San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA metro area
Highest-Paying Occupations in San Jose Metro
Source: BLS OEWS, May 2025San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA metro area
Figures describe the San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA metropolitan statistical area as defined by BLS/OMB — the whole multi-county metro region, not San Jose city limits. Occupations are ranked by published median annual wage; occupations where BLS suppressed the annual median or publishes only hourly wages are not ranked (18 such occupations here).
Top 25 of 574 occupations
| # | Occupation | Median annual | Median hourly | Employment |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ophthalmologists, Except Pediatric | $700,850 | $336.95 | 60 |
| 2 | Psychiatrists | $353,500 | $169.95 | 250 |
| 3 | Family Medicine Physicians | $351,760 | $169.12 | 1,120 |
| 4 | General Internal Medicine Physicians | $347,870 | $167.25 | Not published |
| 5 | Airline Pilots, Copilots, and Flight Engineers | $343,140 | Not published | 50 |
| 6 | Lawyers | $301,320 | $144.87 | 6,040 |
| 7 | Computer and Information Systems Managers | $291,660 | $140.22 | 19,070 |
| 8 | Obstetricians and Gynecologists | $263,990 | $126.92 | Not published |
| 9 | Natural Sciences Managers | $263,810 | $126.83 | 1,160 |
| 10 | Physicians, Pathologists | $248,420 | $119.43 | 30 |
| 11 | Architectural and Engineering Managers | $234,590 | $112.78 | 5,130 |
| 12 | Materials Scientists | $231,920 | $111.50 | 180 |
| 13 | Nurse Practitioners | $231,560 | $111.33 | 1,580 |
| 14 | Marketing Managers | $231,370 | $111.24 | 7,300 |
| 15 | Training and Development Managers | $230,020 | $110.59 | 880 |
| 16 | Financial Managers | $225,280 | $108.31 | 7,970 |
| 17 | Physician Assistants | $223,640 | $107.52 | 1,030 |
| 18 | Human Resources Managers | $220,460 | $105.99 | 2,800 |
| 19 | Computer and Information Research Scientists | $218,420 | $105.01 | 2,210 |
| 20 | Managers, All Other | $217,280 | $104.46 | 13,740 |
| 21 | Registered Nurses | $216,740 | $104.20 | 22,930 |
| 22 | Compensation and Benefits Managers | $215,180 | $103.45 | 320 |
| 23 | Public Relations Managers | $213,510 | $102.65 | 980 |
| 24 | Software Developers | $213,110 | $102.46 | 87,350 |
| 25 | Computer Hardware Engineers | $209,860 | $100.89 | 7,940 |
The full list of every published occupation here is on the San Jose metro area overview.
About this data. Estimates are from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics program, May 2025 release, retrieved from bls.gov/oes/tables.htm on July 24, 2026. OEWS estimates describe metropolitan/nonmetropolitan areas and states — not city limits — and are not designed for year-over-year comparisons. See BLS methodology, our plain-English methodology, and sources. CitySalaryData is independent and not affiliated with BLS.