Austin-Round Rock MSA, Dallas Named Top Tech Towns In Country
A trade association’s new Tech Town Index ranks the Austin-Round Rock area as the country’s No. 1 city for tech jobs with Dallas coming in at No. 7 on the list.
Projections of 16 percent job growth in information technology (IT) over the next five years propelled the Austin-Round Rock Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) to the top spot on the index.
A 4 percent increase in jobs in the next 12 months combined with a cost of living 3.5 percent lower than the national average also boosted the city’s ranking. The median salary for IT professionals is $88,729.
More than 60 percent of the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex population is under working age, which the index rated highly for future tech talent. A higher rate of job creation and lower real estate costs also garnered attention.
IT job growth is expected to rise by 10 percent over the next five years, and tech workers earn a median salary of $93,058.
To determine the rankings, the association researched 20 metropolitan areas with populations over 250,000 and where demand for tech workers is the highest, based on job listings from August 2018 to July 2019.
These top 20 cities were then ranked on cost of living, number of open IT positions, and projected job growth in one year and five years.
Source: Strategic Partnership, Inc.
