February 8, 2026 - Extra pay awarded by employers to talented tech professionals for 746 non-certified IT skills---also known as cash pay premiums decreased slightly overall in the final quarter of 2025. This is according to Foote Partners' long-running IT Skills and Certifications Pay IndexTM (ITSCPI) of cash pay premiums for 1,396 certified and non-certified IT skills. For 650 IT certifications, the story was similar: a 0.8% decline in Q4 2025 following overall declines in nine of the previous eleven calendar quarters.
Meanwhile, IT skills and certifications pay volatility is spiking: Findings from our IT Skills and
Certifications Pay Volatility Index show 386 (of 1,382, or 28%) skills and certifications changed
market value in 4Q 2025 compared to as few as 280 in Q1 2025.