37 Honest Network Administrator Salaries
Network administrators are the backbone of modern connectivity—they keep networks running, emails flowing, and phone calls connected. For their efforts, they earn some of the more competitive salaries in IT. The national average is $81,700, but top earners in major cities can earn well over $100,000.
That range reflects just how much the role can vary. Some admins manage small office Wi-Fi; others keep global infrastructure humming. In every case, they ensure networks stay secure, up-to-date, and fully functional.
Because the job is so diverse, salaries may differ wildly based on location, experience, and certifications. Whether you’re a current network administrator checking if your pay stacks up or exploring the role as your next career move, this guide will help you make smart decisions.
We’ve gathered real salary data from 37 U.S. cities—plus insights on what training and credentials can help you land the highest-paying jobs. Let’s dive in.
What is a Network Administrator?
A network administrator —often called a net admin—is responsible for keeping a company’s computer network up and running. It’s a common early-career role in IT, but not typically entry-level. Most network admins have formal training, certifications, and some hands-on experience, making it an associate-level position.
Core duties include installing and maintaining hardware and software for network devices, applying security patches, and troubleshooting issues. Depending on the company size, net admins might also handle tasks like monitoring network performance, managing Active Directory, updating user permissions, and performing routine maintenance on user devices.
A network administrator’s salary depends on their ability to manage and support all aspects of network operations, and as we’ll explore, experience and location play a big role in how much they earn.
37 Real Salaries for Network Administrators
As we pulled salary data for network administrators around the country, it became clear that there were large differences from city to city. But not just that, even within individual cities, there was a range of salaries for the same job. To help clarify that range of salaries, we split up the data into three ranges: an overall average, a low-end average and a high-end average.
Entry-level positions and openings for first-time network administrators tend to offer salaries that are much lower than positions for more experienced net admins. Nationally, the spread between low-paid and high-paid network administrators was about $20,000. On a city-by-city basis, some job markets had a bigger range than that, according to ZipRecruiter:
The national average salary for a Network Administrator is $81,700.
The national average high for a Network Administrator is $94,000.
The national average low for a Network Administrator is $66,000.
As you look through the salaries a network administrator might find in various cities, pay attention to the range between the low-end and high-end. Here’s our list of 37 network administrator salaries:
City | State | Low-end Average | Average | High-end Average |
Puerto Real | PR | $65,000 | $80,500 | $92,000 |
Brownsville | TX | $56,000 | $70,260 | $80,000 |
Springfield | MO | $60,000 | $74,322 | $85,000 |
Columbus | GA | $63,000 | $78,952 | $90,000 |
Tallahassee | FL | $62,000 | $77,650 | $89,000 |
McAllen | TX | $62,000 | $77,662 | $88,000 |
Macon | GA | $63,000 | $78,297 | $90,000 |
Clarksville | TN | $57,000 | $71,437 | $81,000 |
Montgomery | AL | $65,000 | $80,618 | $92,500 |
Jackson | MS | $57,000 | $71,293 | $81,000 |
Killeen | TX | $59,000 | $73,184 | $84,000 |
Mobile | AL | $65,000 | $81,101 | $93,000 |
Pittsburgh | PA | $63,000 | $79,645 | $90,000 |
Augusta | GA | $61,000 | $76,753 | $88,000 |
Shreveport | LA | $65,000 | $81,824 | $93,000 |
Chattanooga | TN | $60,000 | $74,826 | $85,000 |
Knoxville | TN | $62,000 | $78,889 | $89,000 |
Fort Lauderdale | FL | $62,000 | $78,198 | $89,000 |
Waco | TX | $58,000 | $72,587 | $83,000 |
Akron | OH | $63,000 | $78,197 | $89,000 |
Sioux Falls | SD | $65,000 | $81,327 | $93,000 |
Amarillo | TX | $60,000 | $74,584 | $86,000 |
Savannah | GA | $61,000 | $76,289 | $87,000 |
Cleveland | OH | $65,000 | $81,310 | $93,000 |
Paterson | NJ | $67,000 | $83,420 | $95,000 |
New York | NY | $72,000 | $89,420 | $102,000 |
Los Angeles | CA | $69,000 | $85,529 | $98,000 |
Roseville | CA | $69,000 | $85,827 | $98,000 |
Seattle | WA | $75,000 | $93,893 | $106,000 |
Salinas | CA | $70,000 | $87,772 | $100,000 |
Bridgeport | CT | $66,000 | $83,487 | $95,000 |
Washington | DC | $74,000 | $92,560 | $106,000 |
Alexandria | VA | $70,000 | $87,160 | $100,000 |
Santa Rosa | CA | $71,000 | $89,800 | $102,000 |
Cary | NC | $61,000 | $75,810 | $86,000 |
San Francisco | CA | $77,000 | $96,318 | $110,000 |
Sunnyvale | CA | $77,000 | $95,405 | $110,000 |
Location Matters… A Lot
One of the most consistent patterns across IT salary reports is just how much geography impacts compensation. For network administrators, location dramatically affects entry-level pay.
This year’s list of 37 network administrator salaries shows that low-end averages vary by as much as $20,000. On the higher end, you’ve got places like New York ($72K), San Francisco ($77K), and Seattle ($75K) setting the bar. Compare that to Clarksville, TN ($57K) or Jackson, MS ($57K), and the difference is clear: where you live could add thousands to your paycheck— even for those just getting started.
Out of the 37 cities we looked at, 17 have low-end salaries at or below $62,000, while 11 come in at $65,000 or above. That’s a shift from previous years, where low-end averages were often closer to the $40K mark in smaller cities. The floor has risen—but the ceiling has too.
High-End Salaries Vary Just as Much
Even for experienced network administrators, the local job market can make a big difference. The national high-end average for this role is $94,000, but some cities push well past that. San Francisco and Sunnyvale, CA lead the list with high-end averages hitting $110,000, followed closely by Seattle ($106K) and Washington, DC ($106K).
At the other end of the spectrum, cities like Clarksville, TN, Jackson, MS, and Springfield, MO hover around $81,000 to $85,000. While still respectable, that’s a $25K–$30K difference, depending on where you're working.
If you’re an experienced admin, this reinforces a useful tip: shop around. With remote work becoming more common, you might be able to land a high-paying job without leaving your current zip code—or at least find enough leverage to negotiate a better offer.
Salary Spread by State
Some states showed big internal gaps, with Texas topping the list. In Waco, low-end averages sit around $58,000, while in Amarillo, high-end salaries reach $86,000—a $28,000 spread. California, on the other hand, was more consistent. Whether you’re in Los Angeles, Roseville, or Sunnyvale, the spread between low and high-end averages stays tight—generally under $25,000. This could signal a more standardized pay scale across major employers in the state.
Remote Work = Pay Boost?
If you're in a position to work remotely, it might pay—literally—to consider offers outside your immediate area. The national salary average for a network administrator is $81,700, but the range across our data spans from $56,000 to $110,000. That’s a $54,000 difference, depending solely on where the job is located.
Your skills may be the same, but where you choose to use them (or where your employer is based) could be the biggest factor in how much you earn. Cost of living is something to consider as well.
4 Salary Considerations for Network Administrators
If you’re a network administrator, or want to break into the field, you should keep in mind the four things that can help move your salary into the higher ranges:
Experience
Tools of the trade
Certifications
Industry
These four factors can have significant effects on your career and salary prospects.
You might think of them like sliders on a soundboard: a good balance of the four is your best bet at a great salary, but pushing one of those sliders up can compensate for some of the others being a bit low. Your best bet is to be deliberate about each of those factors in your career.
Experience Requirements for Network Administrators
Most network administrator roles aren’t entry-level—they’re considered associate-level positions, which means employers usually want some combination of education, specific experience, and often both. That creates a common catch-22: you need experience to get the job, but you need the job to get experience.
One way around that is volunteering with small businesses or nonprofits. Even if it’s unpaid, hands-on work with real network equipment builds the practical skills employers look for. The goal is simple: get experience keeping a network running.
It also helps to build cloud skills. While cloud administration is its own career path, many network admin jobs now expect at least a basic understanding of services like AWS or Azure. Knowing how to manage DNS, CDN, and security settings in the cloud can give you an edge.
In some cases, hands-on experience can be substituted with an associate’s degree—but the highest-paying roles often ask for a bachelor’s in computer science. And while the debate between degrees vs. certifications continues, having either one can help you qualify for better-paying jobs. (We’ll dig into certs later.)
4 Network Administrator Tools You'll Need to Know
Network admin tools vary depending on the systems and vendors your company uses—but some are near-universal. While the specifics may change between Cisco and Juniper, or on-prem and cloud, the core concepts stay the same. These are four tools and technologies you’ll almost certainly encounter:
Active Directory
It’s hard to imagine a network administrator who doesn’t spend a majority of their days doing something on Active Directory. You’ll be navigating Active Directory nearly every day. You’ll deal with users, their passwords, their accounts, and settings all the time. Knowing how Active Directory works and being able to navigate the interface and handle AD users is an essential skill.
Salary impact: High. AD is listed in nearly every network admin job posting. Not knowing it can take you out of the running for most roles.
Network Monitoring Tools
Knowing what different network monitoring tools do differently or why a company might want to choose one over the other is valuable. From SolarWinds and NetCrunch to Site24x7 and Obkio, monitoring tools help you track performance, set alerts, and identify issues before users notice them. Knowing how to configure and use these tools is table stakes.
Salary impact: High. Admins who can automate tasks and proactively troubleshoot with monitoring tools bring major value to their teams.
Linux
Thanks to its rock-solid stability in certain implementations, Linux is the operating system of choice for networks and servers everywhere. It’s used in so many places and on so many servers, that knowing Linux is often listed as essential knowledge for a network administrator in most job descriptions. Most network administrators should be able to navigate Linux’s CLI, recognize its commands, and feel comfortable configuring the operating system.
Salary impact: Significant. Even if your current environment is Windows-heavy, Linux knowledge increases your versatility and opens doors to higher-paying roles.
SQL
Structured Query Language, or SQL, is the language that makes accessing and working with the data inside relational databases possible. SQL isn't required for every network admin, but it’s increasingly useful in environments where networks and applications are tightly integrated. Knowing SQL can help you troubleshoot performance issues and collaborate with dev or data teams.
Salary impact: Modest (but situational). In some orgs, SQL knowledge sets you apart. In others, it’s a nice-to-have. But when it’s needed, it can bump your value considerably.
The 8 Best Certifications for a Network Administrator
A network administrator who wants to justify a higher-than-average salary has to consider certifications. There’s disagreement in the community about how much a certification can help your salary and career, but in our view, the only way around them is to be incredibly lucky. Certifications level the playing field and prove your competence and knowledge in your field.
5 CompTIA Certifications for Network Administrators
Recommended: Network+, Security+, Server+, Linux+, Cloud+
CompTIA is an IT professional organization that offers certifications in a wide range of skills and jobs. For a brand new network administrator, their Network+ is an industry-wide favorite for starting a career. Passing it means you know how to configure, manage, and maintain networks and network devices — regardless of the equipment, hardware, or software involved. Other CompTIA certifications that are better suited for specializing in your career as a network administrator include Security+, Cloud+, Linux+, and Server+.
Salary impact of earning CompTIA certs: Huge. Network+ is almost a baseline requirement today. Higher-level CompTIA certs help you stand out and are recognized across nearly all IT departments.
Cisco Network Administrator Certifications
Recommended: CCNA
Like with Juniper, holding a Cisco certification is only really valuable for network administrators who work for companies that use Cisco equipment. But if you do, a Cisco certification is essential for your career and salary. In fact, even if you don’t currently work on a Cisco network, the CCNA, Cisco’s associate-level networking certification, is so well-regarded in the IT community, that it’s arguably worth the time, effort and cost to earn it regardless.
Salary impact: Significant. CCNA is one of the most respected networking certifications, whether you work in a Cisco-heavy environment or not.
Juniper Network Administrator Certifications
Recommended: JNCIA-Junos, JNCIS-ENT
Juniper Networks provides some of the industry’s most powerful enterprise network equipment. Companies that use Juniper hardware depend on trained and experienced network administrators, and are usually willing and able to pay great salaries for it, too. Juniper offers dozens of certifications: they’re arranged in a grid. There are associate, specialist, professional and expert-level certifications in 8 categories of knowledge. Depending on what part of the network you work on, you can certify on Automation and DevOps, Cloud, Data Center, Design, Enterprise Routing and Switching, Mist AI, Security, and Service Provider Routing and Switching.
Salary impact: Significant (if your company uses Juniper). These certs show mastery over Juniper’s networking stack and can lead to higher pay within the right environments.
F5 Network Administrator Certifications
Recommended: F5 Certified Administrator – BIG-IP
As far as network equipment and products go, F5 has a slightly more modest global footprint than Cisco or Juniper. F5’s solutions focus on application delivery and security. If you’re managing load balancers, reverse proxies, or traffic optimization, the BIG-IP Administrator (201) cert is essential. F5 also offers deeper specialist certs in DNS, APM, and ASM. For more experienced network administrators, there are four certs in their technical specialist track that cover more detailed implementations of F5 networking solutions.
Salary impact of earning an F5 certification: Considerable. F5 certifications are niche, but in the right job, they can significantly boost your value—especially if your team relies on BIG-IP.
What Type of Companies Need Network Administrators?
Network administrators work in IT—but that doesn’t mean they only work for IT companies. The industry you join can shape your career path, salary potential, and growth opportunities more than you might expect.
Service Providers
It makes sense that the best place for someone who administers networks to look for work is where the biggest networks are. Service providers are public and private companies that deliver telephony, collaboration, networking, and internet services to clients and customers. Some are national, some are local, but all depend on providing a constant level of network accessibility and stability to geographically separated customers. And they all need network administrators to help them do that.
Career impact: High. Service providers offer built-in career ladders for network admins. They often have formal training paths and a clear need for experienced professionals. The competition can be tough, but the long-term growth is excellent.
Software or Hardware Companies
Despite being lumped into the same category here, network administrators should approach the software development and hardware manufacturing industries differently. Their similarity is that both often depend on having a robust network connection to their customers and user base through which they can push updates, service improvements, or simply maintain the service itself.
Career impact of working in software or hardware for a network administrator: Significant. Working for a growing SaaS or hardware company can come with great pay and perks. Many rely heavily on skilled network admins to keep services online and secure, especially at scale.
Finance and Insurance
Network administrator jobs in the finance sector tend to pay well and have competitive salaries, but career prospects can be less defined. Many financial companies are so large and sprawling that they’re forced to support their own networks (which obviously have to be extremely secure and fast), but others only need on-site tech support.
A network administrator working in the finance industry should remind themselves to look “up” the career ladder from time to time and see if their company can support them in advancement through not only salary but also career.
Career impact for network administrators working in finance and insurance: Considerable. The pay is solid, but advancement might depend on how much the company invests in IT. Keep an eye on internal growth opportunities and push for training or certifications to avoid stagnation.
How to Increase Your Salary as a Network Administrator
Network administrators are some of the most valuable IT professionals in the world. Our contemporary world is increasingly defined by the networks we have access to and use. It’s network administrators who ensure we can continue to have access to and use these networks.
Even a junior network administrator can expect a salary in the range of $65,000 a year, while very experienced network administrators tend to earn salaries as high as $95,000 a year. Closing that $30,000 gap comes down to experience with different OSs and tools, earning certifications in technology and equipment, and working for the right companies in the right industries.
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