Salt Lake City ranks 16th in CBRE’s ‘Scoring Tech Talent’ report

Salt Lake City continues to establish itself as a thriving tech hub, ranking 16th overall in CBRE’s 2025 Scoring Tech Talent report. The city is attracting attention for its robust tech talent, a skilled workforce, and a growing population, according to CBRE’s report. 

CBRE’s annual Scoring Tech Talent report covers 75 North American markets, ranks the top 50 tech markets in the U.S. and Canada and outlines tech talent labor market trends amid economic shifts and increased remote hiring. Tech talent is a group of highly skilled workers in more than 20 tech-oriented occupations — such as software engineers and systems and data managers — across all industries.

Salt Lake City’s tech talent workforce has surged, growing by 13.3 percent from 2021 to 2024, the 11th-highest of the 30 largest tech markets. The city ranks sixth among large U.S. markets for its increase (20.9 percent) in residents in their 20s with college degrees from 2018 to 2023 and second overall for its increase (30.1 percent) in residents in their 30s with college degrees. Salt Lake City is the second-most-concentrated market among the 50 North American markets for concentration of residents in their 20s, at 17.4 percent. That’s second only to Canada’s Waterloo Region (19.1 percent).

“Salt Lake City’s rise as a tech hub is fueled by a potent combination of factors. We’re seeing a surge in tech talent, particularly in their 20s, driven by a historically high birth rate and a strong pipeline of graduates from our major universities along the Wasatch Front,” said Jillian Johnson Hanks, vice president at CBRE in Salt Lake City. “This, in addition to the city’s quality of life and outdoor access, compels tech talent to choose to build their careers and families here. Adding to this, a thriving entrepreneurial spirit is fostering the growth of homegrown tech companies.”

Salt Lake City stood out in the report in several key areas:

Salt Lake City stands out for its dedication to education and its commitment to building a strong workforce. The city boasts the ninth-highest number of residents with tech degrees (8,715), a clear indicator of its robust talent pipeline. This focus on education is paying off, as the city produces more tech graduates (21,617 from 2021 to 2023) than the number of tech jobs created (7,160 from 2022 to 2024), making Salt Lake City an attractive destination for expanding companies seeking skilled employees.

The city is relatively affordable for tech workers in that its average annual apartment rent amounts to 15.9 percent of its average annual tech wage. That’s 20th-least expensive among the 50 North American markets.

The report notes that overall U.S. tech talent employment grew only 1.1 percent (64,140 jobs) in 2024, far below its peak in 2022 (7 percent). Canada had stronger growth (5.9 percent) than the U.S., adding 66,600 tech talent jobs overall, primarily in the high-tech industry. The number of computer and information systems managers surged in the U.S. (9 percent) and Canada (16 percent) due to the widespread adoption of AI, making that job the fastest-growing among all tech talent roles across North America. In 2024, computer and information systems managers accounted for 83 percent of U.S. tech talent job growth.