Occupation leaderboard · FY2026

Top H-1B Occupations FY2026

SOC occupations ranked by H-1B filing volume across FY2010–FY2026. The list is dominated by tech roles (15-xxxx series) and engineering occupations (17-xxxx).

Summary

Software Developers lead H-1B sponsorship by a wide margin, accounting for 2.8 million filings with a median wage of $102,000. Computer Systems Analysts rank second with 792,250 filings, followed by Computer Occupations (All Other) at 644,075 filings. Together, the top three tech roles represent nearly 60% of all H-1B activity.

Beyond software development, common H-1B occupations span data science, quality assurance, database administration, and IT management. Computer and Information Systems Managers earn the highest median wage at $150,000, while Data Scientists command $102,700. Other significant occupations include Management Analysts (220,414 filings), Financial Analysts (163,725), and Mechanical Engineers (135,602), reflecting H-1B use across business and engineering disciplines.

Median wages range from $59,500 (Medical Scientists) to $150,000 (IT Managers), reflecting both role level and specialization. The dominance of computer and tech roles reflects labor market demand in software, cloud infrastructure, and data analytics.

top H-1B occupations
most common H-1B roles
H-1B filing statistics by job
software developer H-1B filings
H-1B occupation ranking

Top 10 at a glance

Computer Occupations and Software Developers dwarf the rest of the list.

Software Developers

2,765,226 · 15-1252

Computer Systems Analysts

792,250 · 15-1211

Computer Occupations, All Other

644,075 · 15-1299

Software Quality Assurance Analysts and Testers

367,097 · 15-1253

Data Scientists

340,799 · 15-2051

Computer Programmers

307,209 · 15-1251

Management Analysts

220,414 · 13-1111

Financial and Investment Analysts

163,725 · 13-2051

Computer and Information Systems Managers

155,662 · 11-3021

Accountants and Auditors

154,950 · 13-2011

Distribution

Long-tail spread across 100 SOC codes.

Distribution by rank
Rank	Value
1	2,765,226
2	792,250
3	644,075
4	367,097
5	340,799
6	307,209
7	220,414
8	163,725
9	155,662
10	154,950
11	135,602
12	112,895
13	106,820
14	106,242
15	100,500
16	98,627
17	97,842
18	94,342
19	83,967
20	80,044
21	73,095
22	70,778
23	66,960
24	64,965
25	56,526
26	52,572
27	46,243
28	42,431
29	39,482
30	38,479
31	36,921
32	36,600
33	34,895
34	32,945
35	30,947
36	29,702
37	28,893
38	28,296
39	27,913
40	27,908
41	26,708
42	25,148
43	24,777
44	22,783
45	22,007
46	21,921
47	20,607
48	18,902
49	18,798
50	18,704
51	18,455
52	18,375
53	17,457
54	17,424
55	17,095
56	16,396
57	16,393
58	16,102
59	15,151
60	14,642
61	14,581
62	13,806
63	13,578
64	13,317
65	12,851
66	12,778
67	12,209
68	11,926
69	11,853
70	11,846
71	11,769
72	11,051
73	10,698
74	10,438
75	10,155
76	9,658
77	9,161
78	9,087
79	8,611
80	8,203
81	8,040
82	7,495
83	7,494
84	7,436
85	7,359
86	7,274
87	7,249
88	7,099
89	6,762
90	6,541
91	6,484
92	6,482
93	6,269
94	6,167
95	6,042
96	5,981
97	5,980
98	5,934
99	5,903
100	5,899

median 18,455

#1: 2,765,226rank#100: 5,899

100 ranked entries

Showing 1–50 of 100 rows

#	Entity	SOC	Filings	Median wage
1	Software Developers	15-1252	2,765,226	$102,000
2	Computer Systems Analysts	15-1211	792,250	$70,000
3	Computer Occupations, All Other	15-1299	644,075	$88,489
4	Software Quality Assurance Analysts and Testers	15-1253	367,097	$81,328
5	Data Scientists	15-2051	340,799	$102,700
6	Computer Programmers	15-1251	307,209	$68,640
7	Management Analysts	13-1111	220,414	$78,707
8	Financial and Investment Analysts	13-2051	163,725	$85,000
9	Computer and Information Systems Managers	11-3021	155,662	$150,000
10	Accountants and Auditors	13-2011	154,950	$67,500
11	Mechanical Engineers	17-2141	135,602	$84,000
12	Industrial Engineers	17-2112	112,895	$89,217
13	Database Administrators	15-1242	106,820	$84,000
14	Market Research Analysts and Marketing Specialists	13-1161	106,242	$60,320
15	Medical Scientists, Except Epidemiologists	19-1042	100,500	$59,592
16	Physicians, All Other	29-1229	98,627	$185,000
17	Biological Science Teachers, Postsecondary	25-1042	97,842	$90,000
18	Electronics Engineers, Except Computer	17-2072	94,342	$109,470
19	Network and Computer Systems Administrators	15-1244	83,967	$76,000
20	Operations Research Analysts	15-2031	80,044	$95,493
21	Civil Engineers	17-2051	73,095	$75,000
22	Electrical Engineers	17-2071	70,778	$89,378
23	Biological Technicians	19-4021	66,960	$54,000
24	Information Security Analysts	15-1212	64,965	$105,144
25	Biochemists and Biophysicists	19-1021	56,526	$57,100
26	General and Operations Managers	11-1021	52,572	$113,714
27	Physical Therapists	29-1123	46,243	$70,803
28	Statisticians	15-2041	42,431	$90,200
29	Database Architects	15-1243	39,482	$96,500
30	Computer Network Architects	15-1241	38,479	$89,000
31	Elementary School Teachers, Except Special Education	25-2021	36,921	$48,228
32	Graphic Designers	27-1024	36,600	$70,000
33	Financial Specialists, All Other	13-2099	34,895	$110,000
34	Marketing Managers	11-2021	32,945	$122,832
35	Architects, Except Landscape and Naval	17-1011	30,947	$65,000
36	Sales Engineers	41-9031	29,702	$100,000
37	Financial Managers	11-3031	28,893	$125,000
38	Biological Scientists, All Other	19-1029	28,296	$75,000
39	Secondary School Teachers, Except Special and Career/Technical Education	25-2031	27,913	$49,317
40	Physicists	19-2012	27,908	$80,205
41	Medical and Clinical Laboratory Technologists	29-2011	26,708	$56,576
42	Logisticians	13-1081	25,148	$75,000
43	Computer and Information Research Scientists	15-1221	24,777	$137,000
44	Health Specialties Teachers, Postsecondary	25-1071	22,783	$110,160
45	Lawyers	23-1011	22,007	$140,000
46	Architectural and Engineering Managers	11-9041	21,921	$135,054
47	Atmospheric and Space Scientists	19-2021	20,607	$50,112
48	Engineers, All Other	17-2199	18,902	$92,000
49	Chemists	19-2031	18,798	$70,000
50	Chemical Engineers	17-2041	18,704	$87,600
51	Commercial and Industrial Designers	27-1021	18,455	$73,500
52	Web Developers	15-1254	18,375	$69,950
53	Human Resources Specialists	13-1071	17,457	$60,100
54	Dentists, General	29-1021	17,424	$143,000
55	Pharmacists	29-1051	17,095	$114,608
56	Project Management Specialists	13-1082	16,396	$128,544
57	Computer Hardware Engineers	17-2061	16,393	$123,784
58	Sales Managers	11-2022	16,102	$110,053
59	Social Science Research Assistants	19-4061	15,151	$90,000
60	Chief Executives	11-1011	14,642	$166,400
61	Transportation, Storage, and Distribution Managers	11-3071	14,581	$108,819
62	Computer User Support Specialists	15-1232	13,806	$74,110
63	Cost Estimators	13-1051	13,578	$75,000
64	Compliance Officers	13-1041	13,317	$75,171
65	Economists	19-3011	12,851	$94,924
66	Materials Engineers	17-2131	12,778	$91,470
67	Financial Risk Specialists	13-2054	12,209	$100,000
68	Medical and Health Services Managers	11-9111	11,926	$83,000
69	Web and Digital Interface Designers	15-1255	11,853	$80,000
70	General Internal Medicine Physicians	29-1216	11,846	$175,000
71	Public Relations Specialists	27-3031	11,769	$52,000
72	Training and Development Specialists	13-1151	11,051	$70,304
73	Construction Managers	11-9021	10,698	$81,286
74	Industrial Production Managers	11-3051	10,438	$96,000
75	Teaching Assistants, Postsecondary	25-9044	10,155	$62,500
76	Occupational Therapists	29-1122	9,658	$71,739
77	Foreign Language and Literature Teachers, Postsecondary	25-1124	9,161	$56,950
78	Bioengineers and Biomedical Engineers	17-2031	9,087	$88,150
79	Pediatricians, General	29-1221	8,611	$180,000
80	Family Medicine Physicians	29-1215	8,203	$180,000
81	Judicial Law Clerks	23-1012	8,040	$64,480
82	Registered Nurses	29-1141	7,495	$69,826
83	Interior Designers	27-1025	7,494	$55,000
84	Microbiologists	19-1022	7,436	$86,570
85	Computer Network Support Specialists	15-1231	7,359	$67,205
86	Actuaries	15-2011	7,274	$93,840
87	Speech-Language Pathologists	29-1127	7,249	$71,104
88	Rehabilitation Counselors	21-1015	7,099	$39,127
89	Business Teachers, Postsecondary	25-1011	6,762	$103,774
90	Psychiatrists	29-1223	6,541	$210,000
91	Budget Analysts	13-2031	6,484	$57,812
92	Software Quality Assurance Engineers and Testers	15-1199	6,482	$69,170
93	Special Education Teachers, Elementary School	25-2056	6,269	$53,003
94	Art Directors	27-1011	6,167	$96,000
95	Computer Science Teachers, Postsecondary	25-1021	6,042	$81,600
96	Managers, All Other	11-9199	5,981	$111,000
97	Business Operations Specialists, All Other	13-1199	5,980	$63,710
98	Agricultural Sciences Teachers, Postsecondary	25-1041	5,934	$105,000
99	Veterinarians	29-1131	5,903	$94,000
100	Natural Sciences Managers	11-9121	5,899	$65,000

Showing 1–50 of 100 rows

Methodology

Sourced from the SOC classifier’s output on each LCA disclosure. Records that failed automated classification (about 4.7% of the corpus) are excluded from this ranking. Median wage is computed across all certified and pending filings for the SOC, with out-of-band values (< $20k, > $1M) clipped.