NextChapter

Best all-round cities for AI careers in the Mid-Atlantic

New York is the best all-round city for AI careers in the Mid-Atlantic, with a score of 95 / 100.November 2026 edition. Updated monthly, from open jobs we verified on employer career sites.

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Key facts

  • #1 New York, NY: 95 / 100
  • #2 McLean, VA: 87 / 100
  • #3 Reston, VA: 87 / 100
  • 32 cities ranked in the Mid-Atlantic
  • Data as of November 2026
  1. 1New York NY95 / 100
  2. 2McLean VA87 / 100
  3. 3Reston VA87 / 100
  4. 4Washington DC83 / 100
  5. 5Herndon VA82 / 100
  6. 6Arlington VA81 / 100
  7. 7Princeton NJ80 / 100
  8. 8Jersey City NJ80 / 100
  9. 9Chantilly VA75 / 100
  10. 10Brooklyn NY61 / 100

What stands out

  • The top ten is tightly packed: New York leads on 95 / 100, and #10 Brooklyn is at 61 / 100.
  • Princeton reaches #7 on a sample of 396 openings, a smaller market than most of the top ten, so its rank can move more from month to month.
  • New York is the largest market in the top ten, with 20,589 openings behind its figure.
  • Cities with fewer than 100 openings are not ranked, and small differences between neighbouring ranks are not meaningful.

Why this ranking matters

What it shows

Careers that use AI cluster in a few places. This list weighs the share and number of openings that ask for AI skills and the pay they offer, to show where AI work is concentrated.

How to use it

If you are building AI skills, the top cities show where the employers and the roles are. The gap between your city and the top is a guide to what to add to your résumé.

The top 25

  1. 1

    New York NY

    95 / 100

    AI-skill share of openings
    21%
    AI-skill openings
    4,263
    Median posted pay
    $165k

    Hiring most here: Amazon, Publicis Groupe, Morgan Stanley

    Based on 20,589 openings.

    Jobs and employers in New York

  2. 2

    McLean VA

    87 / 100

    AI-skill share of openings
    18%
    AI-skill openings
    203
    Median posted pay
    $150k

    Hiring most here: Capital One, The MITRE, Steampunk

    Based on 1,155 openings.

    Jobs and employers in McLean

  3. 3

    Reston VA

    87 / 100

    AI-skill share of openings
    17%
    AI-skill openings
    131
    Median posted pay
    $159k

    Hiring most here: ICF International, CACI International, Anduril Industries

    Based on 783 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Reston

  4. 4

    Washington DC

    83 / 100

    AI-skill share of openings
    11%
    AI-skill openings
    480
    Median posted pay
    $160k

    Hiring most here: Anduril Industries, CACI International, Shield AI

    Based on 4,457 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Washington

  5. 5

    Herndon VA

    82 / 100

    AI-skill share of openings
    13%
    AI-skill openings
    109
    Median posted pay
    $161k

    Hiring most here: Amazon, AWS, Peraton

    Based on 821 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Herndon

  6. 6

    Arlington VA

    81 / 100

    AI-skill share of openings
    14%
    AI-skill openings
    279
    Median posted pay
    $145k

    Hiring most here: Amazon, AWS, Bloomberg Industry Group

    Based on 1,989 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Arlington

  7. 7

    Princeton NJ

    80 / 100

    AI-skill share of openings
    13%
    AI-skill openings
    53
    Median posted pay
    $177k

    Hiring most here: Genmab A/S, Otsuka, ZS Associates

    Based on 396 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Princeton

  8. 8

    Jersey City NJ

    80 / 100

    AI-skill share of openings
    16%
    AI-skill openings
    96
    Median posted pay
    $157k

    Hiring most here: DTCC, Verisk Analytics, JPMorgan Chase

    Based on 618 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Jersey City

  9. 9

    Chantilly VA

    75 / 100

    AI-skill share of openings
    10%
    AI-skill openings
    54
    Median posted pay
    $194k

    Hiring most here: CACI International, Trinzic, Peraton

    Based on 555 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Chantilly

  10. 10

    Brooklyn NY

    61 / 100

    AI-skill share of openings
    11%
    AI-skill openings
    72
    Median posted pay
    $142k

    Hiring most here: SUNY Downstate Health Sciences University, Williams-Sonoma, Altana AI

    Based on 680 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Brooklyn

  11. 11

    Bethesda MD

    61 / 100

    AI-skill share of openings
    11%
    AI-skill openings
    47
    Median posted pay
    $143k

    Hiring most here: Black Canyon Consulting, ZoomInfo, Leidos

    Based on 443 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Bethesda

  12. 12

    Tysons VA

    60 / 100

    AI-skill share of openings
    20%
    AI-skill openings
    38
    Median posted pay
    $126k

    Hiring most here: M.C. Dean, Alarm.com Holdings, LMI

    Based on 190 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Tysons

  13. 13

    Mc Lean VA

    57 / 100

    AI-skill share of openings
    8%
    AI-skill openings
    18
    Median posted pay
    $163k

    Hiring most here: Capital One, Booz Allen Hamilton, Sunrise Senior Living

    Based on 234 openings.

  14. 14

    Rockville MD

    56 / 100

    AI-skill share of openings
    9%
    AI-skill openings
    32
    Median posted pay
    $149k

    Hiring most here: Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, The Emmes Company, BAE Systems

    Based on 355 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Rockville

  15. 15

    Fort Meade MD

    51 / 100

    AI-skill share of openings
    8%
    AI-skill openings
    21
    Median posted pay
    $149k

    Hiring most here: Peraton, CACI International, HII Mission Technologies

    Based on 276 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Fort Meade

  16. 16

    Philadelphia PA

    51 / 100

    AI-skill share of openings
    7%
    AI-skill openings
    119
    Median posted pay
    $130k

    Hiring most here: Confidential, GSK, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia

    Based on 1,820 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Philadelphia

  17. 17

    Vienna VA

    49 / 100

    AI-skill share of openings
    11%
    AI-skill openings
    18
    Median posted pay
    $133k

    Hiring most here: Esri, Navy Federal Credit Union, Antithesis

    Based on 163 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Vienna

  18. 18

    Newark NJ

    48 / 100

    AI-skill share of openings
    10%
    AI-skill openings
    42
    Median posted pay
    $130k

    Hiring most here: Broadridge Financial Solutions, Amazon, Audible

    Based on 426 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Newark

  19. 19

    Alexandria VA

    44 / 100

    AI-skill share of openings
    6%
    AI-skill openings
    34
    Median posted pay
    $140k

    Hiring most here: Kearney, Patent and Trademark Office, Analytic Services (ANSER)

    Based on 584 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Alexandria

  20. 20

    Springfield VA

    38 / 100

    AI-skill share of openings
    7%
    AI-skill openings
    19
    Median posted pay
    $131k

    Hiring most here: CACI International, Caci Technologies, HII Mission Technologies

    Based on 274 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Springfield

  21. 21

    Pittsburgh PA

    38 / 100

    AI-skill share of openings
    6%
    AI-skill openings
    85
    Median posted pay
    $114k

    Hiring most here: PNC Financial Services Group, Highmark Health, UPMC

    Based on 1,514 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Pittsburgh

  22. 22

    Baltimore MD

    37 / 100

    AI-skill share of openings
    6%
    AI-skill openings
    62
    Median posted pay
    $124k

    Hiring most here: Northrop Grumman, Johns Hopkins Medicine, Johns Hopkins University

    Based on 1,066 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Baltimore

  23. 23

    White Plains NY

    36 / 100

    AI-skill share of openings
    7%
    AI-skill openings
    16
    Median posted pay
    $136k

    Hiring most here: New York Power Authority, FormativGroup, RWE Clean Energy

    Based on 222 openings.

    Jobs and employers in White Plains

  24. 24

    Fort Belvoir VA

    34 / 100

    AI-skill share of openings
    7%
    AI-skill openings
    13
    Median posted pay
    $135k

    Hiring most here: CACI International, Teksynap, LMI

    Based on 197 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Fort Belvoir

  25. 25

    Richmond VA

    26 / 100

    AI-skill share of openings
    5%
    AI-skill openings
    52
    Median posted pay
    $100k

    Hiring most here: Mckesson, Capital One, Genworth Financial

    Based on 1,136 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Richmond

Full ranking

All 32 cities that qualified, with the figure each is ranked on.

RankCityScoreSample
1New York NY95 / 10020,589
2McLean VA87 / 1001,155
3Reston VA87 / 100783
4Washington DC83 / 1004,457
5Herndon VA82 / 100821
6Arlington VA81 / 1001,989
7Princeton NJ80 / 100396
8Jersey City NJ80 / 100618
9Chantilly VA75 / 100555
10Brooklyn NY61 / 100680
11Bethesda MD61 / 100443
12Tysons VA60 / 100190
13Mc Lean VA57 / 100234
14Rockville MD56 / 100355
15Fort Meade MD51 / 100276
16Philadelphia PA51 / 1001,820
17Vienna VA49 / 100163
18Newark NJ48 / 100426
19Alexandria VA44 / 100584
20Springfield VA38 / 100274
21Pittsburgh PA38 / 1001,514
22Baltimore MD37 / 1001,066
23White Plains NY36 / 100222
24Fort Belvoir VA34 / 100197
25Richmond VA26 / 1001,136
26Albany NY25 / 100366
27Manassas VA20 / 100231
28Buffalo NY19 / 100416
29Annapolis MD13 / 100377
30Norfolk VA11 / 100332
31Rochester NY8 / 100518
32Syracuse NY7 / 100400

How this ranking works

A city's score is the weighted average of its percentile rank on each measure among the ranked cities (100 is first, 0 is last): ai-skill share of openings 35%, ai-skill openings 30%, median posted pay 20%, pay after cost of living 15%.

A score of 100 would mean first on every measure and 50 is the middle of the pack. The measures and weights are fixed in advance and shown here; they are a judgment about what matters to this reader, so use the single-measure rankings when one thing matters most.

Only cities with enough openings and pay data 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 100 openings are not ranked.

Sources: NextChapter job data: open professional roles and posted pay; Bureau of Economic Analysis regional price parities 2024. 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 all-round cities for ai careers in the mid-atlantic?
New York is the best all-round city for AI careers in the Mid-Atlantic, with a score of 95 / 100.
How many cities are ranked?
32 cities have at least 100 openings, so the list has 32 entries.
How is the ranking calculated?
A city's score is the weighted average of its percentile rank on each measure among the ranked cities (100 is first, 0 is last): ai-skill share of openings 35%, ai-skill openings 30%, median posted pay 20%, pay after cost of living 15%. A score of 100 would mean first on every measure and 50 is the middle of the pack. The measures and weights are fixed in advance and shown here; they are a judgment about what matters to this reader, so use the single-measure rankings when one thing matters most. Only cities with enough openings and pay data 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 all-round cities for AI careers in the Mid-Atlantic,” November 2026 edition. https://launchyournextchapter.com/rankings/best-all-round-cities-for-ai-careers-in-the-mid-atlantic

Link to it: <a href="https://launchyournextchapter.com/rankings/best-all-round-cities-for-ai-careers-in-the-mid-atlantic">Best all-round cities for AI careers in the Mid-Atlantic (NextChapter, November 2026)</a>

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