Where the Cloud Jobs Are Concentrated
The movement toward cloud infrastructure isn’t only a change in how companies operate—it’s also shifting the geography of job creation. Oxylabs Research found that cloud-related hiring is on the rise across 36 U.S. states. The data comes from an analysis of 850,000 tech job postings collected between January 2025 and March 2026. California came out on top in terms of tech hiring, accounting for 13% of the total postings studied. Right behind is Texas, with 8%, followed by New York at 5% and Virginia at 4%. All remaining states together represented 3% or less of the job listings that included cloud or tech-related skills.
The largest share of job opportunities is in software engineering, which makes up 38% of the total postings. Positions in data science, artificial intelligence, and machine learning account for 14% of the demand. Meanwhile, roles connected to DevOps and cloud infrastructure management take up 12% of the postings. These specialized jobs are in high demand as companies work to create and manage secure, efficient cloud systems.
Amazon Web Services (AWS) is the most sought-after tool in the tech landscape, appearing in 30% of the job postings reviewed. Close to 42% of all the listings now require someone with experience in one of the three primary cloud platforms: AWS, Azure, or Google Cloud Platform. The study also shows that AWS and Azure are often mentioned together, which suggests employers are looking for people with experience using both platforms.
When it comes to roles involving data entry or support tasks, Excel remains the most popular tool, referenced in 46% of the job postings in early 2026. Other key technologies include Microsoft Azure (24%), Git (21%), Google Cloud Platform (14%), Docker (13%), Power BI (9%), and Terraform (8%). Tools used in DevOps and development environments, such as Docker, Kubernetes, and Terraform, collectively account for 30% of the tool mentions in the data.
The biggest contributors to tech job demand come from the technology, data, and telecommunications sectors. These industries represent 45% of the 850,000 job postings analyzed. Professional, legal, and business services are next in line, accounting for 17% of the demand. Meanwhile, manufacturing, defense, and finance sectors each contribute 8% of the overall job offerings.
Even though tech employers are hiring aggressively, many organizations are also cutting jobs in other departments. The report from Oxylabs Research notes that automation is one of the main reasons for layoffs during 2025 and 2026. However, tech job postings have reached a three-year high, making up 39% of all job listings in the Oxylabs dataset. That represents a growth rate of over 3.7 times compared to the previous year.
Employers are placing a strong emphasis on skills related to cloud technology and data management. Cloud infrastructure platforms such as AWS, Azure, and Google Cloud account for 47% of all the tools mentioned in job postings. In the developer tool category, DevOps-related tools lead the way at 30%. Business intelligence tools like Power BI and Tableau appear in 18% of the job postings reviewed, highlighting the growing need for professionals who can analyze and interpret data.