1,425,900 software developers are currently employed in the US.
The Bureau of Labor estimated that from 2021-2031 the number of active software developers in the US would increase by 26% and reach a total of 1,796,500.
According to Data USA, there are 1.16 million male and 256K female software developers. The average age of software developers is 39.2 years. More than 50% of all software developers in the United States are White ethnicity, 33.6% of software developers are Asian, and 4.06% are Black ethnicity. The average software developer salary for men is $123,179, and the average software developer salary for women is $101,896.
Number of Software Developers in the US by State
Of all the states in the US, California has the highest number of active software developers- 228,240.
(Source: Bls.gov)
As we can see from the US Bureau of Labor survey, last updated in March 2022, California boasts the highest number of software developers. Texas is in second place with less than half the number shown for California, with 103,510 active software developers, and Washington comes in third place, close to Texas.
| State | Employment | Employment Per Thousand Jobs |
| California | 228,240 | 13.81 |
| Texas | 103,510 | 8.47 |
| Washington | 81,520 | 25.43 |
| New York | 75,790 | 8.74 |
| Virginia | 68,250 | 18.18 |
How Many Software Developers Are There in the World?
There were almost 24 million software developers in the world in 2019.
(Source: Evans Data Corporation)
According to the de facto authority on worldwide software developer populations, the last updated software developer population of 23.9 million in May 2019 was estimated to reach 28.7 million in 2024. The Asia Pacific and Latin America regions will experience the strongest growth within the next few years, and both regions will grow faster than North America, Europe, the Middle East, and Africa. India is expected to have the largest number of software developers in 2024, Brazil will be in fifth place, and the UK in seventh place. Additionally, Thailand and Poland are predicted to advance.
The global developer population is projected to rise to 28.7 million by 2024.
(Source: Statista)
It is estimated that most of this growth will take place in China, where figures show the development rate rests at six to eight percent and shows no signs of slowing down any time soon, hitting 2023 hard.
| Year | Number of Software Developers Worldwide, millions |
| 2018 | 23 |
| 2019 | 23.9 |
| 2020 | 24.5 |
| 2023 | 27.7 |
| 2024 | 28.7 |
According to a SlashData report, there will be 45 million software developers worldwide by 2030.
(Source: SlashData)
In the next decade, if we consider population growth rates, internet penetration, and the percentage of ‘developers per capita,’ the developer population is estimated to grow more than twice the current number, amounting to approximately 45 million in 2030. However, this will imply an 8.2% yearly growth rate which is considerably smaller than the one observed in the research period.
The Developer Nation report for the first quarter of 2022 estimated that there were 31.1 million active software developers globally.
(Source: Developer Nation)
The Developer Nation Pulse report is based on the Slash Data global online developer survey from December 2021 to February 2022.
Number of Software Developers by Country
There were 5.5 million software developers in Europe in 2018, up from 4.7 million in 2016.
(Source: Aster. cloud)
Germany, the United Kingdom, and France are the top three countries with the most significant numbers of software developers. In the table below are some European countries and the number of software developers for each.
| Country | Number of Software Developers |
| Germany | 901K |
| United Kingdom | 849K |
| France | 533K |
| Russia | 412K |
| Spain | 323k |
| Netherlands | 320K |
| Italy | 314K |
| Poland | 295K |
| Ukraine | 200K |
| Sweden | 179K |
Asia has an impressive number of 6.54 million software developers.
(Source: Qubit-labs)
India is the leading country in Asia by the number of software developers (5.8 million). Asian countries have many technical talents with strong educational systems.
| Country | Number of Software Developers |
| India | 5,800,000 |
| Vietnam | 350,000 |
| Singapore | 200,000 |
| Philippines | 190,000 |
The dominant country in Latin America is Brazil, with more than 470,000 software developers.
(Source: The scalers)
Among the countries in Latin America, Brazil is considered a leader in offshoring software development. With an influx of around. Argentina has approximately 134,000 software developers and is known as a vast talent pool for offshoring.
Software Developer Unemployment Rate
The Unemployment rate for software developers in 2022 in the US is 2.3%.
(Source: Alcor-bpo, Bls.gov)
Compared to other professional occupations number statistics presented in the United States Bureau of Labour, the unemployment rate for software developers is relatively low. Companies are scrambling to fill their open positions with the increasing demand for IT jobs. However, market tensions, along with the upcoming global recession, will only make it worse.
The Unemployment Rate for Software Developers Per Year
(Source: Zippia)
| Year | Unemployment Rate |
| 2010 | 4.56% |
| 2011 | 3.25% |
| 2012 | 2.64% |
| 2013 | 2.67% |
| 2014 | 2.07% |
| 2015 | 2.26% |
| 2016 | 2.33% |
| 2017 | 2.17% |
| 2018 | 1.80% |
| 2019 | 1.88% |
According to BLS, the employment of software developers is predicted to grow by 26% from 2021-2031.
(Source: Bls.gov)
This employment rate growth is much faster on average than the employment rate for other occupations. The rise in employment offerings for software developers can be explained because several key factors are in play, such as the constant need for updating, the demand for software innovations, technological growth, and the complexity of projects.
Most Popular Languages Among Software Developers
In the first quarter of 2022, the number of Java Script software developers reached 17.4 million.
(Source: SlashData)
Java Script is holding the leading position for 2022. Python and Java follow in second and third place, respectively.
| Programming Language | Active Software Developers, millions (Q4 2018) | Active Software Developers, millions (Q1 2022) |
| Java Script | 11.7 | 17.4 |
| Python | 8.2 | 15.7 |
| Java | 7.6 | 14.0 |
| C# | 6.7 | 10.0 |
| C/C++ | 6.3 | 11.0 |
| PHP | 5.9 | 7.9 |
| Visual tools | 3.1 | 5.0 |
| Swift | 2.1 | 3.5 |
| Rubi | 1.8 | 2.1 |
65.36% of software developers used JavaScript as a programming language, which makes it the most used programming language compared to others.
(Source: Statista)
HTML/CSS is holding up the second place with 55.08% global usage, and SQL and Python are sharing the third place with 49.43% and 48.07%, respectively.
According to the latest research by SlashData, at the beginning of 2022, there were 14.0 million active Java software developers globally.
(Source: SlashData, In apps)
In 2003 the number of Java developers was from 1.5 – 3 million. In 2021 the number rose again to more than 9 million Java active software developers. As we can see, the numbers vary a lot.
In the first three months of 2022, there were 17.4 million active Java Script software developers.
(Source: SlashData, In apps)
Java Script is the most frequently used programming language, and the numbers steadily rise yearly. In 2021 there were 13.8 million active Java Script software developers.
In Q1 of 2022, there were 7.9 million PHP active software developers in the World.
(Source: SlashData, In apps)
In 2013 there were 5 million PHP developers, and after five years, in 2018, the number rose to 5.5 million. In 2022, that number is 7.9 million and a 2,4 million rise for four years.
There are 11.0 million C/C++ active software developers worldwide in Q1 of 2022.
(Source: SlashData, In apps)
C/C++ developers are holding a fourth place among all software developers worldwide in 2022. In 2015 there were just 4.4 million. So in seven years, the numbers climbed to 11 million. That is a considerable rate of growth for C/C++ developers.
Python active software developers are holding second place with 15.7 million users globally.
(Source: SlashData)
In 2018 the number of active Python software developers was 8.2 million. We can see that Python is currently slowly catching up with Java Script.
Software Developer Demographics
In the US, 79.3% of software developers are men, and 20.7% are women.
(Source: Zippia)
We can see that the majority of software developers are men. Women should be more encouraged to take up this profession. Male software developers averagely earn more than women. Women earn 94% of what men do for the same job. There is a gender gap that needs to be addressed, and the salary should be equal for the same job position.
According to Statista research of male and female software developers in 2022 worldwide, an astonishing 91.88% are men, and 5.17% are women.
(Source: Statista)
From the research, we can see that men are dominating the software developers industry. 1.67% of the respondents were genderqueer, non-binary, and non-conforming, and 1.65% did not want to respond.
56.3% of software developers in the US are of white ethnicity.
(Source: Zippia)
More than half of the software developers in the US are of white ethnicity. In 2010, the number of white software developers was 60.55%. The percentage of white software developers has decreased over time.
| Race | Percentages |
| White | 56.3% |
| Asian | 28.9% |
| Latino/Hispanic | 7.0% |
| African-American/Black | 5.0% |
| Unknown | 2.8% |
| Alaska Native and Indian American | 0.0% |
According to Zippia research, most software developers in the US are 40+ years old.
(Source: Zippia)
The second largest group is individuals 30-40 years old, which consists of 36% of all software developers in the US. And only 18% of all software developers in the US are from 20-30 years.
| Age | Percentages |
| From 20-30 years | 18% |
| From 30-40 years | 36% |
| From 40 and beyond years | 46% |
The average age of a software developer is 39.5 years old.
(Source: Zippia)
According to a recent study done by Zippia, it was estimated that the average software developer is almost 40 years.
According to BLS, the average annual salary for software developers in the US in 2021 was $ 120,990.
(Source: Bls.gov)
The average hourly pay is $58.17 for software developers. In 2021 the median annual salary for software developers was $120,730. The bottom 10% made less than $64,470; the top 10% made more than $168,570.
Of most software developers in the US, 72% have a formal college education with a Bachelor’s degree.
(Source: Zippia)
Most software developers in the US have gained their knowledge through classical education. 20% of them continued their studies for Master’s. Only a small percentage of software developers learned their skills through boot camps or self-education.
| Level of Education of Software Developers | Percentages |
| Bachelors | 72% |
| Masters | 20% |
| Associate | 5% |
| Diploma | 2% |
| Other degrees | 1% |
Conclusion
The software development industry is rising and has a bright and promising future. According to recent statistics, the demand for software developers will be even higher. There will always be a need for improvement and updating business operations, so software developers can always expect to find the next job. The speed with which this industry is developing is almost unbelievable. To stay current with the trends, enterprises and organizations must follow the latest information about software development. After all, making a career of it will pay in the end due to the rising average salary for software developers.
