Database administrators earn less in the UK than mainland Europe, US - report

UK DBAs earn less than half of the $94,000 US DBAs earn on average, suggests survey

Database administrators (DBAs) based in the UK earn less than their counterparts in mainland Europe and in the US, according to a survey by Microsoft SQL server tools vendor Redgate Software.

The survey, which was carried out on Redgate's community site SQLServerCentral, found that DBAs earned an average of $94,176 per year in the US - the highest average of any region. Respondents in the UK, by contrast, earn less than half of this amount - just $44,483, which is also $10,000 lower than the average in continental Europe ($54,565).

DBAs also earn more on average in Canada ($69,324), Australia ($78,000) and New Zealand ($82,200), while DBAs in India earn significantly less on average ($21,766). The Americas come out on top when looking at average salary by continent ($85,245), followed by Europe ($51,122), Africa ($49,248), Asia Pacific including Australasia ($35,334), and the Middle East ($20,250).

Perhaps unsurprisingly, DBAs in the public sector earned the least on average ($71,930), while those in utilities ($104,204), logistics ($99,681), industrial/automotive ($91,535) and retail ($89,640) came top on the list of industry sector average salaries.

Those were followed by DBAs in real estate ($89,937), not-for-profit ($84,104), healthcare ($83,104) and finance ($77,670). Technology providers paid on average just slightly more than those in the public sector ($71,930).

The survey, conducted at the end of 2016, had 432 respondents from 40 countries with a range of average full-time salaries from $200,000 for someone with 19 years' experience working in a bank in Italy, all the way down to $1,700 for a lead engineer in India at a technology provider.

"This snapshot shows the best places to work if you want to be a well-paid DBA," said Steve Jones, Microsoft data platform 'most valuable professional' (MVP).

"The message is clear: those in the US and in the utility sectors have the highest average salaries, making them the top choices for experienced DBAs, while the UK lags behind the rest of Europe when it comes to take-home pay," he added.