Chapter 5

How is Tech Talent quality vs. cost measured?

Scoring Tech Talent 2026

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Assessing the quality of a labor market is challenging because no standard metrics exist.

Since salaries are the largest expense for most companies seeking tech talent, the quality of that tech talent is becoming one of their most important considerations. Figure 32 plots a quality assessment for software developers against their average salary by market to illustrate this trade-off across the top 50 tech talent markets.

Software engineer quality was measured by the number and concentration of software engineers with three or more years of experience and who graduated from one of the top 25 computer science schools in the U.S. and top five in Canada, as determined by U.S. News & World Report. The highest-cost markets (San Francisco Bay Area and Seattle) also have the highest concentration of quality software engineers. Nevertheless, good, high and very high concentrations of quality software engineers are available in relatively low-cost markets, providing a range of options. Due in part to exchange rates, Vancouver and the Waterloo Region in Canada provide the best value when it comes to cost and quality, followed by Madison and Pittsburgh in the U.S. Toronto, Edmonton and Indianapolis also offer good value.

Figure 32: Tech Talent Quality vs. Cost Analysis by Market

Note: LinkedIn Talent Insights data is derived by aggregating profile data voluntarily submitted by LinkedIn members. As such, LinkedIn cannot guarantee its accuracy.
*Concentration of software engineers/developers with 3+ years of experience that have earned degrees from the top 25 computer information science programs in the U.S. and top 5 in Canada relative to total software engineers/developers, as rated by U.S. News & World Report.
**Data in US$.
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Statistics Canada, U.S. News & World Report, CBRE Labor Analytics, CBRE Research, 2026.

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Chapter 6 How does Tech Talent impact commercial real estate?
Chapter 4 What are the highest- and lowest-cost markets to operate in?