NextChapter

Best all-round cities for AI careers in the Southwest

Austin is the best all-round city for AI careers in the Southwest, with a score of 98 / 100.November 2026 edition. Updated monthly, from open jobs we verified on employer career sites.

Key facts

  • #1 Austin, TX: 98 / 100
  • #2 Dallas, TX: 84 / 100
  • #3 Addison, TX: 80 / 100
  • 15 cities ranked in the Southwest
  • Data as of November 2026
  1. 1Austin TX98 / 100
  2. 2Dallas TX84 / 100
  3. 3Addison TX80 / 100
  4. 4Irving TX76 / 100
  5. 5Plano TX70 / 100
  6. 6Houston TX57 / 100
  7. 7Tempe AZ54 / 100
  8. 8Scottsdale AZ44 / 100
  9. 9Phoenix AZ41 / 100
  10. 10Fort Worth TX35 / 100

What stands out

  • The lead is wide: Austin (98 / 100) is well clear of Fort Worth at #10 (35 / 100).
  • Addison reaches #3 on a sample of 215 openings, a smaller market than most of the top ten, so its rank can move more from month to month.
  • Austin is the largest market in the top ten, with 6,257 openings behind its figure.
  • Cities with fewer than 100 openings are not ranked, and small differences between neighbouring ranks are not meaningful.

Why this ranking matters

What it shows

Careers that use AI cluster in a few places. This list weighs the share and number of openings that ask for AI skills and the pay they offer, to show where AI work is concentrated.

How to use it

If you are building AI skills, the top cities show where the employers and the roles are. The gap between your city and the top is a guide to what to add to your résumé.

The top 25

  1. 1

    Austin TX

    98 / 100

    AI-skill share of openings
    18%
    AI-skill openings
    1,135
    Median posted pay
    $165k

    Hiring most here: Amazon, Advanced Micro Devices, Cloudflare

    Based on 6,257 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Austin

  2. 2

    Dallas TX

    84 / 100

    AI-skill share of openings
    11%
    AI-skill openings
    546
    Median posted pay
    $143k

    Hiring most here: Amazon, Shield AI, Texas Instruments

    Based on 4,778 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Dallas

  3. 3

    Addison TX

    80 / 100

    AI-skill share of openings
    33%
    AI-skill openings
    71
    Median posted pay
    $150k

    Hiring most here: National Life Group, National Life Insurance Company, Bank of America

    Based on 215 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Addison

  4. 4

    Irving TX

    76 / 100

    AI-skill share of openings
    15%
    AI-skill openings
    142
    Median posted pay
    $134k

    Hiring most here: Mckesson, CHRISTUS Health, 7-Eleven

    Based on 948 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Irving

  5. 5

    Plano TX

    70 / 100

    AI-skill share of openings
    10%
    AI-skill openings
    116
    Median posted pay
    $137k

    Hiring most here: NTT Data, Pepsico, JPMorgan Chase

    Based on 1,109 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Plano

  6. 6

    Houston TX

    57 / 100

    AI-skill share of openings
    6%
    AI-skill openings
    264
    Median posted pay
    $125k

    Hiring most here: Axiom Space, Fervo Energy, Trinzic

    Based on 4,621 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Houston

  7. 7

    Tempe AZ

    54 / 100

    AI-skill share of openings
    11%
    AI-skill openings
    77
    Median posted pay
    $125k

    Hiring most here: Carvana, Amazon, Viasat

    Based on 688 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Tempe

  8. 8

    Scottsdale AZ

    44 / 100

    AI-skill share of openings
    7%
    AI-skill openings
    53
    Median posted pay
    $125k

    Hiring most here: General Dynamics Mission Systems, Axon Enterprise, AMI Semiconductor

    Based on 772 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Scottsdale

  9. 9

    Phoenix AZ

    41 / 100

    AI-skill share of openings
    6%
    AI-skill openings
    166
    Median posted pay
    $120k

    Hiring most here: Honeywell Aerospace, State of Arizona, American Society for Microbiology

    Based on 2,922 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Phoenix

  10. 10

    Fort Worth TX

    35 / 100

    AI-skill share of openings
    6%
    AI-skill openings
    80
    Median posted pay
    $115k

    Hiring most here: Lockheed Martin, Lockheed Martin Services, MP Materials

    Based on 1,339 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Fort Worth

  11. 11

    Reno NV

    28 / 100

    AI-skill share of openings
    4%
    AI-skill openings
    12
    Median posted pay
    $132k

    Hiring most here: IGT, Amperesand, Caesars Entertainment

    Based on 311 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Reno

  12. 12

    Oklahoma City OK

    25 / 100

    AI-skill share of openings
    6%
    AI-skill openings
    35
    Median posted pay
    $108k

    Hiring most here: Love's Travel Stops, CACI International, Northrop Grumman

    Based on 581 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Oklahoma City

  13. 13

    Tucson AZ

    21 / 100

    AI-skill share of openings
    2%
    AI-skill openings
    13
    Median posted pay
    $126k

    Hiring most here: RTX, University of Arizona, Raytheon

    Based on 732 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Tucson

  14. 14

    Las Vegas NV

    19 / 100

    AI-skill share of openings
    5%
    AI-skill openings
    46
    Median posted pay
    $115k

    Hiring most here: Caesars Entertainment, Allegiant Travel Company, Jt4

    Based on 980 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Las Vegas

  15. 15

    San Antonio TX

    18 / 100

    AI-skill share of openings
    3%
    AI-skill openings
    40
    Median posted pay
    $116k

    Hiring most here: H-E-B, University Health San Antonio, UT Health San Antonio

    Based on 1,352 openings.

    Jobs and employers in San Antonio

Full ranking

All 15 cities that qualified, with the figure each is ranked on.

RankCityScoreSample
1Austin TX98 / 1006,257
2Dallas TX84 / 1004,778
3Addison TX80 / 100215
4Irving TX76 / 100948
5Plano TX70 / 1001,109
6Houston TX57 / 1004,621
7Tempe AZ54 / 100688
8Scottsdale AZ44 / 100772
9Phoenix AZ41 / 1002,922
10Fort Worth TX35 / 1001,339
11Reno NV28 / 100311
12Oklahoma City OK25 / 100581
13Tucson AZ21 / 100732
14Las Vegas NV19 / 100980
15San Antonio TX18 / 1001,352

How this ranking works

A city's score is the weighted average of its percentile rank on each measure among the ranked cities (100 is first, 0 is last): ai-skill share of openings 35%, ai-skill openings 30%, median posted pay 20%, pay after cost of living 15%.

A score of 100 would mean first on every measure and 50 is the middle of the pack. The measures and weights are fixed in advance and shown here; they are a judgment about what matters to this reader, so use the single-measure rankings when one thing matters most.

Only cities with enough openings and pay data are ranked.

A city where one employer posts more than 50% of its openings is not ranked, so a single company cannot decide a city's score.

Sample bar: cities with fewer than 100 openings are not ranked.

Sources: NextChapter job data: open professional roles and posted pay; Bureau of Economic Analysis regional price parities 2024. Data as of November 2026.

Our job data covers professional roles on the career sites of employers we track, so figures describe that market, not every job. Spot an error? Tell us.

Questions

Which city ranks first: best all-round cities for ai careers in the southwest?
Austin is the best all-round city for AI careers in the Southwest, with a score of 98 / 100.
How many cities are ranked?
15 cities have at least 100 openings, so the list has 15 entries.
How is the ranking calculated?
A city's score is the weighted average of its percentile rank on each measure among the ranked cities (100 is first, 0 is last): ai-skill share of openings 35%, ai-skill openings 30%, median posted pay 20%, pay after cost of living 15%. A score of 100 would mean first on every measure and 50 is the middle of the pack. The measures and weights are fixed in advance and shown here; they are a judgment about what matters to this reader, so use the single-measure rankings when one thing matters most. Only cities with enough openings and pay data are ranked. A city where one employer posts more than 50% of its openings is not ranked, so a single company cannot decide a city's score.
How often is it updated?
Every month. This is the November 2026 edition. Older editions stay on this site at their own dated addresses.

More rankings

Cite this ranking

NextChapter, “Best all-round cities for AI careers in the Southwest,” November 2026 edition. https://launchyournextchapter.com/rankings/best-all-round-cities-for-ai-careers-in-the-southwest

Link to it: <a href="https://launchyournextchapter.com/rankings/best-all-round-cities-for-ai-careers-in-the-southwest">Best all-round cities for AI careers in the Southwest (NextChapter, November 2026)</a>

Download the data: CSV · JSON. Free to use with a link back.

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