US cybersecurity job postings fell by 26.4 per cent year on year from January to September 2026, according to CyberSN’s analysis. A total of 235,786 cybersecurity roles were posted in 2026 on JobSpikr, the lowest figure in the four years CyberSN has tracked the market, compared with 273,498 in 2023, 244,911 in 2024 and 320,210 in 2025.
Leadership roles bore the brunt of the downturn. CISO postings dropped from 4,632 in January–September 2025 to 2,832 in the same period in 2026, a fall of 38.9 per cent. Other senior roles also declined: cybersecurity director (-32.5%), cybersecurity lead (-41%), and cybersecurity manager (-24.4%). Overall, nine of the ten cybersecurity functions tracked posted fewer openings in 2026 than in 2025, with research roles the lone exception, increasing by 26.1%. The CyberSN researchers cautioned it is unclear whether the drop reflects softer demand or a retreat from a particularly strong 2025.
There were notable shifts within specialisms. AI security engineer postings surged by 268.3 per cent from January to September 2026 versus 2025, while the share of postings mentioning AI or machine learning remained roughly flat at 14.6 per cent (2026) versus 15.1 per cent (2025). September 2026 also saw a spike in cyber data scientist roles, at 667 postings compared with 247 in August. Across all 2026 postings, 88 per cent mention AI in the job description.
In terms of scale, 39.9 per cent of 2025 postings came from small firms (200 or fewer employees), 47.3 per cent from large firms (1,001+), and 12.7 per cent from mid-sized firms (201–1,000).