Top High Income Skills To Learn In 2024

Many people work hard but continue to struggle financially. The unpleasant truth is that some skills command higher pay than others – they are referred to as high-income skills.

Employers and clients are willing to pay a premium for high-value skills. Developing these skills and expertise will significantly raise your earning potential and improve your financial circumstances.

We will look at what high-income skills are and recommend some of the better ones to master. So let’s get started and put you on the path to earning the money you deserve.

What Are High Income Skills?

High income skills are professional qualities and knowledge that can result in a six-figure annual pay. The concept of high income varies by area owing to changes in living expenses, but a six-figure annual salary is a decent starting point for determining high value skills.

If you want to narrow down the criteria of high income any further, the Pew Research Center estimates that approximately 19% of Americans live in upper-income households.

Here are the high-income skills you should study if you want to be among the top 5% of earnings.

List of High Income Skills to Learn: 20+ Examples

1. Software Development

It was hard to choose, but software development deserves our top rank. Programs and other operating information utilized by computers and electronics are software. There’s a high demand for coders because so much of life is digitized. Additionally, coding doesn’t require a college degree. Coding bootcamps like EdX and Udemy can teach you in months, not years.

And the reward? Software developers earn $107,510 on average, with top earners earning twice that. An extremely valuable skill.

2. UX Design

UX designers create effortless and enjoyable user experiences for products, services, and gadgets. They prioritize user experience and are crucial to a product or device’s commercial success.

UX design combines psychology, design, and business awareness and market research. Good UX designers may make over $100k a year, and there’s plenty of online training.

3. SEO

Search engine optimization is another useful technological skill.  Search engine optimization ranks a company’s website high in Google’s search results. A website receives more visitors and business if it ranks higher in search results. SEO experts are in demand because every internet business wants in.

4. Video Production

Video content is king. Just look at the rapid rise of YouTube and TikTok. It is more interesting, informative, and compelling than simple printed text. Businesses are increasingly seeking expert video production pros to improve their marketing output.

As with the other skills we’ve explored, there are numerous opportunities for studying video production and editing. Investing in the correct knowledge and equipment will yield significant returns.

5. Copywriting

Copywriting is a specialized type of writing that focuses on developing promotional and marketing materials with the goal of selling a product or service. It’s a high-paying skill that is prized in almost every field, and it’s especially well-suited to freelance employment.

The greatest copywriters can earn big sums by negotiating a percentage of the sales generated by their text, making it quite profitable if you’re successful.

6. Entrepreneurship

Perhaps you’d rather work for yourself than for someone else? In that situation, you will need to learn entrepreneurial skills. They are difficult to define because they encompass everything from interpersonal skills to leadership and management skills, marketing capabilities, and more.

Entrepreneurship is a combination of creativity, invention, and taking risks. It’s about making ideas a reality and generating new business prospects. There are numerous resources available to help the aspiring entrepreneur polish their skills. Look for business management courses and assistance from experienced entrepreneurs.

7. Digital Marketing

Digital marketing uses search engines, apps, social media, and email to advertise. Whether you’re a marketer or not, these platforms are becoming the most significant means to promote products and services. Traditional media marketing remains unpopular.

Thus, learning digital marketing as a high-income skill is wise. It has many niches, including content marketing, social media marketing, and online advertising.

8. Audio Engineering

Video production is popular, but audio production is too. Corporate giants want in on the podcast boom. Radio and music are typical audio engineer fields.

You might believe radio is dying, but it’s not. Radio has grown in popularity because to COVID-19. Demand for radio audio engineers will remain high.

9. Mobile App Development

As said, software development is intimately tied to this high-income specialty. It’s worth learning as a separate talent for these reasons. Internet consumption on mobile devices has exceeded desktops worldwide. Mobile’s market share was 55% in January 2021 and rising.

Mobile app development options are nearly unlimited due to the growing use of mobile devices for online shopping, banking, lifestyle apps, and more. This field offers several prospects for skill development.

10. Business Analysis

Business analysis is another high-demand, high-growth skill that can enhance your earnings. Business analysts analyze data to improve products, services, and processes. Every industry needs this skill.

Jobs are growing faster than normal and the median wage is close to $100,000. Overall, a great choice for improved pay days.

11. Program Management

Project management skills are another universally regarded skill that will help you earn a good salary. In a nutshell, these are the skills that allow you to perform tasks on schedule, within budget, and with efficient use of resources. And focusing in project management provides good earning potential and outstanding job growth opportunities.

12. IT Skills

There is a great emphasis on IT skills if you want to build qualities that will give you a good living. So, let’s look at some more IT skills that are currently in great demand and have significant earning potential.

• Cybersecurity: Companies and organizations need to protect their digital information and infrastructure. Cybersecurity is in high demand, but short supply so well worth pursuing as a high income skill.
• Artificial intelligence: AI is set to transform the world of work. More and more businesses are incorporating AI into their processes and demand for AI experts will remain strong.
• Cloud computing: It’s simply the delivery of computing services over the internet. In 2020, it generated more than $200 billion annually to the US economy, a figure that’s set to keep growing.
• Blockchain: It isn’t just Bitcoin. Blockchain is set to transform online payments, file storage, identity management, secure voting, smart contracts and more. Demand is high and job growth is faster than average in the blockchain engineering industry too, so there are plenty of opportunities to earn well.
• Internet of Things (IoT): IoT refers to devices that use technologies that connect with other objects and systems using the internet. For example a fridge that can automatically order groceries when you start to run low. With a future market set to run into the trillions of dollars, IoT offers a bright future for skilled professionals.
• Programming: Knowing how to code underpins pretty much every facet of IT. Develop a good working knowledge of the most in-demand programming languages and you’ll definitely be able to increase your earnings.

13. Soft Skills

All of the high-paying skills we’ve discussed thus far are hard skills, or specialized technical abilities that allow you to perform your job. However, you should not ignore soft skills, which are characteristics that define how you work with others, such as interpersonal abilities. Developing these skills can also help you earn a higher wage. Here are some instances.

• Leadership and management skills: To advance in your career and increase your income you’ll need to lead and manage others effectively.
• Problem-solving skills: Coming up with innovative solutions to business problems, and preventing problems from happening in the first place is a highly-valued ability.
• Adaptability: If you’re able to adapt to the changing nature of work and develop your abilities to meet growing demands then you’ll keep your earning potential on track.
• Transferable skills: Developing skills that are portable across different jobs and industries will give you the flexibility to pursue new and more lucrative opportunities. Transferable skills are a must have to earn well.
• Collaboration skills: To earn well, you’ll need to work well with others. Good collaboration skills mean better performance overall at work and that’ll translate into your pay packet too.

How to Learn High Income Skills

The good news is that we are living in an era of unparalleled learning opportunities. Here are some suggestions to help you get started:

1. Make Use of Free Resources

There is a multitude of free knowledge available on YouTube, blogs, and dedicated “how to” forums. Use it to establish a footing in your preferred area of high-income expertise.

2. Invest in Paid Courses

When you’ve exhausted your free options, you might want to take things to the next level. Look at online training platforms such as Udemy, Coursera, and EdX. Don’t forget traditional educational institutions. Universities and adult learning providers are offering an ever-expanding choice of training courses, many of which may be completed online.

3. Get a Mentor

Making the appropriate contacts is critical for overall job success. When it comes to pursuing new high-income skills, having a mentor who has been there and done that can provide vital insight.

4. Put Your New Skills to Use

Once you’ve completed your education, you’ll need to put your high-income abilities into practice. That goes beyond simply getting full-time job or starting your own business in your chosen industry. Freelancing will allow you to begin putting your newly acquired expertise into practice. To get started, consider freelancing platforms such as Fiverr and Upwork.

Key Takeaway

The best high-paying skills to study are software programming, UX design, video production, copywriting, and entrepreneurship. Many of them are focused on IT, but there are also vital soft skills required to obtain a high salary.

Explore the various learning opportunities available, both free and paid, to help you improve your abilities. Ideally, you should locate a mentor to support you along the path. Put your abilities to use, whether through full-time paid employment, entrepreneurship, or freelancing.