Despite accounting for half of the world's workforce, women hold only a fraction of tech jobs globally, with the statistics painting a clear but uneven picture of their progress and persistent barriers across countries and roles.
Key Takeaways
- In 2023, women accounted for 28% of the global technology workforce, a slight increase from 25% in 2018 but still significantly underrepresented compared to their 50% share of the overall workforce
- In the United States, women hold 26.7% of professional computing jobs as of 2022, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, with variations by subfield such as higher in IT support (35%) than software development (22%)
- Across Europe, women represent 17% of ICT specialists in 2023, with the lowest rates in Greece (12%) and highest in Bulgaria (27%), per Eurostat data
- In 2022, only 18% of undergraduate computer science degrees in the US were awarded to women, down from 37% in 1984, per National Center for Education Statistics
- Globally, women earn 22% of bachelor's degrees in ICT fields as of 2023, varying from 30% in the US to 15% in India, per UNESCO UIS data
- In the UK, women received 21% of computer science undergraduate degrees in 2022/23, per HESA statistics
- In 2023, women held 11.5% of executive positions (C-suite) in top US tech companies, up from 10% in 2020, per Deloitte Women in Tech report
- Globally, women occupy 8% of CEO roles in tech firms in 2023, with the US at 10% and Europe at 7%, per BCG
- In Silicon Valley, women hold 15% of VP-level tech roles at FAANG companies in 2023, per company diversity reports
- In 2023, the gender pay gap in US tech was 6% for base salary but 14% including bonuses, per Payscale
- Globally, women in tech earn 84 cents for every dollar men earn in 2023, widening to 72 cents at senior levels, per ILO
- In Silicon Valley, median tech salary for women is $142,000 vs $168,000 for men in 2023, per levels.fyi
- 41% of women in tech report experiencing gender bias in promotions leading to retention issues in 2023 US survey, per Kapor Center
- Globally, 35% of women in tech left or plan to leave the industry due to lack of advancement in 2023, per BCG
- In the US, 50% of women in tech cite microaggressions as a top retention barrier in 2023, per Athena Factor 2.0
Women remain significantly underrepresented in the global technology workforce and leadership roles.
Barriers and Retention
- 41% of women in tech report experiencing gender bias in promotions leading to retention issues in 2023 US survey, per Kapor Center
- Globally, 35% of women in tech left or plan to leave the industry due to lack of advancement in 2023, per BCG
- In the US, 50% of women in tech cite microaggressions as a top retention barrier in 2023, per Athena Factor 2.0
- UK women in tech report 28% higher burnout rates than men in 2023, contributing to 20% attrition, per Tech Nation
- In India, 45% of women leave tech within 10 years post-graduation due to marriage/family pressures in 2023, NASSCOM
- Australian women in tech experience 32% higher rates of sexual harassment, leading to 15% voluntary exits annually, per ADCCI 2023
- In Canada, 37% of women in tech face imposter syndrome impacting retention, per #movethedial 2023
- French survey shows 29% of women in digital roles quit due to work-life imbalance in 2023, per AFMD
- In Brazil, 40% of women in tech cite lack of mentorship as key barrier to retention in 2023, per ABStartups
- German women in IT report 25% discrimination in hiring/promotions, highest attrition factor in 2023, per Bitkom
- Globally, women in tech are twice as likely to leave after maternity leave (25% vs 12% men), per McKinsey 2023
- US women of color in tech face 55% higher exclusion from networks, leading to turnover, per Kapor 2023
- In EU, 31% of women ICT specialists report bullying/harassment as retention issue in 2023, per Eurofound
- South African women in tech attrition rate is 22% annually due to safety concerns commuting, per Deloitte 2023
Barriers and Retention Interpretation
The leaky pipeline of women in tech is less a crack and more a systematic hemorrhage, gushing talent through the preventable wounds of bias, harassment, burnout, and exclusion felt across the globe.
Educational Attainment
- In 2022, only 18% of undergraduate computer science degrees in the US were awarded to women, down from 37% in 1984, per National Center for Education Statistics
- Globally, women earn 22% of bachelor's degrees in ICT fields as of 2023, varying from 30% in the US to 15% in India, per UNESCO UIS data
- In the UK, women received 21% of computer science undergraduate degrees in 2022/23, per HESA statistics
- In Australia, females accounted for 24% of ICT bachelor's completions in 2022, up 2% from 2020, per Department of Education
- In Germany, women make up 16% of ICT graduates in 2023, per Destatis
- In China, women earn 35% of computer science degrees at undergraduate level in 2022, but drop to 25% at PhD, per Ministry of Education
- In Brazil, 28% of STEM graduates are women, but only 19% in computing fields in 2023, per INEP
- In Canada, women received 23% of computer science bachelor's degrees in 2022, per Statistics Canada
- In India, women account for 42% of STEM graduates but only 14% choose computer science in 2023, per AISHE report
- In France, 20% of engineering school graduates in informatics are women in 2023, per CDEFI
- In South Korea, women earn 17% of ICT-related degrees in 2022, per KOSTAT
- In the EU, women represent 17% of ICT tertiary graduates in 2022, with Finland at 24% highest, per Eurostat
- In Saudi Arabia, women now comprise 30% of computer science students in 2023 due to Vision 2030 reforms
- In the US, Black women earn only 3% of CS bachelor's degrees despite being 7% of college women, per NCES 2022
- Hispanic women account for 7% of US computing degrees in 2022, up from 5% in 2015
- Women in the US pursuing PhDs in computer science dropped to 22% in 2022 from 25% in 2010, per NSF
- Only 12% of female STEM graduates in the US enter tech fields post-graduation in 2023, per AAUW
Educational Attainment Interpretation
The sobering global trend in tech education reveals that while we've successfully built a digital world, we've somehow managed to consistently lose over half the potential builders along the way, suggesting the pipeline isn't just leaky but perhaps poorly designed to begin with.
Leadership Positions
- In 2023, women held 11.5% of executive positions (C-suite) in top US tech companies, up from 10% in 2020, per Deloitte Women in Tech report
- Globally, women occupy 8% of CEO roles in tech firms in 2023, with the US at 10% and Europe at 7%, per BCG
- In Silicon Valley, women hold 15% of VP-level tech roles at FAANG companies in 2023, per company diversity reports
- In the UK tech sector, women represent 19% of senior leadership positions in 2023, per Tech Nation
- Indian women hold 7% of board seats in top IT companies in 2023, despite 34% workforce share, NASSCOM
- In Australia, women are 18% of tech executives in ASX200 companies in 2023, per AICD
- Canadian women hold 14% of C-level tech positions in 2023, per Women in Tech Canada
- In France, women occupy 12% of digital sector management roles in 2023, per INSEE
- Brazilian women represent 9% of tech company board directors in 2023, per IBGC
- In Germany, women hold 16% of top management positions in ICT firms in 2023, per Bitkom
- Globally, women are 25% of startup founders in tech but only 10% of funded unicorn CEOs in 2023, per Crunchbase
- In the US, Black women hold 1.5% of tech leadership roles despite 9% workforce share in 2023, per Kapor Center
- Asian women in US tech are 5% of executives while 30% of workforce in 2023, per Ascend Foundation
- In EU tech firms, women hold 22% of board seats in 2023, highest in Nordic countries at 35%, per EIGE
- South African women are 11% of tech executives in JSE-listed firms in 2023, per BusinessTech
- In Japan, women hold 4% of executive positions in IT companies in 2023, per METI
Leadership Positions Interpretation
We are watching a painfully slow, global game of 'Where's Waldo?' but for women in tech leadership, where even finding a few at the top feels like a triumph of persistence over a system still stuck in dial-up.
Salary and Compensation
- In 2023, the gender pay gap in US tech was 6% for base salary but 14% including bonuses, per Payscale
- Globally, women in tech earn 84 cents for every dollar men earn in 2023, widening to 72 cents at senior levels, per ILO
- In Silicon Valley, median tech salary for women is $142,000 vs $168,000 for men in 2023, per levels.fyi
- UK women in tech earn 12% less than men on average in 2023 (£48k vs £55k), per Prospects
- In India, women IT engineers earn 25% less than men despite equal qualifications in 2023, per TeamLease
- Australian women in tech have a 16% pay gap, with software devs at $110k vs $130k, per Seek 2023
- In Canada, tech gender pay gap is 11% in 2023, highest in AI roles at 18%, per Randstad
- French women in digital jobs earn 15% less (£42k vs £49k equivalent) in 2023, per CNIL
- In Brazil, tech pay gap for women is 20% in 2023, per Catho
- German women in IT earn 18% less than men in 2023 (€58k vs €71k), per StepStone
- Globally, motherhood penalty in tech pay is 7% per child, totaling 21% gap for mothers vs childless women in 2023, per McKinsey
- US Latina women in tech face 22% pay gap vs white men in 2023, per NWLC
- Black women in US tech earn 30% less than white men at similar levels in 2023, per McKinsey
- In EU, pay gap in ICT sector is 19% in 2023, per Eurostat
- South African women in tech have 24% pay disparity in 2023, per 21st Century
Salary and Compensation Interpretation
So it appears that globally, the tech industry's secret project to steadily discount the price of women's contributions—especially if they are mothers or women of color—is both shockingly on-schedule and horrifyingly over-budget.
Workforce Representation
- In 2023, women accounted for 28% of the global technology workforce, a slight increase from 25% in 2018 but still significantly underrepresented compared to their 50% share of the overall workforce
- In the United States, women hold 26.7% of professional computing jobs as of 2022, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, with variations by subfield such as higher in IT support (35%) than software development (22%)
- Across Europe, women represent 17% of ICT specialists in 2023, with the lowest rates in Greece (12%) and highest in Bulgaria (27%), per Eurostat data
- In India, women comprise 34% of the IT workforce in 2023, but only 7% in leadership roles within tech companies, as reported by NASSCOM
- In Australia, women make up 29% of the digital technology workforce in 2022, concentrated in roles like business analysis (45%) but only 19% in software engineering, per Tech Council of Australia
- In Canada, women hold 24% of tech jobs in 2023, with a notable 40% in non-technical tech roles versus 18% in engineering, according to Statistics Canada
- In the UK, women represent 24% of the digital tech sector workforce in 2023, down from 28% in 2017, per Tech Nation report
- In Brazil, women account for 20% of tech professionals in 2023, primarily in data analysis (32%) but only 15% in cybersecurity, as per Brasscom
- Globally, women hold 22% of AI-related jobs in 2023, despite making up 40% of the overall AI talent pool in academia, per World Economic Forum
- In Silicon Valley, women comprise 31% of tech employees at major firms like Google in 2023, up from 30% in 2022 but with only 10% in technical roles
- In Japan, women represent 18% of the IT workforce in 2023, with slow growth due to cultural barriers, per METI report
- In South Africa, women hold 25% of ICT jobs in 2023, highest in support roles (38%) lowest in programming (14%)
- In Mexico, women account for 23% of tech sector employment in 2022, per INEGI data
- In the UAE, women make up 27% of the tech workforce in 2023, boosted by government initiatives
- In Nigeria, women represent 15% of tech professionals in 2023, mainly in fintech (22%), per Andela report
Workforce Representation Interpretation
The tech industry's global gender gap appears as consistent as software updates, stubbornly recycling a global average of about 25% female participation, while proving that progress, like legacy code, is patchy, slow, and varies wildly by region and role.
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