📊 IT Labor Market, Q1 2026: 23 People per Position

At the end of last year, we wondered whether we would break the index of 25 resumes per vacancy in IT. Spoiler: we are already within a millimeter of that number.

⚔️ ⚔️ Competition
The hh.index in March soared to 22.9. Almost 23 resumes per vacancy.
To understand the dynamics: a year ago the index was 11.6. Almost double growth in 12 months. hh considers 4–6 as the norm for a healthy market.

If you think someone is thoughtfully reading your resume right now — don't get your hopes up. HR departments are operating in a mode of defense against DDOS attacks from responses. Selection is done by filters, keywords, and plain randomness.

💸 Expectations vs Reality
On the salary chart, the lines of applicant expectations and business offers have merged into one straight line at 100,000 rubles.

Applicants have stopped writing wet dreams in their resumes and are asking exactly as much as the employer is willing to pay at the bottom of the market.

Those who cannot prove their real value to the business are sent to the general queue of 23 people per position.


🐍 Python Developer Salaries (according to GetMatch)

If throughout 2025 mainly beginners suffered, now business has taken on cost optimization in a serious way. Salaries are going down.

▪️ Juniors — 100k. Stability is a sign of mastery. Considering official (and even more so real) inflation, this is a decrease. But there is no shortage of applicants.
▪️ Middles — 190k (was 200k). A small but unpleasant rollback.
▪️ Seniors — 260k (plummeted from 300k!).
▪️ Team Leads — 327k (was 350k).

The median across the entire market has dropped to 225k, there are no more untouchables. Business has started cutting costs where before they simply threw money at the problem.

Geography and formats:
▫️ Remote — 230k (was 245k).
▫️ Office/Hybrid — 210k (was 200k).
The gap between remote and office has narrowed from 45k to 20k. Companies are successfully pressuring people to return to open spaces, and the premium markup for remote work is melting. Moscow dropped to 240k (was 250k), regions stagnated at 200k.

The market of 2021-2023 is finally dead. The IT sector is transforming into an ordinary, albeit highly skilled, engineering industry with strict payroll control and fierce competition.

#рыночек_порешал