Computer Programmers
Create, modify, and test the code and scripts that allow computer applications to run. Work from specifications drawn up by software and web developers or other individuals. May develop and write computer programs to store, locate, and retrieve specific documents, data, and information.
- O*NET-SOC code
15-1251.00 - Preparation Job Zone Four: Considerable Preparation Needed
Wages
Median annual wage, U.S.$100,390
Employment, U.S.92,230
Median hourly wage$48.26
| 10th | 25th | Median | 75th | 90th |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $57,710 | $75,850 | $100,390 | $130,680 | $160,460 |
By state (51)
| State | Employment | Median annual | Location quotient |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | 890 | $93,800 | 0.71 |
| Alaska | 530 | $91,700 | 2.75 |
| Arizona | 1,560 | $88,990 | 0.81 |
| Arkansas | 1,050 | $111,840 | 1.36 |
| California | 11,340 | $116,760 | 1.05 |
| Colorado | 930 | $104,610 | 0.54 |
| Connecticut | 1,650 | $133,820 | 1.64 |
| Delaware | 450 | Not available | 1.58 |
| District of Columbia | 230 | Not available | 0.54 |
| Florida | 4,760 | $93,180 | 0.81 |
| Georgia | 1,890 | $98,380 | 0.65 |
| Hawaii | 450 | $118,180 | 1.22 |
| Idaho | $89,020 | ||
| Illinois | 1,280 | $72,540 | 0.35 |
| Indiana | 1,520 | $97,000 | 0.80 |
| Iowa | 950 | $79,180 | 1.03 |
| Kansas | 460 | $92,960 | 0.54 |
| Kentucky | 950 | $94,850 | 0.80 |
| Louisiana | 1,580 | Not available | 1.38 |
| Maine | 450 | $101,780 | 1.20 |
| Maryland | 2,490 | $125,570 | 1.52 |
| Massachusetts | 1,930 | $128,390 | 0.89 |
| Michigan | 4,400 | $65,860 | 1.69 |
| Minnesota | 2,070 | $107,250 | 1.18 |
| Mississippi | 1,170 | $85,120 | 1.70 |
| Missouri | 1,520 | $90,420 | 0.87 |
| Montana | $89,920 | ||
| Nebraska | 1,090 | $95,150 | 1.79 |
| Nevada | 840 | $93,600 | 0.91 |
| New Hampshire | $74,000 | ||
| New Jersey | 3,930 | $104,940 | 1.55 |
| New Mexico | 600 | $83,750 | 1.16 |
| New York | 7,020 | $103,980 | 1.22 |
| North Carolina | 4,120 | $81,070 | 1.41 |
| North Dakota | 190 | $92,280 | 0.75 |
| Ohio | 2,100 | $85,270 | 0.64 |
| Oklahoma | 990 | $99,780 | 0.97 |
| Oregon | 1,370 | $99,540 | 1.17 |
| Pennsylvania | 3,120 | $89,180 | 0.87 |
| Rhode Island | 250 | $96,470 | 0.85 |
| South Carolina | 790 | $99,740 | 0.58 |
| South Dakota | 70 | $58,240 | 0.25 |
| Tennessee | 920 | Not available | 0.47 |
| Texas | 7,620 | $99,330 | 0.91 |
| Utah | 690 | $104,890 | 0.67 |
| Vermont | 170 | $89,560 | 0.94 |
| Virginia | 3,070 | $121,610 | 1.26 |
| Washington | 2,540 | $125,620 | 1.21 |
| West Virginia | 140 | $65,320 | 0.33 |
| Wisconsin | 3,080 | Not available | 1.77 |
| Wyoming | 60 | $81,640 | 0.34 |
Similar occupations
Similarity is our measure: the cosine of importance x level over all 120 O*NET skills, knowledge areas and abilities. It is not an O*NET finding. More.
Circles are the 20 most similar occupations, coloured by Job Zone. Lines join pairs where one is among the other's 10 most similar; darker lines are pairs O*NET also lists as related. Drag a circle to move it out of the way; select one to open it.
| # | Occupation | Job Zone | Similarity |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Web Developers | 3 | 0.967 |
| 2 | Software Quality Assurance Analysts and Testers | 4 | 0.966 |
| 3 | Database Architects | 4 | 0.962 |
| 4 | Database Administrators | 4 | 0.961 |
| 5 | Computer Systems Engineers/Architects | 3 | 0.961 |
| 6 | Computer and Information Research Scientists | 5 | 0.959 |
| 7 | Blockchain Engineers | 4 | 0.957 |
| 8 | Data Warehousing Specialists | 4 | 0.955 |
| 9 | Computer Systems Analysts | 4 | 0.952 |
| 10 | Computer and Information Systems Managers | 4 | 0.944 |
One skill away
Among the 50 occupations most similar to Computer Programmers, those at the same Job Zone or lower, where exactly one skill rated at least 3 in importance needs a level more than 0.75 points higher (on O*NET's 0-7 level scale). Our definition. Change the thresholds.
| Occupation | Skill to build | Level gap | Similarity |
|---|---|---|---|
| Video Game Designers | Negotiation | 0.88 | 0.932 |
| Remote Sensing Technicians | Mathematics | 0.76 | 0.930 |
| Logistics Analysts | Monitoring | 0.88 | 0.916 |
| Software Developers | Technology Design | 1.24 | 0.913 |
| Bioinformatics Technicians | Mathematics | 0.76 | 0.911 |
Software to learn next
Software used by at least 3 of the 20 occupations most similar to Computer Programmers, excluding software Computer Programmers already lists and any you named. Ranked by how many of them use it, weighted by how much more common it is among them than across all occupations (lift). Our ranking.
| Software | Similar jobs using it | Lift |
|---|---|---|
| Apple macOS | 12 of 20 | 9.7x |
| NortonLifeLock cybersecurity software | 10 of 20 | 12.5x |
| IBM Terraform | 7 of 20 | 32.3x |
| Firewall software | 8 of 20 | 18.5x |
| Kubernetes | 7 of 20 | 21.5x |
| Oracle Java 2 Platform Enterprise Edition J2EE | 6 of 20 | 30.8x |
| Storage area network SAN software | 6 of 20 | 30.8x |
| System testing software | 6 of 20 | 30.8x |
| RESTful API | 6 of 20 | 25.2x |
| Jenkins CI | 6 of 20 | 19.8x |
Skills
From O*NET data. Importance is rated 1 to 5 and level 0 to 7.
| Skill | Type | Importance | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| Programming | Transferable skill | 4.75 | 4.88 |
| Active Listening | Essential skill | 3.75 | 4.00 |
| Complex Problem Solving | Transferable skill | 3.75 | 3.88 |
| Critical Thinking | Essential skill | 3.75 | 3.88 |
| Quality Control Analysis | Transferable skill | 3.50 | 3.50 |
| Reading Comprehension | Essential skill | 3.38 | 3.50 |
| Systems Analysis | Transferable skill | 3.38 | 3.25 |
| Judgment and Decision Making | Transferable skill | 3.25 | 3.25 |
| Writing | Essential skill | 3.25 | 3.25 |
| Operations Analysis | Transferable skill | 3.12 | 3.75 |
| Systems Evaluation | Transferable skill | 3.12 | 3.62 |
| Speaking | Essential skill | 3.12 | 3.38 |
| Active Learning | Essential skill | 3.12 | 3.25 |
| Mathematics | Essential skill | 3.12 | 3.12 |
| Time Management | Transferable skill | 3.12 | 3.12 |
| Social Perceptiveness | Transferable skill | 3.12 | 3.00 |
| Monitoring | Essential skill | 3.00 | 3.12 |
| Coordination | Transferable skill | 3.00 | 2.88 |
| Science | Essential skill | 2.75 | 2.75 |
| Technology Design | Transferable skill | 2.75 | 2.38 |
| Management of Personnel Resources | Transferable skill | 2.62 | 2.75 |
| Persuasion | Transferable skill | 2.62 | 2.75 |
| Instructing | Transferable skill | 2.50 | 3.12 |
| Learning Strategies | Essential skill | 2.38 | 2.62 |
| Service Orientation | Transferable skill | 2.25 | 2.88 |
| Operations Monitoring | Transferable skill | 2.25 | 2.12 |
| Troubleshooting | Transferable skill | 2.25 | 1.62 |
| Negotiation | Transferable skill | 2.12 | 2.12 |
| Management of Financial Resources | Transferable skill | 2.00 | 1.50 |
| Management of Material Resources | Transferable skill | 2.00 | 1.25 |
| Installation | Transferable skill | 1.25 | not rated |
| Operation and Control | Transferable skill | 1.12 | not rated |
| Equipment Maintenance | Transferable skill | 1.00 | not rated |
| Equipment Selection | Transferable skill | 1.00 | not rated |
| Repairing | Transferable skill | 1.00 | not rated |
Knowledge (33) and abilities (52)
| Name | Importance | Level |
|---|---|---|
| Computers and Electronics | 4.87 | 6.16 |
| Mathematics | 3.53 | 4.54 |
| Engineering and Technology | 3.47 | 4.15 |
| English Language | 3.41 | 3.78 |
| Customer and Personal Service | 3.30 | 3.08 |
| Administration and Management | 3.26 | 2.63 |
| Design | 2.88 | 3.29 |
| Education and Training | 2.79 | 2.93 |
| Geography | 2.75 | 3.74 |
| Administrative | 2.74 | 3.22 |
| Production and Processing | 2.55 | 2.56 |
| Economics and Accounting | 2.47 | 2.13 |
| Communications and Media | 2.43 | 2.57 |
| Telecommunications | 2.40 | 2.07 |
| Physics | 2.11 | 2.07 |
| Sales and Marketing | 2.07 | not rated |
| Psychology | 2.04 | 1.76 |
| Personnel and Human Resources | 2.00 | 2.12 |
| Sociology and Anthropology | 2.00 | 1.84 |
| Transportation | 1.69 | not rated |
| Foreign Language | 1.64 | 1.20 |
| Fine Arts | 1.55 | not rated |
| Mechanical | 1.53 | 0.93 |
| Medicine and Dentistry | 1.46 | not rated |
| Public Safety and Security | 1.45 | not rated |
| Law and Government | 1.39 | not rated |
| Chemistry | 1.15 | not rated |
| Therapy and Counseling | 1.09 | not rated |
| History and Archeology | 1.06 | not rated |
| Philosophy and Theology | 1.05 | not rated |
| Biology | 1.00 | not rated |
| Building and Construction | 1.00 | not rated |
| Food Production | 1.00 | not rated |
| Name | Importance | Level |
|---|---|---|
| Written Comprehension | 4.00 | 4.00 |
| Oral Comprehension | 3.88 | 4.00 |
| Near Vision | 3.88 | 3.88 |
| Information Ordering | 3.75 | 4.00 |
| Deductive Reasoning | 3.75 | 3.88 |
| Inductive Reasoning | 3.75 | 3.88 |
| Problem Sensitivity | 3.75 | 3.75 |
| Oral Expression | 3.50 | 3.75 |
| Written Expression | 3.25 | 3.75 |
| Speech Recognition | 3.25 | 3.00 |
| Mathematical Reasoning | 3.12 | 3.12 |
| Number Facility | 3.12 | 3.12 |
| Selective Attention | 3.12 | 3.12 |
| Speech Clarity | 3.12 | 3.12 |
| Fluency of Ideas | 3.00 | 3.38 |
| Originality | 3.00 | 3.25 |
| Flexibility of Closure | 3.00 | 3.12 |
| Category Flexibility | 2.88 | 3.12 |
| Perceptual Speed | 2.88 | 2.88 |
| Visualization | 2.88 | 2.75 |
| Far Vision | 2.50 | 2.25 |
| Memorization | 2.25 | 2.12 |
| Time Sharing | 2.25 | 2.12 |
| Finger Dexterity | 2.25 | 1.88 |
| Speed of Closure | 2.00 | 2.12 |
| Visual Color Discrimination | 2.00 | 2.00 |
| Auditory Attention | 2.00 | 1.50 |
| Arm-Hand Steadiness | 2.00 | 1.12 |
| Manual Dexterity | 2.00 | 1.00 |
| Control Precision | 1.88 | 1.12 |
| Hearing Sensitivity | 1.75 | 1.12 |
| Trunk Strength | 1.62 | 0.75 |
| Depth Perception | 1.50 | 0.88 |
| Wrist-Finger Speed | 1.38 | 0.62 |
| Dynamic Strength | 1.25 | not rated |
| Dynamic Flexibility | 1.00 | not rated |
| Explosive Strength | 1.00 | not rated |
| Extent Flexibility | 1.00 | not rated |
| Glare Sensitivity | 1.00 | not rated |
| Gross Body Coordination | 1.00 | not rated |
| Gross Body Equilibrium | 1.00 | not rated |
| Multilimb Coordination | 1.00 | not rated |
| Night Vision | 1.00 | not rated |
| Peripheral Vision | 1.00 | not rated |
| Rate Control | 1.00 | not rated |
| Reaction Time | 1.00 | not rated |
| Response Orientation | 1.00 | not rated |
| Sound Localization | 1.00 | not rated |
| Spatial Orientation | 1.00 | not rated |
| Speed of Limb Movement | 1.00 | not rated |
| Stamina | 1.00 | not rated |
| Static Strength | 1.00 | not rated |
Software used
Examples from O*NET data. "Hot" and "in demand" are O*NET flags for technologies often listed in job postings.
- C# in demand
- C++ in demand
- Cascading style sheets CSS in demand
- Extensible markup language XML in demand
- Git in demand
- Hypertext markup language HTML in demand
- JavaScript in demand
- Linux in demand
- Microsoft Azure software in demand
- Microsoft Excel in demand
- Microsoft Office software in demand
- Microsoft PowerPoint in demand
- Microsoft SQL Server in demand
- Microsoft Visual Studio in demand
- Oracle Java in demand
- Python in demand
- R in demand
- SAS in demand
- Structured query language SQL in demand
- AJAX hot
- Adobe Acrobat hot
- Adobe Illustrator hot
- Adobe Photoshop hot
- Amazon DynamoDB hot
- Amazon Elastic Compute Cloud EC2 hot
- Amazon Redshift hot
- Amazon Web Services AWS CloudFormation hot
- Amazon Web Services AWS software hot
- Ansible software hot
- Apache Cassandra hot
All 293
- Apache Hadoop hot
- Apache Hive hot
- Apache Kafka hot
- Apache Maven hot
- Apache Spark hot
- Apache Subversion SVN hot
- Apache Tomcat hot
- Atlassian Confluence hot
- Atlassian JIRA hot
- Bash hot
- Bentley MicroStation hot
- C hot
- Chef hot
- Django hot
- Docker hot
- ESRI ArcGIS software hot
- Eclipse IDE hot
- Elasticsearch hot
- Epic Systems hot
- GitHub hot
- Go hot
- Google Analytics hot
- Google Angular hot
- Hibernate ORM hot
- IBM DB2 hot
- IBM SPSS Statistics hot
- JUnit hot
- JavaScript Object Notation JSON hot
- Microsoft .NET Framework hot
- Microsoft ASP.NET hot
- Microsoft Access hot
- Microsoft Active Server Pages ASP hot
- Microsoft PowerShell hot
- Microsoft Project hot
- Microsoft SQL Server Integration Services SSIS hot
- Microsoft SQL Server Reporting Services SSRS hot
- Microsoft SharePoint hot
- Microsoft Visio hot
- Microsoft Visual Basic hot
- Microsoft Visual Basic for Applications VBA hot
- Microsoft Windows hot
- Microsoft Windows Server hot
- Microsoft Word hot
- MongoDB hot
- MySQL hot
- NoSQL hot
- Node.js hot
- Oracle Database hot
- Oracle PL/SQL hot
- Oracle PeopleSoft hot
- PHP hot
- Perl hot
- PostgreSQL hot
- Puppet hot
- React hot
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux hot
- Red Hat OpenShift hot
- Ruby hot
- SAP software hot
- Scala hot
- Selenium hot
- Shell script hot
- Splunk Enterprise hot
- Spring Boot hot
- Spring Framework hot
- Swift hot
- Tableau hot
- Teradata Database hot
- The MathWorks MATLAB hot
- Transact-SQL hot
- UNIX hot
- UNIX Shell hot
- jQuery hot
- A programming language APL
- ABC Compiler
- ABC: the AspectBench Compiler for AspectJ
- AWK
- Ada
- Adobe ActionScript
- Adobe ColdFusion
- Adobe Dreamweaver
- Adobe Flex
- Adobe PostScript
- Advanced business application programming ABAP
- Algorithmic language ALGOL
- Amazon Kinesis
- Amazon Simple Storage Service S3
- American National Standards Institute ANSI C
- Apache Ant
- Apache Groovy
- Apache HTTP Server
- Apache Pig
- Apache Solr
- Apache Struts
- Atlassian Bamboo
- B-Method
- Backbone.js
- Basis BBx VisualPRO/5
- Beginner's all-purpose symbolic instruction code BASIC
- Bigloo Scheme
- Bourne Shell
- CAST SQL Builder
- Call-processing language CPL
- Canu
- Citrix cloud computing software
- Clipper
- Code generator software
- Code munger software
- CoffeeCup The HTML Editor
- Collaborative Application Markup Language CAML
- Command interpreters
- Common Lisp Object System CLOS
- Common business oriented language COBOL
- Compilers
- Computer Associates integrated data management system CA-IDMS
- Computer On-line Real-time Applications Language CORAL 66
- Computer aided design and drafting CADD software
- Corel CorelDraw Graphics Suite
- Customer information control system CICS
- Dassault Systemes CATIA
- Data definition language DDL
- Data manipulation language DML
- Debugging software
- Decompilers
- Delphi Technology
- Drupal
- Dynamic hypertext markup language DHTML
- E++ pattern language
- Eiffel
- Embarcadero Delphi
- Emerald Software Group Emerald Green Office
- Enterprise JavaBeans
- Event-driven State-machines Programming
- Ext JS
- Extensible hypertext markup language XHTML
- Extensible stylesheet language XSL
- FileMaker Pro
- Formula translation/translator FORTRAN
- Forth
- Gambit Scheme
- Geographic information system GIS software
- Graphical user interface GUI design software
- Greatis Object Inspector
- Haskell
- Hewlett Packard HP-UX
- Hewlett Packard LoadRunner
- Human resource management software HRMS
- IBM Cognos Impromptu
- IBM Domino
- IBM InfoSphere DataStage
- IBM Notes
- IBM Power Systems software
- IBM Rational ClearCase
- IBM WebSphere
- ICON programming language
- IEA Software Emerald
- Incremental compiler software
- Inline code expander software
- Integrated development environment IDE software
- Interface definition language IDL
- Interpreter software
- Interstate connection ICON
- J
- Job control language JCL
- Jupyter Notebook
- Just-in-time compiler
- KornShell
- LAMP Stack
- List processing language LISP
- Logo design software
- Low-level debugger software
- MUMPS M
- McAfee
- MicroStrategy
- Microsoft ASP.NET Core MVC
- Microsoft ActiveX
- Microsoft Dynamics
- Microsoft Dynamics GP
- Microsoft ESP SDK
- Microsoft Exchange
- Microsoft Extensible Application Markup Language (XAML)
- Microsoft FrontPage
- Microsoft Publisher
- Microsoft Silverlight
- Microsoft Systems Management Server
- Microsoft Visual Basic Scripting Edition VBScript
- Microsoft Visual Basic.NET
- Microsoft Visual C# .NET
- Microsoft Visual FoxPro
- Minitab
- Mixed code generator
- Modula
- Nagios
- National Instruments LabVIEW
- NetSuite ERP
- Network intrusion prevention systems NIPS
- Oberon
- Objective C
- Objective Caml
- One pass compiler software
- OpenAI ChatGPT
- Oracle Business Intelligence Enterprise Edition
- Oracle E-Business Suite Financials
- Oracle Fusion Applications
- Oracle Fusion Middleware
- Oracle Hyperion
- Oracle JD Edwards EnterpriseOne
- Oracle JDBC
- Oracle JavaServer Pages JSP
- Oracle PeopleSoft Financials
- Oracle Solaris
- Oracle WebLogic Server
- Partial class generator software
- Pascal
- Perforce Helix software
- PowerSoft PowerBuilder
- Programming language one PL/I
- Progress OpenEdge ABL
- Progress Sonic ESB
- Progress WebSpeed Workshop
- Prolog
- Qlik Tech QlikView
- Quest Erwin Data Modeler
- ReCrystallize Crystal Reports
- Red Hat WildFly
- Relational database management software
- Restructured extended executor REXX
- Retargetable compiler
- Revision control software
- Ruby on Rails
- SAP Adaptive Server Enterprise
- SAP Business Objects
- SAP BusinessObjects Data Integrator
- SAP Crystal Reports
- SAP NetWeaver BW
- Salesforce Visualforce
- Scheme
- Simulation program with integrated circuit emphasis SPICE
- Smalltalk
- Snort
- Source code editor software
- Source code migration software
- StataCorp Stata
- String oriented symbolic language SNOBOL
- Structured Query Report SQR
- Supervisory control and data acquisition SCADA software
- Symantec Visual Cafe
- Symbolic debugger software
- Tax software
- Threaded code compiler
- Tier generator software
- Ubuntu
- Unified modeling language UML
- VMware
- Verilog
- Veritas NetBackup
- Virage VS Archive
- Virtual private networking VPN software
- Web service definition language WDSL
- Wireshark
- Workflow software
- Xerces2 Java Parser
- dBASE Plus
Where it concentrates
Metro areas ranked by BLS location quotient: the occupation's share of the area's jobs divided by its share of all US jobs. Above 1 means more concentrated than the nation. Metros employing fewer than 100 are left out.
| Metro area | Employment | Location quotient | Median annual |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bloomington, IN | 360 | 8.23 | $85,580 |
| Tallahassee, FL | 640 | 5.78 | $72,680 |
| Albany-Schenectady-Troy, NY | 1,430 | 5.38 | $84,140 |
| Raleigh-Cary, NC | 1,770 | 4.01 | Not available |
| Montgomery, AL | 390 | 3.98 | $97,710 |
| Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford, CT | 1,150 | 3.23 | $141,920 |
| Anchorage, AK | 320 | 3.07 | $91,130 |
| Fayetteville-Springdale-Rogers, AR | 490 | 2.99 | $136,880 |
| Lexington Park, MD | 110 | 2.63 | $112,990 |
| Lincoln, NE | 260 | 2.44 | $92,510 |