Blue team salaries in 2026
What employers pay defenders, from the pay published in job postings on BlueTeamJobs over the last year. Yearly US dollars, from 327 postings.
| Role | Median | Middle half | Jobs | Range |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SOC Analyst | $105,000 | $78,000 – $140,000 | 41 | |
| Incident Responder | $142,000 | $124,000 – $170,000 | 11 | |
| Digital Forensics (DFIR) | $140,000 | $113,000 – $182,000 | 11 | |
| Threat Hunter | $164,000 | $159,000 – $171,000 | 4 | |
| Threat Intelligence (CTI) Analyst | $161,000 | $142,000 – $183,000 | 15 | |
| Detection Engineer | $197,000 | $157,000 – $223,000 | 11 | |
| Security Engineer | $175,000 | $145,000 – $210,000 | 119 | |
| Cloud Security Engineer | $171,000 | $154,000 – $201,000 | 10 | |
| Vulnerability Management | $151,000 | $133,000 – $170,000 | 10 | |
| Governance, Risk and Compliance (GRC) | $164,000 | $135,000 – $208,000 | 68 | |
| Identity and Access Management (IAM) | $168,000 | $149,000 – $205,000 | 13 | |
| Security Operations Leadership | $248,000 | $174,000 – $325,000 | 14 |
| Seniority | Median | Middle half | Jobs | Range |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Entry level | $73,000 | $47,000 – $93,000 | 14 | |
| Mid level | $145,000 | $125,000 – $174,000 | 143 | |
| Senior | $172,000 | $148,000 – $204,000 | 117 | |
| Lead / manager | $206,000 | $170,000 – $276,000 | 53 |
Salary pages by role
- SOC Analyst salary
- Incident Responder salary
- Digital Forensics (DFIR) salary
- Threat Hunter salary
- Threat Intelligence (CTI) Analyst salary
- Detection Engineer salary
- Security Engineer salary
- Cloud Security Engineer salary
- Vulnerability Management salary
- Governance, Risk and Compliance (GRC) salary
- Identity and Access Management (IAM) salary
- Security Operations Leadership salary
Each posting counts once, at the midpoint of its published range; hourly and monthly pay is converted to a full-time year. Pay outside $25,000–$1,000,000 a year is left out, and rows need at least three postings.
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