Introduction
When my friend Sarah passed her AZ-900 exam, she assumed it’d be a nice resume bullet she never guessed it would spark several job offers with $10K raises. That’s the magic of proving you understand Azure fundamentals: employers notice the confidence and real skills behind the badge.
Typical Salary Ranges
United States
Most U.S. newcomers with AZ-900 see offers around $80K. After a bit of actual Azure work or by moving into a metro area, you can bump that up toward $110K. Overall, the sweet spot tends to hover near $95K once you settle in.
Global Snapshot
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Europe: €50K–75K
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Asia: $40K–70K
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Australia: AUD 70K–100K
Remember, these numbers shift with local demand and cost of living. It helps to peek at job listings in your city to get the freshest figures.
What Shapes Your Salary
You’ll notice your paycheck depends on a handful of real-world factors. Where you live plays a big role salaries in San Francisco or New York tend to be higher than in smaller towns. Then there’s hands-on experience: the first time you successfully spin up a virtual machine or tweak a network rule in the Azure Portal, you earn a little extra respect (and a little extra pay). Adding another badge like AZ-104 after your AZ-900 shows you’ve gone beyond the basics and often brings better offers. And finally, your job title matters: a Cloud Support Specialist may start near the bottom of the range, while an Azure Engineer usually sits at the top.
Steps to Boost Your Earnings
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Build actual projects. Sign up for the free Azure tier and launch a small web app or automated backup solution. Real work beats theory every time.
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Keep a lab journal. Write down what you tried, the errors you ran into, and how you fixed them. Those stories stick in an interview more than buzzwords.
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Stack certifications. Once you’ve passed AZ-900, tackle a role-based exam like AZ-104 or AZ-204. Each new credential opens the door to higher salaries.
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Showcase your work. Publish your projects on GitHub or a personal website. Concrete examples of your skills speak louder than a resume full of jargon.
Conclusion
Getting your AZ-900 under your belt is more than a checkbox it’s the spark that can light up your cloud career. With the right mix of real-world labs, extra certifications, and a public portfolio, you’ll find yourself climbing the salary ladder faster than you might expect. I still remember how nervous I was before my first certification, and how that badge turned into a surprising pay bump just a few months later. Now it’s your turn go build something in Azure, share what you learn, and watch your career take off!
