Best cities for sales pay after cost of living
Key facts
- #1 Santa Clara, CA: $175k
- #2 Washington, DC: $169k
- #3 San Francisco, CA: $167k
- 45 cities ranked in the United States
- Data as of November 2026
For comparison: $120k across the typical city in our data.
- 1Santa Clara CA$175k
- 2Washington DC$169k
- 3San Francisco CA$167k
- 4San Mateo CA$164k
- 5Mountain View CA$161k
- 6McLean VA$158k
- 7Arlington VA$146k
- 8Seattle WA$146k
- 9Reston VA$145k
- 10Frankfort KY$142k
What stands out
- The top ten is tightly packed: Santa Clara leads on $175k, and #10 Frankfort is at $142k.
- San Mateo reaches #4 on a sample of 20 openings with pay posted, 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 795 openings with pay posted behind its figure.
- Cities with fewer than 30 openings with pay posted are not ranked, and small differences between neighbouring ranks are not meaningful.
Why this ranking matters
What it shows
Pay for the same job family varies by city, and so does the cost of living. This list ranks cities on posted pay for the family after adjusting for local prices.
How to use it
Use it to see where your family's pay stretches furthest, and compare it with the city's opening count on the job-family list.
The top 25
- 1
Santa Clara CA
$175k
- Median posted pay
- $193k
- State prices vs US average
- +11%
- Openings with pay posted
- 30
Hiring most here: Pure Storage, Advanced Micro Devices, Amazon
Based on 30 openings.
- 2
Washington DC
$169k
- Median posted pay
- $185k
- Local prices vs US average
- +9%
- Openings with pay posted
- 148
Hiring most here: Anduril Industries, CACI International, Shield AI
Based on 148 openings.
- 3
San Francisco CA
$167k
- Median posted pay
- $193k
- Local prices vs US average
- +16%
- Openings with pay posted
- 795
Hiring most here: OpenAI, Anthropic, University Of California San Francisco Foundation
Based on 795 openings.
- 5
Mountain View CA
$161k
- Median posted pay
- $178k
- Local prices vs US average
- +10%
- Openings with pay posted
- 23
Hiring most here: Intuit, Waymo, Google
Based on 23 openings.
- 6
McLean VA
$158k
- Median posted pay
- $160k
- State prices vs US average
- +1%
- Openings with pay posted
- 44
Hiring most here: Capital One, The MITRE, Steampunk
Based on 44 openings.
- 7
Arlington VA
$146k
- Median posted pay
- $148k
- State prices vs US average
- +1%
- Openings with pay posted
- 48
Hiring most here: Amazon, AWS, Bloomberg Industry Group
Based on 48 openings.
- 8
Seattle WA
$146k
- Median posted pay
- $163k
- Local prices vs US average
- +11%
- Openings with pay posted
- 71
Hiring most here: Amazon, Blue Origin, Shield AI
Based on 71 openings.
- 9
Reston VA
$145k
- Median posted pay
- $146k
- State prices vs US average
- +1%
- Openings with pay posted
- 21
Hiring most here: ICF International, CACI International, Anduril Industries
Based on 21 openings.
- 11
Boston MA
$139k
- Median posted pay
- $150k
- Local prices vs US average
- +8%
- Openings with pay posted
- 169
Hiring most here: Vertex Pharmaceuticals, State Street, Confidential
Based on 169 openings.
- 12
Minneapolis MN
$138k
- Median posted pay
- $145k
- Local prices vs US average
- +5%
- Openings with pay posted
- 51
Hiring most here: Mortenson, Target ALS Foundation, Ameriprise Certificate
Based on 51 openings.
- 13
New York NY
$133k
- Median posted pay
- $150k
- Local prices vs US average
- +13%
- Openings with pay posted
- 1,152
Hiring most here: Amazon, Publicis Groupe, Morgan Stanley
Based on 1,152 openings.
- 14
San Jose CA
$131k
- Median posted pay
- $145k
- Local prices vs US average
- +10%
- Openings with pay posted
- 29
Hiring most here: Super Micro Computer, Advanced Micro Devices, Cisco Systems
Based on 29 openings.
- 15
Austin TX
$127k
- Median posted pay
- $125k
- Local prices vs US average
- −2%
- Openings with pay posted
- 189
Hiring most here: Amazon, Advanced Micro Devices, Cloudflare
Based on 189 openings.
- 16
Atlanta GA
$125k
- Median posted pay
- $125k
- Local prices vs US average
- +0%
- Openings with pay posted
- 175
Hiring most here: Emory University, Oxford College of Emory University, Capgemini Invent
Based on 175 openings.
- 17
New York NY
$122k
- Median posted pay
- $138k
- Local prices vs US average
- +13%
- Openings with pay posted
- 85
Hiring most here: Amazon, Publicis Groupe, Morgan Stanley
Based on 85 openings.
- 18
Philadelphia PA
$122k
- Median posted pay
- $125k
- Local prices vs US average
- +3%
- Openings with pay posted
- 89
Hiring most here: Confidential, GSK, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia
Based on 89 openings.
- 19
Chicago IL
$121k
- Median posted pay
- $125k
- Local prices vs US average
- +4%
- Openings with pay posted
- 341
Hiring most here: Publicis Groupe, Northern Trust, Confidential
Based on 341 openings.
- 20
Sacramento CA
$119k
- Median posted pay
- $128k
- Local prices vs US average
- +7%
- Openings with pay posted
- 45
Hiring most here: Sutter Health, California Correctional Health Care Services, Nalu Medical
Based on 45 openings.
- 21
Cleveland OH
$119k
- Median posted pay
- $110k
- State prices vs US average
- −7%
- Openings with pay posted
- 31
Hiring most here: Flexjet, Sherwin Williams, KeyBank
Based on 31 openings.
- 22
Los Angeles CA
$118k
- Median posted pay
- $134k
- Local prices vs US average
- +14%
- Openings with pay posted
- 160
Hiring most here: K2 Space, Cedars-sinai Medical Center, Apex Space
Based on 160 openings.
- 23
Raleigh NC
$117k
- Median posted pay
- $110k
- State prices vs US average
- −6%
- Openings with pay posted
- 71
Hiring most here: First Citizens Bank, Dewberry, MaintainX
Based on 71 openings.
- 24
Louisville KY
$116k
- Median posted pay
- $105k
- State prices vs US average
- −10%
- Openings with pay posted
- 93
Hiring most here: BrightSpring Health Services, Norton Healthcare, GE Appliances
Based on 93 openings.
- 25
San Diego CA
$114k
- Median posted pay
- $128k
- Local prices vs US average
- +12%
- Openings with pay posted
- 48
Hiring most here: Qualcomm Inc/De, Qualcomm Technologies, General Atomics
Based on 48 openings.
Full ranking
All 45 cities that qualified, with the figure each is ranked on.
| Rank | City | Score | Sample |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Santa Clara CA | $175k | 30 |
| 2 | Washington DC | $169k | 148 |
| 3 | San Francisco CA | $167k | 795 |
| 4 | San Mateo CA | $164k | 20 |
| 5 | Mountain View CA | $161k | 23 |
| 6 | McLean VA | $158k | 44 |
| 7 | Arlington VA | $146k | 48 |
| 8 | Seattle WA | $146k | 71 |
| 9 | Reston VA | $145k | 21 |
| 10 | Frankfort KY | $142k | 21 |
| 11 | Boston MA | $139k | 169 |
| 12 | Minneapolis MN | $138k | 51 |
| 13 | New York NY | $133k | 1,152 |
| 14 | San Jose CA | $131k | 29 |
| 15 | Austin TX | $127k | 189 |
| 16 | Atlanta GA | $125k | 175 |
| 17 | New York NY | $122k | 85 |
| 18 | Philadelphia PA | $122k | 89 |
| 19 | Chicago IL | $121k | 341 |
| 20 | Sacramento CA | $119k | 45 |
| 21 | Cleveland OH | $119k | 31 |
| 22 | Los Angeles CA | $118k | 160 |
| 23 | Raleigh NC | $117k | 71 |
| 24 | Louisville KY | $116k | 93 |
| 25 | San Diego CA | $114k | 48 |
| 26 | Denver CO | $112k | 120 |
| 27 | Nashville TN | $106k | 23 |
| 28 | San Antonio TX | $106k | 26 |
| 29 | Cincinnati OH | $105k | 41 |
| 30 | Charlotte NC | $103k | 104 |
| 31 | Columbus OH | $102k | 56 |
| 32 | Orlando FL | $102k | 36 |
| 33 | Brooklyn NY | $101k | 20 |
| 34 | Tallahassee FL | $101k | 21 |
| 35 | Dallas TX | $101k | 114 |
| 36 | Irvine CA | $98k | 35 |
| 37 | Richmond VA | $95k | 64 |
| 38 | Houston TX | $95k | 86 |
| 39 | Pittsburgh PA | $95k | 30 |
| 40 | Miami FL | $93k | 52 |
| 41 | Mundelein IL | $90k | 28 |
| 42 | Phoenix AZ | $90k | 42 |
| 43 | Tampa FL | $81k | 54 |
| 44 | Fort Lauderdale FL | $77k | 24 |
| 45 | United PA | $74k | 25 |
The jobs behind this ranking
Open sales jobs, who is hiring for them and what they pay.
- Sales jobs
- Top Sales employers
- Account Executive 3,200
- Business Development Representative 1,550
- Outside Sales Representative 1,530
- Sales Development Representative 1,341
- Enterprise Account Executive 1,037
- Inside Sales Representative 961
- Territory Manager 866
- Account Manager 662
Job titles link to their salary page where pay is posted, otherwise to the open jobs.
How this ranking works
The score is the median posted annual salary (the midpoint of each posted range) for this job family in a city, divided by its local price level, with the United States at 100.
Price levels are the Bureau of Economic Analysis regional price parities for the city's metro area, or its state where no metro figure exists. Only cities with at least 20 listings in the family that post a salary 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 30 openings are not ranked.
Sources: NextChapter job data: posted annual salary ranges; Bureau of Economic Analysis regional price parities 2024 (metro areas and states). 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 sales pay after cost of living?
- Santa Clara leads the United States for pay after the cost of living in this job family: its median posted salary buys what $175k buys at average US prices.
- How many cities are ranked?
- 45 cities have at least 30 openings with pay posted, so the list has 45 entries.
- How is the ranking calculated?
- The score is the median posted annual salary (the midpoint of each posted range) for this job family in a city, divided by its local price level, with the United States at 100. Price levels are the Bureau of Economic Analysis regional price parities for the city's metro area, or its state where no metro figure exists. Only cities with at least 20 listings in the family that post a salary 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 cities for sales pay after cost of living,” November 2026 edition. https://launchyournextchapter.com/rankings/best-cities-for-sales-pay-vs-cost-of-living
Link to it: <a href="https://launchyournextchapter.com/rankings/best-cities-for-sales-pay-vs-cost-of-living">Best cities for sales pay after cost of living (NextChapter, November 2026)</a>
Download the data: CSV · JSON. Free to use with a link back.
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