Side-by-side distribution
CISO
$267,500
median · per year, annualized USD
- Disclosing
- 30.6%
- Live roles
- 147
Penetration Tester
$160,000
median · per year, annualized USD
- Disclosing
- 40.5%
- Live roles
- 158
Highest-paying jobs
Head of National Security Sales (DoW/IC)
Chief Information Security Officer
Vice President of Cybersecurity & Chief Information Security Officer (CISO)
Chief Information Security Officer
Member of Technical Staff, Head of Security
Advisory CISO
Head of Security
VP, Global Head of Product Security and Risk
Head of Security
Head of Security & Trust
Highest-paying jobs
Member of Technical Staff (Offensive Security Engineer)
Security Engineer, Offensive Security
Security Engineer, Level 5, Offensive Security
Senior Offensive Security Engineer
Senior Offensive Security Engineer
Staff Security Engineer (Penetration Tester)
Sr. Staff Security Engineer – AI, VMR, Offensive Security
Senior Information Security Engineer, Offensive Security
Offensive Security Engineer
Staff Offensive Security Engineer
Top companies hiring
| Company | Median | Roles |
|---|---|---|
Mimecast
|
$196,000 | 2 |
|
Anthropic
|
$625,000 | 1 |
| DP DLA Piper | $600,000 | 1 |
| CI Circle | $341,250 | 1 |
|
Profound
|
$337,500 | 1 |
|
Harvey
|
$323,000 | 1 |
|
AeroVironment
|
$319,250 | 1 |
|
Anduril Industries
|
$317,000 | 1 |
Samsara
Booz Allen Hamilton
GDIT
Leidos
CACI
CISO salary by location
| Location | Median | Roles |
|---|---|---|
| Chicago | $341,250 | 3 |
| Boston | $311,250 | 4 |
| New York | $284,375 | 18 |
| San Francisco | $277,500 | 8 |
Penetration Tester salary by location
| Location | Median | Roles |
|---|---|---|
| San Francisco | $257,500 | 4 |
| New York | $225,000 | 7 |
| Denver | $198,088 | 8 |
| Seattle | $194,044 | 6 |
CISO vs Penetration Tester: which pays more?
The median for CISO is $267,500 per year (typically $207,500–$295,000), versus $160,000 for Penetration Tester ($139,950–$202,522). That puts CISO about 67% ahead at the median.
Both figures are computed live from active listings on JobsRadar and normalized to annualized USD, so CISO and Penetration Tester are compared on equal terms regardless of the currency each role was originally posted in. Only roles that publish a salary range feed the medians; numbers refresh every few hours as new roles post and older ones close, so this comparison reflects the market right now rather than a fixed survey. Use it as a directional benchmark when weighing one path against the other.