IT certifications can help you quickly gain and validate valuable skills and know-how in a domain that will further your career. Here are the most popular IT certs today. Credit: Jacob Lund / Shutterstock What are IT certifications? IT certifications are professional designations offered by organizations and companies to help you demonstrate to employers your qualifications in specific skills, tools, and IT knowledge areas. To gain certifications, you’ll need to pass an exam, along with any other requirements set by the accrediting body. Gaining the right IT certifications for your role and industry can help you advance your career. Certifications give you the opportunity to earn a credential in skills you already have or to grow your competencies by developing new skills you’d like to use in your career. Whatever your reason for getting certified, certifications are a great way to strengthen your resume, set yourself apart from other candidates in a job search, and boost your salary. The significance of IT certifications IT certifications not only help solidify the skills on your resume, but they can also offer education and hands-on experience. Many certifications require completing a course or training program, allowing you to learn new skills and hone existing ones. This can be a great opportunity for entry-level workers who need to bulk up their resumes or for more seasoned IT pros to set themselves apart from other candidates by validating their expertise and skills. While some certifications consist of only an exam, many teach you new concepts, ideas, and expand your knowledge prior to certifying your skills and abilities. This can give you the opportunity to not only obtain an industry-recognized designation but also help you gain new skills and expertise for your resume. 10 in-demand certifications for 2026 According to the 2026 Salary Guide from Robert Half, these are some of the most valuable certifications IT professionals can hold today. Whether you’re just starting out and building your resume or you’ve been in the industry for 20 years, there’s a certification that can help boost your salary and your career: AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner Certified Cloud Security Professional (CCSP) Certified Data Professional (CDP) Certified Information Systems Auditor (CISA) CompTIA A+ CompTIA Cloud+ CompTIA Security+ Microsoft Certified Azure Solutions Architect Project Management Professional (PMP) Amazon Web Services (AWS) certifications AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner The AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner certification covers the basics of AWS cloud, including its global infrastructure and architectural principles. You’ll be asked to define and describe the AWS cloud value proposition, key services on the AWS platform and their common use cases, as well as basic security and compliance aspects of the AWS platform and shared security model. It’s recommended that you have a basic understanding of IT services and how they work with AWS. You’ll also need at least six months of experience with AWS in any role, whether technical, managerial, sales, purchasing, or financial. The foundational-level AWS certification exam is priced at $100. The average salary for IT professionals with an AWS Cloud Practitioner certification is $85,866 per year, according to data from ZipRecruiter. Source: CompTIA Certified Cloud Security Professional (CCSP) The Certified Cloud Security Professional (CCSP) certification is offered through the International Information System Security Certification Consortium (ISC)² and demonstrates your knowledge and abilities when designing, managing, and securing data, applications, and infrastructure in the cloud. It’s designed for those working with cloud technology, including enterprise architects, security administrators, systems engineers, security architects, systems architects, or consultants, engineers, or managers. The certification exam covers cloud concepts, architecture, design, security, and risk and compliance. While not required, the (ISC)² recommends at least five years of experience in IT, with at least three years in information security and one year in one or more of the six domains found in the CCSP CBOK. For more, see “CCSP certification: Exam, cost, requirements, training, salary.” The average salary for IT professionals with a CCSP certification is $122,000 per year, according to data from Payscale. Certified Data Professional (CDP) Available from the Institute for Certification of Computing Professionals (ICCP), the Certified Data Professional (CDP) certification offers several learning paths. CDP candidates can choose from a range of domains, including business analytics, data analytics and design, data governance, data integration and interoperability, data management, data warehousing, enterprise data architecture, information systems or IT management, and more. The CDP is offered at various levels starting with Foundation and moving on to Associate, Mastery, Principal, and ending at the final level of Executive Management. The average salary for IT professionals with a CDP certification is $118,445 per year, according to data from ZipRecruiter. Certified Information Systems Auditor (CISA) Offered through the ISACA, the Certified Information Systems Auditor (CISA) certification is a globally recognized certification for IS audit control. It was established in 1978 and certifies your ability to report on compliance procedures, how well you can assess vulnerabilities, and your knowledge of every stage in the auditing process. To qualify, you need at least five years of experience in IS auditing, control, or security and must complete another entry-level exam through the ISACA certification scheme. The certification covers high-level topics such as the information systems auditing process, governance and management of IT, operations and business resilience, and IS acquisition, development, and implementation. The average salary for IT professionals with a CISA certification is $109,713 per year, according to data from ZipRecruiter. CompTIA A+ CompTIA offers a variety of certifications for IT pros at every stage of their IT careers, and the CompTIA A+ certification is its entry-level IT certification covering the foundations of hardware, technical support, and troubleshooting. The certification is designed for those interested in a career as a service desk analyst, help desk tech, technical support specialist, field service technician, help desk technician, associate network engineer, data support technician, desktop support administrator, or end user computing technician. To earn your CompTIA A+ certification you’ll have to pass two separate exams. The CompTIA A+ 220-1001 exam covers mobile devices, networking technology, hardware, virtualization and cloud computing, and network troubleshooting. The CompTIA A+ 220-1002 exam covers installing and configuring operating systems, expanded security, software troubleshooting, and operational procedures. While it is an entry-level certification, it’s recommended to have at least 9 to 12 months of hands-on experience in the field. The average salary for entry-level IT professionals with a CompTIA A+ certification is $41,659 per year, according to data from ZipRecruiter. CompTIA Cloud+ The CompTIA Cloud+ certification is designed to validate that cloud professionals have the skills necessary to maintain and optimize cloud infrastructure services. The exam is vendor-neutral and covers several relevant vendors so you can gain a larger picture of cloud infrastructure services. You’ll learn and be tested on configurations and deployment, management of cloud resources, maintenance of systems, security, and troubleshooting. It’s recommended to have at least two to three years of experience in system administration before taking the exam. The average salary for IT professionals with a CompTIA Cloud+ certification is $128,365 per year, according to data from ZipRecruiter. CompTIA Security+ The CompTIA Security+ certification is best suited for network, system, and security administrators; security specialists; junior IT auditors; security consultants; and security engineers. Security is a priority for nearly every business — as technology becomes a top driver of business success, companies are looking for qualified IT pros who can help ensure that they are protected from potential threats and risks. The certification exam covers topics such as threats, attacks, vulnerabilities, risk management, architecture and design, technology and tools, cryptography and PKI, and identity and access management. The average salary for IT professionals with a CompTIA Security+ certification is $55,353 per year, according to data from ZipRecruiter. Microsoft Certified Azure Solutions Architect The Microsoft Azure Solutions Architect certification validates your subject matter expertise in designing cloud and hybrid solutions on Azure, including network, compute, monitoring, storage, and security. It’s offered at the associate level, which tests your skills with implementing, montoring, and managing an organization’s Microsoft Azure environment. Once you earn the associate level designation, you can take the test to earn your expert level certification. At the expert level, you’ll need advanced experience and deep knowledge of IT operations comprising networking, governance, disaster recovery, data platforms, virtualization, business continuity, identity, and security to pass the exam. The average salary for IT professionals with a the Microsoft Certified Azure Solutions Architect expert level certification is $146,601 per year, according to data from ZipRecruiter. CompTIA Project Management Professional (PMP) The Project Management Professional certification offered by PMI validates your project leadership experience and expertise, and demonstrates your capabilities to help organizations work more efficiently. The exam covers topics such as managing conflict, building and leading effective teams, training and empowering team members and stakeholders, executing projects to deliver business value, assessing and managing risks, and planning and managing budgets and resources, among others. For more about the PMP, and tips on how to pass it, see PMP certification: How to ace the Project Management Professional exam. The average salary for IT professionals with a PMP certification is $122,388 per year, according to data from ZipRecruiter. Amazon Web Services (AWS) certifications Amazon Web Services (AWS) is a widely used platform across every industry, and Amazon offers several certifications that fall under the umbrella of AWS, with paths for IT roles such as solutions architect, application architect, cloud data engineer, software development engineer, systems administrator, cloud engineer, test engineer, cloud DevOps engineer, DevSecOps engineer, cloud security engineer, cloud security architect, network engineer, and machine learning engineer. It’s a vendor-specific certification that will benefit anyone who is tasked with working directly with AWS products and services or looking to make good on the high demand for cloud skills today. The certifications range in skill level, with options available for people who are completely new to tech, options for entry-level IT pros who have experience, and certifications designed for seasoned veterans of the industry. The average salary for IT professionals with AWS certifications is $122,422 per year, according to data from ZipRecruiter. More on IT certifications: The 20 most valuable IT certifications today 17 best entry-level IT certifications to launch your career 10 most popular IT certifications 10 IT certifications paying the highest premiums today 10 hottest IT certifications today ITIL certification guide: Costs, requirements, levels, and paths CareersCertificationsIT Skills and Training SUBSCRIBE TO OUR NEWSLETTER From our editors straight to your inbox Get started by entering your email address below. Please enter a valid email address Subscribe