PMP

Average PMP Salary 2021

The Project Management Professional (PMP) certification by the Project Management Institute (PMI) is one of the most well-known and recognizable credentials within the IT industry today. Its popularity is due to the fact that it can help you succeed in a growing profession, advance in your career and help boost your earnings, with the median salary for those who hold the PMP certification continuing to grow at a considerable rate.

According to PMI’s report on Job Growth and Talent Gap, “by 2027, employers will need 87.7 million individuals working in project management-oriented roles.” Currently, as per the PMI Certification Registry, there are at least 345,468 PMP certified professionals in the United States. More than 1 million hold a PMP certification worldwide.

“With an expected increase in jobs, competitive salaries and the chance to make a difference, the future is bright for project professionals,” PMI.org mentions in its Project Management Job Growth and Talent Gap 2017–2027 report. Organizations are actively seeking out those who hold project management-related certifications.

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Salary overview

There are several advantages of having the PMP certification, and one of them is definitely financial reward.

According to Salary.com, a project management professional in the United States earns between $69,069 and $253,748 as of June 28, 2021. Of course, the income can vary depending on the role in question; for example, a general project manager has an average wage of $88,000; a project manager in IT makes an average of $98,000; and senior project managers earn an average of $117,000, as per PayScale.

PMI.org published the Earning Power: Project Management Salary Survey, 11th Edition, which provides input from 32,000 respondents in 42 countries and gives a comprehensive view of project managers’ earnings around the world and “offers insight into the value of project management skills, experience and certifications.” The report shows:

• The vast majority of survey respondents (82%) who have the PMP certification earn 22% higher on average than their peers who do not hold the credential.
• Nearly three-quarters of respondents (72%) report that their total compensation increased over the 12 months prior to completing the salary survey, with about one quarter (28%) reported increases of at least 5% over that time period.

PMP certification holders who demonstrate the largest salary increases are in the Philippines and Indonesia, where they report a median salary over 80% higher than those who do not hold the certification. In the United States, the difference is still a sizable 26%.

In the Philippines, the median salary, when converted to U.S. dollars, ranged from $17,247 for a project manager I to $24,524 for a project manager II and $36,167 for a project manager III.  

The survey also shows the countries where project practitioners report the highest median salaries, which are Switzerland ($132,086), the U.S. ($116,000) and Australia ($101,381); whereas the countries reporting the lowest median salaries are Pakistan ($14,914) and Egypt ($13,933).

PMP details

For those of you who are unfamiliar with the exam, you are given 230 minutes to complete the 180 questions which cover the following three exam domains: people (42%), process (50%) and business environment (8%), as per the latest January 2021 update.

• People: focuses on the soft skills that project management professionals need to effectively manage a team.
• Process: focuses on the technical aspects of project management.
• Business environment: focuses on how projects and organizational strategy are connected.

Prep for the PMP certification by reviewing the Exam Content Outline. Questions are a combination of multiple-choice, multiple responses, hotspot, drag and drop and limited fill-in-the-blank. See prototype questions to learn more. Upon completion, the computer notifies the candidate if they have passed or failed the exam and displays the candidate's proficiency level in each of the domain areas.

Only candidates who have met certain education and professional experience requirements in the online PMI application are eligible to sit for the PMP exam. The member price is $405 and the non-member price is $555. Scheduling a test date requires a unique PMI eligibility ID. When ready, "Log in to PMI.org and navigate to ‘Review Application Status’ under myPMI. Click ‘Schedule Exam’. You will be directed to schedule your online proctored exam through Pearson VUE."

You are a holder of the certification as long as you have an active certification status. The PMP certification is maintained by earning professional development units (PDUs), which are needed to fulfill continuing certification requirements (CCRs).

According to the May 2021 PMI Fact File Stats, there are over 1,151,458 people worldwide who actively hold the PMP qualification.

Earn your PMP, guaranteed!

Enroll in a PMP Boot Camp and earn one of the industry’s most respected certifications — guaranteed.

Get Pricing

Increase your earnings with PMI's PMP

Whether you’re a recent graduate or seasoned professional in managing enterprise-level projects, PMI’s PMP certification can open up a lot of doors. This well-regarded qualification has shown to be of value to the job market. Getting certified is taking that extra step in your professional development that demonstrates excellence in the field and can give you not only a deep sense of personal satisfaction but also a salary increase.

So, if you’re ready to impress prospective employers and stand out from the crowd, this could be an ideal time to acquire the PMP certification. Surely this credential might increase the chances of being hired and have advantages in the job market, if not widen your career options, as well as excel as a project manager in your current position.

 

Sources:

• PMP Certification, PMI.org
• Project Management Institute, PMI.org
• PMP Handbook, PMI.org
• Exam Content Outline, PMI.org
• Job Growth and Talent Gap, PMI.org
• May 2021 PMI Fact File Stats, ProjectManagement.com
• Is Earning the PMP® Worth It?, Project Management Academy®
• The Path to Earning the PMP Credential, Project Management Academy®
• Earning Power: Project Management Salary Survey, PMI.org
• Salary for Certification: Project Management Professional (PMP), PayScale, Inc.
• Project Management Professional (PMP) Salary in the United States, Salary.com
• PMI Salary Survey Reveals Project Management Practitioners with the PMP Certification Earn 22% More, PMI.org