💼 Data Analyst Job Market SQL Project

🏁 Introduction

This project dives into the world of data analytics careers, uncovering 💰 top-paying roles, 🔥 most in-demand skills, and 📈 where demand meets high salary.

💡 Curious about the SQL logic behind it all?
Check out the queries here ➜ project_sql folder

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🧠 Background

This project was inspired by a desire to better understand the data analyst job market, to identify which skills open the best opportunities and which ones drive higher salaries.

The dataset originates from Luke Barousse’s SQL Course, which includes rich insights into job titles, salaries, locations, and required skills across the analytics industry.

🔍 Key Questions Explored

1. Which data analyst roles offer the highest salaries?
2. What skills are required for those top-paying positions?
3. Which skills appear most frequently in job postings?
4. How do certain skills correlate with higher salaries?
5. What combination of skills provides the best career advantage?

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🧰 Tools Used

To extract, clean, and analyze insights, I used the following tools:

• SQL: For querying and transforming the job market dataset.
• PostgreSQL: My database of choice for structured data analysis.
• Visual Studio Code: For writing and executing SQL queries efficiently.
• Git & GitHub: For version control, documentation, and sharing this project publicly.

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📊 The Analysis

Each SQL query focuses on answering a specific question about the data analytics job market, ranging from identifying top-paying roles to in-demand technical skills.

1️⃣ Top-Paying Data Analyst Roles

To highlight the most lucrative opportunities, I filtered roles based on average yearly salary and remote work availability, revealing the best-paying options for data analysts worldwide.

 SELECT 
        j.job_id,
        j.job_title, 
        j.job_location, 
        j.salary_year_avg,
        j.job_schedule_type,
        j.company_id,
        j.job_posted_date,
        c.name AS company_name,
        c.link
    FROM 
        job_postings_fact j
LEFT JOIN
    company_dim AS c ON j.company_id = c.company_id
    WHERE 
        job_location = 'Anywhere' AND
        salary_year_avg IS NOT NULL AND
        job_title_short = 'Data Analyst'
    ORDER BY 
        salary_year_avg DESC
LIMIT 10;

Here’s an overview of the top paying data analyst jobs uncovered through my SQL queries:

• 💵 Wide Salary Range: The top 10 roles pay between $184,000 and $650,000 annually, showcasing just how rewarding the field can be for skilled analysts.
• 🏢 Diverse Employers: High-paying opportunities come from a variety of industries, companies like Mantys, SmartAsset, Meta, and AT&T lead the way.
• 🎯 Role Variety: From Data Analyst to Director of Analytics, the data shows strong diversity in job titles and responsibilities within analytics.

Bar chart showing the top 10 highest-paying data analyst roles (visual generated from SQL query results using ChatGPT).

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🧩 2. Skills Behind the Top-Paying Jobs

To identify what drives those high salaries, I joined the job postings data with the skills dataset.
This analysis revealed which technical and analytical skills employers consistently value for top-tier compensation, the ones that truly set professionals apart in the market.

WITH top_paying_jobs AS(
    SELECT 
            j.job_id,
            j.job_title_short, 
            j.salary_year_avg,
            c.name AS company_name
        FROM 
            job_postings_fact j 
        INNER JOIN company_dim AS c ON j.company_id = c.company_id
        WHERE 
            job_location = 'Anywhere' AND
            salary_year_avg IS NOT NULL AND
            job_title_short = 'Data Analyst'
        ORDER BY 
            salary_year_avg DESC
    LIMIT 10
)
SELECT 
    t.*,
    sd.skills
FROM 
    top_paying_jobs AS t 
INNER JOIN skills_job_dim sjd ON sjd.job_id= t.job_id
INNER JOIN skills_dim sd ON sd.skill_id = sjd.skill_id
)

SELECT 
    top_paying_jobs.*,
    skills
FROM top_paying_jobs
INNER JOIN skills_job_dim ON top_paying_jobs.job_id = skills_job_dim.job_id
INNER JOIN skills_dim ON skills_job_dim.skill_id = skills_dim.skill_id
ORDER BY
    salary_year_avg DESC;

Here's the breakdown of the most demanded skills for the top 10 highest paying data analyst jobs in 2023:

• SQL is leading with a bold count of 8.
• Python follows closely with a bold count of 7.
• Tableau is also highly sought after, with a bold count of 6. Other skills like R, Snowflake, Pandas, and Excel show varying degrees of demand.

Bar chart illustrating the frequency of top skills among the ten highest-paying data analyst jobs, generated from SQL query results using ChatGPT.

🚀 3. In-Demand Skills for Data Analysts

This part of the analysis explores which skills appear most frequently across all data analyst job postings.
The results highlight the technologies and tools that employers consistently seek, offering clear direction for professionals looking to align their skill sets with market demand.

Skills	Demand Count
SQL	7291
Excel	4611
Python	4330
Tableau	3745
Power BI	2609

Table of the demand for the top 5 skills in data analyst job postings

4. Skills Based on Salary

Exploring the average salaries associated with different skills revealed which skills are the highest paying.

SELECT 
    skills,
    ROUND(AVG(salary_year_avg), 0) AS avg_salary
FROM job_postings_fact
INNER JOIN skills_job_dim ON job_postings_fact.job_id = skills_job_dim.job_id
INNER JOIN skills_dim ON skills_job_dim.skill_id = skills_dim.skill_id
WHERE
    job_title_short = 'Data Analyst'
    AND salary_year_avg IS NOT NULL
    AND job_work_from_home = True 
GROUP BY
    skills
ORDER BY
    avg_salary DESC
LIMIT 25;

Here's a breakdown of the results for top paying skills for Data Analysts:

• High Demand for Big Data & ML Skills: Top salaries are commanded by analysts skilled in big data technologies (PySpark, Couchbase), machine learning tools (DataRobot, Jupyter), and Python libraries (Pandas, NumPy), reflecting the industry's high valuation of data processing and predictive modeling capabilities.
• Software Development & Deployment Proficiency: Knowledge in development and deployment tools (GitLab, Kubernetes, Airflow) indicates a lucrative crossover between data analysis and engineering, with a premium on skills that facilitate automation and efficient data pipeline management.
• Cloud Computing Expertise: Familiarity with cloud and data engineering tools (Elasticsearch, Databricks, GCP) underscores the growing importance of cloud-based analytics environments, suggesting that cloud proficiency significantly boosts earning potential in data analytics.

Skills	Average Salary ($)
pyspark	208,172
bitbucket	189,155
couchbase	160,515
watson	160,515
datarobot	155,486
gitlab	154,500
swift	153,750
jupyter	152,777
pandas	151,821
elasticsearch	145,000

Table of the average salary for the top 10 paying skills for data analysts

5. Most Optimal Skills to Learn

Combining insights from demand and salary data, this query aimed to pinpoint skills that are both in high demand and have high salaries, offering a strategic focus for skill development.

SELECT 
    skills_dim.skill_id,
    skills_dim.skills,
    COUNT(skills_job_dim.job_id) AS demand_count,
    ROUND(AVG(job_postings_fact.salary_year_avg), 0) AS avg_salary
FROM job_postings_fact
INNER JOIN skills_job_dim ON job_postings_fact.job_id = skills_job_dim.job_id
INNER JOIN skills_dim ON skills_job_dim.skill_id = skills_dim.skill_id
WHERE
    job_title_short = 'Data Analyst'
    AND salary_year_avg IS NOT NULL
    AND job_work_from_home = True 
GROUP BY
    skills_dim.skill_id
HAVING
    COUNT(skills_job_dim.job_id) > 10
ORDER BY
    avg_salary DESC,
    demand_count DESC
LIMIT 25;

Skill ID	Skills	Demand Count	Average Salary ($)
8	go	27	115,320
234	confluence	11	114,210
97	hadoop	22	113,193
80	snowflake	37	112,948
74	azure	34	111,225
77	bigquery	13	109,654
76	aws	32	108,317
4	java	17	106,906
194	ssis	12	106,683
233	jira	20	104,918

Table of the most optimal skills for data analyst sorted by salary

Here's a breakdown of the most optimal skills for Data Analysts in 2023:

• High-Demand Programming Languages: Python and R stand out for their high demand, with demand counts of 236 and 148 respectively. Despite their high demand, their average salaries are around $101,397 for Python and $100,499 for R, indicating that proficiency in these languages is highly valued but also widely available.
• Cloud Tools and Technologies: Skills in specialized technologies such as Snowflake, Azure, AWS, and BigQuery show significant demand with relatively high average salaries, pointing towards the growing importance of cloud platforms and big data technologies in data analysis.
• Business Intelligence and Visualization Tools: Tableau and Looker, with demand counts of 230 and 49 respectively, and average salaries around $99,288 and $103,795, highlight the critical role of data visualization and business intelligence in deriving actionable insights from data.
• Database Technologies: The demand for skills in traditional and NoSQL databases (Oracle, SQL Server, NoSQL) with average salaries ranging from $97,786 to $104,534, reflects the enduring need for data storage, retrieval, and management expertise.

What I Learned

Throughout this adventure, I've turbocharged my SQL toolkit with some serious firepower:

• 🧩 Complex Query Crafting: Mastered the art of advanced SQL, merging tables like a pro and wielding WITH clauses for ninja-level temp table maneuvers.
• 📊 Data Aggregation: Got cozy with GROUP BY and turned aggregate functions like COUNT() and AVG() into my data-summarizing sidekicks.
• 💡 Analytical Wizardry: Leveled up my real-world puzzle-solving skills, turning questions into actionable, insightful SQL queries.

Conclusions

📈 Key Insights from the Analysis

1. Top-Paying Data Analyst Roles
Remote data analyst positions show a broad salary spectrum, with the highest-paying roles reaching up to $650,000 annually.

2. Skills Driving High Salaries
Mastery of SQL is strongly linked to top compensation, highlighting it as a must-have skill for aspiring analysts.

3. Most In-Demand Skills
SQL dominates the job market in frequency, making it essential for anyone targeting data analyst positions.

4. Specialized High-Paying Skills
Niche expertise in tools and technologies like SVN and Solidity commands premium salaries, reflecting industry demand for specialized skills.

5. Optimal Skills for Market Value
Combining demand and salary, SQL remains the most strategic skill to prioritize, helping analysts maximize their career potential and marketability.

Closing Thoughts

📝 Closing Thoughts

This project not only boosted my SQL skills (yes, I still sometimes debate whether it’s pronounced "sequel" or "S-Q-L" 😅) but also provided actionable insights into the data analyst job market.

The findings serve as a roadmap for prioritizing skill development and making informed job search decisions. Aspiring data analysts can better position themselves in a competitive market by focusing on high-demand, high-salary skills.

Ultimately, this exploration highlights the importance of continuous learning and staying adaptable to emerging trends in the ever-evolving world of data analytics.

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🙏 Acknowledgements

I would like to acknowledge Luke Barousse for his SQL course and the dataset used in this project.
His tutorials provided the foundation for exploring the data analyst job market and creating these SQL analyses.

You can find his work here: Luke Barousse SQL Course

👨‍💻 Author

Lawal Mayowa Bryant
Marine Engineer | Data Analyst | AI Enthusiast
📧 lawalmayowa95@gmail.com
🌐 LinkedIn Profile

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