Compensation and Benefits Managers · SOC 11-3111

Highest-Paying Metro Areas for Compensation and Benefits Managerss

Source: BLS OEWS, May 2025U.S. metropolitan areas

Metro areas ranked by published median annual wage for compensation and benefits managers. Areas where BLS suppressed the median are not ranked (2 such areas are excluded here). Higher medians often track higher living costs — this is a pay comparison, not a ranking of where the job is “best”.

Top 25 of 90 metro areas

Compensation and Benefits Managers: metro areas with the highest published median annual wages, May 2025
#	Metro area	Median annual	Employment	Per 1,000 jobs
1	Fayetteville-Springdale-Rogers, AR	$221,800	40	0.2
2	Bridgeport-Stamford-Danbury, CT	$218,860	230	0.6
3	Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA	$216,580	340	0.2
4	San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA	$215,180	320	0.3
5	San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA	$188,850	590	0.2
6	Trenton-Princeton, NJ	$186,700	60	0.3
7	Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH	$185,590	590	0.2
8	New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ	$179,730	2,420	0.3
9	Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV	$171,950	590	0.2
10	Denver-Aurora-Centennial, CO	$168,850	230	0.1
11	Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WA	$168,540	180	0.2
12	Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC	$167,450	300	0.2
13	Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA	$166,100	760	0.3
14	Cleveland, OH	$163,500	110	0.1
15	Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI	$163,390	320	0.2
16	Salem, OR	$163,270	Not published	Not published
17	Ann Arbor, MI	$162,720	30	0.2
18	Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI	$162,490	330	0.2
19	Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford, CT	$162,480	130	0.2
20	Providence-Warwick, RI-MA	$162,440	60	0.1
21	Worcester, MA	$160,990	40	0.1
22	San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA	$160,970	240	0.2
23	Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom, CA	$159,450	140	0.1
24	Richmond, VA	$157,370	130	0.2
25	Birmingham, AL	$156,710	30	0.1

Full state and metro tables, the national distribution, and the pay map are on the Compensation and Benefits Managers 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.