Natural Sciences Managers · SOC 11-9121

Highest-Paying Metro Areas for Natural Sciences Managerss

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

Metro areas ranked by published median annual wage for natural sciences managers. Areas where BLS suppressed the median are not ranked (4 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 210 metro areas

Natural Sciences Managers: metro areas with the highest published median annual wages, May 2025
#	Metro area	Median annual	Employment	Per 1,000 jobs
1	Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH	$291,000	9,570	3.5
2	San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA	$263,810	1,160	1.0
3	San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA	$225,230	5,530	2.3
4	Fayetteville-Springdale-Rogers, AR	$220,120	100	0.3
5	Norwich-New London-Willimantic, CT	$217,480	300	2.3
6	Kennewick-Richland, WA	$215,860	110	0.9
7	Worcester, MA	$212,600	490	1.4
8	Midland, MI	$212,130	60	1.5
9	New Haven, CT	$210,670	350	1.2
10	Boulder, CO	$210,340	310	1.6
11	San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA	$207,200	2,890	1.9
12	Bridgeport-Stamford-Danbury, CT	$204,250	220	0.6
13	Bay City, MI	$204,120	50	1.4
14	Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA	$203,150	1,730	0.8
15	Santa Cruz-Watsonville, CA	$202,380	80	0.8
16	Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford, CT	$196,930	220	0.4
17	Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA	$193,340	2,530	0.4
18	Durham-Chapel Hill, NC	$183,540	2,050	6.0
19	Trenton-Princeton, NJ	$182,230	2,150	8.9
20	New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ	$180,460	10,100	1.1
21	San Luis Obispo-Paso Robles, CA	$178,530	40	0.3
22	Oxnard-Thousand Oaks-Ventura, CA	$176,740	180	0.5
23	Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA	$175,400	110	0.5
24	Stockton-Lodi, CA	$174,860	30	0.1
25	Grand Forks, ND-MN	$173,590	30	0.6

Full state and metro tables, the national distribution, and the pay map are on the Natural Sciences 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.