What is a typical Digital Forensic Analysts’ salary?

Just like many other careers, the typical salary of a digital forensic analyst depends on many factors.  Some of these factors are controllable by the digital forensic analyst and other factors are not.  The salary can range from $45,000 to $145,000 or more.  Let’s explore the factors at play.

Location, location, location

Just like home buying, the location where you are working can affect your salary.  Salaries for positions on the east coast and west coast of the U.S. tend to be higher.  The reason for the higher salary is due to the higher cost of living.  Salaries in the Midwest and other locales where the cost of living is lower, will tend to be lower than those on the coasts.  The internet is full of cost of living calculators to help in determining salary differences based on location.

Experience

Just as in other careers, experience plays a major factor in salary range.  How many years do you have in the digital forensic industry?  Was your prior experience in law enforcement, consulting, corporate or military?  Do you have testimony experience?  Those with a considerable amount of testimony experience can demand a higher salary.  Educational background and industry specific certifications can help with getting a higher salary, but ultimately experience in the digital forensics industry will mean more.  Similarly a Senior Digital Forensic Analyst will make a higher salary than a Digital Forensic Analyst with less experience.

Job Description

A digital forensic analyst can work in multiple types of jobs each one demanding a different salary than another.  Read the job description.  If the job description is heavy on forensic collections but not so much on analysis or testimony, the salary will tend to be lower.  Is the job working as a consultant for a company, working for a government agency, or is the job working internal to a company?  Are you managing a team of digital forensic analysts or just working with others on the job?  Will you be working on civil or criminal matters or will you be performing incident response and malware analysis work?

Throw it all out the window…

Ultimately the salary for a digital forensic analyst may have no rhyme or reason.  A hiring company is setting a price based on what they are willing, or not willing, to pay.  The hiring company may be desperate for a specific set of skills and willing to pay a high salary for those skills.  The hiring company may already have a set pay scale to fit in with the rest of the team and will price their job offer accordingly.

A Final Word on Salary

When job hunting and deciding on the appropriate job, don’t just consider salary.  One should look at other benefits being offered such as paid time off, contributions to insurance, a 401k plan and matching, the possibility of achieving bonuses and things like profit sharing.  The total package needs to be considered and compared to other total packages to avoid selling yourself short in an area just for a slightly different salary.