New CISO Compensation Benchmark Report reveals widening pay gaps, rising equity participation, and the latest mobility trends.

BOSTON, Nov. 13, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, IANS and Artico Search unveiled their sixth annual CISO Compensation Benchmark Report, which revealed that Chief Information Security Officers (CISOs) continue to experience steady compensation growth even as companies tighten spending. Based on compensation data from over 550 CISOs in the U.S. and Canada, the 2025 report offers data-driven insights to help security leaders understand market trends and benchmark compensation across diverse industries, geographic locations and company sizes.

The report uncovered that cybersecurity leadership remains a top business priority with CISO compensation packages continuing to remain robust. In 2025, overall CISO compensation increased by an average of 6.7%, while security budgets grew at only a 4% rate, the slowest in five years. Due to market impacts, equity-based compensation grew faster than cash, signaling continued confidence in the role's long-term strategic value.

"CISOs have firmly established themselves as business leaders, not just security operators," said Nick Kakolowski, Sr. Research Director at IANS. "Their pay stability this year reinforces how indispensable cybersecurity leadership has become to enterprise risk oversight, even when many organizations are tightening budgets."

Other Key Findings from the CISO Compensation Report Include:

• CISO mobility reached its highest level in six years.
  15% of CISOs changed employers this year, up from 11% in 2024. However, switching roles was not always rewarded; those CISOs who stayed at their companies and took on expanded responsibilities saw an average compensation increase of 8.1%, compared to 5% among those who switched jobs.
• Compensation disparity across CISOs remains wide.
  The top 1% of CISOs earn more than $3.2 million in total compensation, which is roughly 10 times the median and 20 times the bottom 10%. This variability is primarily reflective of equity package size, but also often reflects the impact of organization size, with Fortune 100 CISOs often far exceeding reported averages.
• Equity, industry, scale, and experience drive the most significant pay differentials.
  70% of CISOs receive equity, which can represent up to half of total pay among top earners. Tech and financial services are the highest-paying sectors, with average total compensation of $844,000 and $744,000, respectively. CISOs managing teams of 100+ and budgets above $50 million typically land in the top quartile.
• Executive perks and protections continue to expand.
  71% of CISOs now receive executive perks, including D&O insurance (up from 40% to over 50% this year). Deferred compensation plans, enhanced health benefits, and executive coaching are increasingly common, with one in five CISOs receiving non-financial perks such as access to legal counsel or severance agreements.

"The market for top security talent is still competitive, but motivations are shifting," said Steve Martano, IANS Faculty and Partner at Artico Search's Cyber Practice. "We're seeing more CISOs prioritize influence, visibility, and culture over pure compensation. The smartest companies are responding by giving their security leaders a true seat at the table, not just a bigger paycheck."

Download the Snapshot Report or request a copy of the full benchmark report by contacting info@iansresearch.com.

Methodology
The 2025 study reflects self-reported compensation data from 566 CISOs in the U.S. and Canada, gathered between April and October 2025. Total compensation includes base salary, annual bonus and equity valuation.

About IANS
IANS helps cybersecurity leaders act faster and make better decisions by providing expert insights and actionable guidance from over 150 experienced practitioners, proprietary benchmarking data, content-rich events, peer-to-peer information-sharing opportunities and customized consulting services.

About Artico Search
Founded in 2021, Artico Search's team of executive recruiters focuses on a "grow and protect" model, recruiting senior go-to-market and security executives in growth venture, private equity, and public companies.

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SOURCE IANS Research