Introduction
CISSP is one of the most renowned certifications in cyber security. In this post, I will talk about the average salary one may get in the United States if he holds a CISSP certification.
Keep in mind that salary is affected by different factors like years of experience, city, company, and job role.
What is CISSP?
The CISSP certification is an internationally recognized standard for information security professionals. The International Information Systems Security Certification Consortium offers the certification, also known as (ISC)2.
You’re required to have a minimum of five years’ full-time experience directly in the infosec field or four years’ experience and a college degree. According to Wikipedia, as of January 2022, 152,632 people hold the CISSP certification worldwide.
Average CISSP salary
According to a survey by Payscale.com average yearly salary for CISSP jobs was $114,293, depending on the participant’s location, years of experience, and job title.
The average salary of CISSP certified in Washington, DC is $122,000, while in Dallas, Texas, it is $109,000
According to the isc2.org Cybersecurity workforce study, the global average salary of a CISSP certified is $92,639. And for North America, this average is $120,552
Some other salary reports show that this number could be even high. The report in Globalknowledge shows that the average salary in North America for a CISSP holder is $138,647. This makes CISSP on the list of the top five highly paid IT certifications.
Average CISSP salary based on years of experience
It should come as no surprise that the more experience you have, the more money you will make. Average salary range is between $66, 000 – $1,24,000. Someone with around five years of experience and CISSP certification can expect to get between $65,000 to $85,000. At the same time, people with 10+ Years of experience can get more than $1,10,000.
CISSP Salary based on job roles
Job roles affect the salary as much as any other criteria. An Information security analyst may get $88,000 if he is in the US, While a CISO can get an average of $1,68,000. Security architects, information security managers, and CISOs are the roles that earn the highest wages.
A cybersecurity analyst may get around $95,000 and a cybersecurity engineer somewhere around $1,11,000.
Advantages of CISSP certification
A majority of certified cyber security professionals experience two main certification benefits: better job performance and higher salaries.
After training to achieve a cyber security certification, over half of professionals said the quality of their work has improved, while one-third find their work more engaging post-certification. Another 15% say they now make fewer errors.
A CISSP certification indicates to employers that an individual is willing to invest a significant amount of time to build essential skills. Respondents also said certification could help earn the trust of customers.
Comparison with other certifications
Here is a quick comparison between CISSP and other cybersecurity certifications with respect to the average salary in North America.
| Certification | Average Salary |
| CISM | $142,585 |
| CRISC | $141,172 |
| CISSP | $138,647 |
| CISA | $128,086 |
Conclusion
To get a high-level security position, the CISSP certification is essential. Because of the high standards set by the certification’s test and its prerequisites, obtaining a CISSP requires a foundational level of experience in cyber security of more than five years.
References:
https://www.isc2.org/Certifications/CISSP-Salary
https://www.globalknowledge.com/us-en/content/salary-report/it-skills-and-salary-report/
