Best cities for legal pay after cost of living
Key facts
- #1 San Mateo, CA: $238k
- #2 San Francisco, CA: $194k
- #3 Boston, MA: $179k
- 20 cities ranked in the United States
- Data as of November 2026
For comparison: $140k across the typical city in our data.
- 1San Mateo CA$238k
- 2San Francisco CA$194k
- 3Boston MA$179k
- 4Austin TX$161k
- 5Washington DC$152k
- 6San Diego CA$143k
- 7Denver CO$140k
- 8Louisville KY$139k
- 9Los Angeles CA$138k
- 10Irvine CA$129k
What stands out
- The lead is wide: San Mateo ($238k) is well clear of Irvine at #10 ($129k).
- San Mateo reaches #1 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 168 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.
The top 25
- 1
San Mateo CA
$238k
- Median posted pay
- $275k
- Local prices vs US average
- +16%
- Openings with pay posted
- 21
Hiring most here: Roblox, Verkada, Skydio
Based on 21 openings.
- 2
San Francisco CA
$194k
- Median posted pay
- $225k
- Local prices vs US average
- +16%
- Openings with pay posted
- 168
Hiring most here: OpenAI, Anthropic, University Of California San Francisco Foundation
Based on 168 openings.
- 3
Boston MA
$179k
- Median posted pay
- $194k
- Local prices vs US average
- +8%
- Openings with pay posted
- 53
Hiring most here: Vertex Pharmaceuticals, State Street, Confidential
Based on 53 openings.
- 4
Austin TX
$161k
- Median posted pay
- $158k
- Local prices vs US average
- −2%
- Openings with pay posted
- 27
Hiring most here: Amazon, Advanced Micro Devices, Cloudflare
Based on 27 openings.
- 5
Washington DC
$152k
- Median posted pay
- $165k
- Local prices vs US average
- +9%
- Openings with pay posted
- 101
Hiring most here: Anduril Industries, Shield AI, CACI International
Based on 101 openings.
- 6
San Diego CA
$143k
- Median posted pay
- $160k
- Local prices vs US average
- +12%
- Openings with pay posted
- 43
Hiring most here: Qualcomm Inc/De, Qualcomm Technologies, General Atomics
Based on 43 openings.
- 7
Denver CO
$140k
- Median posted pay
- $149k
- Local prices vs US average
- +6%
- Openings with pay posted
- 26
Hiring most here: True Anomaly, Blue Origin, Amazon
Based on 26 openings.
- 8
Louisville KY
$139k
- Median posted pay
- $125k
- State prices vs US average
- −10%
- Openings with pay posted
- 35
Hiring most here: BrightSpring Health Services, Norton Healthcare, GE Appliances
Based on 35 openings.
- 9
Los Angeles CA
$138k
- Median posted pay
- $157k
- Local prices vs US average
- +14%
- Openings with pay posted
- 102
Hiring most here: K2 Space, Cedars-sinai Medical Center, Apex Space
Based on 102 openings.
- 10
Irvine CA
$129k
- Median posted pay
- $143k
- State prices vs US average
- +11%
- Openings with pay posted
- 24
Hiring most here: Anduril Industries, Field AI, St Edwards University
Based on 24 openings.
- 11
Seattle WA
$128k
- Median posted pay
- $143k
- Local prices vs US average
- +11%
- Openings with pay posted
- 22
Hiring most here: Amazon, Blue Origin, Shield AI
Based on 22 openings.
- 12
Sacramento CA
$122k
- Median posted pay
- $130k
- Local prices vs US average
- +7%
- Openings with pay posted
- 44
Hiring most here: Sutter Health, California Correctional Health Care Services, Nalu Medical
Based on 44 openings.
- 13
Houston TX
$119k
- Median posted pay
- $118k
- Local prices vs US average
- −1%
- Openings with pay posted
- 25
Hiring most here: Axiom Space, Trinzic, Fervo Energy
Based on 25 openings.
- 14
Chicago IL
$118k
- Median posted pay
- $123k
- Local prices vs US average
- +4%
- Openings with pay posted
- 98
Hiring most here: Publicis Groupe, Northern Trust, Confidential
Based on 98 openings.
- 15
New York NY
$114k
- Median posted pay
- $129k
- Local prices vs US average
- +13%
- Openings with pay posted
- 282
Hiring most here: Amazon, Publicis Groupe, Morgan Stanley
Based on 282 openings.
- 16
Charlotte NC
$108k
- Median posted pay
- $105k
- Local prices vs US average
- −3%
- Openings with pay posted
- 23
Hiring most here: Truist Financial, Scout Motors, SMBC Americas
Based on 23 openings.
- 17
Dallas TX
$103k
- Median posted pay
- $106k
- Local prices vs US average
- +3%
- Openings with pay posted
- 37
Hiring most here: Amazon, Shield AI, Texas Instruments
Based on 37 openings.
- 18
New York NY
$100k
- Median posted pay
- $113k
- Local prices vs US average
- +13%
- Openings with pay posted
- 28
Hiring most here: Amazon, Publicis Groupe, Morgan Stanley
Based on 28 openings.
- 19
Philadelphia PA
$99k
- Median posted pay
- $101k
- Local prices vs US average
- +3%
- Openings with pay posted
- 21
Hiring most here: Confidential, Thomas Jefferson University Hospital, GSK
Based on 21 openings.
- 20
Atlanta GA
$86k
- Median posted pay
- $86k
- Local prices vs US average
- +0%
- Openings with pay posted
- 52
Hiring most here: Emory University, Oxford College of Emory University, Capgemini Invent
Based on 52 openings.
Full ranking
All 20 cities that qualified, with the figure each is ranked on.
| Rank | City | Score | Sample |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | San Mateo CA | $238k | 21 |
| 2 | San Francisco CA | $194k | 168 |
| 3 | Boston MA | $179k | 53 |
| 4 | Austin TX | $161k | 27 |
| 5 | Washington DC | $152k | 101 |
| 6 | San Diego CA | $143k | 43 |
| 7 | Denver CO | $140k | 26 |
| 8 | Louisville KY | $139k | 35 |
| 9 | Los Angeles CA | $138k | 102 |
| 10 | Irvine CA | $129k | 24 |
| 11 | Seattle WA | $128k | 22 |
| 12 | Sacramento CA | $122k | 44 |
| 13 | Houston TX | $119k | 25 |
| 14 | Chicago IL | $118k | 98 |
| 15 | New York NY | $114k | 282 |
| 16 | Charlotte NC | $108k | 23 |
| 17 | Dallas TX | $103k | 37 |
| 18 | New York NY | $100k | 28 |
| 19 | Philadelphia PA | $99k | 21 |
| 20 | Atlanta GA | $86k | 52 |
How this ranking works
The score is the median posted annual salary (the midpoint of each posted range) for this job family 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 family 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 legal pay after cost of living?
- San Mateo leads the United States for pay after the cost of living in this job family: its median posted salary buys what $238k buys at average US prices.
- How many cities are ranked?
- 20 cities have at least 30 openings with pay posted, so the list has 20 entries.
- How is the ranking calculated?
- The score is the median posted annual salary (the midpoint of each posted range) for this job family 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 family 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 legal pay after cost of living,” November 2026 edition. https://launchyournextchapter.com/rankings/best-cities-for-legal-pay-vs-cost-of-living
Link to it: <a href="https://launchyournextchapter.com/rankings/best-cities-for-legal-pay-vs-cost-of-living">Best cities for legal pay after cost of living (NextChapter, November 2026)</a>
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