IT Project Manager Salary

Created by Henry Steele

By Henry Steele - April 15, 2018
Reading Time: 11 minutes
Reading Time: 11 minutes

The following article discusses the career path of IT Project Manager. Learn about how to become one, education requirements, job duties, traits and qualities, national salary outlook as well as top national employers of IT Project Managers.

Job Duties

IT project managers are responsible for the planning of set projects, making sure that they are properly executed within budget and on time. This means they must evaluate progress and the performance of workers on a daily basis, while providing strong leadership and motivation. They must also ensure that everybody works according to a shared vision and that they understand where the project is heading. They set the roles of the different members of the team and monitor their progress, making changes when things are not going well. They also hold budgetary responsibility.

They are responsible for the entire project from start to finish. Once completed, they will evaluate the work done and determine whether further projects are required. During the project, they often supervise staff and ensure that the relevant departments collaborate appropriately.

Other duties of the IT project manager are:

  • To work together with the technical team to develop and design tasks
  • To use life cycle methodology for all software applications
  • To create a project plan and maintain it, showing the different tasks, resources, deadlines, status, and so on
  • To coordinate beta delivery and releases of production while maintaining quality standards
  • To work together with the test team to ensure that the project is progressing appropriately

Where We Work

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, there were 367,600 Computer and Information Systems Managers in 2016, a profession most closely related to that of IT project manager. The largest employers of these professionals are:

  • Computer systems design and related services: 22%
  • Information: 11%
  • Finance and insurance: 11%
  • Management of companies and enterprises: 10%
  • Manufacturing: 8%

How to Become

In certain cases, an IT project manager will have to be certified, including the professional project management certification. Additionally, a bachelor’s degree is almost always required, preferably in a field related to computer science or information technology. An IT project manager is a senior management position, which means that many years of professional experience in leadership are also required.

IT project managers can be found in any element of the economy. As a result, they often also have additional certifications in fields related to their particular niche or industry. This is generally not a legal requirement, but it does increase job prospects and it demonstrates a commitment to excellence.

Education Requirements

Normally, an IT project manager has a bachelor’s degree in a field related to computer science as a minimum. This is particularly required if their programs focus on computer programs, which is usually the case. Knowledge of management information systems (MIS) is particularly important.

Furthermore, a graduate degree is often required with the master of business administration (MBA in Information Technology Management) being the most popular. One of the reasons for this is because it requires professional experience, which further enhances the career prospects. Indeed, professional experience is incredibly important, with the most senior IT project managers having as much as ten years experience in the field, although this does vary depending on the size and age of the organization they work for.

Traits & Qualities

The most effective IT project managers have the following traits to some degree or other:

– Strong analytical skills
– Excellent business skills
– Great communication skills, both verbal and written
– Strong decision making skills
– Excellent leadership skills
– Great organizational skills

Minimum Education

Bachelor’s Degree

National Salary

The national average salary estimate for IT Project Manager was $90,604. This number is estimated from over 1,435,036 employees, users past and present job advertisements from Indeed.com. This equates to an hourly salary of $47.19 and monthly of $7,550.

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$31,000

$180,000

Salary Distribution

Salary by State

The following section lists IT Project Manager salaries in each state around the country. The figures are based on the total number of job postings through Indeed.com. For example, Maine had the largest quoted salary of $127,334 while Georgia had the smallest quoted salary of $58,270.

AlabamaIowaMissouriPennsylvania
ArkansasIllinoisNorth CarolinaRhode Island
ArizonaIndianaNebraskaSouth Carolina
CaliforniaKansasNew HampshireTennessee
ColoradoKentuckyNew JerseyTexas
ConnecticutLouisianaNew MexicoUtah
DCMassachusettsNevadaVirginia
DelawareMarylandNew YorkVermont
FloridaMaineOhioWashington
GeorgiaMichiganOklahomaWisconsin
HawaiiMinnesotaOregon
Alabama$89,986Rank: 19th
The average salary ranks 19th among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like Robert Half Technology, PANGEATWO, Auburn University, and Synergis.

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$36,000

$166,000

Salary Distribution
Arkansas$81,734Rank: 36th
The average salary ranks 36th among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like TEKsystems and samiti.

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$16.50

$80.55

Salary Distribution
Arizona$87,015Rank: 29th
The average salary ranks 29th among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like Career Evolutions, Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community, Maricopa County, and AMS Staffing, Inc..

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$36,000

$159,000

Salary Distribution
California$98,958Rank: 6th
The average salary ranks 6th among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like Stanford Health Care, Prospance Inc, Client of Roljobs technology Services, and Cisco.

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$38,000

$186,000

Salary Distribution
Colorado$84,567Rank: 33rd
The average salary ranks 33rd among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like Jefferson County, CO, City and County of Denver, Denver Public Schools, and Randstad.

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$32,000

$160,000

Salary Distribution
Connecticut$93,460Rank: 16th
The average salary ranks 16th among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like iTech Solutions, L&T Infotech, L&T Technology Services Ltd., and Cor-Tech LLC.

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$39,000

$170,000

Salary Distribution
DC$107,564Rank: 3rd
The average salary ranks 3rd among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like FBI, Department of Labor, Department of Transportation, and Piper Enterprise Solutions.

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$49,000

$189,000

Salary Distribution
Delaware$93,385Rank: 17th
The average salary ranks 17th among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like Polaris Consulting & Services LTD, JPMorgan Chase, MW Partners, and Virtusa.

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$45,000

$159,000

Salary Distribution
Florida$88,146Rank: 22nd
The average salary ranks 22nd among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like Quality Labor Management LLC, Veredus, Polaris Consulting & Services LTD, and Polaris Consulting and Services Ltd.

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$37,000

$160,000

Salary Distribution
Georgia$58,270Rank: 43rd
The average salary ranks 43rd among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like The Royak Group Inc., Pyramid Consulting Group, AT&T, and HCL Technologies.

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$14,000

$142,000

Salary Distribution
Hawaii$87,981Rank: 23rd
The average salary ranks 23rd among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like Express Employment Professionals.

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$44,000

$144,000

Salary Distribution
Iowa$83,201Rank: 34th
The average salary ranks 34th among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like Transamerica, Robert Half Technology, and Global Channel Management, Inc..

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$31,000

$159,000

Salary Distribution
Illinois$97,515Rank: 9th
The average salary ranks 9th among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like Acrostaff, CyberCoders, Virtusa, and Phoenix 2.0.

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$33,000

$194,000

Salary Distribution
Indiana$87,320Rank: 27th
The average salary ranks 27th among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like Cummins, State of Indiana, The Bartech Group, and Collabera.

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$30,000

$172,000

Salary Distribution
Kansas$81,507Rank: 37th
The average salary ranks 37th among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like Altek and CyberCoders.

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$35,000

$146,000

Salary Distribution
Kentucky$63,974Rank: 41st
The average salary ranks 41st among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like University of Kentucky, Louisville Metro Government, GTA, and Global Technology Associates.

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$11.45

$66.35

Salary Distribution
Louisiana$87,029Rank: 28th
The average salary ranks 28th among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like Robert Half Technology and Career Brokers, Inc..

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$30,000

$172,000

Salary Distribution
Massachusetts$98,326Rank: 8th
The average salary ranks 8th among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like L&T Technology Services Ltd., Ventois INC, Chase Technology Consultants, and Cannon Search Partners.

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$39,000

$184,000

Salary Distribution
Maryland$95,106Rank: 14th
The average salary ranks 14th among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like Think Systems, L&T Technology Services Ltd., WSSC, and U.S. Army.

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$36,000

$181,000

Salary Distribution
Maine$127,334Rank: 1st
The average salary ranks 1st among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like ICST Inc.

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$32.80

$200

Salary Distribution
Michigan$92,687Rank: 18th
The average salary ranks 18th among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like Virtusa, Perspective Talent LLC, Washington Frank, and North Star Solutions.

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$36,000

$175,000

Salary Distribution
Minnesota$87,337Rank: 26th
The average salary ranks 26th among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like UnitedHealth Group, Konik PrimeStaff, L&T Technology Services Ltd., and Hennepin County.

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$33,000

$166,000

Salary Distribution
Missouri$86,798Rank: 30th
The average salary ranks 30th among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like Softtek Integration Systems, INC, Washington University in St. Louis, Envision, and Westport One.

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$29,000

$174,000

Salary Distribution
North Carolina$95,803Rank: 12th
The average salary ranks 12th among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like Piper Companies, Lowe’s, Vaco – Charlotte, and L&T Infotech.

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$41,000

$173,000

Salary Distribution
Nebraska$96,157Rank: 11th
The average salary ranks 11th among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like SA Technologies Inc. and Cqpstone Consulting.

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$38,000

$179,000

Salary Distribution
New Hampshire$112,916Rank: 2nd
The average salary ranks 2nd among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like Right Networks, Valtech Services Inc, LanceSoft Inc, and Liberty Mutual.

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$57,000

$183,000

Salary Distribution
New Jersey$93,828Rank: 15th
The average salary ranks 15th among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like Hexaware Technologies, Polaris Consulting and Services Ltd, eco services, and Johnson & Johnson.

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$34,000

$183,000

Salary Distribution
New Mexico$78,355Rank: 39th
The average salary ranks 39th among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like Sabio Systems and State of New Mexico.

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$29,000

$152,000

Salary Distribution
Nevada$85,132Rank: 31st
The average salary ranks 31st among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like Station Casinos, RSCONSULTING SERVICES, and Panaust.

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$11.85

$97.40

Salary Distribution
New York$98,837Rank: 7th
The average salary ranks 7th among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like ComputerPeople, International Business Promotion, Inc., L&T Technology Services Ltd., and Tri-S Recruiters, Inc..

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$34,000

$196,000

Salary Distribution
Ohio$88,606Rank: 21st
The average salary ranks 21st among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like Emerald Resource Group, Cameron Craig Group, Nationwide Mutual Insurance Company, and fulltimeGiGS.

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$34,000

$168,000

Salary Distribution
Oklahoma$72,946Rank: 40th
The average salary ranks 40th among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like L&T Infotech, L&T Technology Services Ltd., University of Central Oklahoma, and Robert Half Technology.

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$25,000

$145,000

Salary Distribution
Oregon$87,859Rank: 24th
The average salary ranks 24th among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like NW Natural, Mavensoft Technologies, LLC., Oregon State University, and Oregon Health Authority.

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$31,000

$173,000

Salary Distribution
Pennsylvania$96,425Rank: 10th
The average salary ranks 10th among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like Beacon Hill Staffing Group -Philadelphia, L&T Technology Services Ltd., L&T Infotech, and Virtusa.

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$40,000

$176,000

Salary Distribution
Rhode Island$95,743Rank: 13th
The average salary ranks 13th among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like CyberCoders, Okaya Inc, CVS Health, and Predicata.

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$46,000

$163,000

Salary Distribution
South Carolina$101,203Rank: 5th
The average salary ranks 5th among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like Saxon Global Inc, Cenergy Partners, HKA Enterprises, and Technocraft solutions LLc.

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$22.65

$94.95

Salary Distribution
Tennessee$85,017Rank: 32nd
The average salary ranks 32nd among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like Chetu, Inc., Vaco – Memphis, Vaco, and Premier Staffing Partners.

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$34,000

$158,000

Salary Distribution
Texas$89,039Rank: 20th
The average salary ranks 20th among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like Chetu, Inc., Sabre, 3coast, and Dell.

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$31,000

$177,000

Salary Distribution
Utah$81,137Rank: 38th
The average salary ranks 38th among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like CyberCoders, University of Utah, ConsultNet, and Robert Half Technology.

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$26,000

$165,000

Salary Distribution
Virginia$101,498Rank: 4th
The average salary ranks 4th among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like ka-hoot llc, DataWiz Corporation, Department of Labor, and Request Technology.

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$40,000

$189,000

Salary Distribution
Vermont$58,963Rank: 42nd
The average salary ranks 42nd among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like State of Vermont.

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$7.25

$79.65

Salary Distribution
Washington$81,923Rank: 35th
The average salary ranks 35th among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like Sound Transit, Aditi Technologies, L&T Technology Services Ltd., and L&T Infotech.

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$31,000

$157,000

Salary Distribution
Wisconsin$87,340Rank: 25th
The average salary ranks 25th among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like Robert Half Technology, Smart Solutions, Inc., L&T Infotech, and Birlasoft.

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$30,000

$174,000

Salary Distribution

Top 20 National Employers

According to Indeed.com, the following states had employers looking to hire a IT Project Manager. The quoted salary figure represents the average salary from all job postings by this employer.

Employer NameLocationAverage Salary

Learn More

Related Careers

Career NameAverage Salary

Henry Steele
Managing Editor
Henry is Managing Editor of BusinessStudent.com. He is a seasoned business professional who regularly consults with local business's throughout Southern California. Henry pursued his undergrad in Business and Economics at the University of San Diego and gained valuable life changing experience through a unique internship upon graduation.

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