Computer programmers are about average in terms of happiness.
At CareerExplorer, we conduct an ongoing survey with millions of people and ask them how satisfied they are with their careers. As it turns out, computer programmers rate their career happiness 3.2 out of 5 stars which puts them in the top 49% of careers.
To put this into perspective, we compared how happy computer programmers are to similar careers in the industry. Take a look at the results below:
Salaries and satisfaction ratings in similar careers
| Career | Satisfaction | Avg Salary |
|---|---|---|
| Web designer | 3.3 | $37k |
| Data scientist | 3.3 | $88k |
| Web developer | 3.3 | $69k |
| Computer repair technician | 3.3 | $47k |
| Front-End developer | 3.3 | $51k |
| Computer programmer | 3.2 | $85k |
| Network administrator | 3.2 | $47k |
| IT security consultant | 3.2 | $60k |
| Security engineer | 3.2 | $74k |
| Software engineer | 3.2 | $93k |
So what does it mean to be happy in your career? Let’s break it down into different dimensions:
- Salary: Are computer programmers happy with their salary?
- Meaning: Do computer programmers find their jobs meaningful?
- Personality fit: How well suited are people’s personalities to their everyday tasks as computer programmers?
- Work environment: How enjoyable are computer programmer’s work environments?
- Skills utilization: Are computer programmers making the best use of their abilities?
Are computer programmers happy with their salary?
Computer programmers rated their satisfaction with their salaries 3.4/5. The majority of computer programmers are quite happy with their salaries, with very few having complaints about their income level.
We asked computer programmers how fairly compensated they are for their work.
Their response was:
3.4 out of 5 stars
2912 computer programmers
19% of computer programmers rated their compensation 5 stars
33% of computer programmers rated their compensation 4 stars
26% of computer programmers rated their compensation 3 stars
13% of computer programmers rated their compensation 2 stars
9% of computer programmers rated their compensation 1 stars
Do computer programmers find their jobs meaningful?
On average, computer programmers rate the meaningfulness of their work a 2.9/5. While most computer programmers aren’t very fulfilled by their work, some people may still manage to find meaning in it.
We asked computer programmers how meaningful they found their work.
Their response was:
2.9 out of 5 stars
2965 computer programmers
14% of computer programmers rated how meaningful they found their career 5 stars
20% of computer programmers rated how meaningful they found their career 4 stars
25% of computer programmers rated how meaningful they found their career 3 stars
22% of computer programmers rated how meaningful they found their career 2 stars
19% of computer programmers rated how meaningful they found their career 1 stars
How well are people’s personalities suited to everyday tasks as computer programmers?
Computer programmers rated their personality fit with their work an average of 3.7/5. The majority of computer programmers find their personalities quite well suited to their work, with relatively few having complaints about their fit.
We asked computer programmers how well their personalities fit into their careers.
Their response was:
3.7 out of 5 stars
3392 computer programmers
28% of computer programmers rated their career fit 5 stars
36% of computer programmers rated their career fit 4 stars
23% of computer programmers rated their career fit 3 stars
9% of computer programmers rated their career fit 2 stars
4% of computer programmers rated their career fit 1 stars
How enjoyable is a computer programmer’s work environment?
As a whole, computer programmers rated their enjoyment of their work environment 3.6/5. A solid majority of computer programmers enjoy their work environment, probably contributing to overall higher satisfaction with working as a computer programmer.
We asked computer programmers how much they enjoyed their work environment.
Their response was:
3.6 out of 5 stars
3375 computer programmers
23% of computer programmers rated their work environment 5 stars
34% of computer programmers rated their work environment 4 stars
24% of computer programmers rated their work environment 3 stars
13% of computer programmers rated their work environment 2 stars
6% of computer programmers rated their work environment 1 stars
Are computer programmers making the best use of their abilities?
Former computer programmers on CareerExplorer have rated their skills utilization 3.3/5. Most computer programmers are satisfied with how well their abilities are skills are made of use.
We asked computer programmers how well their abilities were used in their careers.
Their response was:
3.3 out of 5 stars
3380 computer programmers
20% of computer programmers rated their how well their skills were utilized in their career 5 stars
27% of computer programmers rated their how well their skills were utilized in their career 4 stars
26% of computer programmers rated their how well their skills were utilized in their career 3 stars
19% of computer programmers rated their how well their skills were utilized in their career 2 stars
9% of computer programmers rated their how well their skills were utilized in their career 1 stars