Best US Cities for Auto Mechanics
Top US cities for Auto Mechanics ranked by estimated median salary, with cost-of-living-adjusted earning power.
| # | City | Estimated salary | Cost mult. | vs national |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Oakland, CA | $64,900 | 1.35× | +$17,900 |
| 2 | San Francisco, CA | $61,800 | 1.45× | +$14,800 |
| 3 | Long Beach, CA | $58,700 | 1.18× | +$11,700 |
| 4 | New York City, NY | $57,500 | 1.32× | +$10,500 |
| 5 | Los Angeles, CA | $57,500 | 1.22× | +$10,500 |
| 6 | Honolulu, HI | $56,900 | 1.30× | +$9,900 |
| 7 | Irvine, CA | $56,900 | 1.30× | +$9,900 |
| 8 | Anchorage, AK | $56,800 | 1.20× | +$9,800 |
| 9 | Seattle, WA | $56,100 | 1.18× | +$9,100 |
| 10 | Anaheim, CA | $56,100 | 1.18× | +$9,100 |
| # | City | Salary | Hourly |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Oakland, CA | $64,900 | $31/hr |
| 2 | San Francisco, CA | $61,800 | $30/hr |
| 3 | Long Beach, CA | $58,700 | $28/hr |
| 4 | New York City, NY | $57,500 | $28/hr |
| 5 | Los Angeles, CA | $57,500 | $28/hr |
| 6 | Honolulu, HI | $56,900 | $27/hr |
| 7 | Irvine, CA | $56,900 | $27/hr |
| 8 | Anchorage, AK | $56,800 | $27/hr |
| 9 | Seattle, WA | $56,100 | $27/hr |
| 10 | Anaheim, CA | $56,100 | $27/hr |
| 11 | Newark, NJ | $55,800 | $27/hr |
| 12 | Boston, MA | $54,200 | $26/hr |
| 13 | Chicago, IL | $53,900 | $26/hr |
| 14 | San Diego, CA | $53,900 | $26/hr |
| 15 | Baltimore, MD | $53,900 | $26/hr |
| 16 | Hialeah, FL | $53,900 | $26/hr |
| 17 | Las Vegas, NV | $53,600 | $26/hr |
| 18 | Yonkers, NY | $53,600 | $26/hr |
| 19 | Portland, OR | $53,300 | $26/hr |
| 20 | Riverside, CA | $53,300 | $26/hr |
| 21 | Tampa, FL | $52,900 | $25/hr |
| 22 | Reno, NV | $52,900 | $25/hr |
| 23 | Scottsdale, AZ | $52,900 | $25/hr |
| 24 | Charleston, SC | $52,900 | $25/hr |
| 25 | Denver, CO | $52,600 | $25/hr |
| 26 | North Las Vegas, NV | $52,200 | $25/hr |
| 27 | Chula Vista, CA | $51,900 | $25/hr |
| 28 | Stockton, CA | $51,500 | $25/hr |
| 29 | Aurora, CO | $51,500 | $25/hr |
| 30 | Frisco, TX | $51,500 | $25/hr |
| 31 | Norfolk, VA | $51,400 | $25/hr |
| 32 | Jacksonville, FL | $51,100 | $25/hr |
| 33 | Charlotte, NC | $51,100 | $25/hr |
| 34 | Miami, FL | $50,900 | $24/hr |
| 35 | Houston, TX | $50,700 | $24/hr |
| 36 | Fort Worth, TX | $50,700 | $24/hr |
| 37 | Glendale, AZ | $50,700 | $24/hr |
| 38 | Garland, TX | $50,700 | $24/hr |
| 39 | Spokane, WA | $50,700 | $24/hr |
| 40 | Atlanta, GA | $50,600 | $24/hr |
| 41 | Henderson, NV | $50,600 | $24/hr |
| 42 | Arlington, TX | $50,400 | $24/hr |
| 43 | Sacramento, CA | $50,300 | $24/hr |
| 44 | Virginia Beach, VA | $49,800 | $24/hr |
| 45 | Chesapeake, VA | $49,800 | $24/hr |
| 46 | Boise, ID | $49,800 | $24/hr |
| 47 | Fresno, CA | $49,800 | $24/hr |
| 48 | Dallas, TX | $49,500 | $24/hr |
| 49 | Nashville, TN | $49,500 | $24/hr |
| 50 | Bakersfield, CA | $49,500 | $24/hr |
| 51 | Corpus Christi, TX | $49,300 | $24/hr |
| 52 | Greensboro, NC | $49,300 | $24/hr |
| 53 | El Paso, TX | $48,800 | $23/hr |
| 54 | Mesa, AZ | $48,800 | $23/hr |
| 55 | Austin, TX | $48,600 | $23/hr |
| 56 | Indianapolis, IN | $48,500 | $23/hr |
| 57 | Louisville, KY | $48,500 | $23/hr |
| 58 | Minneapolis, MN | $48,300 | $23/hr |
| 59 | Plano, TX | $48,300 | $23/hr |
| 60 | Chandler, AZ | $48,300 | $23/hr |
| 61 | Phoenix, AZ | $47,700 | $23/hr |
| 62 | Philadelphia, PA | $47,700 | $23/hr |
| 63 | Milwaukee, WI | $47,700 | $23/hr |
| 64 | Albuquerque, NM | $47,700 | $23/hr |
| 65 | New Orleans, LA | $47,700 | $23/hr |
| 66 | Gilbert, AZ | $47,700 | $23/hr |
| 67 | Salt Lake City, UT | $47,700 | $23/hr |
| 68 | Grand Rapids, MI | $47,400 | $23/hr |
| 69 | Orlando, FL | $47,300 | $23/hr |
| 70 | Columbus, OH | $47,100 | $23/hr |
| 71 | Detroit, MI | $47,100 | $23/hr |
| 72 | Cincinnati, OH | $47,100 | $23/hr |
| 73 | Kansas City, MO | $47,100 | $23/hr |
| 74 | Lexington, KY | $47,100 | $23/hr |
| 75 | Fort Wayne, IN | $47,100 | $23/hr |
| 76 | Knoxville, TN | $47,100 | $23/hr |
| 77 | Wilmington, DE | $47,000 | $23/hr |
| 78 | Raleigh, NC | $47,000 | $23/hr |
| 79 | St. Paul, MN | $47,000 | $23/hr |
| 80 | Worcester, MA | $47,000 | $23/hr |
| 81 | Colorado Springs, CO | $46,700 | $22/hr |
| 82 | St. Petersburg, FL | $46,700 | $22/hr |
| 83 | Madison, WI | $46,700 | $22/hr |
| 84 | Cleveland, OH | $46,600 | $22/hr |
| 85 | St. Louis, MO | $46,600 | $22/hr |
| 86 | Omaha, NE | $46,300 | $22/hr |
| 87 | Memphis, TN | $46,000 | $22/hr |
| 88 | Oklahoma City, OK | $46,000 | $22/hr |
| 89 | Tucson, AZ | $45,700 | $22/hr |
| 90 | Birmingham, AL | $45,700 | $22/hr |
| 91 | Toledo, OH | $45,700 | $22/hr |
| 92 | Lubbock, TX | $45,700 | $22/hr |
| 93 | Pittsburgh, PA | $45,400 | $22/hr |
| 94 | Tallahassee, FL | $45,400 | $22/hr |
| 95 | Wichita, KS | $44,900 | $22/hr |
| 96 | Mobile, AL | $44,900 | $22/hr |
| 97 | San Antonio, TX | $44,700 | $21/hr |
| 98 | Buffalo, NY | $44,400 | $21/hr |
| 99 | Winston-Salem, NC | $44,000 | $21/hr |
| 100 | Lincoln, NE | $43,400 | $21/hr |
Does location actually decide Auto Mechanic pay?
Auto Mechanic work has to be done on site, so where you live and where you earn are the same question. The 50% spread between Oakland ($64,900) and Lincoln ($43,400) is a spread you can only capture by actually relocating.
Highest-paying is not the same as best-off
Gross pay and what you keep are different lists. In Oakland, $64,900 against $2,100/month rent leaves roughly $39,700 a year after housing. In Lincoln, $43,400 against $950 leaves about $32,000. The top still wins after rent, but by $7,700 rather than the $21,500 the headline suggests.
Why these metros and not others
Pay follows employer concentration more than cost of living. Among the top of this list: Oakland (Kaiser Permanente (HQ), Port of Oakland); San Francisco (Salesforce, Google); Long Beach (Port of Long Beach, Long Beach Memorial Medical Center). A Auto Mechanic at a large employer in a metro where trades work clusters will typically out-earn the local median for the role — the ranking reflects where those employers sit.
Salaries are modelled from BLS national medians adjusted for local price level at a wage elasticity below 1 — pay rises with local costs but not proportionally. See our methodology.