Jointly released by the China Digital Marketing Association and SGAIndex, the "2026 Salary Survey Report on China's SEO Practitioners" covers 2,800 SEO professionals nationwide and reveals key trends in the current talent market. Key findings: hybrid professionals capable of handling both traditional SEO and AI search optimization (GEO/LLMO) command a median salary of 25,000 RMB/month, up 28% from 2024; SEO engineers with Python automation skills enjoy a salary premium of roughly 35%; in tier-1 cities (Beijing, Shanghai, Shenzhen), the average salary for SEO Director positions ranges from 35,000 to 55,000 RMB/month; demand for GEO optimization specialists currently far outstrips supply, with the average time to fill a vacancy stretching to 3 months (compared with 6 weeks for ordinary SEO roles). The survey also shows that, in 2026, the skills most in short supply among SEO practitioners are, in order: AI search engine optimization (GEO), data analysis and visualization, technical SEO (crawl budget, Core Web Vitals), and content strategy planning.