NextChapter

Best cities for AI-skill jobs in the Southwest

Addison leads the Southwest for AI skills: 35% of its professional openings ask for them, against 9% across all cities in our data.November 2026 edition. Updated monthly, from open jobs we verified on employer career sites.

Key facts

  • #1 Addison, TX: 35%
  • #2 Austin, TX: 19%
  • #3 Spring, TX: 17%
  • 43 cities ranked in the Southwest
  • Data as of November 2026

For comparison: 9% across all cities in our data.

  1. 1Addison TX35%
  2. 2Austin TX19%
  3. 3Spring TX17%
  4. 4Westlake TX17%
  5. 5Irving TX14%
  6. 6Coppell TX13%
  7. 7Arlington TX12%
  8. 8Dallas TX12%
  9. 9Tempe AZ12%
  10. 10Plano TX11%

What stands out

  • The lead is wide: Addison (35%) is well clear of Plano at #10 (11%).
  • Westlake reaches #4 on a sample of 109 openings, a smaller market than most of the top ten, so its rank can move more from month to month.
  • Austin is the largest market in the top ten, with 5,890 openings behind its figure.
  • Cities with fewer than 100 openings are not ranked, and small differences between neighbouring ranks are not meaningful.

The top 25

  1. 1

    Addison TX

    35%

    AI-skill openings
    68
    All openings
    196
    Median posted pay
    $150k

    Hiring most here: National Life Group, National Life Insurance Company, Bank of America

    Based on 196 openings.

  2. 2

    Austin TX

    19%

    AI-skill openings
    1,099
    All openings
    5,890
    Median posted pay
    $163k

    Hiring most here: Amazon, Advanced Micro Devices, Cloudflare

    Based on 5,890 openings.

  3. 3

    Spring TX

    17%

    AI-skill openings
    59
    All openings
    342
    Median posted pay
    $204k

    Hiring most here: Hewlett Packard Enterprise, HP, Juniper Networks

    Based on 342 openings.

  4. 4

    Westlake TX

    17%

    AI-skill openings
    18
    All openings
    109
    Median posted pay
    $140k

    Hiring most here: Charles Schwab, Fidelity Investments, Kiewit Infrastructure South

    Based on 109 openings.

  5. 5

    Irving TX

    14%

    AI-skill openings
    125
    All openings
    875
    Median posted pay
    $133k

    Hiring most here: CHRISTUS Health, 7-Eleven, Mckesson

    Based on 875 openings.

  6. 6

    Coppell TX

    13%

    AI-skill openings
    19
    All openings
    151
    Median posted pay
    $141k

    Hiring most here: Blue Yonder, At Home, Charter Communications

    Based on 151 openings.

  7. 7

    Arlington TX

    12%

    AI-skill openings
    24
    All openings
    197
    Median posted pay
    $100k

    Hiring most here: GM Financial, Lockheed Martin, Loews Hotels

    Based on 197 openings.

  8. 8

    Dallas TX

    12%

    AI-skill openings
    519
    All openings
    4,379
    Median posted pay
    $135k

    Hiring most here: Amazon, Shield AI, Texas Instruments

    Based on 4,379 openings.

  9. 9

    Tempe AZ

    12%

    AI-skill openings
    78
    All openings
    671
    Median posted pay
    $123k

    Hiring most here: Carvana, Amazon, Viasat

    Based on 671 openings.

  10. 10

    Plano TX

    11%

    AI-skill openings
    120
    All openings
    1,066
    Median posted pay
    $120k

    Hiring most here: NTT Data, Pepsico, JPMorgan Chase

    Based on 1,066 openings.

  11. 11

    Frisco TX

    11%

    AI-skill openings
    20
    All openings
    182
    Median posted pay
    $115k

    Hiring most here: Baker Tilly, The Haskell Company, Intuit

    Based on 182 openings.

  12. 12

    Richardson TX

    7%

    AI-skill openings
    30
    All openings
    404
    Median posted pay
    $105k

    Hiring most here: Celestica, Qorvo, OSI Systems

    Based on 404 openings.

  13. 13

    Scottsdale AZ

    7%

    AI-skill openings
    53
    All openings
    756
    Median posted pay
    $115k

    Hiring most here: General Dynamics Mission Systems, Axon Enterprise, AMI Semiconductor

    Based on 756 openings.

  14. 14

    Fort Worth TX

    6%

    AI-skill openings
    77
    All openings
    1,248
    Median posted pay
    $115k

    Hiring most here: Lockheed Martin, MP Materials, Alcon

    Based on 1,248 openings.

  15. 15

    Tulsa OK

    6%

    AI-skill openings
    29
    All openings
    474
    Median posted pay
    $90k

    Hiring most here: BOK Financial, Aaon, Helmerich & Payne

    Based on 474 openings.

  16. 16

    Oklahoma City OK

    6%

    AI-skill openings
    34
    All openings
    564
    Median posted pay
    $105k

    Hiring most here: Love's Travel Stops, CACI International, Northrop Grumman

    Based on 564 openings.

  17. 17

    Houston TX

    6%

    AI-skill openings
    239
    All openings
    4,295
    Median posted pay
    $118k

    Hiring most here: Axiom Space, Trinzic, Fervo Energy

    Based on 4,295 openings.

  18. 18

    Phoenix AZ

    5%

    AI-skill openings
    149
    All openings
    2,743
    Median posted pay
    $115k

    Hiring most here: Honeywell Aerospace, State of Arizona, American Society for Microbiology

    Based on 2,743 openings.

  19. 19

    Katy TX

    5%

    AI-skill openings
    6
    All openings
    113
    Median posted pay
    $105k

    Hiring most here: Academy Of Excellence, Memorial Hermann Foundation, PCL Construction

    Based on 113 openings.

  20. 20

    Las Vegas NV

    5%

    AI-skill openings
    43
    All openings
    917
    Median posted pay
    $106k

    Hiring most here: Caesars Entertainment, Allegiant Travel Company, Jt4

    Based on 917 openings.

  21. 21

    Carrollton TX

    5%

    AI-skill openings
    6
    All openings
    128
    Median posted pay
    $128k

    Hiring most here: MB2 Dental, Trane U.s., PennyMac Financial Services

    Based on 128 openings.

  22. 22

    The Woodlands TX

    4%

    AI-skill openings
    7
    All openings
    168
    Median posted pay
    $130k

    Hiring most here: Entergy, Waste Connections, Crane

    Based on 168 openings.

  23. 23

    Reno NV

    4%

    AI-skill openings
    12
    All openings
    299
    Median posted pay
    $132k

    Hiring most here: IGT, Amperesand, Caesars Entertainment

    Based on 299 openings.

  24. 24

    Chandler AZ

    4%

    AI-skill openings
    17
    All openings
    470
    Median posted pay
    $95k

    Hiring most here: Northrop Grumman, Ralliant, Bechtel Energy

    Based on 470 openings.

  25. 25

    Lewisville TX

    3%

    AI-skill openings
    4
    All openings
    130
    Median posted pay
    $80k

    Hiring most here: Moonshot, Paccar, Quest Diagnostics

    Based on 130 openings.

Full ranking

All 43 cities that qualified, with the figure each is ranked on.

RankCityScoreSample
1Addison TX35%196
2Austin TX19%5,890
3Spring TX17%342
4Westlake TX17%109
5Irving TX14%875
6Coppell TX13%151
7Arlington TX12%197
8Dallas TX12%4,379
9Tempe AZ12%671
10Plano TX11%1,066
11Frisco TX11%182
12Richardson TX7%404
13Scottsdale AZ7%756
14Fort Worth TX6%1,248
15Tulsa OK6%474
16Oklahoma City OK6%564
17Houston TX6%4,295
18Phoenix AZ5%2,743
19Katy TX5%113
20Las Vegas NV5%917
21Carrollton TX5%128
22The Woodlands TX4%168
23Reno NV4%299
24Chandler AZ4%470
25Lewisville TX3%130
26San Antonio TX3%1,267
27Corpus Christi TX3%118
28Mesa AZ2%193
29Albuquerque NM2%361
30Brownsville TX2%109
31Tucson AZ2%716
32Sugar Land TX2%125
33Lubbock TX2%127
34Amarillo TX2%132
35Tyler TX1%140
36Abilene TX1%145
37Waco TX1%156
38Midland TX1%158
39Denton TX1%175
40Sparks NV1%121
41Gilbert AZ1%122
42El Paso TX1%305
43Grand Prairie TX1%196

How this ranking works

A city's score is the share of its open professional roles whose posting names at least one AI skill or tool, found by our AI-skill tagger on the posting text.

The tagger looks for named skills (for example prompt engineering, machine learning, or a named AI tool), not the words "AI-powered" in a company blurb.

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 on employer career sites, verified in the last week. 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 cities for ai-skill jobs in the southwest?
Addison leads the Southwest for AI skills: 35% of its professional openings ask for them, against 9% across all cities in our data.
How many cities are ranked?
43 cities have at least 100 openings, so the list has 43 entries.
How is the ranking calculated?
A city's score is the share of its open professional roles whose posting names at least one AI skill or tool, found by our AI-skill tagger on the posting text. The tagger looks for named skills (for example prompt engineering, machine learning, or a named AI tool), not the words "AI-powered" in a company blurb. 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 cities for AI-skill jobs in the Southwest,” November 2026 edition. https://launchyournextchapter.com/rankings/best-cities-for-ai-jobs-in-the-southwest

Link to it: <a href="https://launchyournextchapter.com/rankings/best-cities-for-ai-jobs-in-the-southwest">Best cities for AI-skill jobs in the Southwest (NextChapter, November 2026)</a>

Download the data: CSV · JSON. Free to use with a link back.

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