San Diego Ranks Among Top 20 Markets in CBRE’s Annual ‘Scoring Tech Talent’ Report

San Diego ranks No. 19 overall in CBRE’s 2025 Scoring Tech Talent report, as tech talent hiring in North America slowed despite strong growth in artificial-intelligence specialty talent, according to a new report from CBRE.

Overall U.S. tech talent employment grew only 1.1% (64,140 jobs) in 2024, far below its peak in 2022 (+7%). Canada had stronger growth (+5.9%) than the U.S., adding 66,600 tech talent jobs overall, primarily in the high-tech industry. The number of computer and information systems managers surged in the U.S. (+9%) and Canada (+16%) due to the widespread adoption of AI, making that job the fastest growing among all tech talent roles across North America. In 2024, computer and information systems managers accounted for 83% of U.S. tech talent job growth.

San Diego’s emphasis on nurturing talent is evident in the high number of tech degree graduates, with 5,553 tech degrees completed in 2023, a clear indicator of its robust talent pipeline. San Diego's tech talent workforce is also strong, with 76,060 tech talent workers, 39.0% of whom are in the tech industry.

The San Diego tech talent is additionally diversified in other sectors, manufacturing and professional services account for 26% of tech talent employment and cover sectors such as defense, consulting and life sciences.

“San Diego’s rankings reflect the region’s growing strength in innovation, education, and workforce development. These factors continue to attract and retain top-tier professionals in emerging fields like AI and software engineering,” Zach DiSalvo, associate research director at CBRE.

CBRE’s annual Scoring Tech Talent report covers 75 North American markets, ranks the top 50 tech markets in the U.S. and Canada and outlines tech talent labor market trends amid economic shifts and increased remote hiring. Tech talent is a group of highly skilled workers in more than 20 tech-oriented occupations – such as software engineers and systems and data managers – across all industries.

UC San Diego is ranked among the top 15 universities for AI programs, which is a significant draw for companies seeking talent in this rapidly growing field. As of 2025, San Diego is home to 7,800 people employed in Artificial Intelligence.

San Diego stood out in the report in several other key areas:

• San Diego saw 10.6% growth in software developers and programmer careers in the past three years.
• The city has 50.9% concentration of software engineers working in the tech industry, which exceeds the U.S. average of 49.8%.
• San Diego has the fifth-highest average annual tech wage at $138,986 (2024), a 17.7% increase since 2021.
• The city has a competitive job market, 14,201 fewer tech jobs entered the city from 2022-2024 than tech degrees from 2021-2023.
• San Diego registered gains from 2018 to 2023 in its population of 20-somethings and 30-sometings with college degrees, an important constituency for tech employers. The city notched a 4.8% gain in 20-somethings with college degrees and a 23.8% gain in 30-somethings with degrees, fifth most among large U.S. markets.