Top 5 Highest-Paying Microsoft Azure Certifications

As the demand for cloud services continues to rise, many organizations find themselves caught between a rock and a hard place when it comes to sourcing and keeping skilled talent.

A couple years ago, IT decision-makers shared that the hardest area to hire for was cybersecurity (50%), with cloud computing a close second (44%). That’s changed in the past year. According to the 2022 IT Skills and Salary Report, cloud computing is now the top priority for 41% of decision-makers; with cybersecurity falling to second place with 31%.

That’s why it’s no surprise to see Microsoft Azure certifications associated with some of the higher salaries in the industry. In compiling this list, we found that hundreds of IT Skills and Salary survey respondents in the US and Canada hold Microsoft certifications. So, we dug into the data to learn about the people who hold these certifications, how much they make (on average), and how you can get started.

*A certification must have had at least 45 North American respondents to make this list.

Below, read about some of the leading certifications in North America and how to earn them.

The average salary for those holding the Microsoft Certified: Azure Solutions Architect Expert certification is $133,185. To achieve this certification, candidates should be able to:

• Implement and monitor an Azure infrastructure
• Implement management and security solutions
• Implement solutions for apps
• Implement and manage data platforms

Popular Courses for this Certification:

• Cloud Career Journey
• Designing Microsoft Azure Infrastructure Solutions (AZ-305T00)

The Microsoft Certified: Azure Developer Associate certification boasts an average salary of $129,705 in the United States and Canada. This certification validates technical expertise in designing, building, testing, and maintaining cloud solutions, such as applications and services. Candidates should have a thorough understanding of concepts such as:

• Developing Azure compute solutions
• Developing for Azure storage
• Implementing Azure security

Popular Courses for this Certification:

• Cloud Career Journey
• Developing Solutions for Microsoft Azure (AZ-204T00)

Azure Security Engineers implement security controls and threat protection; manage identity and access; and protect data, applications, and networks in cloud and hybrid environments as part of end-to-end infrastructure. Based on our 2022 IT Skills and Salary Survey, the average salary for those holding Microsoft Certified: Azure Security Engineer Associate level in the United States and Canada is $127,505. A few concepts candidates should know prior to taking the exam include how to:

• Manage identity and access
• Implement platform protection
• Manage security operations
• Secure data and applications

Popular Courses for this Certification:

• Cloud Career Journey
• Microsoft Azure Security Technologies (AZ-500T00)

The average salary for those holding the Microsoft Certified: Azure Data Fundamentals certification is $121,570. This certification is intended for candidates beginning to work with data in the cloud. Candidates seeking this certification should understand concepts such as:

• Describe core data concepts
• Describe how to work with relational data on Azure
• Describe how to work with non-relational data on Azure

Popular Course for this Certification:

• Cloud Career Journey
• Microsoft Azure Data Fundamentals (DP-900T00)

The Microsoft Certified: Azure Fundamentals certification offers an average salary of $113,576 in North America. This certification is intended for candidates who are just beginning to work with cloud-based solutions and services or are new to Azure, as its designed to help candidates build foundational-level knowledge of Microsoft Azure cloud services

Candidates should have a brief understanding of concepts such as:

• Describe cloud concepts
• Describe core Azure services
• Describe core solutions and management tools on Azure

Popular Courses for this Certification:

• Cloud Career Journey
• Microsoft Azure Fundamentals (AZ-900T00)

To jumpstart your Microsoft Azure certification training, we encourage you to check out our Cloud Career Journey.