Best cities for energy and utilities pay after cost of living
Question 1
Where are you right now?
Why we ask: a laid-off week and a thinking-about-a-move week look nothing alike. No résumé, no account.
Key facts
- #1 Everett, WA: $186k
- #2 Seattle, WA: $180k
- #3 Austin, TX: $161k
- 18 cities ranked in the United States
- Data as of November 2026
For comparison: $150k across the typical city in our data.
- 1Everett WA$186k
- 2Seattle WA$180k
- 3Austin TX$161k
- 4Torrance CA$160k
- 5New York NY$152k
- 6San Francisco CA$151k
- 7San Jose CA$147k
- 8El Segundo CA$146k
- 9Houston TX$145k
- 10Berkeley CA$144k
What stands out
- The top ten is tightly packed: Everett leads on $186k, and #10 Berkeley is at $144k.
- San Jose reaches #7 on a sample of 21 openings with pay posted, 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 85 openings with pay posted behind its figure.
- Cities with fewer than 30 openings with pay posted are not ranked, and small differences between neighbouring ranks are not meaningful.
Why this ranking matters
What it shows
Pay in an industry varies by city as much as the cost of living does. Adjusting posted pay for local prices shows where the same industry's salary goes furthest.
How to use it
Use it to compare offers in the same industry across cities. A city with a lower headline salary can leave you ahead once prices are counted.
The top 25
- 1
Everett WA
$186k
- Median posted pay
- $199k
- State prices vs US average
- +7%
- Openings with pay posted
- 40
Hiring most here: Helion Energy, Fortive, TerraPower
Based on 40 openings.
- 2
Seattle WA
$180k
- Median posted pay
- $200k
- Local prices vs US average
- +11%
- Openings with pay posted
- 24
Hiring most here: Amazon, Blue Origin, Shield AI
Based on 24 openings.
- 3
Austin TX
$161k
- Median posted pay
- $158k
- Local prices vs US average
- −2%
- Openings with pay posted
- 34
Hiring most here: Amazon, Advanced Micro Devices, Cloudflare
Based on 34 openings.
- 4
Torrance CA
$160k
- Median posted pay
- $178k
- State prices vs US average
- +11%
- Openings with pay posted
- 57
Hiring most here: Divergent Technologies, Valar Atomics, Neros
Based on 57 openings.
- 5
New York NY
$152k
- Median posted pay
- $171k
- Local prices vs US average
- +13%
- Openings with pay posted
- 62
Hiring most here: Amazon, Publicis Groupe, Morgan Stanley
Based on 62 openings.
- 6
San Francisco CA
$151k
- Median posted pay
- $175k
- Local prices vs US average
- +16%
- Openings with pay posted
- 85
Hiring most here: OpenAI, Anthropic, University Of California San Francisco Foundation
Based on 85 openings.
- 7
San Jose CA
$147k
- Median posted pay
- $163k
- Local prices vs US average
- +10%
- Openings with pay posted
- 21
Hiring most here: Super Micro Computer, Advanced Micro Devices, Cisco Systems
Based on 21 openings.
- 8
El Segundo CA
$146k
- Median posted pay
- $162k
- State prices vs US average
- +11%
- Openings with pay posted
- 69
Hiring most here: Chaos Industries, Radiant, Varda Space Industries
Based on 69 openings.
- 9
Houston TX
$145k
- Median posted pay
- $143k
- Local prices vs US average
- −1%
- Openings with pay posted
- 38
Hiring most here: Axiom Space, Trinzic, Fervo Energy
Based on 38 openings.
- 10
Berkeley CA
$144k
- Median posted pay
- $166k
- Local prices vs US average
- +16%
- Openings with pay posted
- 62
Hiring most here: Form Energy, University of California, Berkeley, Rigetti Computing
Based on 62 openings.
- 11
San Diego CA
$138k
- Median posted pay
- $155k
- Local prices vs US average
- +12%
- Openings with pay posted
- 24
Hiring most here: Qualcomm Inc/De, Qualcomm Technologies, General Atomics
Based on 24 openings.
- 12
Somerville MA
$137k
- Median posted pay
- $145k
- State prices vs US average
- +6%
- Openings with pay posted
- 21
Hiring most here: Formlabs, Tulip Interfaces, Generate Biomedicines
Based on 21 openings.
- 13
Denver CO
$134k
- Median posted pay
- $141k
- Local prices vs US average
- +6%
- Openings with pay posted
- 52
Hiring most here: True Anomaly, Blue Origin, Amazon
Based on 52 openings.
- 14
Louisville KY
$132k
- Median posted pay
- $119k
- State prices vs US average
- −10%
- Openings with pay posted
- 28
Hiring most here: BrightSpring Health Services, Norton Healthcare, GE Appliances
Based on 28 openings.
- 15
Washington DC
$124k
- Median posted pay
- $135k
- Local prices vs US average
- +9%
- Openings with pay posted
- 23
Hiring most here: Anduril Industries, CACI International, Shield AI
Based on 23 openings.
- 16
Cranberry PA
$119k
- Median posted pay
- $116k
- State prices vs US average
- −2%
- Openings with pay posted
- 26
Hiring most here: Westinghouse Electric Company, MSA Safety, Sargent & Lundy
Based on 26 openings.
- 17
Chicago IL
$113k
- Median posted pay
- $118k
- Local prices vs US average
- +4%
- Openings with pay posted
- 33
Hiring most here: Publicis Groupe, Northern Trust, Confidential
Based on 33 openings.
- 18
Corona CA
$103k
- Median posted pay
- $114k
- State prices vs US average
- +11%
- Openings with pay posted
- 34
Hiring most here: Monster Energy Company, Lubrizol, Gallagher
Based on 34 openings.
Full ranking
All 18 cities that qualified, with the figure each is ranked on.
| Rank | City | Score | Sample |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Everett WA | $186k | 40 |
| 2 | Seattle WA | $180k | 24 |
| 3 | Austin TX | $161k | 34 |
| 4 | Torrance CA | $160k | 57 |
| 5 | New York NY | $152k | 62 |
| 6 | San Francisco CA | $151k | 85 |
| 7 | San Jose CA | $147k | 21 |
| 8 | El Segundo CA | $146k | 69 |
| 9 | Houston TX | $145k | 38 |
| 10 | Berkeley CA | $144k | 62 |
| 11 | San Diego CA | $138k | 24 |
| 12 | Somerville MA | $137k | 21 |
| 13 | Denver CO | $134k | 52 |
| 14 | Louisville KY | $132k | 28 |
| 15 | Washington DC | $124k | 23 |
| 16 | Cranberry PA | $119k | 26 |
| 17 | Chicago IL | $113k | 33 |
| 18 | Corona CA | $103k | 34 |
How this ranking works
The score is the median posted annual salary (the midpoint of each posted range) for roles at employers in this industry in a city, divided by its local price level, with the United States at 100.
Price levels are the Bureau of Economic Analysis regional price parities for the city's metro area, or its state where no metro figure exists. Only cities with at least 20 listings in the industry that post a salary 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 30 openings are not ranked.
Sources: NextChapter job data: posted annual salary ranges; Bureau of Economic Analysis regional price parities 2024 (metro areas and states). 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 energy and utilities pay after cost of living?
- Everett leads the United States for pay after the cost of living in this industry: its median posted salary buys what $186k buys at average US prices.
- How many cities are ranked?
- 18 cities have at least 30 openings with pay posted, so the list has 18 entries.
- How is the ranking calculated?
- The score is the median posted annual salary (the midpoint of each posted range) for roles at employers in this industry in a city, divided by its local price level, with the United States at 100. Price levels are the Bureau of Economic Analysis regional price parities for the city's metro area, or its state where no metro figure exists. Only cities with at least 20 listings in the industry that post a salary 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 cities for energy and utilities pay after cost of living,” November 2026 edition. https://launchyournextchapter.com/rankings/best-cities-for-energy-and-utilities-pay-vs-cost-of-living
Link to it: <a href="https://launchyournextchapter.com/rankings/best-cities-for-energy-and-utilities-pay-vs-cost-of-living">Best cities for energy and utilities pay after cost of living (NextChapter, November 2026)</a>
Download the data: CSV · JSON. Free to use with a link back.
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