NextChapter

Best cities for entry-level jobs that want AI skills

San Francisco leads the United States: 35% of its entry-level openings ask for AI skills, against 7% across all cities in our data.November 2026 edition. Updated monthly, from open jobs we verified on employer career sites.

Key facts

  • #1 San Francisco, CA: 35%
  • #2 Mountain View, CA: 29%
  • #3 Palo Alto, CA: 28%
  • 100 cities ranked in the United States
  • Data as of November 2026

For comparison: 7% across all cities in our data.

  1. 1San Francisco CA35%
  2. 2Mountain View CA29%
  3. 3Palo Alto CA28%
  4. 4Bellevue WA25%
  5. 5San Mateo CA24%
  6. 6Littleton CO23%
  7. 7Sunnyvale CA21%
  8. 8Boston MA18%
  9. 9Santa Clara CA18%
  10. 10Seattle WA17%

What stands out

  • The lead is wide: San Francisco (35%) is well clear of Seattle at #10 (17%).
  • Littleton reaches #6 on a sample of 83 entry-level openings, a smaller market than most of the top ten, so its rank can move more from month to month.
  • San Francisco is the largest market in the top ten, with 2,295 entry-level openings behind its figure.
  • Cities with fewer than 80 entry-level openings are not ranked, and small differences between neighbouring ranks are not meaningful.

Why this ranking matters

What it shows

Entry-level roles used to ask for little technical background. When they ask for AI skills, the starting line has moved. This list shows where that has happened most.

How to use it

If you are applying for first roles, learn the tools named in the postings you want and show a small project that uses them.

The top 25

  1. 1

    San Francisco CA

    35%

    Entry-level AI openings
    799
    Entry-level openings
    2,295
    All openings
    11,695

    Hiring most here: OpenAI, Anthropic, University Of California San Francisco Foundation

    Based on 2,295 openings.

    Jobs and employers in San Francisco

  2. 2

    Mountain View CA

    29%

    Entry-level AI openings
    61
    Entry-level openings
    207
    All openings
    1,513

    Hiring most here: Intuit, Waymo, Google

    Based on 207 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Mountain View

  3. 3

    Palo Alto CA

    28%

    Entry-level AI openings
    74
    Entry-level openings
    263
    All openings
    1,231

    Hiring most here: SpaceX, Rivian Automotive, Stanford Health Care

    Based on 263 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Palo Alto

  4. 4

    Bellevue WA

    25%

    Entry-level AI openings
    68
    Entry-level openings
    267
    All openings
    1,389

    Hiring most here: Amazon, TerraPower, Okta

    Based on 267 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Bellevue

  5. 5

    San Mateo CA

    24%

    Entry-level AI openings
    35
    Entry-level openings
    147
    All openings
    893

    Hiring most here: Roblox, Verkada, Skydio

    Based on 147 openings.

    Jobs and employers in San Mateo

  6. 6

    Littleton CO

    23%

    Entry-level AI openings
    19
    Entry-level openings
    83
    All openings
    280

    Hiring most here: Lockheed Martin, Sikorsky Aircraft, Lockheed Martin Services

    Based on 83 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Littleton

  7. 7

    Sunnyvale CA

    21%

    Entry-level AI openings
    69
    Entry-level openings
    322
    All openings
    1,551

    Hiring most here: Applied Intuition, Wayve, Amazon

    Based on 322 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Sunnyvale

  8. 8

    Boston MA

    18%

    Entry-level AI openings
    172
    Entry-level openings
    952
    All openings
    4,876

    Hiring most here: Vertex Pharmaceuticals, Confidential, Veeva Systems

    Based on 952 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Boston

  9. 9

    Santa Clara CA

    18%

    Entry-level AI openings
    47
    Entry-level openings
    262
    All openings
    1,521

    Hiring most here: Pure Storage, Advanced Micro Devices, Amazon

    Based on 262 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Santa Clara

  10. 10

    Seattle WA

    17%

    Entry-level AI openings
    212
    Entry-level openings
    1,213
    All openings
    5,296

    Hiring most here: Amazon, Blue Origin, Shield AI

    Based on 1,213 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Seattle

  11. 11

    Redwood City CA

    17%

    Entry-level AI openings
    14
    Entry-level openings
    82
    All openings
    471

    Hiring most here: Corcept Therapeutics, SB Energy, C3 AI

    Based on 82 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Redwood City

  12. 12

    Cambridge MA

    14%

    Entry-level AI openings
    21
    Entry-level openings
    151
    All openings
    1,134

    Hiring most here: Harvard University, Biogen, Alnylam Pharmaceuticals

    Based on 151 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Cambridge

  13. 13

    Austin TX

    14%

    Entry-level AI openings
    214
    Entry-level openings
    1,552
    All openings
    5,817

    Hiring most here: Amazon, Advanced Micro Devices, Cloudflare

    Based on 1,552 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Austin

  14. 14

    Alpharetta GA

    13%

    Entry-level AI openings
    22
    Entry-level openings
    166
    All openings
    571

    Hiring most here: Morgan Stanley, Fiserv, Landis+Gyr

    Based on 166 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Alpharetta

  15. 15

    San Jose CA

    13%

    Entry-level AI openings
    63
    Entry-level openings
    484
    All openings
    2,353

    Hiring most here: Super Micro Computer, Advanced Micro Devices, Cisco Systems

    Based on 484 openings.

    Jobs and employers in San Jose

  16. 16

    New York NY

    13%

    Entry-level AI openings
    628
    Entry-level openings
    4,967
    All openings
    20,452

    Hiring most here: Amazon, Publicis Groupe, Morgan Stanley

    Based on 4,967 openings.

    Jobs and employers in New York

  17. 17

    Ann Arbor MI

    12%

    Entry-level AI openings
    11
    Entry-level openings
    92
    All openings
    349

    Hiring most here: May Mobility, Torc Robotics, Thomson Reuters

    Based on 92 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Ann Arbor

  18. 18

    New York NY

    10%

    Entry-level AI openings
    22
    Entry-level openings
    210
    All openings
    1,035

    Hiring most here: Amazon, Publicis Groupe, Morgan Stanley

    Based on 210 openings.

    Jobs and employers in New York

  19. 19

    Denver CO

    10%

    Entry-level AI openings
    78
    Entry-level openings
    763
    All openings
    2,834

    Hiring most here: True Anomaly, Blue Origin, Amazon

    Based on 763 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Denver

  20. 20

    McLean VA

    10%

    Entry-level AI openings
    23
    Entry-level openings
    228
    All openings
    1,127

    Hiring most here: Capital One, The MITRE, Steampunk

    Based on 228 openings.

    Jobs and employers in McLean

  21. 21

    Jersey City NJ

    10%

    Entry-level AI openings
    13
    Entry-level openings
    130
    All openings
    607

    Hiring most here: DTCC, Verisk Analytics, JPMorgan Chase

    Based on 130 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Jersey City

  22. 22

    Reston VA

    10%

    Entry-level AI openings
    16
    Entry-level openings
    163
    All openings
    775

    Hiring most here: ICF International, CACI International, Anduril Industries

    Based on 163 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Reston

  23. 23

    Stamford CT

    10%

    Entry-level AI openings
    8
    Entry-level openings
    82
    All openings
    307

    Hiring most here: Philip Morris International, Gartner, Charter Communications

    Based on 82 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Stamford

  24. 24

    Herndon VA

    10%

    Entry-level AI openings
    21
    Entry-level openings
    218
    All openings
    818

    Hiring most here: Amazon, AWS, Peraton

    Based on 218 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Herndon

  25. 25

    Redmond WA

    9%

    Entry-level AI openings
    35
    Entry-level openings
    400
    All openings
    1,145

    Hiring most here: Amazon, SpaceX, Microsoft

    Based on 400 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Redmond

Full ranking

All 100 cities that qualified, with the figure each is ranked on.

RankCityScoreSample
1San Francisco CA35%2,295
2Mountain View CA29%207
3Palo Alto CA28%263
4Bellevue WA25%267
5San Mateo CA24%147
6Littleton CO23%83
7Sunnyvale CA21%322
8Boston MA18%952
9Santa Clara CA18%262
10Seattle WA17%1,213
11Redwood City CA17%82
12Cambridge MA14%151
13Austin TX14%1,552
14Alpharetta GA13%166
15San Jose CA13%484
16New York NY13%4,967
17Ann Arbor MI12%92
18New York NY10%210
19Denver CO10%763
20McLean VA10%228
21Jersey City NJ10%130
22Reston VA10%163
23Stamford CT10%82
24Herndon VA10%218
25Redmond WA9%400
26Salt Lake City UT9%309
27Irving TX9%232
28San Diego CA8%737
29Chicago IL8%1,760
30Arlington VA8%558
31Oklahoma City OK8%182
32Newark NJ8%110
33El Segundo CA8%249
34Tempe AZ8%227
35Chantilly VA7%147
36Scottsdale AZ7%242
37King of Prussia PA7%125
38Fremont CA7%119
39Irvine CA7%380
40Durham NC7%199
41Atlanta GA7%1,517
42Washington DC7%983
43Detroit MI6%231
44Waltham MA6%124
45Los Angeles CA6%1,313
46Fort Worth TX6%402
47Dallas TX6%1,182
48Brooklyn NY6%186
49Las Vegas NV6%308
50Rockville MD6%103
51Bethesda MD6%105
52Boca Raton FL5%131
53Milwaukee WI5%270
54Huntsville AL5%293
55Miami FL5%684
56Jacksonville FL5%373
57Boulder CO5%119
58Wilmington DE5%107
59Indianapolis IN5%430
60Des Moines IA5%87
61St. Louis MO4%112
62Cedar Rapids IA4%95
63Plano TX4%312
64Raleigh NC4%506
65Madison WI4%193
66Torrance CA4%194
67Omaha NE4%173
68Nashville TN4%445
69Long Beach CA4%272
70Charleston SC4%99
71Minneapolis MN4%326
72Boise ID4%126
73Houston TX4%1,251
74Charlotte NC4%1,027
75Little Rock AR4%111
76Columbia SC4%113
77Syracuse NY3%143
78Birmingham AL3%201
79Oakland CA3%115
80Baltimore MD3%290
81Albany NY3%116
82Fort Wayne IN3%87
83Lincoln NE3%92
84Grand Rapids MI3%154
85Philadelphia PA3%497
86Pittsburgh PA3%530
87Akron OH3%126
88Richardson TX3%95
89Colorado Springs CO3%192
90Hartford CT3%96
91Charlottesville VA3%205
92Cincinnati OH3%551
93Albuquerque NM3%142
94Columbus OH3%694
95Dayton OH3%147
96Chandler AZ3%153
97Memphis TN3%194
98Orlando FL3%400
99Phoenix AZ2%841
100Virginia Beach VA2%122

How this ranking works

A city's score is the share of its entry-level and early-career roles whose posting names at least one AI skill or tool.

Only roles verified on the employer's own career site in the last week are counted. A city where one employer posts at least half the openings is not ranked, so a single company cannot decide a city's score.

Sample bar: cities with fewer than 80 openings are not ranked.

Sources: NextChapter job data: open professional roles on employer career sites, verified in the last week. 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 cities for entry-level jobs that want ai skills?
San Francisco leads the United States: 35% of its entry-level openings ask for AI skills, against 7% across all cities in our data.
How many cities are ranked?
100 cities have at least 80 entry-level openings, so the list has 100 entries.
How is the ranking calculated?
A city's score is the share of its entry-level and early-career roles whose posting names at least one AI skill or tool. Only roles verified on the employer's own career site in the last week are counted. A city where one employer posts at least half the 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 cities for entry-level jobs that want AI skills,” November 2026 edition. https://launchyournextchapter.com/rankings/best-cities-for-entry-level-ai-jobs

Link to it: <a href="https://launchyournextchapter.com/rankings/best-cities-for-entry-level-ai-jobs">Best cities for entry-level jobs that want AI skills (NextChapter, November 2026)</a>

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

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