Best US Cities for Sales Representatives
Top US cities for Sales Representatives ranked by estimated median salary, with cost-of-living-adjusted earning power.
| # | City | Estimated salary | Cost mult. | vs national |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | San Francisco, CA | $83,300 | 1.45× | +$20,300 |
| 2 | Oakland, CA | $79,600 | 1.35× | +$16,600 |
| 3 | New York City, NY | $78,500 | 1.32× | +$15,500 |
| 4 | Irvine, CA | $77,800 | 1.30× | +$14,800 |
| 5 | San Diego, CA | $74,500 | 1.21× | +$11,500 |
| 6 | Yonkers, NY | $74,100 | 1.20× | +$11,100 |
| 7 | Portland, OR | $73,800 | 1.10× | +$10,800 |
| 8 | Seattle, WA | $73,400 | 1.18× | +$10,400 |
| 9 | Honolulu, HI | $73,400 | 1.30× | +$10,400 |
| 10 | Anaheim, CA | $73,400 | 1.18× | +$10,400 |
| # | City | Salary | Hourly |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | San Francisco, CA | $83,300 | $40/hr |
| 2 | Oakland, CA | $79,600 | $38/hr |
| 3 | New York City, NY | $78,500 | $38/hr |
| 4 | Irvine, CA | $77,800 | $37/hr |
| 5 | San Diego, CA | $74,500 | $36/hr |
| 6 | Yonkers, NY | $74,100 | $36/hr |
| 7 | Portland, OR | $73,800 | $35/hr |
| 8 | Seattle, WA | $73,400 | $35/hr |
| 9 | Honolulu, HI | $73,400 | $35/hr |
| 10 | Anaheim, CA | $73,400 | $35/hr |
| 11 | Scottsdale, AZ | $73,400 | $35/hr |
| 12 | Chicago, IL | $71,800 | $35/hr |
| 13 | Hialeah, FL | $71,800 | $35/hr |
| 14 | Frisco, TX | $71,800 | $35/hr |
| 15 | Henderson, NV | $70,700 | $34/hr |
| 16 | Reno, NV | $70,700 | $34/hr |
| 17 | Gilbert, AZ | $70,700 | $34/hr |
| 18 | Los Angeles, CA | $70,600 | $34/hr |
| 19 | Boston, MA | $70,600 | $34/hr |
| 20 | Sacramento, CA | $70,500 | $34/hr |
| 21 | Boise, ID | $69,900 | $34/hr |
| 22 | Anchorage, AK | $69,900 | $34/hr |
| 23 | Denver, CO | $69,700 | $34/hr |
| 24 | Long Beach, CA | $69,200 | $33/hr |
| 25 | Austin, TX | $68,600 | $33/hr |
| 26 | Glendale, AZ | $68,400 | $33/hr |
| 27 | Garland, TX | $68,400 | $33/hr |
| 28 | Minneapolis, MN | $68,300 | $33/hr |
| 29 | Plano, TX | $68,300 | $33/hr |
| 30 | Chandler, AZ | $68,300 | $33/hr |
| 31 | Chula Vista, CA | $68,200 | $33/hr |
| 32 | Albuquerque, NM | $67,600 | $33/hr |
| 33 | Atlanta, GA | $67,500 | $32/hr |
| 34 | Charleston, SC | $67,500 | $32/hr |
| 35 | Salt Lake City, UT | $67,500 | $32/hr |
| 36 | Miami, FL | $67,200 | $32/hr |
| 37 | Columbus, OH | $66,800 | $32/hr |
| 38 | Raleigh, NC | $66,800 | $32/hr |
| 39 | Chesapeake, VA | $66,800 | $32/hr |
| 40 | North Las Vegas, NV | $66,800 | $32/hr |
| 41 | Dallas, TX | $66,500 | $32/hr |
| 42 | Nashville, TN | $66,500 | $32/hr |
| 43 | Newark, NJ | $66,500 | $32/hr |
| 44 | Riverside, CA | $66,500 | $32/hr |
| 45 | Mesa, AZ | $65,700 | $32/hr |
| 46 | Fort Worth, TX | $65,300 | $31/hr |
| 47 | Spokane, WA | $65,300 | $31/hr |
| 48 | Arlington, TX | $65,000 | $31/hr |
| 49 | Baltimore, MD | $64,700 | $31/hr |
| 50 | Stockton, CA | $64,700 | $31/hr |
| 51 | Aurora, CO | $64,700 | $31/hr |
| 52 | Milwaukee, WI | $64,600 | $31/hr |
| 53 | Las Vegas, NV | $64,400 | $31/hr |
| 54 | Grand Rapids, MI | $64,200 | $31/hr |
| 55 | Detroit, MI | $63,800 | $31/hr |
| 56 | Kansas City, MO | $63,800 | $31/hr |
| 57 | Lexington, KY | $63,800 | $31/hr |
| 58 | Greensboro, NC | $63,800 | $31/hr |
| 59 | Knoxville, TN | $63,800 | $31/hr |
| 60 | Phoenix, AZ | $63,700 | $31/hr |
| 61 | Philadelphia, PA | $63,700 | $31/hr |
| 62 | Tampa, FL | $63,700 | $31/hr |
| 63 | El Paso, TX | $63,500 | $31/hr |
| 64 | Cleveland, OH | $63,500 | $31/hr |
| 65 | St. Louis, MO | $63,500 | $31/hr |
| 66 | Orlando, FL | $63,300 | $30/hr |
| 67 | Indianapolis, IN | $63,100 | $30/hr |
| 68 | Louisville, KY | $63,100 | $30/hr |
| 69 | Wilmington, DE | $63,000 | $30/hr |
| 70 | Virginia Beach, VA | $63,000 | $30/hr |
| 71 | St. Paul, MN | $63,000 | $30/hr |
| 72 | Fresno, CA | $63,000 | $30/hr |
| 73 | Worcester, MA | $63,000 | $30/hr |
| 74 | Colorado Springs, CO | $62,700 | $30/hr |
| 75 | Bakersfield, CA | $62,700 | $30/hr |
| 76 | St. Petersburg, FL | $62,700 | $30/hr |
| 77 | Madison, WI | $62,700 | $30/hr |
| 78 | Birmingham, AL | $62,300 | $30/hr |
| 79 | Toledo, OH | $62,300 | $30/hr |
| 80 | Norfolk, VA | $62,300 | $30/hr |
| 81 | Jacksonville, FL | $62,000 | $30/hr |
| 82 | Charlotte, NC | $62,000 | $30/hr |
| 83 | Houston, TX | $61,600 | $30/hr |
| 84 | Tucson, AZ | $61,600 | $30/hr |
| 85 | Wichita, KS | $61,600 | $30/hr |
| 86 | Fort Wayne, IN | $61,600 | $30/hr |
| 87 | Pittsburgh, PA | $61,300 | $29/hr |
| 88 | Tallahassee, FL | $61,300 | $29/hr |
| 89 | New Orleans, LA | $60,900 | $29/hr |
| 90 | San Antonio, TX | $60,600 | $29/hr |
| 91 | Cincinnati, OH | $60,200 | $29/hr |
| 92 | Corpus Christi, TX | $60,200 | $29/hr |
| 93 | Buffalo, NY | $60,200 | $29/hr |
| 94 | Winston-Salem, NC | $59,900 | $29/hr |
| 95 | Omaha, NE | $59,500 | $29/hr |
| 96 | Memphis, TN | $59,200 | $28/hr |
| 97 | Oklahoma City, OK | $59,200 | $28/hr |
| 98 | Lincoln, NE | $59,200 | $28/hr |
| 99 | Lubbock, TX | $58,800 | $28/hr |
| 100 | Mobile, AL | $58,100 | $28/hr |
Does location actually decide Sales Representative pay?
Sales Representative work is usually hybrid, so the metro you choose still largely determines what you earn. Pay ranges from $58,100 in Mobile to $83,300 in San Francisco — a spread of 43%.
Highest-paying is not the same as best-off
The nominal ranking and the useful ranking are not the same. In San Francisco, $83,300 against $3,000/month rent leaves roughly $47,300 a year after housing. In Mobile, $58,100 against $850 leaves about $47,900. The bottom of the pay list beats the top once rent is subtracted — which is the whole reason to look past headline salary.
Why these metros and not others
What puts a metro near the top here is employer density, not price level. San Francisco (Salesforce, Google); Oakland (Kaiser Permanente (HQ), Port of Oakland); New York City (JPMorgan Chase, NYC Health + Hospitals). Where sales employers compete for the same candidates, offers rise above what the local cost of living alone would predict.
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.