Your CompTIA A+ Salary Guide

To start a career in Information Technology (IT), you’ll need a strong grasp of data and computer systems. The information systems you’ll be tasked with developing, implementing, managing, and maintaining will be integral to your future employers’ daily operations. When systems are down, after all, employee productivity comes to a standstill. 

Knowing the importance of such systems, most employers will only hire applicants with the right knowledge, skills, and expertise. But how do they know who that is? One way is to see if an applicant possesses CompTIA A+ certification, an industry-recognized qualification that indicates the certificate holder’s grasp of foundational IT topics like hardware, software, operating systems, networking, and security. Employers are willing to pay a higher-than-average salary for even entry-level roles in the field, to the right candidate. 

In this article, you’ll learn about the salary you can expect to earn for various IT jobs you could get with CompTIA A+ certification. Afterward, you’ll learn several ways to potentially increase your salary and explore some cost-effective, flexible courses you can take to prepare for the CompTIA A+ certification exam. 

CompTIA A+ certification salary 

CompTIA A+ certification indicates your ability to perform a variety of entry-level IT positions, such as business analyst, field service technician, and IT support specialist. As a result, while the certification may improve your earning potential (especially when combined with another qualification like a bachelor’s degree), it’s mostly seen as a stepping-stone to a career in the field. Nonetheless, you’ll likely find that even entry-level positions earn a healthy annual salary.   

At a glance, here are some of the entry-level job titles, along with their annual base pay, that you may qualify for with CompTIA A+ certification: 

• IT support specialist - $49,493

• Field service technician - $49,833

• Business analyst - $76,631

• Help service desk technician - $45,032

• Data support technician - $41,384

The exact amount you can expect to earn in these positions will vary depending on common factors like your experience and location. Below, you’ll explore how these factors could impact your earning potential. 

Note: All salary data collected from Glassdoor as of June 2023. 

Salary by experience 

One of the greatest factors impacting how much you can expect to earn is your experience level. Here’s what you can expect to earn for different entry-level IT positions based on your years of experience. 

Salary by location 

Another factor that has a big impact on your earning potential is where you work. Typically, you can expect areas with a higher cost of living to also pay more than those with a lower cost of living. Here’s the average base pay for the above five jobs in ten different US cities. 

How does IT stack up? 

IT jobs have a positive job outlook for the foreseeable future. According to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), the number of jobs for computer and information technology occupations is projected to grow by 15 percent between 2021 and 2031 [1].

This is much faster than average for all occupations in the country. Furthermore, the BLS notes that the median pay for jobs in the field was $97,430 as of May 2021, significantly higher than the $45,760 median for all jobs in the country during the same period. 

Generally, entry-level IT jobs meet or exceed the median pay for all jobs in the country, indicating you could expect to make much more as your career progresses. 

Read more: IT Salary Overview: How Much Can You Make?

Tips to improve your earning power 

CompTIA A+ certification can help you enter the IT field and may even help you earn more, but there are other ways to improve your salary potential, too. Here are some tips on how to increase your earning power:

1. Build your skills. 

More and more businesses are hiring employees based on the skills they have rather than the degrees they hold. According to research published in the Harvard Business Review (HBR), employers reduced degree requirements for 46 percent of middle-skill positions and 31 percent of high-skill positions between 2017 and 2019 [2]. The trend was particularly pronounced in IT positions during that period and continues today.

In effect, if you want to improve your earning power, it’s wise to continue developing your skills through training and educational programs, such as Google’s IT Support Professional Certificate, which may make you even more attractive to employers. 

2. Consider more certifications. 

Certifications have the potential to increase how much you earn. While CompTIA A+ certification might help you get your foot in the door, other qualifications like AWS certification or Google Cloud certification could help you advance your career by demonstrating your platform-specific knowledge. The more experienced and qualified you are, the more an employer will likely pay you for your time and energy. 

Read more: Are Certifications Worth It? When to Get Certified in Your IT Career

3. Consider a degree.

Some positions, particularly advanced positions, may require applicants to possess a college degree. As a result, you might consider gaining either a bachelor’s or master’s degree to improve your earning potential in the field. You can find accredited programs at community, city, state, and private colleges, as well as online through institutions like Illinois Tech. 

Read more: Should You Go Back to School? 7 Things to Consider

Learn more about IT on Coursera

As an IT professional, you’ll need to keep up with the latest advancements in the field. Prepare for the CompTIA A+ certification exam, or simply improve your IT skills by taking courses from industry leaders on Coursera. 

Through Google’s IT Support Professional Certificate, you’ll learn to perform day-to-day IT support tasks, including computer assembly, wireless networking, installing programs, and customer service.

In IBM’s IT Support Professional Certificate, meanwhile, you’ll build essential computer networking, cybersecurity, and cloud computing skills that IT Support and Helpdesk specialists need to be successful.