Nigeria’s tech industry has seen turbulent shifts over the last few years, from the pandemic-era boom to the recent economic challenges. Despite the setback, some roles are still commanding eye-popping salaries and rapid career growth. Some senior tech roles in Nigeria are still making people earn ₦2 million ($1,333) and above monthly.
To understand what skills are worth investing in, I spoke to Emmanuel Faith, a HR professional with experience in several Nigerian startups, including Cowrywise and Africhange; Deji Olowe, founder of Lendsqr and board leader at Paystack; and Toyin Olasehinde, co-founder and COO of skills platform Treford.
“These factors depend on the level (entry, mid, or senior), as well as the company itself and the industry these roles are employed into,” Emmanuel says.
Here’s what these experts revealed to me about the roles, skills, and strategies that lead to the biggest paychecks in Nigeria’s tech industry right now.
Top highest-paying tech jobs in Nigeria (2025)
1. Cybersecurity analysts
- Average pay: An average of ₦450,000-₦900,000 ($300-$600) monthly at mid-level, and ₦1.5M–₦2M ($1,000-$1,333) monthly at senior level
- Why it pays: Rising cyberattacks in Nigeria have made security non-negotiable for fintechs, banks, and startups.
- Skills in demand: Network security, ethical hacking, cloud security certifications like Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP), and Certified Ethical Hacker (CEH).
2. Data engineers
- Average pay: ₦1.8M–₦2.5M ($1,200-$1,667) monthly for mid to senior roles
- Why it pays: Firms are collecting more data than ever and need people to make sense of it. Since businesses can’t make decisions without good data, data engineers are the backbone that makes analysis possible
- Skills in demand: SQL, Python, Spark, cloud data warehousing, ETL pipelines.
3. Software developers (Especially Back-end Engineers)
- Average pay: ₦1.2M–₦2.5M ($800–$1,667) monthly for mid to senior roles
- Why it pays: They build the infrastructure that keeps apps and platforms running.
- Skills in demand: Java, Node.js, Go, databases, APIs, systems architecture.
4. Technical product managers
- Average pay: ₦1.5M–₦2.8M ($1,000–$1,867) monthly for mid to senior roles
- Why it pays: Technical product managers bridge business strategy and engineering to ship profitable products.
- Skills in demand: Agile project management, UX understanding, stakeholder management.
Toyin says, “People are actually building like every time, and so they need people that can actually, like, manage products for them,” Olasehinde said.
5. DevOps engineers
- Average pay: ₦1.3M–₦2.4M ($866.67–$1,600) monthly for mid to senior roles
- Why it pays: They keep deployment fast, stable, and secure, essential for scaling startups.
- Skills in demand: CI/CD, Kubernetes, Docker, AWS/Azure, scripting.
6. Artificial intelligence roles
Artificial Intelligence /Machine Learning Engineer: Designs, develops, and implements AI and machine learning models and systems.
- Average pay: ₦600,000- ₦1,200,000 ($400–$800) monthly
- Why it pays: Olasehinde points out that “because of the whole AI buzz in recent time, employers are looking for people who actually can draw up AI strategies and also implement” for their organisations.
- Skills in demand: Strong programming abilities (especially Python), expertise in machine learning algorithms and deep learning frameworks (like TensorFlow and PyTorch), robust mathematical and statistical foundations, skills in data preprocessing and analysis, proficiency with cloud platforms (AWS, Azure, GCP)
7. Chief Technology Officers (CTOs)
- Average pay: ₦3M–₦5M+ ($2,000–$3,333+) monthly for mid to senior roles
- Why it pays: They set the vision and manage entire tech teams, budgets, and product roadmaps.
- Skills in demand: Technical depth, leadership, fundraising experience, strategic planning.
Most future-proof tech roles in 2025
According to Emmanuel, there are roles where demand far outweighs supply in many senior tech roles, largely because people are migrating or prioritising foreign opportunities.
Emmanuel and Olowe list technical product management as a role to pursue for fresh graduates or career switches who want to pursue long-term growth in the tech industry. Emmanuel adds cybersecurity, full-stack engineers, and lifecycle marketing managers.
Olasehinde says marketing roles in tech firms are relevant because “to bring in people to use or understand [products that are being built], you need people on the marketing side to be able to communicate the value of these products, to be able to even sell this product.”
Degrees vs. hands-on skills
Interestingly, formal education isn’t the main ticket to high pay. Emmanuel observed that “for most companies at entry level, formal degrees might not be a deciding factor.” Mastery of cloud and DevOps tools like Golang and Scala can also fast-track salary growth.
Olowe added that certifications and claims of global exposure often don’t impress him and other employers: “ Referrals are the best. Good people know good people.”
For him, attitude, accountability, and quality output matter far more than certificates.
Olasehinde says AI-related and data analytics skills are surging in demand: “Employers are looking for people that can draw up AI strategies for them and also implement them… There’s also product management, cloud computing, software engineering, and even growth and marketing roles.”
Career growth timelines
How long does it take to hit high-paying territory? Emmanuel estimates 18 months to two years for driven professionals to move from entry-level to well-paying positions, if they build rare, valuable skills and position themselves for growth roles like product management, cybersecurity, or marketing leadership.
Olowe adds that technical roles can open the door to lucrative leadership positions like CTO or Head of Engineering, while product managers often transition into strategic executive roles.
The market reality check
While some roles are thriving, Olowe cautions that salaries have actually dipped from the highs of 3 to 4 years ago when startups were flush with investor cash: “The entire startup industry has almost collapsed. There is less remote work… only a few are left standing.”
Still, as Emmanuel notes, Nigerian salaries remain low in global terms because of the Naira’s low performance when compared to stronger currencies like USD, which fuels the migration of top talent seeking dollar pay abroad, tightening local supply and raising salaries for those who stay.
Final thoughts
Tech salaries in Nigeria vary widely based on your experience level, company size, and industry. But the highest-paying roles consistently combine scarce technical skills with direct business impact, especially in security, data, product, and infrastructure.
“If you’re starting, build strong fundamentals, then specialise,” Olasehinde advised. “Companies pay more for depth than for generalists.”
*$1 valued at ₦1,500
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