Best US Cities for Investment Bankers
Top US cities for Investment Bankers ranked by estimated median salary, with cost-of-living-adjusted earning power.
| # | City | Estimated salary | Cost mult. | vs national |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | San Francisco, CA | $278,800 | 1.45× | +$78,800 |
| 2 | New York City, NY | $259,500 | 1.32× | +$59,500 |
| 3 | Irvine, CA | $256,500 | 1.30× | +$56,500 |
| 4 | Oakland, CA | $249,000 | 1.35× | +$49,000 |
| 5 | Boston, MA | $244,600 | 1.22× | +$44,600 |
| 6 | Honolulu, HI | $242,000 | 1.30× | +$42,000 |
| 7 | Yonkers, NY | $241,700 | 1.20× | +$41,700 |
| 8 | Scottsdale, AZ | $238,700 | 1.18× | +$38,700 |
| 9 | Los Angeles, CA | $230,800 | 1.22× | +$30,800 |
| 10 | Chicago, IL | $229,800 | 1.05× | +$29,800 |
| # | City | Salary | Hourly |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | San Francisco, CA | $278,800 | $134/hr |
| 2 | New York City, NY | $259,500 | $125/hr |
| 3 | Irvine, CA | $256,500 | $123/hr |
| 4 | Oakland, CA | $249,000 | $120/hr |
| 5 | Boston, MA | $244,600 | $118/hr |
| 6 | Honolulu, HI | $242,000 | $116/hr |
| 7 | Yonkers, NY | $241,700 | $116/hr |
| 8 | Scottsdale, AZ | $238,700 | $115/hr |
| 9 | Los Angeles, CA | $230,800 | $111/hr |
| 10 | Chicago, IL | $229,800 | $110/hr |
| 11 | Miami, FL | $229,800 | $110/hr |
| 12 | San Diego, CA | $229,400 | $110/hr |
| 13 | Plano, TX | $228,200 | $110/hr |
| 14 | Anchorage, AK | $228,000 | $110/hr |
| 15 | Newark, NJ | $226,800 | $109/hr |
| 16 | Seattle, WA | $225,200 | $108/hr |
| 17 | Long Beach, CA | $225,200 | $108/hr |
| 18 | Anaheim, CA | $225,200 | $108/hr |
| 19 | Tampa, FL | $225,100 | $108/hr |
| 20 | Wilmington, DE | $222,000 | $107/hr |
| 21 | Chula Vista, CA | $221,000 | $106/hr |
| 22 | Dallas, TX | $220,400 | $106/hr |
| 23 | St. Petersburg, FL | $220,400 | $106/hr |
| 24 | Frisco, TX | $219,400 | $105/hr |
| 25 | Minneapolis, MN | $217,900 | $105/hr |
| 26 | Charlotte, NC | $217,300 | $104/hr |
| 27 | Phoenix, AZ | $215,000 | $103/hr |
| 28 | Philadelphia, PA | $215,000 | $103/hr |
| 29 | Atlanta, GA | $215,000 | $103/hr |
| 30 | Salt Lake City, UT | $215,000 | $103/hr |
| 31 | Portland, OR | $214,000 | $103/hr |
| 32 | Sacramento, CA | $214,000 | $103/hr |
| 33 | Riverside, CA | $214,000 | $103/hr |
| 34 | Milwaukee, WI | $212,700 | $102/hr |
| 35 | St. Paul, MN | $212,000 | $102/hr |
| 36 | Denver, CO | $211,200 | $102/hr |
| 37 | Nashville, TN | $210,500 | $101/hr |
| 38 | Madison, WI | $210,500 | $101/hr |
| 39 | Kansas City, MO | $209,600 | $101/hr |
| 40 | Austin, TX | $207,000 | $100/hr |
| 41 | Baltimore, MD | $207,000 | $100/hr |
| 42 | Stockton, CA | $207,000 | $100/hr |
| 43 | Aurora, CO | $207,000 | $100/hr |
| 44 | Hialeah, FL | $207,000 | $100/hr |
| 45 | Omaha, NE | $206,500 | $99/hr |
| 46 | Las Vegas, NV | $205,600 | $99/hr |
| 47 | Chandler, AZ | $205,600 | $99/hr |
| 48 | Pittsburgh, PA | $204,600 | $98/hr |
| 49 | Henderson, NV | $202,800 | $98/hr |
| 50 | Reno, NV | $202,800 | $98/hr |
| 51 | Gilbert, AZ | $202,800 | $98/hr |
| 52 | Charleston, SC | $202,800 | $98/hr |
| 53 | Orlando, FL | $201,400 | $97/hr |
| 54 | Columbus, OH | $200,100 | $96/hr |
| 55 | Detroit, MI | $200,100 | $96/hr |
| 56 | Buffalo, NY | $200,100 | $96/hr |
| 57 | Raleigh, NC | $200,000 | $96/hr |
| 58 | Virginia Beach, VA | $200,000 | $96/hr |
| 59 | Chesapeake, VA | $200,000 | $96/hr |
| 60 | North Las Vegas, NV | $200,000 | $96/hr |
| 61 | Boise, ID | $200,000 | $96/hr |
| 62 | Fresno, CA | $200,000 | $96/hr |
| 63 | Worcester, MA | $200,000 | $96/hr |
| 64 | Cleveland, OH | $198,600 | $95/hr |
| 65 | Colorado Springs, CO | $198,600 | $95/hr |
| 66 | Bakersfield, CA | $198,600 | $95/hr |
| 67 | Winston-Salem, NC | $198,600 | $95/hr |
| 68 | Norfolk, VA | $197,200 | $95/hr |
| 69 | Jacksonville, FL | $195,800 | $94/hr |
| 70 | Mesa, AZ | $195,800 | $94/hr |
| 71 | Lincoln, NE | $195,700 | $94/hr |
| 72 | Houston, TX | $194,400 | $93/hr |
| 73 | Fort Worth, TX | $194,400 | $93/hr |
| 74 | Tucson, AZ | $194,400 | $93/hr |
| 75 | Glendale, AZ | $194,400 | $93/hr |
| 76 | Garland, TX | $194,400 | $93/hr |
| 77 | Spokane, WA | $194,400 | $93/hr |
| 78 | Birmingham, AL | $194,200 | $93/hr |
| 79 | Arlington, TX | $193,000 | $93/hr |
| 80 | Tallahassee, FL | $193,000 | $93/hr |
| 81 | Albuquerque, NM | $191,600 | $92/hr |
| 82 | New Orleans, LA | $191,600 | $92/hr |
| 83 | Fort Wayne, IN | $191,200 | $92/hr |
| 84 | San Antonio, TX | $190,200 | $91/hr |
| 85 | Grand Rapids, MI | $190,200 | $91/hr |
| 86 | Cincinnati, OH | $188,800 | $91/hr |
| 87 | Lexington, KY | $188,800 | $91/hr |
| 88 | Corpus Christi, TX | $188,800 | $91/hr |
| 89 | Greensboro, NC | $188,800 | $91/hr |
| 90 | Knoxville, TN | $188,800 | $91/hr |
| 91 | El Paso, TX | $187,400 | $90/hr |
| 92 | St. Louis, MO | $187,400 | $90/hr |
| 93 | Indianapolis, IN | $186,000 | $89/hr |
| 94 | Louisville, KY | $186,000 | $89/hr |
| 95 | Memphis, TN | $184,600 | $89/hr |
| 96 | Oklahoma City, OK | $184,600 | $89/hr |
| 97 | Toledo, OH | $183,200 | $88/hr |
| 98 | Lubbock, TX | $183,200 | $88/hr |
| 99 | Wichita, KS | $180,400 | $87/hr |
| 100 | Mobile, AL | $180,400 | $87/hr |
Does location actually decide Investment Banker pay?
Investment Banker work is rarely remote, so the metro you choose still largely determines what you earn. Pay ranges from $180,400 in Mobile to $278,800 in San Francisco — a spread of 55%.
One practical constraint: this is a licensed occupation (Series 79 and 63 (FINRA) required to work on deals). Because licenses do not automatically transfer across state lines, the metros on this list are not equally reachable — some will require you to re-qualify before you can work at all.
Highest-paying is not the same as best-off
Gross pay and what you keep are different lists. In San Francisco, $278,800 against $3,000/month rent leaves roughly $242,800 a year after housing. In Mobile, $180,400 against $850 leaves about $170,200. The top still wins after rent, but by $72,600 rather than the $98,400 the headline suggests.
Why these metros and not others
Pay follows employer concentration more than cost of living. Among the top of this list: San Francisco (Salesforce, Google); New York City (JPMorgan Chase, NYC Health + Hospitals); Irvine (University of California, Irvine, Broadcom). A Investment Banker at a large employer in a metro where finance 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.