How Much Do IT Professionals Earn in Germany?

IT Sector in Germany and the Need for Qualified Personnel

I guess there is no one left who has not heard that Germany needs a lot of IT professionals recently. Especially after the pandemic, we can say that the change in the shape of trade, the growth in online platforms, technology sitting at the heart of production, digitalization and new technological breakthroughs have exponentially increased the need for qualified personnel in the IT sector not only in Germany but all over the world. 

Germany has long had problems in training qualified personnel in this field. The issue of opening new programs has been on the agenda for a long time, as they cannot employ enough faculty members in schools and are strictly adhering to educational standards. Even though the real sector is loudly voicing these problems and the federal government is trying to encourage schools to open new programs, there are not enough teaching staff. 

On top of this, the rigorous pace of study and the academic pressure on students under German educational standards seem to have forced students to seek easier study options and to flee from technical programs to social programs.

I have already published some of my current comments on this subject and the most popular Informatics programs in Germany in my article “The Best Universities to Study Informatics in Germany 2023“. Those who are interested can also read it.

In the wake of the recent exodus of many IT professionals from abroad to Germany, the needs of the sector have significantly decreased. Nevertheless, there are still around 200,000 vacancies, some of which have been open for more than 800 days. In addition to the current law, I think it is not fortune-telling to say that many more IT professionals from all over the world will migrate to Germany after the “Law on Facilitation of Skilled Labor Migration”, which is planned to be approved and put into effect around March 2024.

What are the Salaries in the IT Sector?

You might think that the salaries are too high because I mentioned that there is so much need. Yes, IT staff is one of the best-paid jobs in Germany, but you should be aware of the fact that in the German labor market there is no gap in salaries between professions and positions. Of course, some professions earn more than others. Doctors, for example, have the highest average earnings, but this is only a few hundred euros more per month.

In the IT sector, as in any other sector, salaries will increase by a few hundred Euros depending on the position of new graduate, specialist, senior specialist and manager. In addition, your marital status, whether you have children or not and which tax calculation method you choose are also factors that affect your Net salary.

Other factors that will affect your salary are your education as an IT professional (bachelor’s or master’s degree), the sector in which you work, the size of the organization you work for and the city or state in which you live. Salaries can differ by a few thousand euros per year. Factors such as high sectoral needs, limited opportunities in the city, personnel who do not want to live in provincial cities, etc. lead to higher salaries in some cities than in others.

In Germany, as in much of the world, the topic of salaries is taboo and not talked about much. For this reason, studies on this subject give approximate values. Stepstone’s 2022 survey, which I have used before, is useful in giving an idea of the starting salaries of new graduates. The Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung’s salary survey also gives us an idea of the salaries of specialists and senior specialists.

Who Gets How Much Salary?

As I mentioned above, net salary amounts vary according to the situation of the person. For this reason, the salary information I will provide here are gross annual salaries. For a single employee, you can expect that the net salary will be roughly 60% of the gross salary, and for married people with children, this ratio can go up to 70%. Net salary calculation can be quite complicated, so these are acceptable ratios to give you an idea.

The IT sector is an area of expertise that needs to be evaluated on a very wide scale due to different vertical specializations such as software, systems, network and security, as well as horizontal specializations in products or specific programming languages and technologies. Although starting, specialist and senior specialist salaries vary according to specialization, as I tried to point out above, there are no such gaps between earnings. Therefore, it would not be wrong to consider the salary scales I have given as plus-minus 10%. By the way, it is unfortunately a fact that women in Germany earn about 5% less than men doing the same job.

New Graduate Starting Salaries

Let me start with this, as it is the most curious thing for many students who want to study informatics in Germany. If you are a newly graduated informatics student, you will be offered roughly 48,000 Euros depending on the company, city and your educational background. If you are a master’s graduate, this offer will be around 54.000 Euros. If the company you are applying for is in Bavaria, the offer will be slightly higher, in Hesse it will be slightly lower. Or you can expect 5% more if the company you are applying for is an automotive giant with tens of thousands of employees and 10% more if it is a global software company. If you are applying to a startup, you might have to settle for 5% less.

As I wrote above, salaries may be higher in some cities. For example, if you are applying for a position in Ulm or Munich or Darmstadt, you are likely to be offered 5,000 Euros more than in Frankfurt. The salary scales I have given here are just to give you an idea. Please look at it that way.

How Much Do Experienced IT Professionals Earn?

After mentioning new graduates, let me also mention the salaries of experienced staff. Of course, the salary will be indexed to the performance of the staff. However, a staff member in a specialist position can be expected to have an annual income of around 62.000 Euros. It is normal to expect to receive an income of up to 75.000 Euros from senior specialist to manager position.

Salaries for Different Positions

Below I have shared the average salaries compiled from different sources in a table according to positions. Some of the terms may be unfamiliar for those unfamiliar with the sector, but you can access job descriptions with a short google search.

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