NextChapter

Best cities for pay after cost of living in California

Foster City leads California for pay after the cost of living: its median posted salary buys what $208k buys at average US prices.November 2026 edition. Updated monthly, from open jobs we verified on employer career sites.

Key facts

  • #1 Foster City, CA: $208k
  • #2 San Mateo, CA: $202k
  • #3 Mountain View, CA: $193k
  • 29 cities ranked in California
  • Data as of November 2026

For comparison: $157k across the typical city in our data.

  1. 1Foster City CA$208k
  2. 2San Mateo CA$202k
  3. 3Mountain View CA$193k
  4. 4Sunnyvale CA$190k
  5. 5Santa Clara CA$188k
  6. 6San Francisco CA$186k
  7. 7Palo Alto CA$183k
  8. 8San Jose CA$179k
  9. 9San Carlos CA$176k
  10. 10Alameda CA$171k

What stands out

  • The top ten is tightly packed: Foster City leads on $208k, and #10 Alameda is at $171k.
  • Alameda reaches #10 on a sample of 78 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 5,934 openings with pay posted behind its figure.
  • Cities with fewer than 100 openings with pay posted are not ranked, and small differences between neighbouring ranks are not meaningful.

The top 25

  1. 1

    Foster City CA

    $208k

    Median posted pay
    $230k
    State prices vs US average
    +11%
    Openings with pay posted
    201

    Hiring most here: Gilead Sciences, Zoox, Replit

    Based on 201 openings with pay posted.

  2. 2

    San Mateo CA

    $202k

    Median posted pay
    $233k
    Local prices vs US average
    +16%
    Openings with pay posted
    565

    Hiring most here: Roblox, Verkada, Skydio

    Based on 565 openings with pay posted.

  3. 3

    Mountain View CA

    $193k

    Median posted pay
    $213k
    Local prices vs US average
    +10%
    Openings with pay posted
    729

    Hiring most here: Intuit, Waymo, Google

    Based on 729 openings with pay posted.

  4. 4

    Sunnyvale CA

    $190k

    Median posted pay
    $210k
    State prices vs US average
    +11%
    Openings with pay posted
    463

    Hiring most here: Applied Intuition, Wayve, Amazon

    Based on 463 openings with pay posted.

  5. 5

    Santa Clara CA

    $188k

    Median posted pay
    $208k
    State prices vs US average
    +11%
    Openings with pay posted
    513

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

    Based on 513 openings with pay posted.

  6. 6

    San Francisco CA

    $186k

    Median posted pay
    $215k
    Local prices vs US average
    +16%
    Openings with pay posted
    5,934

    Hiring most here: OpenAI, Anthropic, University Of California San Francisco Foundation

    Based on 5,934 openings with pay posted.

  7. 7

    Palo Alto CA

    $183k

    Median posted pay
    $203k
    Local prices vs US average
    +10%
    Openings with pay posted
    347

    Hiring most here: SpaceX, Rivian Automotive, Stanford Health Care

    Based on 347 openings with pay posted.

  8. 8

    San Jose CA

    $179k

    Median posted pay
    $198k
    Local prices vs US average
    +10%
    Openings with pay posted
    456

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

    Based on 456 openings with pay posted.

  9. 9

    San Carlos CA

    $176k

    Median posted pay
    $195k
    State prices vs US average
    +11%
    Openings with pay posted
    97

    Hiring most here: 1X Technologies, Joby Aviation, Natera

    Based on 97 openings with pay posted.

  10. 10

    Alameda CA

    $171k

    Median posted pay
    $189k
    State prices vs US average
    +11%
    Openings with pay posted
    78

    Hiring most here: Saildrone, Penumbra, Kairos Power

    Based on 78 openings with pay posted.

  11. 11

    Menlo Park CA

    $169k

    Median posted pay
    $195k
    Local prices vs US average
    +16%
    Openings with pay posted
    134

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

    Based on 134 openings with pay posted.

  12. 12

    Oakland CA

    $163k

    Median posted pay
    $180k
    State prices vs US average
    +11%
    Openings with pay posted
    135

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

    Based on 135 openings with pay posted.

  13. 13

    Redwood City CA

    $162k

    Median posted pay
    $187k
    Local prices vs US average
    +16%
    Openings with pay posted
    202

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

    Based on 202 openings with pay posted.

  14. 14

    Fremont CA

    $158k

    Median posted pay
    $175k
    State prices vs US average
    +11%
    Openings with pay posted
    133

    Hiring most here: Agility Robotics, Coherent, LAM Research

    Based on 133 openings with pay posted.

  15. 15

    Santa Ana CA

    $155k

    Median posted pay
    $172k
    State prices vs US average
    +11%
    Openings with pay posted
    108

    Hiring most here: Anduril Industries, First American Financial, Anduril

    Based on 108 openings with pay posted.

  16. 16

    Newark CA

    $155k

    Median posted pay
    $171k
    State prices vs US average
    +11%
    Openings with pay posted
    72

    Hiring most here: Lucid Motors, Applied Industrial Technologies, Stratus Technologies

    Based on 72 openings with pay posted.

  17. 17

    Santa Monica CA

    $152k

    Median posted pay
    $168k
    State prices vs US average
    +11%
    Openings with pay posted
    66

    Hiring most here: Amazon, Snap, FIGS

    Based on 66 openings with pay posted.

  18. 18

    Torrance CA

    $150k

    Median posted pay
    $166k
    State prices vs US average
    +11%
    Openings with pay posted
    327

    Hiring most here: Divergent Technologies, Valar Atomics, Neros

    Based on 327 openings with pay posted.

  19. 19

    Pleasanton CA

    $148k

    Median posted pay
    $164k
    State prices vs US average
    +11%
    Openings with pay posted
    50

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

    Based on 50 openings with pay posted.

  20. 20

    Milpitas CA

    $145k

    Median posted pay
    $160k
    Local prices vs US average
    +10%
    Openings with pay posted
    77

    Hiring most here: Cisco Systems, KLA, Psiquantum

    Based on 77 openings with pay posted.

  21. 21

    El Segundo CA

    $144k

    Median posted pay
    $160k
    State prices vs US average
    +11%
    Openings with pay posted
    334

    Hiring most here: Chaos Industries, Radiant, Varda Space Industries

    Based on 334 openings with pay posted.

  22. 22

    Berkeley CA

    $144k

    Median posted pay
    $166k
    Local prices vs US average
    +16%
    Openings with pay posted
    103

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

    Based on 103 openings with pay posted.

  23. 23

    Irvine CA

    $142k

    Median posted pay
    $157k
    State prices vs US average
    +11%
    Openings with pay posted
    420

    Hiring most here: Anduril Industries, Field AI, St Edwards University

    Based on 420 openings with pay posted.

  24. 24

    Long Beach CA

    $140k

    Median posted pay
    $155k
    State prices vs US average
    +11%
    Openings with pay posted
    446

    Hiring most here: Relativity Space, Rocket Lab, Vast

    Based on 446 openings with pay posted.

  25. 25

    Los Angeles CA

    $134k

    Median posted pay
    $153k
    Local prices vs US average
    +14%
    Openings with pay posted
    1,432

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

    Based on 1,432 openings with pay posted.

Full ranking

All 29 cities that qualified, with the figure each is ranked on.

RankCityScoreSample
1Foster City CA$208k201
2San Mateo CA$202k565
3Mountain View CA$193k729
4Sunnyvale CA$190k463
5Santa Clara CA$188k513
6San Francisco CA$186k5,934
7Palo Alto CA$183k347
8San Jose CA$179k456
9San Carlos CA$176k97
10Alameda CA$171k78
11Menlo Park CA$169k134
12Oakland CA$163k135
13Redwood City CA$162k202
14Fremont CA$158k133
15Santa Ana CA$155k108
16Newark CA$155k72
17Santa Monica CA$152k66
18Torrance CA$150k327
19Pleasanton CA$148k50
20Milpitas CA$145k77
21El Segundo CA$144k334
22Berkeley CA$144k103
23Irvine CA$142k420
24Long Beach CA$140k446
25Los Angeles CA$134k1,432
26San Diego CA$134k615
27Sacramento CA$127k340
28Newport Beach CA$126k55
29Corona CA$102k56

How this ranking works

The score is a city's median posted annual salary (the midpoint of each posted range) 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 50 listings 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 100 openings with pay posted 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 pay after cost of living in california?
Foster City leads California for pay after the cost of living: its median posted salary buys what $208k buys at average US prices.
How many cities are ranked?
29 cities have at least 100 openings with pay posted, so the list has 29 entries.
How is the ranking calculated?
The score is a city's median posted annual salary (the midpoint of each posted range) 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 50 listings 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 pay after cost of living in California,” November 2026 edition. https://launchyournextchapter.com/rankings/best-cities-for-pay-vs-cost-of-living-in-california

Link to it: <a href="https://launchyournextchapter.com/rankings/best-cities-for-pay-vs-cost-of-living-in-california">Best cities for pay after cost of living in California (NextChapter, November 2026)</a>

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

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