Doesn't hurt to check out your options. And almost any job will welcome you back (usually at your new pay rate) if you change your mind down the road.

Over my career, lateral moves have netted me +80%, +30%, and 20%. Not to mention quality of work/life improvements.

Most companies basically offer a < 5% raise every year, which is just around inflation. Maybe a 10% bump if you get promoted. The wider world values your skills much more.

Follow the ABCs. Always Be Checking.

It doesn't cost you a dime to keep your resume up to date and to check Indeed and Linked In one every few weeks for jobs like yours in your area.

Worst case, you look around and find there's nothing in your area paying much better than you are currently earning. Congrats. You're in as good a position as you can reasonably expect.

More likely though, you'll see one or more of a few other trends in your search:

• Employers are all looking for a specific skill adjacent to your skill set that you don't have. Might be time to look into a class or something to pick this skill up and increase your potential.

• Employers around you are all willing to pay more than you're making but want more experience. In this case you can sit tight...or throw your hat into the ring even with less experience. They may take a flier on you, especially in this tight labor market.

• Employers around you are willing to pay more for your skills and experience. This is most likely but you now need to check out why, and decide if you're interested.

Even if you're not really interested (maybe the specific opening is too far away or not a big pay increase or something) it may still be worth reaching out, even if just for interview practice. Lots of people really struggle with interviews, and being able to do one where you're not really intent on landing the job may be a valuable experience.