NextChapter

Best cities for director and executive jobs in the West Coast

Foster City leads the West Coast for director and executive jobs: 38% of its professional openings are director level or above, against 17% across all cities in our data.November 2026 edition. Updated monthly, from open jobs we verified on employer career sites.

Key facts

  • #1 Foster City, CA: 38%
  • #2 Redwood City, CA: 29%
  • #3 Alameda, CA: 26%
  • 68 cities ranked in the West Coast
  • Data as of November 2026

For comparison: 17% across all cities in our data.

  1. 1Foster City CA38%
  2. 2Redwood City CA29%
  3. 3Alameda CA26%
  4. 4Emeryville CA25%
  5. 5Stockton CA24%
  6. 6Eugene OR24%
  7. 7Santa Clara CA23%
  8. 8Newport Beach CA23%
  9. 9Santa Monica CA22%
  10. 10Oakland CA22%

What stands out

  • The lead is wide: Foster City (38%) is well clear of Oakland at #10 (22%).
  • Eugene reaches #6 on a sample of 110 openings, a smaller market than most of the top ten, so its rank can move more from month to month.
  • Santa Clara is the largest market in the top ten, with 1,522 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

    Foster City CA

    38%

    Director and above
    195
    All openings
    520
    Median posted pay
    $230k

    Hiring most here: Gilead Sciences, Zoox, Replit

    Based on 520 openings.

  2. 2

    Redwood City CA

    29%

    Director and above
    134
    All openings
    470
    Median posted pay
    $187k

    Hiring most here: Corcept Therapeutics, SB Energy, C3 AI

    Based on 470 openings.

  3. 3

    Alameda CA

    26%

    Director and above
    49
    All openings
    189
    Median posted pay
    $189k

    Hiring most here: Saildrone, Penumbra, Kairos Power

    Based on 189 openings.

  4. 4

    Emeryville CA

    25%

    Director and above
    28
    All openings
    112
    Median posted pay
    $184k

    Hiring most here: Profluent, Eko

    Based on 112 openings.

  5. 5

    Stockton CA

    24%

    Director and above
    28
    All openings
    115
    Median posted pay
    $123k

    Hiring most here: Amazon

    Based on 115 openings.

  6. 6

    Eugene OR

    24%

    Director and above
    26
    All openings
    110
    Median posted pay
    $122k

    Hiring most here: University of Oregon, Sinclair

    Based on 110 openings.

  7. 7

    Santa Clara CA

    23%

    Director and above
    350
    All openings
    1,522
    Median posted pay
    $208k

    Hiring most here: Pure Storage, Advanced Micro Devices, Amazon

    Based on 1,522 openings.

  8. 8

    Newport Beach CA

    23%

    Director and above
    65
    All openings
    285
    Median posted pay
    $140k

    Hiring most here: Pacific Life, Chipotle Mexican Grill, Smart Financial Credit Union

    Based on 285 openings.

  9. 9

    Santa Monica CA

    22%

    Director and above
    69
    All openings
    307
    Median posted pay
    $168k

    Hiring most here: Amazon, Snap, FIGS

    Based on 307 openings.

  10. 10

    Oakland CA

    22%

    Director and above
    129
    All openings
    577
    Median posted pay
    $180k

    Hiring most here: Pacific Gas & Electric, Blue Shield of California, Fivetran

    Based on 577 openings.

  11. 11

    Sacramento CA

    22%

    Director and above
    299
    All openings
    1,362
    Median posted pay
    $136k

    Hiring most here: Sutter Health, California Correctional Health Care Services, Nalu Medical

    Based on 1,362 openings.

  12. 12

    San Diego CA

    22%

    Director and above
    671
    All openings
    3,082
    Median posted pay
    $150k

    Hiring most here: Qualcomm Inc/De, Qualcomm Technologies, General Atomics

    Based on 3,082 openings.

  13. 13

    Los Angeles CA

    21%

    Director and above
    1,089
    All openings
    5,101
    Median posted pay
    $153k

    Hiring most here: K2 Space, Cedars-sinai Medical Center, Apex Space

    Based on 5,101 openings.

  14. 14

    San Jose CA

    21%

    Director and above
    502
    All openings
    2,383
    Median posted pay
    $198k

    Hiring most here: Super Micro Computer, Advanced Micro Devices, Cisco Systems

    Based on 2,383 openings.

  15. 15

    Menlo Park CA

    21%

    Director and above
    90
    All openings
    439
    Median posted pay
    $195k

    Hiring most here: Snowflake, Robinhood Ventures Fund I, Hippocratic AI

    Based on 439 openings.

  16. 16

    Salem OR

    20%

    Director and above
    24
    All openings
    118
    Median posted pay
    $126k

    Hiring most here: Agility Robotics, Garmin, Northwest Human Services

    Based on 118 openings.

  17. 17

    Berkeley CA

    20%

    Director and above
    48
    All openings
    238
    Median posted pay
    $166k

    Hiring most here: Form Energy, University of California, Berkeley, Rigetti Computing

    Based on 238 openings.

  18. 18

    Pleasanton CA

    20%

    Director and above
    35
    All openings
    174
    Median posted pay
    $164k

    Hiring most here: Kaiser Permanente, 10X Genomics, IonQ

    Based on 174 openings.

  19. 19

    Renton WA

    20%

    Director and above
    26
    All openings
    130
    Median posted pay
    $154k

    Hiring most here: Hasbro, Providence Health & Services Washington, Michels

    Based on 130 openings.

  20. 20

    San Mateo CA

    20%

    Director and above
    177
    All openings
    887
    Median posted pay
    $233k

    Hiring most here: Roblox, Verkada, Skydio

    Based on 887 openings.

  21. 21

    Spokane WA

    19%

    Director and above
    27
    All openings
    140
    Median posted pay
    $108k

    Hiring most here: McKinstry, BDO USA

    Based on 140 openings.

  22. 22

    Glendale CA

    19%

    Director and above
    35
    All openings
    184
    Median posted pay
    $147k

    Hiring most here: Gallagher, Arthur J. Gallagher, Gallagher Bassett

    Based on 184 openings.

  23. 23

    Culver City CA

    19%

    Director and above
    46
    All openings
    242
    Median posted pay
    $141k

    Hiring most here: Amazon, Scopely, Apple

    Based on 242 openings.

  24. 24

    Burbank CA

    19%

    Director and above
    30
    All openings
    158
    Median posted pay
    $135k

    Hiring most here: Paramount, Crane, Warner Bros. Discovery

    Based on 158 openings.

  25. 25

    Beverly Hills CA

    18%

    Director and above
    26
    All openings
    142
    Median posted pay
    $125k

    Hiring most here: Fashion Nova, Cedars-sinai Medical Center, e.l.f. Beauty

    Based on 142 openings.

Full ranking

All 68 cities that qualified, with the figure each is ranked on.

RankCityScoreSample
1Foster City CA38%520
2Redwood City CA29%470
3Alameda CA26%189
4Emeryville CA25%112
5Stockton CA24%115
6Eugene OR24%110
7Santa Clara CA23%1,522
8Newport Beach CA23%285
9Santa Monica CA22%307
10Oakland CA22%577
11Sacramento CA22%1,362
12San Diego CA22%3,082
13Los Angeles CA21%5,101
14San Jose CA21%2,383
15Menlo Park CA21%439
16Salem OR20%118
17Berkeley CA20%238
18Pleasanton CA20%174
19Renton WA20%130
20San Mateo CA20%887
21Spokane WA19%140
22Glendale CA19%184
23Culver City CA19%242
24Burbank CA19%158
25Beverly Hills CA18%142
26Vancouver WA18%153
27Irvine CA18%1,505
28Orange CA18%133
29Walnut Creek CA18%170
30San Francisco CA18%11,776
31Portland OR17%785
32Santa Barbara CA16%147
33Palmdale CA16%124
34Palo Alto CA16%1,234
35Pasadena CA16%257
36Fresno CA16%197
37Riverside CA16%173
38Carlsbad CA15%298
39San Leandro CA15%101
40Bothell WA15%129
41Bakersfield CA14%111
42Huntington Beach CA14%100
43Seattle WA14%5,347
44Santa Rosa CA14%151
45Sunnyvale CA14%1,555
46El Segundo CA13%946
47Newark CA13%128
48Mountain View CA13%1,513
49Livermore CA13%102
50Fremont CA13%473
51San Carlos CA12%211
52Kirkland WA12%158
53Anaheim CA12%171
54Hillsboro OR11%183
55Bellevue WA11%1,395
56Hayward CA11%105
57Everett WA11%185
58Corona CA11%143
59Torrance CA11%735
60Tacoma WA11%119
61Roseville CA11%165
62Milpitas CA11%256
63Santa Ana CA10%256
64Beaverton OR10%111
65Goleta CA10%101
66Redmond WA8%1,150
67Long Beach CA8%838
68Kent WA4%146

How this ranking works

A city's score is the share of its open professional roles at director, senior manager, vice president, head-of or C-suite level, read from the full posting text.

Only roles verified on the employer's own career site in the last week are counted.

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 director and executive jobs in the west coast?
Foster City leads the West Coast for director and executive jobs: 38% of its professional openings are director level or above, against 17% across all cities in our data.
How many cities are ranked?
68 cities have at least 100 openings, so the list has 68 entries.
How is the ranking calculated?
A city's score is the share of its open professional roles at director, senior manager, vice president, head-of or C-suite level, read from the full posting text. Only roles verified on the employer's own career site in the last week are counted. 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 director and executive jobs in the West Coast,” November 2026 edition. https://launchyournextchapter.com/rankings/best-cities-for-director-and-executive-jobs-in-the-west-coast

Link to it: <a href="https://launchyournextchapter.com/rankings/best-cities-for-director-and-executive-jobs-in-the-west-coast">Best cities for director and executive jobs in the West Coast (NextChapter, November 2026)</a>

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

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