The Privacy Job Market in 2025: What’s happening, the salary ranges and what you should do

📌 Hiring is picking up - but mostly for operational roles. Senior jobs are limited. Read on to find out what to focus on if you want to grow - and what the salary ranges look like for privacy roles today.

We spoke with Tom Woods, a data protection recruiter focused on privacy, data governance, and AI governance roles across the UK, Europe, and the US at Taylor Root.

Below is a quick overview of current market trends, salary ranges, and what privacy professionals can do to grow their careers.

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📊 The Job Market: Steady but Uneven

The Job Market right now is pretty stable. After a few years with slow growth it has been picking up and it’s now stable.

The trends right now are:

●  More hiring at the mid-level (privacy managers, senior consultants).

●  Fewer senior roles (e.g. Chief Privacy Officer, Director of Privacy) - these are slow to open and often underfunded.

●  Budgets are tight, and many teams are focusing on operational capacity over strategy hires.

📌 What Roles are in demand?

In demand: Operational Privacy Professionals & Privacy Managers:

People who can manage DSRs, privacy workflows, and liaise with the business. These roles are in the demand and more companies are also looking for Privacy Managers, ie. more mid-level privacy professionals.

Limited demand: Senior leadership roles:

Chief Privacy Officer and Director-level roles are limited, though there are signs of movement in the US. In Europe it’s a limited job market. If you’re looking for a senior role, it’s important that you stand out and focus on your capabilities in connecting and working with the business - and delivering commercial value.

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💼 Want to Move Up? Here’s what you should focus on

If you’re looking to advance your career and take on a more senior role, Tom’s best advice is:

Prove your business value
Demonstrate how your privacy work reduces risk, supports marketing, or contributes to commercial goals.

Get involved in AI governance
It’s on every executive’s agenda - and now a common part of interview discussions for senior roles.

“Every interview for a Chief Privacy Officer or Director of Privacy includes: ‘What’s your exposure to AI governance?’”

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💰 Salary Benchmarks (EUR & GBP)

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What companies are paying the most for privacy roles? Here’s an overview: 

• Big tech, tier-one banks & pharma pay top end.
  
  
• Many firms are trying to hire below market, but often can’t fill roles at those levels for many months.

• There’s also a shift toward hiring in “lower-cost” locations that are still in country—changing salary dynamics.
  

🔑 Final Tips for Career Growth

• Own or support AI governance if possible - it increases visibility and promotion opportunities.
  
  
• Build relationships beyond compliance and legal. Sales, marketing and HR teams are key allies.
  
  
• Talk in business terms. Executives respond to impact, not checklists.

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“The highest paid Chief Privacy Officers are lawyers who understand operations - not just lawyers who became privacy leads.”