What a Good Cloud Engineer’s Salary Package Should be and Why

Cloud computing has been around for about two decades but it is only in the past few years that it has been realizing its massive potential. Cloud services offer a convenient means to move applications and work owing to their cost-effective, secure, flexible, and scalable nature. According to Gartner, by 2025, over 51 per cent of enterprise Information Technology (IT) spending in key market segments will shift to the cloud. This means organizations around the world are looking for cloud engineers who can help move applications and workloads to the cloud and keep them running. Thus, cloud engineering has become a highly sought-after job opportunity, which also reflects in their salary package. In this guide, we will take a closer look at cloud engineering and cloud engineer salary packages based on experience, skills, and location. 

What is Cloud Engineering?

Cloud engineers are IT professionals responsible for the tasks associated with cloud infrastructure. They handle the planning, building, maintaining, managing, troubleshooting, and client support for cloud technology. Cloud engineering is an umbrella term encompassing a variety of specific cloud computing roles which focus on development, architecture, administration, and engineering. These include: 

1. Cloud Developer: Employing coding for the cloud 
2. Cloud Architect: Designing cloud solutions
3. Cloud Administration: Maintaining cloud infrastructure services 
4. Cloud Security Engineer: Designing and implementing security control on cloud environments
5. Cloud Network Engineer: Moving functions and networks to private, public, and hybrid cloud infrastructures

As far as the typical cloud engineers are concerned, their roles and responsibilities include:

• Designing, developing, and managing available architectures
• Configuring cloud infrastructure
• Adopting cloud technologies
• Assisting cloud migration
• Creating applications and databases 
• Identifying issues and system improvement opportunities
• Monitoring cloud management and data storage
• Assessing and recommending new cloud technologies 

Are Cloud Engineers in Demand and Why?

Cloud engineering is an exciting and dynamic career opportunity with high growth potential. In the last few years, cloud computing has evolved immensely and has become essential means for organizations to flourish. According to a Gartner report, worldwide public cloud end-user spending is projected to grow 20.7 per cent, from $490.3 billion in 2022 to nearly $600 billion in 2023. This means the cloud engineering field is also expected to grow in the coming years as organizations continue to adopt cloud technology. 

Average Cloud Engineer Salary

A career in cloud engineering can open the doors to excellent earning opportunities. The average annual salary of a cloud engineer in the United States is $151,960. Here is what the average salary breakdown for cloud computing specialization looks like: 

Although cloud engineering is an exceptional job opportunity, there can be variations in the cloud engineer salary package depending on factors such as experience, knowledge, skills, and geographic location. 

Average Salary Range Based on Knowledge and Experience

Knowledge and experience are vital determinants of cloud engineer salary levels. With a decent amount of experience and knowledge, a cloud engineer can expect an impressive career trajectory. According to Glassdoor, an experienced cloud engineer in the U.S. at the highest seniority level can expect an annual salary range of $110,855 to $176,730. With enough credentials, you can progress to such coveted positions too. 

Build New Skills in Cloud Engineering

With companies spending highly on cloud technologies, mastering cloud engineering skills can help you get lucrative job opportunities. 

Ideal Skills for Cloud Engineers

• Development and operations skills (DevOps) framework 
• Programming languages such as Java, Python, SQL, .NET, Ruby, Golang, and PHP 
• Understanding of Linux 
• Good grasp of networking 
• Knowledge of containerization tools, including Docker or Kubernetes
• Knowledge of virtualization
• Web service and application programming interface (API)
• Cloud security and disaster recovery 
• Understanding of cloud service providers such as Amazon Web Services (AWS), Microsoft Azure, IBM, and Google Cloud Platform 
• Database and storage skills

Cloud Engineer Salary: By Location

Geographical location plays a vital role in determining earnings as it depends on the demand for work and the cost of living in the region. Here is how the annual cloud engineer salary compares globally:

Note: All salary figures are from Glassdoor

What is the Highest Salary for a Cloud Engineer in the U.S.?

According to Glassdoor, cloud engineering is one of the top 50 jobs in the U.S. at present with the highest salary of $161,070 per year. Additionally, tech giants like Google, Apple, Microsoft, and Amazon are among the top 10 highest paying companies for a cloud engineer, making it a highly lucrative career opportunity. 

ALSO READ: What is the Highest Paying Tech Job? Here are the Top 10 Roles 

With the market for cloud computing growing at a remarkable pace, the need for competent cloud engineers is also at an all time high. As a result, cloud engineering has evolved into a highly coveted and lucrative job opportunity, as reflected in the cloud engineer salary levels. If you are looking to gain a competitive edge in this field, sharpen your skills and update your knowledge by taking the online technology courses offered by Emeritus from the world’s best universities. 

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