[May 2026] Tech Job Market Trends Monthly

Welcome to the 5th 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 May 2026.

Current Job Trends in the Tech Industry for May 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:

After last month's chaos, May is actually a pretty calm one, with the tech job market starting to find its feet again, which is great news after everything we covered last month.

So why is this happening?

Well, there are a few potential reasons:

• Some of the tariff uncertainty that's been hanging over businesses for months is starting to ease, which means companies are a little more willing to make decisions again

• US GDP also grew 2% in Q1 2026, a big jump from the 0.5% we saw at the end of 2025. It's not a roaring economy, but steady enough to stop the bleeding and bring on new hires

Speaking of new hires, that ties in perfectly to a brand new article I just launched over on our blog:

So where's the best city to start a tech career?

Everyone assumes that SF, Austin, or NYC are the best places to get hired as a beginner in the tech industry, so I wanted to put that to the test. I went ahead and analysed 344 US cities for entry-level tech roles to see where the best options actually are, and the results will surprise you. (No spoilers here!).

Oh, and as another added bonus, if you missed last month's newsletter, we went ahead and covered the highlights in this brand new video over on our YouTube channel:

With all that out of the way, keep reading, and we'll break down the job data for each role this month.

1. Software Developer and Software Engineer

LinkedIn/Job Data (US) - May 2026:

• 37,880 Software Engineer (+1.1%/monthly)

• 47,510 Software Developer (+0.2%/monthly)

Google Keywords Trend graphs:

After last month's 39% drop, the number of Software Engineer roles has crept back into positive territory with a 1.1% gain. It's not a huge number, but it's exactly what you'd hope to see.

So why is this?

Well, as we predicted last month, once the big players finished pulling their listings en masse to divert people and funds into AI roles, the numbers were always likely to stabilize, and that's exactly what's happened. That's because the underlying demand for these roles hasn't gone anywhere; it was just temporarily masked by the April restructuring wave from the likes of Oracle, Meta, and Microsoft.

The combined Software Engineer and Software Developer open jobs still account for well over 85,000 open roles on LinkedIn alone, which is the largest pool of jobs in our entire dataset by a long way.

From here on out, we should hopefully see things stay stable or even grow over time.

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) - May 2026:

• 11,051 AI Engineer (+6.1%/monthly)

• 6,314 ML Engineer (-0.5%/monthly)

Google Keywords Trend graphs:

AI Engineer open positions keep climbing, and it's now at the highest point since we started tracking in January. That's five consecutive months of growth with no signs of slowing down!

ML Engineer dipped very slightly this month, down just 0.5%. Honestly, though, that's close enough to flat that it's not worth reading too much into. One month of marginal movement after four straight months of strong growth isn't a trend; it's just noise.

The bigger picture for both roles remains exactly the same as it's been all year:

• Companies are still pouring money into AI development

• And they still need the people who can actually build it

That demand isn't going anywhere but up right now.

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

3. Data Scientist

LinkedIn/Job Data (US) - May 2026:

• 7,383 Data Scientist (-4.3%/monthly)

Google Keywords Trend graph:

This month marks the first dip for open Data Scientist job postings since we started tracking, but after four consecutive months of strong growth, a small correction was always likely.

This is a vital role in the coming AI growth, so I wouldn't worry about it too much right now. The long-term outlook from the Bureau of Labor Statistics still projects 33% employment growth for this role through 2034.

One month doesn't move that needle.

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

4. Cybersecurity Analyst and Cybersecurity Specialist

LinkedIn/Job Data (US) - May 2026:

• 3,157 Cybersecurity Specialist (+8.5%/monthly)

• 3,096 Cybersecurity Analyst (+7.9%/monthly)

Google Keywords Trend graph:

For the first time since we started tracking, Cybersecurity Specialist and Cybersecurity Analyst are almost neck and neck, with just 61 roles separating them.

Spoiler alert for my best entry-level tech cities post, but almost every single city had jobs posted that required cybersecurity skills or were purely cybersecurity focused. That's only going to grow as more companies invest in AI, as more systems mean more data and more potential vulnerabilities.

That being said, you definitely need to understand how AI affects cybersecurity, which is why we recently launched our AI for Ethical Hacking and Cybersecurity Bootcamp. Definitely worth checking out if you're in this space or looking to get into it.

Intermediate

The AI for Ethical Hacking & Cybersecurity Bootcamp

8.5 Hours •67 Lessons

Learn how AI is changing the cybersecurity world and how to harness its power for yourself. You’ll build practical tools, improve workflows, explore AI threats and defenses, and use AI in hands-on security scenarios.

Aleksa Tamburkovski

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

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

5. AI Developer and Prompt Engineer

LinkedIn/Job Data (US) - May 2026:

• 285 AI Developer (+5.2%/monthly)

• 39 Prompt Engineer (-33.9%/monthly)

Google Keywords Trend graphs:

AI Developer ticking up again to 285 is encouraging and consistent with the broader stability we're seeing across the market this month, while Prompt Engineer is a different story.

So let's break this down:

At just 39 open job postings, it's now hit its lowest point since we started tracking, and the direction has been consistently downward since March. But here's something interesting that I found when pulling the AI Engineer data this month: several listings were coming up as "AI Prompt Engineer", which tells you something.

The role isn't dying; it's still finding its name among the companies that want people with these skills, and they're not sure what to list the job as yet. Some have job openings that state Prompt Engineering, while others have LLM skills, AI experience, or now seemingly fold it directly into AI Engineer titles. (Which kind of makes sense as it is a key skill for the AI Engineer role).

The demand is there. The industry just hasn't caught up yet on what to call this role. But either way, this continues to be a vital skill for almost anyone in tech right now.

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

Beginner

Prompt Engineering Bootcamp (Working With AI & LLMs): Zero to Mastery

32 Hours •290 Lessons

Stop memorizing random prompts. Instead, learn how Large Language Models (LLMs) actually work and how to use them effectively. This course will take you from being a complete beginner to the forefront of the AI world.

Scott Kerr

6. UX and UI Designer

LinkedIn/Job Data (US) - May 2026:

• 1,402 UX/UI Designer (+9.4%/monthly)

Google Keywords Trend graph:

Five consecutive months of growth for UI/UX, but this is the strongest gain we've seen in a while at 9.4%.

I say it every issue of this newsletter, but the narrative around AI replacing designers keeps circulating, and the job data keeps telling a different story. If anything, the wave of AI development is creating more design work, not less.

Why?

Because every new AI product, every rebuilt interface, and every consumer-facing tool needs a human eye behind it to make it actually good. But that gap between what AI can generate and what people want to look at isn't closing, and designers are the ones bridging it.

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

7. DevOps Engineer

LinkedIn/Job Data (US) - May 2026:

• 5,375 DevOps Engineer (-0.4%/monthly)

Google Keywords Trend graph:

After last month's massive 58% jump, DevOps has essentially flatlined this month, which is fine, because after a big spike like that, this is the kind of thing you want to see. It just proves it wasn't a one-off last month!

I have faith this role will continue to grow, simply because every AI product being built needs infrastructure behind it, and DevOps engineers are the ones keeping it running. The demand is there, and five months of data consistently point in the right direction.

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

8. Data Engineer

LinkedIn/Job Data (US) - May 2026:

• 9,959 Data Engineer (+4.5%/monthly)

Google Keywords Trend graph:

Another solid month for Data Engineers, now approaching 10,000 open roles for the first time since we started tracking, so this meme seems appropriate in celebration:

All joking aside, this is great news and will continue to go up. Simply because as companies continue to invest in AI products and machine learning pipelines, the demand for people who can keep the underlying data clean, reliable, and accessible keeps growing alongside it.

Bad data in means bad results out, regardless of how good your AI is, and that's not a problem that's going away.

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

9. Data Analyst

LinkedIn/Job Data (US) - May 2026:

• 17,101 Data Analyst (+2%/monthly)

Google Keywords Trend graph:

Two months of recovery now for Data Analysts, with a 2.0% gain following last month's 0.9% bounce back. It's not explosive growth, but the direction has flipped, and that matters.

The pressure from AI tools on this role isn't going away, and we've covered that in detail over the past few months. But what this steady recovery suggests is that companies are realising there's a ceiling to how much of this work they can hand off to a tool.

Why?

Well, someone still needs to understand what the numbers actually mean, catch the mistakes, and turn the insights into decisions. That's not something you can fully automate, and the hiring data is starting to reflect that.

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

10. Blockchain Developer

LinkedIn/Job Data (US) - May 2026:

• 3,736 Blockchain Developer (+0.1%/monthly)

Google Keywords Trend graph:

After last month's 215% spike, Blockchain has essentially flatlined this month. As I said before, though, this is a good thing because the last thing we would want to see is the spike up and then drop down again.

What's really interesting, though, is if we look back at the growth since we started tracking this role. Back in January, we were tracking just 244 openings, and right now we're sitting at 3,736. That's over 15x growth in five months, which is a remarkable trajectory.

Yes, those are still smaller numbers than some roles, and it's still fairly early days for this particular skill. But with high salaries and a lack of people who can fulfill the role, it could definitely be worth looking into.

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

11. Business Intelligence Analyst

LinkedIn/Job Data (US) - May 2026:

• 2,399 Business Intelligence Analyst (+6.1%/monthly)

Google Keywords Trend graph:

Another consistent month for BI Analysts, and another step in the right direction. This role has now grown every single month since we started tracking in January, which puts it alongside AI Engineer as one of the most consistent upward trends in the whole dataset.

The reason remains the same as it's been all year. When budgets are tight and leadership needs to know exactly where every dollar is going, the people who can provide that clarity become more valuable, not less.

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

12. Game Developer

LinkedIn/Job Data (US) - May 2026:

• 4,088 Game Developer (-5.9%/monthly)

Google Keywords Trend graph:

After last month's eye-watering 304% jump, Game Developer has pulled back slightly to just 5.9% growth this month. Again, not a bad thing at all. Looking back since we started tracking, we've gone from 465 openings to over 4,000 just five months later, which is great news for those wanting to build a career in this industry.

Speaking of which, we just launched another course on game design:

Beginner

Unity Bootcamp: Tower Defense Game Development

13.5 Hours •135 Lessons

Learn game development by building a complete Tower Defense strategy game called "Monster Siege" with Unity, C#, enemy AI, tower systems, UI, animations, audio, and more using professional workflows - all from scratch!

Mike Sirman

In this course, you’ll learn the fundamentals of game development by building a Tower Defense strategy game called "Monster Siege" from scratch, all while learning the systems that power real games. So instead of relying on prebuilt frameworks, you’ll develop your own enemy movement, tower targeting, shooting mechanics, UI systems, audio management, and gameplay logic step by step.

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

What's next?

So that's May 2026, and honestly, it's a bit of a breather after everything we've been through the last few months.

The market isn't back to where it was, but it's stabilizing, and the same story that's been playing out all year is still holding. Specialist skills in AI, data, cybersecurity, and infrastructure keep growing while the more generalist roles find their feet again.

If you're figuring out where to focus your energy, those four areas are where the data keeps pointing, but as always, take everything here as one data point and do your own research. If I were starting out or upskilling right now, I know where I'd be putting my time.

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