report the highest $125K–150K 12% $125K–150K 3%

percentage of women who have taken the State of DevOps $100K–125K 16% $100K–125K 7%
$75K–100K 21% $75K–100K 19%
survey to date: 17 percent.
$50K–75K 18% $50K–75K 21%

Globally, 46 percent of women make less than $50,000 $35K–50K 10% $35K–50K 18%
$25K–35K 8% $25K–35K 16%
while only 24 percent of men are below this figure. Women <$25K 6% <$25K 12%
and men fall into the $50,000–$100,000 pay ranges in
roughly the same percentages as in the U.S. At the top tiers,
the international pay gap mirrors the one in the U.S. Men: United States Women: United States

>$250K 1% >$250K 2%
In the U.S., remarkably, only 3 percent of men report
$150K–250K 14% $150K–250K 4%
incomes of less than $50,000 while 23 percent of women $125K–150K 21% $125K–150K 6%
find themselves below this threshold. The inverse is true $100K–125K 26% $100K–125K 14%
at the top tiers: 26 percent of women are above $100,000 $75K–100K 24% $75K–100K 27%
$50K–75K 10% $50K–75K 23%
versus 62 percent of men.
$35K–50K 1% $35K–50K 8%
$25K–35K 1% $25K–35K 7%
<$25K 1% <$25K 8%

These charts show the salary ranges for practitioners only.

Diving deeper into global salary data for practitioners 19

Puppet | 2018 DevOps Salary Report

Pay gap for people in minority groups

Part of minority group Part of minority group: U.S.
While people who identify as part of a minority group still receive
>$250K 3% >$250K 2%
lower salaries in slightly higher percentages and higher salaries $150K–250K 9% $150K–250K 11%
in lower percentages, the deltas are smaller than in 2017. Globally, $125K–150K 10% $125K–150K 16%
26 percent of minorities earn less than $50,000. A large number, $100K–125K 15% $100K–125K 22%
but still an improvement over last year. In 2017, 30 percent of those $75K–100K 20% $75K–100K 24%
$50K–75K 17% $50K–75K 15%
self-identifying as part of a group that’s underrepresented in tech
$35K–50K 12% $35K–50K 4%
made less than $50,000. $25K–35K 8% $25K–35K 1%
<$25K 6% <$25K 4%
The most common salary range throughout the world is still
$75,000–$100,000. There’s been progress for minorities in
the higher salary ranges as well. Last year, only 11 percent of Not part of minority group Not part of minority group: U.S.
underrepresented people made more than $125,000. This year, >$250K 2% >$250K 1%
22 percent of people in a minority group are over $125,000 and $150K–250K 11% $150K–250K 12%
37 percent make more than $100,000. $125K–150K 12% $125K–150K 19%
$100K–125K 17% $100K–125K 26%
By parsing out U.S. data from the aggregate, we can deduce that $75K–100K 22% $75K–100K 25%
members of underrepresented minority groups in the U.S. have $50K–75K 17% $50K–75K 11%

higher salaries on average than in other parts of the world. In the $35K–50K 8% $35K–50K 2%
$25K–35K 6% $25K–35K 2%
U.S., 51 percent make more than $100,000 and only 9 percent earn <$25K 4% <$25K 2%
below $50,000.

These charts show the salary ranges for practitioners only.

Note: In our 2018 State of DevOps survey we asked survey respondents if they consider
themselves to be part of a visible or invisible minority where they work, and in 2017 we
asked if they identify as part of a group that is underrepresented in tech. We feel this is
an important distinction to highlight.

Diving deeper into global salary data for practitioners 20

Puppet | 2018 DevOps Salary Report

Comparing salaries
for managers
and practitioners
Does it pay more to be in charge? It shouldn't
surprise that the answer is yes. How much more
depends on many factors though, so let’s take a
closer look at the salary trends for practitioners
versus their managers.
General rules and trends still apply, but when
we break the data down, we can still make some
interesting observations. The downward trend in
manager salaries continued in 2018, but managers
are still paid better at larger organizations and
when supervising engineering departments.
Globally, the gender pay gap appears narrower for
managers versus practitioners.

21
Puppet | 2018 DevOps Salary Report

Manager Manager: Asia

>$250K 5% >$250K 3%
$150K–250K 15% $150K–250K 9%

Comparison by region $125K–150K

$100K–125K
12%
17%
$125K–150K
$100K–125K
9%
14%

Globally, 49 percent of all manager respondents make $75K–100K 21% $75K–100K 30%
$50K–75K 15% $50K–75K 19%
more than $100,000 versus 34 percent of Practitioners. $35K–50K 8% $35K–50K 9%
The delta is most pronounced in the U.S. where 72 percent $25K–35K 5% $25K–35K 3%
of managers earn more than $100,000. This continues <$25K 4% <$25K 4%

the downward trend for manager salaries we identified

last year. Then, 85 percent of U.S. manager respondents
Practitioner Practitioner: Asia
reported incomes over $100,000.
>$250K 1% >$250K 1%
In Asia, manager salaries moved in the opposite direction. $150K–250K 7% $150K–250K 1%
In 2017, just 28 percent of managers surveyed in Asia $125K–150K 11% $125K–150K 2%
$100K–125K 15% $100K–125K 7%
reported incomes over $100,000. This year it’s 35 percent,
$75K–100K 21% $75K–100K 15%
buoyed largely by results in Japan and Singapore. $50K–75K 18% $50K–75K 18%
$35K–50K 11% $35K–50K 17%
$25K–35K 9% $25K–35K 19%
<$25K 7% <$25K 20%

Diving deeper into global salary data for practitioners 22

Puppet | 2018 DevOps Salary Report

Comparison by gender
Forty-one percent of women in management make more The delta between men and women is higher in the U.S.,
than $100,000 compared to 46 percent for men. Compared where 55 percent of women in manager roles make more
to practitioners — 15 percent of women and 35 percent of than $100,000 compared to 77 percent of men.
men above the threshold — this represents a substantially
more equitable distribution of incomes.

Manager: Men Manager: Women Manager: Men, United States Manager: Women, United States

>$250K 4% >$250K 5% >$250K 7% >$250K 6%

$150K–250K 15% $150K–250K 11% $150K–250K 31% $150K–250K 16%
$125K–150K 12% $125K–150K 10% $125K–150K 19% $125K–150K 11%
$100K–125K 17% $100K–125K 16% $100K–125K 20% $100K–125K 22%
$75K–100K 23% $75K–100K 16% $75K–100K 14% $75K–100K 17%
$50K–75K 15% $50K–75K 15% $50K–75K 6% $50K–75K 12%
$35K–50K 7% $35K–50K 11% $35K–50K 1% $35K–50K 6%
$25K–35K 3% $25K–35K 11% $25K–35K 1% $25K–35K 6%
<$25K 3% <$25K 6% <$25K 0% <$25K 6%

Practitioner: Men Practitioner: Women Practitioner: Men, United States Practitioner: Women, United States

>$250K 0% >$250K 2% >$250K 1% >$250K 2%

$150K–250K 7% $150K–250K 3% $150K–250K 14% $150K–250K 4%
$125K–150K 12% $125K–150K 3% $125K–150K 21% $125K–150K 6%
$100K–125K 16% $100K–125K 7% $100K–125K 26% $100K–125K 14%
$75K–100K 21% $75K–100K 19% $75K–100K 24% $75K–100K 27%
$50K–75K 18% $50K–75K 21% $50K–75K 10% $50K–75K 23%
$35K–50K 10% $35K–50K 18% $35K–50K 1% $35K–50K 8%
$25K–35K 8% $25K–35K 16% $25K–35K 1% $25K–35K 7%
<$25K 6% <$25K 12% <$25K 1% <$25K 8%

Diving deeper into global salary data for practitioners 23

Puppet | 2018 DevOps Salary Report

Comparison by organization revenue

As we noted in a previous section, managers earn more At the $150,000–$250,000 level, managers outnumber
at larger organizations — making the delta between practitioners 28 percent to 14 percent.
manager and practitioner salaries more pronounced.

Salaries by organization annual revenue: Managers Salaries by organization annual revenue: Practitioners
Revenue >$2B 13% Revenue >$2B 2%
5% 2%
3% 1%
$1B–$2B >$250K 1%
2% $1B–$2B >$250K 0%
1%
$500M–$1B 4% $500M–$1B 0%
3% 0%
$250M–$500M 28% $250M–$500M 14%
24% 9%
$100M–$250M $150K–250K 10%
13% $100M–$250M $150K–250K
5%
4%
$50M–$100M 10% $50M–$100M 4%
11% 5%
11% 5%
Revenue <$50M Revenue <$50M
14% 19%
14% 12%
15% 10%
$125K–150K 8%
17% $125K–150K 12%
12%
8% 8%
9% 7%
16% 20%
24% 16%
15% 17%
$100K–125K 15%
22% $100K–125K 11%
19%
12% 17%
17% 11%
14% 18%
15% 29%
32% 22%
$75K–100K 25%
32%
$75K–100K 24%
27%
22% 17%
13% 20%
10% 13%
10% 11%
16% 18%
$50K–75K 13%
21%
$50K–75K 17%
21%
19% 22%
15% 21%
2% 4%
5% 6%
4% 9%
$35K–50K 5%
10%
$35K–50K 11%
15%
11% 14%
11% 14%
1% 4%
2% 9%
1% 10%
$25K–35K 4%
3%
$25K–35K 4%
12%
11% 11%
8% 12%
0% 5%
1% 6%
1% 9%
<$25K 1%
1%
<$25K 3%
3%
3% 6%
11% 12%

Diving deeper into global salary data for practitioners 24

Puppet | 2018 DevOps Salary Report

Engineering department: Manager IT department: Manager

>$250K 5% >$250K 3%
$150K–250K 26% $150K–250K 10%
$125K–150K 13% $125K–150K 11%
$100K–125K 17% $100K–125K 19%
$75K–100K 19% $75K–100K 24%
Comparison by department $50K–75K 13% $50K–75K 17%
$35K–50K 4% $35K–50K 8%
It’s no secret that engineering and development pays better $25K–35K 3% $25K–35K 5%
than IT. More engineering professionals report salaries above <$25K 3% <$25K 3%

$100,000 and fewer report earning less than $50,000.

Reported salaries were especially high for managers in Engineering department: Practitioner IT department: Practitioner
engineering departments, 44 percent of whom report making >$250K 1% >$250K 0%
more than $125,000 per year. This spike is not as large for $150K–250K 10% $150K–250K 5%
practitioners. Only 24 percent are above that figure. $125K–150K 13% $125K–150K 10%
$100K–125K 17% $100K–125K 14%
$75K–100K 19% $75K–100K 23%
$50K–75K 18% $50K–75K 19%
$35K–50K 9% $35K–50K 11%
$25K–35K 7% $25K–35K 10%
<$25K 7% <$25K 7%

Diving deeper into global salary data for practitioners 25

Puppet | 2018 DevOps Salary Report

Does strong support

from senior leadership
for DevOps correlate
to higher salaries?
Though use of continuous delivery or presence of a
strong DevOps culture do not appear to broadly or
significantly impact income levels, leadership support
for DevOps clearly does. There’s plenty of evidence
demonstrating how DevOps creates benefit for
organizations. Those in a manager role make more when
senior leadership consistently supports DevOps initiatives.

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Puppet | 2018 DevOps Salary Report

Leadership supports DevOps - Yes Leadership supports DevOps - No

>$250K 3% >$250K 2%
$150K–250K 12% $150K–250K 9%
DevOps initiatives with strong $125K–150K 11% $125K–150K 11%

senior leadership support $100K–125K
$75K–100K
17%
20%
$100K–125K
$75K–100K
15%
23%
$50K–75K 16% $50K–75K 18%
In general, when strong leadership support for DevOps $35K–50K 9% $35K–50K 9%
exists, there are slightly fewer individuals — both $25K–35K 7% $25K–35K 7%

practitioner and manager — in the lower salary ranges <$25K 5% <$25K 6%

and more with incomes above $100,000. At organizations Managers: Managers:

with strong DevOps support, 43 percent of those surveyed Leadership supports DevOps - Yes Leadership supports DevOps - No
>$250K 5% >$250K 4%
reported incomes over $100,000 versus 37 percent where $150K–250K 16% $150K–250K 13%
initiatives are supported sometimes, rarely, or never. $125K–150K 12% $125K–150K 12%
$100K–125K 19% $100K–125K 14%
When we separate manager and practitioner salaries, we $75K–100K 21% $75K–100K 22%

can see that manager salaries appear to benefit more from $50K–75K 14% $50K–75K 17%
$35K–50K 7% $35K–50K 8%
DevOps support than practitioners. Fifty-one percent of $25K–35K 5% $25K–35K 5%
managers make over $100,000 when working with strong <$25K 3% <$25K 4%

senior leadership support compared to just 43 percent

Practitioners: Practitioners:
when that support is not consistently in place. For Leadership supports DevOps - Yes Leadership supports DevOps - No
practitioners, when DevOps is supported, 35 percent make >$250K 1% >$250K 1%
$150K–250K 8% $150K–250K 6%
more than $100,000 and when it’s not, 33 percent are $125K–150K 12% $125K–150K 10%
above that threshold. $100K–125K 14% $100K–125K 16%
$75K–100K 19% $75K–100K 24%
Note: Strong leadership support means the respondent said DevOps initiatives are
$50K–75K 18% $50K–75K 19%
supported by senior leadership always or most of the time. If they answered sometimes,
$35K–50K 12% $35K–50K 9%
rarely or never, we classified them as not having strong leadership support.
$25K–35K 9% $25K–35K 9%
<$25K 7% <$25K 8%

Does strong support from senior leadership for DevOps correlate to higher salaries? 27
Puppet | 2018 DevOps Salary Report

Summary of our findings

Based on our year-over-year survey data, salaries for
managers and practitioners are up across the board year-
over-year, with income levels in the U.S. higher than those
abroad. Salaries for managers continue to decline, but not
at the executive level or in organizations with strong senior
leadership support for DevOps. The gender pay gap appears
to be narrowing, though the relative dearth of women in either
role remains an issue.
Internationally, salaries are up across the board, especially at
the lower end of the range. Progress with the gender pay gap
is less pronounced, however, and it appears fewer women are
in upper management roles.
Thank you to everyone around the world who participated in
the State of DevOps survey this year! You provided valuable
information for the DevOps community.
If you have any feedback on this report, let us know at
devopssurvey@puppet.com

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