article · Tech pay, honestly
CCNA Salary: Network Administrator Pay Context
Direct answer
What to do
Cisco CCNA does not determine salary. Use the occupation, location, experience, and responsibility evidence below as context—not as a promised credential payoff.
Use this context when
- You are comparing occupations, not treating a credential as a pay raise.
- You can match the wage figure to the stated location and occupation.
- You will weigh experience, responsibility, and employer alongside certification.
Do not use it to
- Predict what one person will earn after passing an exam.
- Treat an occupation median as an entry-level salary.
- Claim the certification caused the reported wage.
Reviewed 2026-08-26
Certification details change. Always confirm final pricing, availability, and credential terms on the official provider page linked in the sources below before you pay for anything.
Detailed evidence, examples, and source notes
Last updated 2026-08-23 — the article text's own revision date; dated evidence on this page carries its own check date. See the Citation Ledger at the foot for this page's sources.
CCNA does not have its own salary. Learnerside maps the nearby Network Administrator decision to BLS Network and Computer Systems Administrators, whose May 2025 national median was $99,130. That figure covers an occupation across employers, locations, and experience levels; it is not entry pay or a CCNA-caused outcome. Use the role context first, then decide whether CCNA fits your networking path.
Next decision
Use Learnerside to compare the role, metro, and evidence behind the credential before treating any salary number as personal. Review the Network Administrator decision behind this pay context.
More on Cisco Certified Network Associate
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- Cisco Certified Network Associate certification page
Occupation pay context
Cisco CCNA appears in role pathways, but pay still follows the work. Use the table as a sourced context layer, not as a promise.
| Role context | BLS/O*NET occupation anchor | National median, BLS OEWS May 2025 | BLS 2024-2034 projection | Why this matters |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Network Administrator | Network and Computer Systems Administrators (15-1244) | $99,130 | -4.2% change; 14.3 thousand annual openings | Use this as occupation context, not as a credential-caused salary |
| Network Security Engineer | Computer Occupations, All Other (15-1299) | $116,580 | 8.2% change; 31.3 thousand annual openings | Use this as occupation context, not as a credential-caused salary |
| Network Automation Engineer | Computer Network Architects (15-1241) | $134,050 | 11.9% change; 11.2 thousand annual openings | Use this as occupation context, not as a credential-caused salary |
| Junior Systems Administrator | Network and Computer Systems Administrators (15-1244) | $99,130 | -4.2% change; 14.3 thousand annual openings | Use this as occupation context, not as a credential-caused salary |
Read the median as the midpoint of the wage distribution for workers in the occupation — half earn less, half earn more — not as entry pay. Network and computer systems administrators (15-1244) have a 10th percentile of $62,640 and BLS Employment Projections list typical entry as Bachelor's degree; Computer occupations, all other (15-1299) have a 10th percentile of $55,940 and BLS Employment Projections list typical entry as Bachelor's degree; Computer network architects (15-1241) have a 10th percentile of $79,900 and BLS Employment Projections list typical entry as Bachelor's degree, with 5 years or more of related work experience typically expected. Those figures describe everyone already working in the occupation, people with many years in it included, so they are not entry pay and not a projection of what you would earn; the entry requirements above are BLS's description of the occupation, not Learnerside's opinion about you. Wage figures are from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025 release, read 2026-07-21; the link is in the Citation Ledger below.
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Metro pay context
Location changes salary context. The table below uses the first mapped occupation anchor, Network and Computer Systems Administrators (15-1244), and shows selected metro medians with BEA price-level context where available.
| Metro, primary occupation anchor | Median pay, BLS OEWS May 2025 | Cost-adjusted context, BEA RPP |
|---|---|---|
| San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA | $133,360 | about $120,772 |
| Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD | $122,950 | about $117,670 |
| Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV | $125,430 | about $115,196 |
| Durham-Chapel Hill, NC | $110,640 | about $113,393 |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA | $129,680 | about $112,167 |
These are occupation/geography figures. They do not say what a new credential holder, a first offer, or a specific employer will pay.
- How much do tech jobs pay?
- What regional price parities mean
What the role work looks like
The practical salary question is whether the credential helps you prove the work behind the mapped role. O*NET task evidence helps keep that grounded.
| Role context | O*NET task/work evidence to look for in your projects |
|---|---|
| Network Administrator | Maintain and administer computer networks and related computing environments, including computer hardware, systems software, applications software, and all configurations; Perform data backups and disaster recovery operations |
| Network Security Engineer | Identify security system weaknesses, using penetration tests; Coordinate monitoring of networks or systems for security breaches or intrusions |
| Network Automation Engineer | Develop disaster recovery plans; Develop or recommend network security measures, such as firewalls, network security audits, or automated security probes |
What to do next
1. Choose the target work before interpreting a salary headline.
2. Use BLS occupation and metro figures as context, not as credential-holder or entry pay.
3. Compare the O*NET task evidence with work you can already explain or demonstrate.
4. Use the credential only when its scope closes a specific knowledge or evidence gap.
5. Follow the reviewed next decision above before paying.
Frequently asked questions
What should I compare instead of a cert salary headline?
Compare the target role, BLS occupation and metro context, day-to-day task evidence, and whether the credential scope fills a specific knowledge or evidence gap.
Related, with the cited detail
- How much do tech jobs pay?
- Are IT certifications worth it?
- What employers ask for
Core source records
This table lists the page’s core content records and when they were checked. Claim-specific citations appear beside the relevant text and may not be repeated here.
| ID | Supports | Source | Checked |
|---|---|---|---|
| CIT-01 | The certification page identifies the credential, but salary is not attributed to the credential. | https://www.cisco.com/site/us/en/learn/training-certifications/exams/ccna.html | 2026-09-09 |
| CIT-02 | Occupation-level pay and metro pay context. | U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics — OEWS national wage data | 2026-07-21 |
| CIT-03 | Occupation outlook and annual openings context. | U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics — Employment Projections occupational data | 2026-09-09 |
| CIT-04 | Day-to-day role task evidence. | https://www.onetonline.org/ | 2026-06-07 |