Tech employment gains momentum in October, CompTIA analysis finds

Tech industry adds 7,200 jobs and IT occupations gain 26,000 as job postings and AI skills demand rise

DOWNERS GROVE, Ill., Nov. 6, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Technology employment and employer demand for tech talent strengthened in October, with gains in industry and occupation employment and continued growth in job postings, according to analysis by CompTIA.

Tech industry employment increased by approximately 7,200 jobs in October, with gains in manufacturing, information services, search and platforms, and IT and custom software services, according to CompTIA's analysis of U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data.¹

Information technology (IT) occupations throughout the economy increased by approximately 26,000 jobs, while the unemployment rate for IT workers declined to 2.8%, compared with the national unemployment rate of 4.1%.² More than 7 million people work in tech occupations.

Employers added 290,892 new job postings for IT occupations in October, up 4.5% from September and 22.2% from October 2025. Active job postings totaled 629,876, up 18.5% year over year. From January through October, employers generated approximately 2.66 million new IT occupation job postings, 16.6% more than during the corresponding period in 2025.

"The strength in tech hiring and job postings is encouraging, but the bigger story is where the demand is occurring," said Seth Robinson, vice president, research, CompTIA. "Employers across industries are looking for people with software, AI, cybersecurity, data, systems and networking capabilities, reinforcing the value of building adaptable technology skills."

Demand grows for core tech roles and AI skills

Software developer and engineer positions led the market with 51,944 new postings in October, up 6.3% from September. Several occupations posted double-digit gains, including DevOps engineers, infrastructure architects, cybersecurity engineers and data scientists.

Active job postings associated with AI skills reached 366,322, up 6.2% from September. Demand for specialized AI positions increased 9.8%. The two measures illustrate the different dimensions of AI workforce demand. AI-specific job titles represent specialized roles, while the expanded skills measure captures broader employer demand for AI capabilities across jobs that may not carry an AI-specific title.

Employers across professional and technical services, manufacturing, health care, construction and other sectors continue to seek workers with technology skills, underscoring the economy-wide nature of tech talent demand.

The "CompTIA Tech Jobs Report" is available here.

About CompTIA

CompTIA, Inc. is the leading global provider of vendor-neutral training and certification products in the information technology (IT) space. Over four million CompTIA certifications have been awarded to current and aspiring technology workers, business professionals, government and military personnel, career changers, students and others. Working in partnership with thousands of academic institutions, governments, training providers and workforce development organizations, CompTIA uses best-in-class learning solutions, industry-recognized certifications and career resources to help job seekers reach their full potential and employers develop skilled technical talent. Learn more at https://www.comptia.org/.

Contact
Steven Ostrowski
CompTIA
[email protected]

¹ Labor market data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics and employer job postings from Lightcast may be subject to backward revisions.
² Monthly occupation level data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics tends to experience higher levels of variance and volatility.

SOURCE CompTIA, Inc.