[June 2026] Tech Job Market Trends Monthly

Welcome to the 6th issue of Tech Job Market Monthly! If you missed the previous months, you can check out the previous issues of Tech Job Market Monthly here.

So, a quick recap of how this works:

Each month, we sit down and check out the US job market for each major field in tech, so that you can get a mile-high view of how each industry is looking.

Why the US?

Mainly because it's the biggest market and because a lot of the other markets trail the US by a few months. This means it's fairly indicative of upcoming trends in other regions as well, although there may be specific geographic factors where you're based.

How do we come up with this information?

For now, we do this by evaluating data from 2 sources:

1. LinkedIn, and

2. Google trends

This way, we can see the number of open jobs available and compare that against previous months, as well as current search trends, to see if there are any spikes or dips in public interest.

One more thing to note is that LinkedIn by no means has all of the job postings that are available for any of these roles. There are many other job sites (broad and niche) with many more postings.

However, since LinkedIn has openings for all the major roles, it's very helpful for us to see directional changes month-over-month and see how many jobs are roughly available relative to others.

With all that out of the way, let's get into the data for June 2026.

Current Job Trends in the Tech Industry for June 2026

I know some of you just want the hard data, so I've made a handy dandy table here to show you the total # of job openings for each role and month-over-month ("MoM") change:

Yeesh, that's a lot of red right?...

Now before you freak out, I need to cover something important

Most hiring happens between March and June, since companies set their headcount budgets early in the year and spend most of it by mid-year. That means we're always going to see a bump in hiring numbers during that period, and we're right at the tail end of that window now, so a bit of natural cooling across the board.

Also, when I write this newsletter, I always check the numbers towards the end of the month, so we're getting the data right as this surge is dropping off. I'm sure if we checked mid-month, the numbers would have been much higher.

That being said, some roles haven't even been impacted by this seasonal trend that much. (Some have even grown slightly). While others may seem like a big drop-off, this is just because they had a huge bump during that window, and are back down to their regular hiring numbers.

So don't freak out! The skill you're learning is still valid, companies are still hiring, and we will see bursts again soon.

With that out of the way, let's break down each role for this month.

1. Software Developer and Software Engineer

LinkedIn/Job Data (US) - June 2026:

• 36,359 Software Engineer (-4%/monthly)

• 46,156 Software Developer (-2.8%/monthly)

Google Keywords Trend graphs:

Last month both of these roles ticked up a little, with Software Engineer growing by +1.1%, and Software Developer +0.2%. This month they've dipped back down a touch, so nothing too much to worry about.

Spoiler alert for the rest of this newsletter, but the average role seems to have dipped by around 10% or higher, so this actually puts both of these roles ahead. People are still hiring at high volumes for both of these, and the demand is still huge. You're looking at around 84,000 open positions for them right now on LinkedIn alone!

Like all the roles this month, let's see how it pans out next month and see if we see a rise again even more, but both of these are fairly solid right now.

Want to get started in these roles? Check out the career path below. It will help you get set up in both Software Development and Software Engineering roles:

2. AI and Machine Learning Engineer

LinkedIn/Job Data (US) - June 2026:

• 8,600 AI Engineer (-22.2%/monthly)

• 3,388 ML Engineer (-46.3%/monthly) - Possibly broken data

Google Keywords Trend graphs:

Both of these roles saw a dip this month, after months of growth. AI Engineer's still well above where it started the year, even after the seasonal hiring burst drop-off. However, Machine Learning Engineer roles are down 46.3%, which brings it below our numbers when we started tracking in January.

So why is this? Is the whole industry dying?

No, I don't think so. In fact, the demand for people with Machine Learning skills has far outstripped the number of people with them, so it doesn't make sense to be below the January numbers. (Especially after 5 months of growth).

So I kept checking, and that's when I found something weird.

Every time I refreshed the page, the number of open job listings for Machine Learning Engineers jumped around by hundreds of postings each time over the course of a few hours.

So why is this weird?

Well, most role numbers will fluctuate by around 20 openings, as LinkedIn is live-updating all openings across the entire US. But with the ML page, it kept jumping by thousands, which smells fishy. My best guess is that the tracking for this role is broken, so I'll keep an eye on it next month.

Want to get started in these roles? Check out the career paths below:

3. Data Scientist

LinkedIn/Job Data (US) - June 2026:

• 4,820 Data Scientist (-34.7%/monthly)

Google Keywords Trend graph:

Like a few other roles this month, this one's really just back to where it sat in January and February, before the seasonal ramp-up. Like I've said every month though, AI is booming right now, and this is one of those roles where they need people with these skills to help get the most from it.

Not only that, but the Bureau of Labor Statistics still projects 33% employment growth for this role through 2034, so don't read too much into one month.

Want to get started in this role? Check out the career path below:

4. Cybersecurity Analyst and Cybersecurity Specialist

LinkedIn/Job Data (US) - June 2026:

• 2,857 Cybersecurity Specialist (-9.5%/monthly)

• 2,898 Cybersecurity Analyst (-6.4%/monthly)

Google Keywords Trend graph:

Both roles dipped a bit this month, but nothing outside the range we'd consider normal. Same seasonal cooling story as the others.

As more companies invest in AI, that means more systems, more data, and more potential vulnerabilities, so cybersecurity demand isn't going anywhere. If anything, it's going to keep rising, especially for people who understand how this all works together.

With that in mind, be sure to check out our AI for Ethical Hacking and Cybersecurity Bootcamp:

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Not only is this important for both defence and red teaming, but it's definitely a skill that employers are going to look for more and more.

I would even recommend this course to people outside of cybersecurity, simply so you know what's happening and can protect yourself better.

Want to get started in this role? Check out the career path below:

5. AI Developer and Prompt Engineer

LinkedIn/Job Data (US) - June 2026:

• 308 AI Developer (+8.1%/monthly)

• 41 Prompt Engineer (+5.1%/monthly)

Google Keywords Trend graphs:

While most roles have gone down, both of these ticked up again this month. AI Developer has climbed up to 308 roles, while Prompt Engineer bounced back to 41. Nothing huge by any means, but still a good sign.

I still think that the industry and employers are still not completely sure what to call these roles when they place job adverts, and are instead rolling these skills into more traditional roles.

I recently wrote an article where I researched every entry-level job opening for 344 cities in the US, to see which city was the best for starting your tech career. Because of that, I manually inspected thousands of roles, and I would say around 50% or more listed prompting skills as a requirement in some form, but not in the job title listing itself.

So don't sleep on these skills just because they don't have a huge number of listed openings. There's far more demand for these skills than it appears.

Want to get started in these roles or pick up these skills? Check out the career path and courses below:

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6. UX and UI Designer

LinkedIn/Job Data (US) - June 2026:

• 801 UX/UI Designer (-42.9%/monthly)

Google Keywords Trend graph:

Another role with a drop, but 801 openings lines up closely with where this role sat back in January and February, before the seasonal hiring window kicked in. So this looks like the seasonal round trip we covered up top.

Either way, AI isn't killing design jobs, because as I say every month, every new product still needs a human making sure it doesn't suck, and that gap isn't closing anytime soon. I don't know about you, but I can't stand those AI-generated posters that everyone is doing, and I'm guessing the general public isn't too far behind.

The tools may make things easier, but you still need the creative person driving it. Maybe we'll see a burst in AI design from traditionally trained designers, who knows. Either way, this isn't something that can be handed off if you want to stand out.

Want to get started in this role? Check out the career path below:

7. DevOps Engineer

LinkedIn/Job Data (US) - June 2026:

• 2,649 DevOps Engineer (-50.7%/monthly)

Google Keywords Trend graph:

This is one of the bigger swings this month on paper, but 2,649 is almost exactly where this role started the year back in January (2,651). Nothing to worry about; it's just that seasonal hiring window impact, and demand for DevOps isn't going anywhere.

Just like with a few other roles on this list, DevOps is vital to all the new AI products being built and will be secure moving forward.

Want to get started in this role? Check out the career path below:

8. Data Engineer

LinkedIn/Job Data (US) - June 2026:

• 8,238 Data Engineer (-17.3%/monthly)

Google Keywords Trend graph:

After peaking near 10,000 in May, June's number is back to roughly where it sat in February and March. Same seasonal pattern as the others, but the bigger picture hasn't changed because as companies keep building out AI products and ML pipelines, they need people keeping the data clean and reliable.

That's why I still highly recommend this role and expect this dip to turn around soon.

Want to get started in this role? Check out the career path below:

9. Data Analyst

LinkedIn/Job Data (US) - June 2026:

• 15,502 Data Analyst (-9.4%/monthly)

Google Keywords Trend graph:

After two months of recovery, this one's slipped back down, and not just back to where it started. 15,502 is actually the lowest we've recorded since we started tracking this role, dipping below even January's number.

Now it could be that this is the seasonal dip, and I know when I was writing my entry-level tech cities posts, this role came up again and again. In fact, in cities where there weren't even Software Engineer or Web Dev roles (which are most popular), you could count on seeing a Data Analyst job opening.

However, it is one of those roles that has been under threat from AI, so there could be some impact here. We won't really know until next month and how the year pans out.

I will say that almost every month you see companies that were stoked that they offloaded this to AI, and then a few months later can't understand why everything is grinding to a halt because no one who understood the data was checking it all. So, I do think that this is one of those roles that will see a turnaround.

Like always though, maybe get started here and then move into more specific data analysis such as Business Intelligence or Data Science. You'll have a more secure future while also being paid far more.

Want to get started in this role? Check out the career path below:

10. Blockchain Developer

LinkedIn/Job Data (US) - June 2026:

• 319 Blockchain Developer (-91.5%/monthly)

Google Keywords Trend graph:

This role is always up and down, as it's still a relatively new field, with only small volume, so any change looks huge. Yes, there's a drop of 90% this month; however, this brings it back close to January's starting number, so it fits that same seasonal hiring pattern.

Personally, I think you would be mad to think Web3 and blockchain won't continue to grow. It's the backbone of a more secure internet.

Want to get started in this role? Check out the career path below:

11. Business Intelligence Analyst

LinkedIn/Job Data (US) - June 2026:

• 1,286 Business Intelligence Analyst (-46.4%/monthly)

Google Keywords Trend graph:

This was one of the steadiest growers in the whole dataset, climbing every month since January, so this drop stands out, but it lines up closely with January and February's numbers, fitting the same seasonal pattern as most of the roles this month.

The case for this role hasn't changed: when budgets are tight, the people who can show where every dollar's going become more valuable, not less. Definitely recommend this role moving forward if you're numbers-oriented.

Want to get started in this role? Check out the career path below:

12. Game Developer

LinkedIn/Job Data (US) - June 2026:

• 341 Game Developer (-91.7%/monthly)

Google Keywords Trend graph:

This role is the steepest drop in the dataset, but it's close to January's starting number, so it's fitting the same seasonal pattern. Even with the pullback, the broader trajectory since January has been strong, and the long-term picture for game dev roles is still encouraging.

You have to imagine all those companies building the GTA 6 competitors will need to start hiring soon right?

Want to get started in this role? Check out the career path below:

What's next?

So that's June 2026 wrapped up.

A lot of these numbers looked scary at first glance, but it's really just the seasonal hiring window closing. Everyone's still hiring and the jobs are still there, just not in the volume they were a couple of months ago.

Don't worry about it too much; there are still literally thousands of open roles out there, with more being added daily. Not to mention, new hiring bursts will be along soon enough.

If you're trying to figure out where to point your energy, AI Engineer and Cybersecurity Analyst stood out the most, still sitting well above where they started the year, even with everything else cooling off. But you know the drill: this is one data point, not gospel, so do your own digging too.

We'll be back next month with the July numbers. Subscribe below so you don't miss it.