Cybersecurity Analyst Salary in Massachusetts (2026)
The average Cybersecurity Analyst in Massachusetts earns around $155,000/year. After taxes, your estimated take-home is $109,679/year ($9,140/month).
Take-Home Pay Breakdown
| Category | Amount |
|---|---|
Annual Take-Home Pay | $109,679 |
Monthly Take-Home Pay | $9,140 |
Biweekly Take-Home Pay | $4,218 |
Hourly Take-Home Pay based on 2,080 hrs/year | $53/hr |
Federal Tax | $25,934 |
State Tax | $7,530 |
FICA Taxes | $11,858 |
Effective Tax Rate total taxes ÷ gross salary | 29.24% |
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Not all Cybersecurity Analysts earn the same — not even close
Massachusetts cybersecurity compensation anchors on three distinct ecosystems: cleared-research density (MIT Lincoln Laboratory FFRDC, MITRE Bedford FFRDC, Hanscom AFB Bedford cyber, Boston University, Northeastern University Cyber + Khoury College, Harvard / MIT CS research), commercial cyber tier (Akamai Cambridge — CDN/edge security, Mandiant Boston — post-Google-acquired threat intel, plus Boston-area fintech / biotech cyber at Fidelity, State Street, Wayfair, Vertex Pharma, Moderna), and cleared-contractor tier (BAE Systems Burlington, Raytheon Boston, General Dynamics IT, Booz Allen Boston, Leidos Boston — supporting Hanscom AFB cyber programs). Comp ranges for the MA market in 2026:
SOC Analyst Tier 1-2 (entry, uncleared)
$72K-$95K
Security+ / CySA+ · 24/7 SOC · stepping-stone to clearance sponsorship
SOC Analyst with Secret clearance
$95K-$130K
Secret cleared SOC · Hanscom AFB / cleared contractor / MITRE
MIT Lincoln Lab / MITRE Cleared Researcher
$135K-$215K + bonus
TS/SCI · FFRDC publication-friendly cleared research · academic-style culture
Security Engineer (mid-level, MA commercial / cleared)
$135K-$200K
CISSP / GIAC · MA Boston-area commercial or cleared work
Senior Security Engineer / Pentester (TS/SCI)
$185K-$265K
OSCP / OSCE / TS/SCI · cleared red team / IR / threat hunting · Lincoln Lab or BAE
Akamai Cambridge Senior Security Engineer
$185K-$295K + RSU 80-150%
CDN security, edge security, anti-DDoS · TC $295K-$520K
Mandiant Boston Threat Intel Researcher
$195K-$310K + RSU + Google bonus
Threat intel, IR, advanced persistent threat research · Google-tier comp post-acquisition
Fidelity / State Street / biotech CISO-track
$215K-$345K + 18-28% bonus + RSU
TC $295K-$485K · fintech cyber + biotech cyber leadership tier
CISO (MA commercial / Lincoln Lab Director / FFRDC)
$345K-$650K + equity/LTI
Top MA cybersec leadership tier · Akamai CISO, Lincoln Lab Director, Fidelity CISO
Worth knowing: Massachusetts cybersecurity is anchored by three structurally unique elements. First, MIT Lincoln Laboratory (Lexington — FFRDC operated by MIT, ~4K employees, ~80% with security clearances, cleared cyber + advanced research at academic-style publication freedom). Second, the densest US academic-research cybersecurity cluster — MIT CS, Harvard CS, Northeastern University Khoury College of Computer Sciences (the Cooperative Education program is uniquely structured for cybersec internship-to-hire pipeline), Boston University, plus the cybersecurity-research density at MITRE Bedford (FFRDC). Third, Akamai Cambridge — global CDN and edge security infrastructure, ~10K employees including ~3K cybersec engineers, the structural commercial cybersec anchor in MA. Plus Boston-area fintech cyber (Fidelity ~30K MA employees with growing cyber, State Street, John Hancock, Putnam) + biotech cyber (Vertex Pharma, Moderna, Biogen — medical-device + clinical-data cyber).
How the Massachusetts cybersecurity market actually works
MIT Lincoln Lab
FFRDC, ~4K employees, ~80% cleared · publication-friendly cleared research · TC $250K-$395K senior+
Akamai HQ
Cambridge HQ, ~3K cybersec engineers · CDN/edge security/DDoS · senior TC $295K-$520K
5% / 9%
MA flat 5% + 4% Millionaire's Tax above $1M = 9% top combined (effective 2023)
Massachusetts cybersecurity splits into three distinct clusters. Cleared-research density — MIT Lincoln Laboratory Lexington (~4K employees, FFRDC operated by MIT, ~80% cleared), MITRE Bedford (FFRDC, ~6K MA employees), Hanscom AFB Bedford cyber programs, plus Booz Allen Boston, Leidos Boston, BAE Systems Burlington, General Dynamics IT. Commercial cyber tier — Akamai Cambridge (~3K cybersec engineers, CDN/edge security/anti-DDoS), Mandiant Boston (post-Google Cloud acquisition, threat intel + IR), plus Boston-area fintech (Fidelity ~30K MA employees, State Street, John Hancock) and biotech cyber (Vertex / Moderna / Biogen). Academic research density — MIT CS, Harvard CS, Northeastern Khoury (Cooperative Education co-op), BU.
MIT Lincoln Lab is the genuinely unique MA cybersecurity structural anchor — FFRDC operated by MIT for DoD, ~4K researchers, ~80% cleared. Senior cleared researcher TC $250K-$395K + Lincoln Lab retirement. Publication-friendly cleared research environment is unique — Lincoln Lab researchers publish at USENIX Security, IEEE S&P, NDSS, CCS at frequencies rare for cleared work. Post-Lincoln-Lab pivot to commercial cyber / Anthropic / FAANG is a structural MA-specific career path.
Akamai Cambridge is the structural MA commercial cybersec anchor — dominant US CDN + edge security infrastructure, ~10K employees including ~3K cybersec engineers focused on DDoS mitigation, edge security, WAF, bot management, threat intel. Senior Akamai cybersec engineers land $295K-$520K total with + bonus + + — competitive with FAANG NYC/SF at materially better Cambridge COL. Mandiant Boston (post-Google Cloud acquisition) brings Google-tier comp + RSU to Boston threat intel + IR work — senior threat intel researcher TC $295K-$520K.
-exempt salaried, so the 2025 no-tax-on-overtime federal deduction generally doesn't apply to cybersecurity comp — see /no-tax-on-overtime for the contractor edge case if you do 1099 cyber consulting. The MA-specific tax structure isn't OT-driven — it's the Millionaire's Tax (4% surcharge above $1M income) on top of the working-tier 5% flat rate, and the academic-research-density / commercial-cyber-Akamai / cleared-Lincoln-Lab three-track choice.
MA state tax is flat 5% below $1M + 4% Millionaire's Tax above $1M = 9% top combined (effective 2023). Working cybersec tier pays 5%. $250K senior cybersec pays ~$12,500 MA. $400K Akamai senior ~$20,000. $800K staff ~$40,000. At $1.2M (Lincoln Lab Director / Akamai CISO), $50K + $18K = $68,000. Senior+ engineers approaching $1M face the structural relocation question.
Massachusetts as a place to live — the honest take for cybersecurity engineers
Massachusetts cybersecurity housing math is dominated by Greater Boston metro. Lincoln Lab + MITRE engineers settle Lexington / Bedford / Acton / Concord / Carlisle / Sudbury (Middlesex County, top schools, 15-30 min Lincoln Lab/MITRE commute). Akamai Cambridge engineers settle Cambridge / Somerville / Watertown / Belmont / Arlington (close-in, Red Line accessible) or further out (Newton, Brookline, Lexington — affluent senior+ tier). Mandiant Boston engineers settle Cambridge / Somerville or commuter rail (North Station / South Station accessible). Median workforce home prices: Cambridge condo $700K-$1.4M, Lexington SFH $1.1M-$2.2M, Bedford SFH $700K-$1.3M, Concord SFH $1M-$2.5M, Newton SFH $1.2M-$2.8M, Brookline SFH $1.2M-$3M+, Acton SFH $700K-$1.3M, Watertown SFH $700K-$1.2M.
Most MA cybersec workforce housing is in Lexington / Bedford / Acton / Sudbury (Lincoln Lab + MITRE family-suburb tier with top schools) or Cambridge / Somerville / Watertown (Akamai + commercial cyber close-in). At senior cybersec TC $250K-$395K, $900K-$1.2M Lexington/Bedford family home is 2.3-3.6x wage-to-home ratio. At Akamai senior tier $400K-$520K TC, even Newton $1.5M+ SFH stays in 2.9-3.8x range. Top schools (Lexington, Concord-Carlisle, Acton-Boxborough, Newton, Brookline, Wayland, Weston) are genuinely top-tier — multiple national-merit-semifinalist clusters.
MA has no city or local income tax — structural advantage versus NY (NYC 3.876%), MD (Montgomery 3.2%), OH (Columbus 2.5%). Property tax 1.13% effective is moderate. On $1.2M Lexington home, ~$13,560/year. Combined state 5% + property tax $13K-$18K is comparable to NJ but with materially better commercial cybersec ecosystem.
The Millionaire's Tax (Question 1, 2022, effective 2023) adds 4% on income above $1M. For senior+ cybersec engineers approaching $1M (Akamai staff, Lincoln Lab Director, Fidelity / State Street CISO-track), it's a meaningful late-career consideration. Section 1202 realizes federally with MA 5% (or 9% above $1M) — better than CA's 13.3%, worse than FL/TX/WA 0%.
How Massachusetts taxes cybersecurity compensation (5% flat + 4% Millionaire's Tax above $1M)
MA state tax is flat 5% on income below $1M, with a 4% Millionaire's Tax surcharge on income above $1M (Question 1, effective 2023). Combined top rate 9%. Working cybersec tier pays the flat 5%. Senior+ cybersec engineers approaching the $1M threshold pay 5% on the first $1M + 9% on the marginal above $1M. On $250K mid-senior cybersec TC, MA state tax $12,500. At $400K Akamai senior, $20,000. At $620K Akamai senior+ tier, $31,000. At $1M, $50,000. At $1.4M (Lincoln Lab Director or Akamai CISO), $50K + $36K = $86,000 (effective 6.1%).
MA has no city or local income tax — structural advantage versus NY (NYC 3.876%), MD (Montgomery 3.2%), OH (Columbus 2.5%). The clean state-only structure plus the $1M+ Millionaire's Tax threshold means working+senior cybersec at $250K-$700K pay the same flat 5% as everyone else in MA — the higher rate only kicks in at the staff+/CISO tier.
vest at Akamai / Mandiant / Fidelity / State Street is treated as ordinary income for federal + MA state tax. Akamai senior tier $185K-$370K annual RSU vest hits at ~39% combined marginal (~43% above $1M with Millionaire's Tax). Employer withholds 22% (or 37% above $1M), leaving April-15 underwithholding at senior tier — make estimated quarterly payments.
MIT Lincoln Lab is structurally distinct — Lincoln Lab employees are MIT FFRDC contractor employees, not federal. Full MA state tax treatment at 5% (or 9% above $1M). Lincoln Lab retirement is a hybrid pension + match with availability. Post-Lincoln-Lab pivot to commercial cyber carries Section 1202 qualification potential.
Section 1202 realizes federally with MA 5% applying (or 9% above $1M). On $10M federal-excluded QSBS gain, MA state tax ~$890K (mostly above $1M threshold) — better than CA's $1.3M non-conformity but worse than FL/TX/WA/NV's clean federal-only. For early-hire pre-IPO MA cybersec engineers, FL/TX/WA relocation pre-liquidity is a structural play for $5M+ exposure — Millionaire's Tax above $1M costs ~$830K extra on a $10M gain.
() at Akamai / Mandiant / Fidelity / commercial cybersec — same federal mechanics. $40K-$47.5K of after-tax → in-plan Roth conversion. Senior commercial cybersec engineer with $47.5K/year MBR over 15 years = $700K of Roth principal. MA 5% applies to the conversion (vs FL/TX/WA 0%) but the math still favors maxing — better paying $2,400/year on the conversion than skipping the structure.
- →Pursue TS / TS-SCI clearance at MIT Lincoln Laboratory or MITRE Bedford. Lincoln Lab senior cleared researcher TC $250K-$395K with publication-friendly culture distinct from typical commercial cybersec.
- →Max + at Akamai / Mandiant / Fidelity / State Street / commercial cybersec. $24,500 employee + $47,500 after-tax → in-plan Roth conversion. MA 5% applies but the math still favors maxing.
- →At $1M+ income approach, plan around the Millionaire's Tax — the 4% surcharge on marginal income above $1M is the structural MA-vs-FL/TX/WA trade-off; $5M+ Section 1202 exposure justifies relocation pre-liquidity.
- →Quarterly estimated tax to avoid April-15 underpayment penalty on vest income (employer withholds 22% but marginal is 39%+ at senior tier, 43%+ above $1M).
- →Section 1202 qualification at early-hire pre-IPO MA cybersec startup equity — MA 5% bite (or 9% above $1M) is meaningful at $5M+ scale; consider FL/TX/WA relocation pre-liquidity event.
- →Backdoor Roth IRA $7K/year — solve pro-rata rule via reverse-rollover into before conversion. max if eligible — MA conforms federally.
- →Plan post-Lincoln-Lab or post-MITRE pivot to commercial cyber / Anthropic Boston (growing) / Akamai / Mandiant / Fidelity from year 7+ — Lincoln Lab and MITRE alumni well-represented at frontier labs and commercial cybersec leadership.
Three MA cybersec submarkets — Lincoln Lab/MITRE FFRDC, Akamai/Mandiant commercial, Boston fintech/biotech
Massachusetts is functionally three cybersec submarkets, all in Greater Boston. MIT Lincoln Lab + MITRE FFRDC cleared. Akamai Cambridge + Mandiant Boston commercial cyber. Boston-area fintech (Fidelity, State Street) + biotech (Vertex, Moderna, Biogen) cyber.
MIT Lincoln Lab + MITRE Bedford (FFRDC cleared cyber)
Senior cleared researcher base $135K-$265K + bonus + Lincoln Lab/MITRE retirement · TC $185K-$395K with TS/SCIMIT Lincoln Laboratory (Lexington, ~4K employees, FFRDC operated by MIT, ~80% with security clearances, publication-friendly cleared research). MITRE Bedford (FFRDC, ~6K MA employees, cleared cyber + national security). Plus Hanscom AFB Bedford cleared cyber programs. Workforce housing in Lexington / Bedford / Acton / Sudbury / Concord ($700K-$2.5M SFH).
Lincoln Lab + MITRE Bedford is the densest US cleared-research-cyber cluster outside NoVA. Publication-friendly cleared environment is unique — Lincoln Lab researchers regularly publish at USENIX Security, IEEE S&P, NDSS, CCS at frequencies rare for cleared work. Hopkins APL equivalent in MA ecosystem.
Akamai Cambridge + Mandiant Boston (commercial cyber)
Senior commercial cybersec base $185K-$295K + RSU 80-150% · TC $295K-$520KAkamai Cambridge HQ (~10K employees including ~3K cybersec — global CDN + edge security + DDoS mitigation + WAF + threat intel). Mandiant Boston (post-Google Cloud acquisition, threat intel + IR + Google-tier comp). Plus growing Boston-area cybersec startup density (Hub Security, ReversingLabs, etc.). Workforce housing in Cambridge / Somerville / Watertown / Belmont / Arlington / Newton ($700K-$2.8M SFH+condo).
Akamai Cambridge is the structural MA commercial cybersec anchor. Mandiant Boston post-Google acquisition brings Google-tier comp to Boston threat intel work. The Cambridge + Inner West Boston tech-cluster density is meaningful — competitive with NoVA cleared and NYC fintech cyber on absolute comp.
Boston fintech (Fidelity + State Street) + biotech (Vertex/Moderna)
Senior fintech / biotech cybersec base $215K-$345K + 18-28% bonus + RSU · TC $295K-$485KFidelity Investments (~30K MA employees, growing fraud cyber + threat intel + cloud security). State Street (~30K MA employees, financial-services cyber). John Hancock, Putnam, Investments. Biotech cyber — Vertex Pharma (Boston Seaport), Moderna (Cambridge), Biogen (Cambridge), bluebird bio — medical-device + clinical-data cyber. Plus Boston Children's Hospital + Mass General medical-device cyber. Workforce housing in Cambridge / Boston Seaport / Newton / Brookline / Wayland / Weston ($1M-$3M SFH+condo).
Boston fintech + biotech cyber is the second-largest MA cybersec employment cluster after Akamai. Fidelity alone has 30K+ MA employees with growing cyber headcount. The biotech-cyber sub-niche (medical-device + clinical-data security) is genuinely unique to MA + NJ Princeton corridor.
The Massachusetts cybersecurity career arc — entry, Lincoln Lab/Akamai senior, late-career CISO
Year 0 (entry / SOC analyst tier 1-2 / new-grad): $72K-$95K base + benefits. MIT / Harvard / Northeastern (Cooperative Education co-op program is uniquely structured for cybersec internship-to-hire) / BU / Tufts / national pipeline. New-grad PhD landing at MIT Lincoln Lab typically $145K-$185K base + benefits + clearance investigation. New-grad CS at Akamai Cambridge typically $145K-$185K + $40K-$80K/yr.
Year 1-3 (Mid-Level / Cleared Mid-Tier): $95K-$150K base + bonus or . CISSP / GIAC / OSCP certification adds meaningful premium. Specialty hardening — most MA cybersec engineers commit to a sub-niche by year 2-3 (red team / pentest, threat intel / IR, application security, cloud security, OT/ICS, cleared SOC, biotech medical-device cyber).
Year 3-7 (Senior Security Engineer / Lincoln Lab Cleared Senior / Akamai Senior): $135K-$295K base + cleared premium / . maxing critical at commercial. Backdoor Roth IRA. Section 1202 qualification window for early-hire MA cybersec startup equity. Many Lincoln Lab cleared engineers at this stage face the commercial pivot decision — leave Lincoln Lab for Akamai / Mandiant at +/-0 base but with RSU + ESPP + MBR availability.
Year 7-15 (Staff / Principal / Lincoln Lab Senior Researcher): $265K-$395K base + /bonus · TC $345K-$620K. At Akamai Cambridge L7 / staff tier, $400K-$620K total. At Lincoln Lab senior researcher + cleared TS/SCI premium, $345K-$520K total. At Mandiant Boston principal threat intel researcher, $400K-$650K with Google tier RSU. At Fidelity / State Street senior cybersec director, $345K-$520K. At biotech CISO-track (Vertex / Moderna), $345K-$485K total.
Year 15+ (CISO / Lincoln Lab Director / Akamai CISO / Pivot to FL/TX): At commercial corporate CISO tier (Akamai, Fidelity, State Street, Vertex, Moderna), $485K-$1.2M+ total. Lincoln Lab Director / Group Leader $400K-$650K + Lincoln Lab retirement. Mandiant Boston Director $500K-$900K with Google tier comp. The Millionaire's Tax above $1M is the structural late-career MA tax friction — many CISO-tier MA cybersec engineers face the relocation question to FL/TX/WA pre-major liquidity event.
Where Massachusetts cybersecurity engineers actually live
Most MA cybersec engineers settle by submarket. Lincoln Lab + MITRE engineers in Lexington / Bedford / Acton / Sudbury / Concord (Middlesex County top-school suburb tier). Akamai Cambridge engineers in Cambridge / Somerville / Watertown / Belmont / Arlington (close-in) or Newton / Brookline (affluent). Mandiant Boston / fintech / biotech engineers in same Cambridge + close-in tier or Newton / Wellesley / Wayland (commuter rail accessible).
Lexington / Bedford / Concord (Middlesex)
Lincoln Lab + MITRE adjacent · top schools · $700K-$2.5M · 15-25 min commute
Cambridge / Somerville (Boston close-in)
Akamai HQ walk · MIT/Harvard adjacent · $700K-$1.4M condo+SFH
Newton / Brookline / Wellesley (West Suburbs)
Senior+ MLE/cybersec affluent · top schools · $1.2M-$3M+ SFH
Watertown / Belmont / Arlington (Boston West)
Mid-senior cyber · Red Line accessible · $700K-$1.5M SFH+condo
Acton / Sudbury / Wayland (Outer West)
Lincoln Lab/MITRE family tier · top schools · $700K-$1.5M SFH
Boston Seaport / South Boston (waterfront)
Mandiant + Vertex + biotech cyber · $800K-$2M condo+townhouse
MA retirement-relocation patterns split — fintech / biotech CISO-track engineers approaching the $1M+ Millionaire's Tax threshold often relocate pre-liquidity to FL / TN / SC / NH (NH has 0% state tax on wages but still taxes investment income). Lincoln Lab + MITRE retirees more often stay in-state (Lincoln Lab pension + family ties + university adjacency makes in-state retirement comfortable through 67+). Cape Cod / Berkshires lifestyle pockets are common in-state retirement landings.
Is this the right move?
Massachusetts cybersecurity — who it's best for
Working in your favor
- +MIT Lincoln Laboratory (FFRDC, ~4K employees, ~80% cleared) provides genuinely unique cleared cybersec research at academic-style publication freedom — Hopkins APL equivalent in MA
- +Akamai Cambridge (~3K cybersec engineers — global CDN/edge security/DDoS) is structural MA commercial cybersec anchor with FAANG-tier comp at materially better Cambridge COL
- +Densest US academic-research cybersecurity cluster — MIT CS, Harvard CS, Northeastern Khoury (Cooperative Education co-op program), BU, Tufts
- +MITRE Bedford FFRDC (~6K MA employees) + Hanscom AFB Bedford cleared cyber programs round out the cleared-research density
- +MA flat 5% state tax (working tier below $1M) is moderate — well below CA 13.3% / NY 10.9% / NJ 10.75% / MD 8.95% combined
- +Mandiant Boston post-Google Cloud acquisition brings Google-tier comp + RSU to Boston threat intel + IR work
- +Boston biotech cyber sub-niche (medical-device + clinical-data security at Vertex/Moderna/Biogen) is genuinely unique to MA + NJ Princeton corridor
Worth knowing before you sign
- −Millionaire's Tax (4% surcharge above $1M, effective 2023) is meaningful late-career consideration for CISO-track + Akamai staff + Lincoln Lab Director tier — combined 9% top
- −MA does tax Section 1202 QSBS gain at 5% (or 9% above $1M) — better than CA 13.3% but worse than FL/TX/WA 0%
- −Greater Boston cost of living is genuinely high — $1M Lexington SFH or $1.5M Newton SFH is the senior-MLE entry point in top-school districts
- −Property tax 1.13% effective is moderate — on $1.2M Lexington home, $13,560/year (lower than NJ 2.21% but higher than NC/AZ)
- −Boston winter (December-March) is a real lifestyle cost — particularly for southern transplants or warm-climate-acclimated engineers
Job Market in Massachusetts
Massachusetts has active demand for Cybersecurity Analysts.
Growth outlook: BLS projects 29% growth 2022-2032 — fastest-growing tech occupation. CISSP / CISM / OSCP / GIAC certs drive 15-30% wage premium. TS/SCI clearance adds $20K-$50K premium uniquely concentrated in NoVA federal contractor market.
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Cost of Living in Massachusetts
Massachusetts has a varied cost of living by region.
💰 Monthly take-home: $9,140
🏠 Typical rent: $1,600/mo
📊 After rent: $7,540/mo
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