{"h1":"Best all-round cities for mid-career professionals in the West Coast","faq":[{"a":"Mountain View is the best all-round city for mid-career professionals in the West Coast, with a score of 85 / 100.","q":"Which city ranks first: best all-round cities for mid-career professionals in the west coast?"},{"a":"36 cities have at least 100 openings, so the list has 36 entries.","q":"How many cities are ranked?"},{"a":"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): mid-career share of openings 35%, pay after cost of living 30%, mid-career openings 20%, director-and-above share 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.","q":"How is the ranking calculated?"},{"a":"Every month. This is the November 2026 edition. Older editions stay on this site at their own dated addresses.","q":"How often is it updated?"}],"lead":"Mountain View is the best all-round city for mid-career professionals in the West Coast, with a score of 85 / 100.","minN":100,"rows":[{"n":1515,"bar":1,"key":"CA|mountain view","sub":"CA","href":"/places/california/city/mountain-view","name":"Mountain View","rank":1,"stats":[{"label":"Mid-career share of openings","value":"68%"},{"label":"Pay after cost of living","value":"$193k"},{"label":"Mid-career openings","value":"1,025"}],"value":84.71428571428571,"change":null,"employers":["Intuit","Waymo","Google"],"valueLabel":"85 / 100"},{"n":894,"bar":0.96964586846543,"key":"CA|san mateo","sub":"CA","href":"/places/california/city/san-mateo","name":"San Mateo","rank":2,"stats":[{"label":"Mid-career share of openings","value":"61%"},{"label":"Pay after cost of living","value":"$203k"},{"label":"Mid-career 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/ 100"},{"n":1556,"bar":0.8802698145025295,"key":"CA|sunnyvale","sub":"CA","href":"/places/california/city/sunnyvale","name":"Sunnyvale","rank":5,"stats":[{"label":"Mid-career share of openings","value":"59%"},{"label":"Pay after cost of living","value":"$190k"},{"label":"Mid-career openings","value":"919"}],"value":74.57142857142857,"change":null,"employers":["Applied Intuition","Wayve","Amazon"],"valueLabel":"75 / 100"},{"n":1237,"bar":0.8516020236087691,"key":"CA|palo alto","sub":"CA","href":"/places/california/city/palo-alto","name":"Palo Alto","rank":6,"stats":[{"label":"Mid-career share of openings","value":"59%"},{"label":"Pay after cost of living","value":"$184k"},{"label":"Mid-career openings","value":"736"}],"value":72.14285714285715,"change":null,"employers":["SpaceX","Rivian Automotive","Stanford Health Care"],"valueLabel":"72 / 100"},{"n":5343,"bar":0.8010118043844858,"key":"WA|seattle","sub":"WA","href":"/places/washington/city/seattle","name":"Seattle","rank":7,"stats":[{"label":"Mid-career share of openings","value":"59%"},{"label":"Pay after cost of living","value":"$162k"},{"label":"Mid-career openings","value":"3,136"}],"value":67.85714285714286,"change":null,"employers":["Amazon","Blue Origin","Shield AI"],"valueLabel":"68 / 100"},{"n":1530,"bar":0.7352445193929175,"key":"CA|santa clara","sub":"CA","href":"/places/california/city/santa-clara","name":"Santa Clara","rank":8,"stats":[{"label":"Mid-career share of openings","value":"52%"},{"label":"Pay after cost of living","value":"$188k"},{"label":"Mid-career openings","value":"794"}],"value":62.28571428571428,"change":null,"employers":["Pure Storage","Advanced Micro Devices","Amazon"],"valueLabel":"62 / 100"},{"n":210,"bar":0.7352445193929175,"key":"CA|san carlos","sub":"CA","href":"/places/california/city/san-carlos","name":"San Carlos","rank":9,"stats":[{"label":"Mid-career share of openings","value":"65%"},{"label":"Pay after cost of living","value":"$176k"},{"label":"Mid-career openings","value":"137"}],"value":62.28571428571428,"change":null,"employers":["1X Technologies","Joby Aviation","Natera"],"valueLabel":"62 / 100"},{"n":2379,"bar":0.7284991568296797,"key":"CA|san jose","sub":"CA","href":"/places/california/city/san-jose","name":"San Jose","rank":10,"stats":[{"label":"Mid-career share of openings","value":"52%"},{"label":"Pay after cost of living","value":"$180k"},{"label":"Mid-career openings","value":"1,245"}],"value":61.71428571428572,"change":null,"employers":["Super Micro Computer","Advanced Micro Devices","Cisco Systems"],"valueLabel":"62 / 100"},{"n":437,"bar":0.7099494097807757,"key":"CA|menlo park","sub":"CA","href":"/places/california/city/menlo-park","name":"Menlo Park","rank":11,"stats":[{"label":"Mid-career share of openings","value":"58%"},{"label":"Pay after cost of 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Energy","Fortive","TerraPower"],"valueLabel":"55 / 100"},{"n":238,"bar":0.6340640809443508,"key":"CA|berkeley","sub":"CA","href":"/places/california/city/berkeley","name":"Berkeley","rank":14,"stats":[{"label":"Mid-career share of openings","value":"63%"},{"label":"Pay after cost of living","value":"$144k"},{"label":"Mid-career openings","value":"151"}],"value":53.71428571428572,"change":null,"employers":["Form Energy","University of California, Berkeley","Rigetti Computing"],"valueLabel":"54 / 100"},{"n":130,"bar":0.5868465430016864,"key":"CA|newark","sub":"CA","href":"/places/california/city/newark","name":"Newark","rank":15,"stats":[{"label":"Mid-career share of openings","value":"62%"},{"label":"Pay after cost of living","value":"$155k"},{"label":"Mid-career openings","value":"80"}],"value":49.71428571428572,"change":null,"employers":["Lucid Motors","Applied Industrial Technologies","Stratus Technologies"],"valueLabel":"50 / 100"},{"n":471,"bar":0.5801011804384486,"key":"CA|redwood city","sub":"CA","href":"/places/california/city/redwood-city","name":"Redwood City","rank":16,"stats":[{"label":"Mid-career share of openings","value":"52%"},{"label":"Pay after cost of living","value":"$162k"},{"label":"Mid-career openings","value":"246"}],"value":49.14285714285715,"change":null,"employers":["Corcept Therapeutics","SB Energy","C3 AI"],"valueLabel":"49 / 100"},{"n":470,"bar":0.5784148397976392,"key":"CA|fremont","sub":"CA","href":"/places/california/city/fremont","name":"Fremont","rank":17,"stats":[{"label":"Mid-career share of openings","value":"57%"},{"label":"Pay after cost of living","value":"$156k"},{"label":"Mid-career openings","value":"268"}],"value":49,"change":null,"employers":["Agility Robotics","Coherent","LAM Research"],"valueLabel":"49 / 100"},{"n":307,"bar":0.5699831365935919,"key":"CA|santa monica","sub":"CA","href":"/places/california/city/santa-monica","name":"Santa Monica","rank":18,"stats":[{"label":"Mid-career share of openings","value":"56%"},{"label":"Pay after cost of living","value":"$151k"},{"label":"Mid-career openings","value":"171"}],"value":48.28571428571428,"change":null,"employers":["Amazon","Snap","FIGS"],"valueLabel":"48 / 100"},{"n":581,"bar":0.5413153456998314,"key":"CA|oakland","sub":"CA","href":"/places/california/city/oakland","name":"Oakland","rank":19,"stats":[{"label":"Mid-career share of openings","value":"51%"},{"label":"Pay after cost of living","value":"$162k"},{"label":"Mid-career openings","value":"299"}],"value":45.85714285714285,"change":null,"employers":["Pacific Gas & Electric","Blue Shield of California","Fivetran"],"valueLabel":"46 / 100"},{"n":735,"bar":0.539629005059022,"key":"CA|torrance","sub":"CA","href":"/places/california/city/torrance","name":"Torrance","rank":20,"stats":[{"label":"Mid-career share of openings","value":"58%"},{"label":"Pay after cost of living","value":"$150k"},{"label":"Mid-career 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100"},{"n":257,"bar":0.4856661045531198,"key":"CA|milpitas","sub":"CA","href":"/places/california/city/milpitas","name":"Milpitas","rank":23,"stats":[{"label":"Mid-career share of openings","value":"59%"},{"label":"Pay after cost of living","value":"$145k"},{"label":"Mid-career openings","value":"151"}],"value":41.14285714285715,"change":null,"employers":["Cisco Systems","KLA","Psiquantum"],"valueLabel":"41 / 100"},{"n":158,"bar":0.4856661045531198,"key":"WA|kirkland","sub":"WA","href":"/places/washington/city/kirkland","name":"Kirkland","rank":24,"stats":[{"label":"Mid-career share of openings","value":"57%"},{"label":"Pay after cost of living","value":"$160k"},{"label":"Mid-career openings","value":"90"}],"value":41.14285714285715,"change":null,"employers":["Echodyne","Amazon","Google"],"valueLabel":"41 / 100"},{"n":189,"bar":0.4536256323777403,"key":"CA|alameda","sub":"CA","href":"/places/california/city/alameda","name":"Alameda","rank":25,"stats":[{"label":"Mid-career share of openings","value":"47%"},{"label":"Pay after cost of living","value":"$171k"},{"label":"Mid-career openings","value":"89"}],"value":38.42857142857143,"change":null,"employers":["Saildrone","Penumbra","Kairos Power"],"valueLabel":"38 / 100"},{"n":5126,"bar":0.4401349072512649,"key":"CA|los angeles","sub":"CA","href":"/places/california/city/los-angeles","name":"Los Angeles","rank":26,"stats":[{"label":"Mid-career share of openings","value":"50%"},{"label":"Pay after cost of living","value":"$134k"},{"label":"Mid-career openings","value":"2,551"}],"value":37.28571428571429,"change":null,"employers":["K2 Space","Cedars-sinai Medical Center","Apex Space"],"valueLabel":"37 / 100"},{"n":3085,"bar":0.4401349072512648,"key":"CA|san diego","sub":"CA","href":"/places/california/city/san-diego","name":"San Diego","rank":27,"stats":[{"label":"Mid-career share of openings","value":"50%"},{"label":"Pay after cost of living","value":"$134k"},{"label":"Mid-career 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Lab","Vast"],"valueLabel":"36 / 100"},{"n":286,"bar":0.4165261382799326,"key":"CA|newport beach","sub":"CA","href":"/places/california/city/newport-beach","name":"Newport Beach","rank":30,"stats":[{"label":"Mid-career share of openings","value":"53%"},{"label":"Pay after cost of living","value":"$126k"},{"label":"Mid-career openings","value":"152"}],"value":35.28571428571428,"change":null,"employers":["Pacific Life","Chipotle Mexican Grill","Smart Financial Credit Union"],"valueLabel":"35 / 100"},{"n":949,"bar":0.4148397976391232,"key":"CA|el segundo","sub":"CA","href":"/places/california/city/el-segundo","name":"El Segundo","rank":31,"stats":[{"label":"Mid-career share of openings","value":"52%"},{"label":"Pay after cost of living","value":"$144k"},{"label":"Mid-career openings","value":"494"}],"value":35.14285714285715,"change":null,"employers":["Chaos Industries","Radiant","Varda Space Industries"],"valueLabel":"35 / 100"},{"n":174,"bar":0.403035413153457,"key":"CA|pleasanton","sub":"CA","href":"/places/california/city/pleasanton","name":"Pleasanton","rank":32,"stats":[{"label":"Mid-career share of openings","value":"53%"},{"label":"Pay after cost of living","value":"$148k"},{"label":"Mid-career openings","value":"92"}],"value":34.14285714285714,"change":null,"employers":["Kaiser Permanente","10X Genomics","IonQ"],"valueLabel":"34 / 100"},{"n":792,"bar":0.3946037099494099,"key":"OR|portland","sub":"OR","href":"/places/oregon/city/portland","name":"Portland","rank":33,"stats":[{"label":"Mid-career share of openings","value":"53%"},{"label":"Pay after cost of living","value":"$119k"},{"label":"Mid-career openings","value":"423"}],"value":33.42857142857143,"change":null,"employers":["Oregon Health & Science University","Legacy Health","Keen Footwear"],"valueLabel":"33 / 100"},{"n":1364,"bar":0.3338954468802698,"key":"CA|sacramento","sub":"CA","href":"/places/california/city/sacramento","name":"Sacramento","rank":34,"stats":[{"label":"Mid-career share of openings","value":"43%"},{"label":"Pay after cost of living","value":"$127k"},{"label":"Mid-career openings","value":"589"}],"value":28.28571428571428,"change":null,"employers":["Sutter Health","California Correctional Health Care Services","Nalu Medical"],"valueLabel":"28 / 100"},{"n":130,"bar":0.2512647554806071,"key":"WA|renton","sub":"WA","href":"/places/washington/city/renton","name":"Renton","rank":35,"stats":[{"label":"Mid-career share of openings","value":"50%"},{"label":"Pay after cost of living","value":"$144k"},{"label":"Mid-career openings","value":"65"}],"value":21.28571428571429,"change":null,"employers":["Hasbro","Providence Health & Services Washington","Michels"],"valueLabel":"21 / 100"},{"n":143,"bar":0.2209106239460371,"key":"CA|corona","sub":"CA","href":"/places/california/city/corona","name":"Corona","rank":36,"stats":[{"label":"Mid-career share of openings","value":"55%"},{"label":"Pay after cost of living","value":"$102k"},{"label":"Mid-career openings","value":"78"}],"value":18.71428571428572,"change":null,"employers":["Monster Energy Company","Lubrizol","Gallagher"],"valueLabel":"19 / 100"}],"slug":"best-all-round-cities-for-mid-career-professionals-in-the-west-coast","unit":"openings","scope":{"id":"west-coast","kind":"region","name":"West Coast"},"title":"Best all-round cities for mid-career professionals in the West Coast","family":"Best overall","method":["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): mid-career share of openings 35%, pay after cost of living 30%, mid-career openings 20%, director-and-above share 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."],"builtAt":"2026-11-03T03:50:28.595Z","edition":"2026-11","measure":"cmid","sources":["NextChapter job data: open professional roles and posted pay","Bureau of Economic Analysis regional price parities 2024"],"baseline":null,"keyFacts":["#1 Mountain View, CA: 85 / 100","#2 San Mateo, CA: 82 / 100","#3 San Francisco, CA: 81 / 100","36 cities ranked in the West Coast","Data as of November 2026"],"placeNoun":"cities","commentary":["The top ten is tightly packed: Mountain View leads on 85 / 100, and #10 San Jose is at 62 / 100.","San Carlos reaches #9 on a sample of 210 openings, a smaller market than most of the top ten, so its rank can move more from month to month.","San Francisco is the largest market in the top ten, with 11,798 openings behind its figure.","Cities with fewer than 100 openings are not ranked, and small differences between neighbouring ranks are not meaningful."],"license":"Free to use and share with a link to https://launchyournextchapter.com/rankings/best-all-round-cities-for-mid-career-professionals-in-the-west-coast"}