Human Resources Managers · SOC 11-3121

Highest-Paying Metro Areas for Human Resources Managerss

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

Metro areas ranked by published median annual wage for human resources managers. Areas where BLS suppressed the median are not ranked. Higher medians often track higher living costs — this is a pay comparison, not a ranking of where the job is “best”.

Top 25 of 358 metro areas

Human Resources Managers: metro areas with the highest published median annual wages, May 2025
#	Metro area	Median annual	Employment	Per 1,000 jobs
1	San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA	$220,460	2,800	2.5
2	San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA	$209,340	4,960	2.1
3	Bridgeport-Stamford-Danbury, CT	$191,190	990	2.5
4	New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ	$185,100	18,480	1.9
5	Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH	$184,990	6,480	2.4
6	Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV	$177,960	6,280	2.0
7	Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA	$171,360	3,200	1.5
8	Denver-Aurora-Centennial, CO	$170,940	2,540	1.6
9	Midland, MI	$170,710	80	2.3
10	Boulder, CO	$169,000	260	1.3
11	Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA	$168,400	9,070	1.4
12	Napa, CA	$167,490	120	1.6
13	Bremerton-Silverdale-Port Orchard, WA	$165,790	70	0.7
14	Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA	$165,160	210	1.0
15	Santa Cruz-Watsonville, CA	$164,570	130	1.3
16	Ithaca, NY	$164,420	50	0.9
17	Vallejo, CA	$163,560	120	0.9
18	Providence-Warwick, RI-MA	$163,290	730	1.0
19	San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA	$163,190	2,300	1.5
20	Oxnard-Thousand Oaks-Ventura, CA	$162,230	380	1.2
21	Trenton-Princeton, NJ	$161,720	530	2.2
22	Santa Rosa-Petaluma, CA	$161,550	240	1.2
23	Greeley, CO	$161,390	100	0.8
24	Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA	$161,250	5,300	1.8
25	Yakima, WA	$160,640	50	0.5

Full state and metro tables, the national distribution, and the pay map are on the Human Resources 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.