Best cities for manufacturing and industrial 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 San Carlos, CA: $176k
- #2 New York, NY: $164k
- #3 Torrance, CA: $157k
- 35 cities ranked in the United States
- Data as of November 2026
For comparison: $138k across the typical city in our data.
- 1San Carlos CA$176k
- 2New York NY$164k
- 3Torrance CA$157k
- 4Newark CA$156k
- 5Ann Arbor MI$151k
- 6San Francisco CA$147k
- 7El Segundo CA$145k
- 8Long Beach CA$140k
- 9Arlington VA$139k
- 10McLean VA$138k
What stands out
- The top ten is tightly packed: San Carlos leads on $176k, and #10 McLean is at $138k.
- McLean reaches #10 on a sample of 20 openings with pay posted, a smaller market than most of the top ten, so its rank can move more from month to month.
- Long Beach is the largest market in the top ten, with 249 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
San Carlos CA
$176k
- Median posted pay
- $195k
- State prices vs US average
- +11%
- Openings with pay posted
- 66
Hiring most here: 1X Technologies, Joby Aviation, Natera
Based on 66 openings.
- 2
New York NY
$164k
- Median posted pay
- $185k
- Local prices vs US average
- +13%
- Openings with pay posted
- 35
Hiring most here: Amazon, Publicis Groupe, Morgan Stanley
Based on 35 openings.
- 3
Torrance CA
$157k
- Median posted pay
- $173k
- State prices vs US average
- +11%
- Openings with pay posted
- 86
Hiring most here: Divergent Technologies, Valar Atomics, Neros
Based on 86 openings.
- 4
Newark CA
$156k
- Median posted pay
- $173k
- State prices vs US average
- +11%
- Openings with pay posted
- 61
Hiring most here: Lucid Motors, Applied Industrial Technologies, Stratus Technologies
Based on 61 openings.
- 5
Ann Arbor MI
$151k
- Median posted pay
- $145k
- State prices vs US average
- −4%
- Openings with pay posted
- 45
Hiring most here: May Mobility, Torc Robotics, Thomson Reuters
Based on 45 openings.
- 6
San Francisco CA
$147k
- Median posted pay
- $170k
- Local prices vs US average
- +16%
- Openings with pay posted
- 213
Hiring most here: OpenAI, Anthropic, University Of California San Francisco Foundation
Based on 213 openings.
- 7
El Segundo CA
$145k
- Median posted pay
- $160k
- State prices vs US average
- +11%
- Openings with pay posted
- 59
Hiring most here: Chaos Industries, Radiant, Varda Space Industries
Based on 59 openings.
- 8
Long Beach CA
$140k
- Median posted pay
- $155k
- State prices vs US average
- +11%
- Openings with pay posted
- 249
Hiring most here: Relativity Space, Rocket Lab, Vast
Based on 249 openings.
- 9
Arlington VA
$139k
- Median posted pay
- $140k
- State prices vs US average
- +1%
- Openings with pay posted
- 31
Hiring most here: Amazon, AWS, Bloomberg Industry Group
Based on 31 openings.
- 10
McLean VA
$138k
- Median posted pay
- $140k
- State prices vs US average
- +1%
- Openings with pay posted
- 20
Hiring most here: Capital One, The MITRE, Steampunk
Based on 20 openings.
- 11
Seattle WA
$138k
- Median posted pay
- $154k
- Local prices vs US average
- +11%
- Openings with pay posted
- 41
Hiring most here: Amazon, Blue Origin, Shield AI
Based on 41 openings.
- 12
Austin TX
$138k
- Median posted pay
- $135k
- Local prices vs US average
- −2%
- Openings with pay posted
- 49
Hiring most here: Amazon, Advanced Micro Devices, Cloudflare
Based on 49 openings.
- 13
Irvine CA
$136k
- Median posted pay
- $150k
- State prices vs US average
- +11%
- Openings with pay posted
- 41
Hiring most here: Anduril Industries, Field AI, Rivian Automotive
Based on 41 openings.
- 14
Cape Canaveral FL
$134k
- Median posted pay
- $139k
- State prices vs US average
- +3%
- Openings with pay posted
- 28
Hiring most here: SpaceX, Relativity Space, Sidus Space
Based on 28 openings.
- 15
Louisville KY
$133k
- Median posted pay
- $120k
- State prices vs US average
- −10%
- Openings with pay posted
- 59
Hiring most here: BrightSpring Health Services, Norton Healthcare, GE Appliances
Based on 59 openings.
- 16
Houston TX
$132k
- Median posted pay
- $130k
- Local prices vs US average
- −1%
- Openings with pay posted
- 57
Hiring most here: Axiom Space, Trinzic, Fervo Energy
Based on 57 openings.
- 17
Milpitas CA
$132k
- Median posted pay
- $145k
- Local prices vs US average
- +10%
- Openings with pay posted
- 26
Hiring most here: Cisco Systems, KLA, Psiquantum
Based on 26 openings.
- 18
Sacramento CA
$130k
- Median posted pay
- $139k
- Local prices vs US average
- +7%
- Openings with pay posted
- 31
Hiring most here: Sutter Health, California Correctional Health Care Services, Nalu Medical
Based on 31 openings.
- 19
Washington DC
$129k
- Median posted pay
- $140k
- Local prices vs US average
- +9%
- Openings with pay posted
- 63
Hiring most here: Anduril Industries, CACI International, Shield AI
Based on 63 openings.
- 20
Dallas TX
$129k
- Median posted pay
- $133k
- Local prices vs US average
- +3%
- Openings with pay posted
- 51
Hiring most here: Amazon, Shield AI, Texas Instruments
Based on 51 openings.
- 21
Los Angeles CA
$128k
- Median posted pay
- $145k
- Local prices vs US average
- +14%
- Openings with pay posted
- 99
Hiring most here: K2 Space, Cedars-sinai Medical Center, Apex Space
Based on 99 openings.
- 22
Indianapolis IN
$126k
- Median posted pay
- $118k
- State prices vs US average
- −7%
- Openings with pay posted
- 33
Hiring most here: Eli Lilly and Company, State of Indiana, Masco
Based on 33 openings.
- 23
San Diego CA
$126k
- Median posted pay
- $141k
- Local prices vs US average
- +12%
- Openings with pay posted
- 40
Hiring most here: Qualcomm Inc/De, Qualcomm Technologies, General Atomics
Based on 40 openings.
- 24
Phoenix AZ
$125k
- Median posted pay
- $129k
- Local prices vs US average
- +3%
- Openings with pay posted
- 26
Hiring most here: Honeywell Aerospace, State of Arizona, American Society for Microbiology
Based on 26 openings.
- 25
Chicago IL
$124k
- Median posted pay
- $129k
- Local prices vs US average
- +4%
- Openings with pay posted
- 82
Hiring most here: Publicis Groupe, Northern Trust, Confidential
Based on 82 openings.
Full ranking
All 35 cities that qualified, with the figure each is ranked on.
| Rank | City | Score | Sample |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | San Carlos CA | $176k | 66 |
| 2 | New York NY | $164k | 35 |
| 3 | Torrance CA | $157k | 86 |
| 4 | Newark CA | $156k | 61 |
| 5 | Ann Arbor MI | $151k | 45 |
| 6 | San Francisco CA | $147k | 213 |
| 7 | El Segundo CA | $145k | 59 |
| 8 | Long Beach CA | $140k | 249 |
| 9 | Arlington VA | $139k | 31 |
| 10 | McLean VA | $138k | 20 |
| 11 | Seattle WA | $138k | 41 |
| 12 | Austin TX | $138k | 49 |
| 13 | Irvine CA | $136k | 41 |
| 14 | Cape Canaveral FL | $134k | 28 |
| 15 | Louisville KY | $133k | 59 |
| 16 | Houston TX | $132k | 57 |
| 17 | Milpitas CA | $132k | 26 |
| 18 | Sacramento CA | $130k | 31 |
| 19 | Washington DC | $129k | 63 |
| 20 | Dallas TX | $129k | 51 |
| 21 | Los Angeles CA | $128k | 99 |
| 22 | Indianapolis IN | $126k | 33 |
| 23 | San Diego CA | $126k | 40 |
| 24 | Phoenix AZ | $125k | 26 |
| 25 | Chicago IL | $124k | 82 |
| 26 | Fremont CA | $124k | 20 |
| 27 | Charlotte NC | $123k | 37 |
| 28 | Columbus OH | $120k | 27 |
| 29 | Atlanta GA | $120k | 51 |
| 30 | Boston MA | $118k | 44 |
| 31 | Raleigh NC | $117k | 26 |
| 32 | Denver CO | $111k | 45 |
| 33 | New York NY | $111k | 168 |
| 34 | Philadelphia PA | $102k | 21 |
| 35 | Richmond VA | $101k | 22 |
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 manufacturing and industrial pay after cost of living?
- San Carlos leads the United States for pay after the cost of living in this industry: its median posted salary buys what $176k buys at average US prices.
- How many cities are ranked?
- 35 cities have at least 30 openings with pay posted, so the list has 35 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 manufacturing and industrial pay after cost of living,” November 2026 edition. https://launchyournextchapter.com/rankings/best-cities-for-manufacturing-and-industrial-pay-vs-cost-of-living
Link to it: <a href="https://launchyournextchapter.com/rankings/best-cities-for-manufacturing-and-industrial-pay-vs-cost-of-living">Best cities for manufacturing and industrial 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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