Best US Cities for Underwriters
Top US cities for Underwriters ranked by estimated median salary, with cost-of-living-adjusted earning power.
| # | City | Estimated salary | Cost mult. | vs national |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | San Francisco, CA | $112,400 | 1.45× | +$27,400 |
| 2 | New York City, NY | $106,000 | 1.32× | +$21,000 |
| 3 | Irvine, CA | $104,900 | 1.30× | +$19,900 |
| 4 | Oakland, CA | $101,400 | 1.35× | +$16,400 |
| 5 | Boston, MA | $101,000 | 1.22× | +$16,000 |
| 6 | Yonkers, NY | $100,000 | 1.20× | +$15,000 |
| 7 | Honolulu, HI | $99,000 | 1.30× | +$14,000 |
| 8 | Scottsdale, AZ | $99,000 | 1.18× | +$14,000 |
| 9 | Chicago, IL | $96,900 | 1.05× | +$11,900 |
| 10 | Plano, TX | $96,500 | 1.04× | +$11,500 |
| # | City | Salary | Hourly |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | San Francisco, CA | $112,400 | $54/hr |
| 2 | New York City, NY | $106,000 | $51/hr |
| 3 | Irvine, CA | $104,900 | $50/hr |
| 4 | Oakland, CA | $101,400 | $49/hr |
| 5 | Boston, MA | $101,000 | $49/hr |
| 6 | Yonkers, NY | $100,000 | $48/hr |
| 7 | Honolulu, HI | $99,000 | $48/hr |
| 8 | Scottsdale, AZ | $99,000 | $48/hr |
| 9 | Chicago, IL | $96,900 | $47/hr |
| 10 | Plano, TX | $96,500 | $46/hr |
| 11 | Miami, FL | $96,000 | $46/hr |
| 12 | Los Angeles, CA | $95,300 | $46/hr |
| 13 | Tampa, FL | $95,300 | $46/hr |
| 14 | Newark, NJ | $95,100 | $46/hr |
| 15 | San Diego, CA | $94,800 | $46/hr |
| 16 | Wilmington, DE | $94,400 | $45/hr |
| 17 | Anchorage, AK | $94,300 | $45/hr |
| 18 | Dallas, TX | $93,800 | $45/hr |
| 19 | St. Petersburg, FL | $93,800 | $45/hr |
| 20 | Seattle, WA | $93,400 | $45/hr |
| 21 | Long Beach, CA | $93,400 | $45/hr |
| 22 | Anaheim, CA | $93,400 | $45/hr |
| 23 | Charlotte, NC | $92,800 | $45/hr |
| 24 | Frisco, TX | $92,500 | $44/hr |
| 25 | Minneapolis, MN | $92,100 | $44/hr |
| 26 | Chula Vista, CA | $92,000 | $44/hr |
| 27 | Milwaukee, WI | $91,200 | $44/hr |
| 28 | Phoenix, AZ | $91,100 | $44/hr |
| 29 | Philadelphia, PA | $91,100 | $44/hr |
| 30 | Atlanta, GA | $91,100 | $44/hr |
| 31 | Salt Lake City, UT | $91,100 | $44/hr |
| 32 | Kansas City, MO | $90,200 | $43/hr |
| 33 | St. Paul, MN | $90,100 | $43/hr |
| 34 | Portland, OR | $89,700 | $43/hr |
| 35 | Sacramento, CA | $89,700 | $43/hr |
| 36 | Riverside, CA | $89,700 | $43/hr |
| 37 | Nashville, TN | $89,600 | $43/hr |
| 38 | Madison, WI | $89,600 | $43/hr |
| 39 | Omaha, NE | $89,100 | $43/hr |
| 40 | Denver, CO | $88,700 | $43/hr |
| 41 | Pittsburgh, PA | $87,700 | $42/hr |
| 42 | Austin, TX | $87,300 | $42/hr |
| 43 | Baltimore, MD | $87,300 | $42/hr |
| 44 | Stockton, CA | $87,300 | $42/hr |
| 45 | Aurora, CO | $87,300 | $42/hr |
| 46 | Hialeah, FL | $87,300 | $42/hr |
| 47 | Las Vegas, NV | $86,900 | $42/hr |
| 48 | Chandler, AZ | $86,900 | $42/hr |
| 49 | Columbus, OH | $86,200 | $41/hr |
| 50 | Detroit, MI | $86,200 | $41/hr |
| 51 | Buffalo, NY | $86,200 | $41/hr |
| 52 | Henderson, NV | $85,900 | $41/hr |
| 53 | Reno, NV | $85,900 | $41/hr |
| 54 | Gilbert, AZ | $85,900 | $41/hr |
| 55 | Charleston, SC | $85,900 | $41/hr |
| 56 | Cleveland, OH | $85,600 | $41/hr |
| 57 | Winston-Salem, NC | $85,600 | $41/hr |
| 58 | Orlando, FL | $85,500 | $41/hr |
| 59 | Raleigh, NC | $85,000 | $41/hr |
| 60 | Virginia Beach, VA | $85,000 | $41/hr |
| 61 | Chesapeake, VA | $85,000 | $41/hr |
| 62 | North Las Vegas, NV | $85,000 | $41/hr |
| 63 | Boise, ID | $85,000 | $41/hr |
| 64 | Fresno, CA | $85,000 | $41/hr |
| 65 | Worcester, MA | $85,000 | $41/hr |
| 66 | Lincoln, NE | $84,700 | $41/hr |
| 67 | Colorado Springs, CO | $84,500 | $41/hr |
| 68 | Bakersfield, CA | $84,500 | $41/hr |
| 69 | Birmingham, AL | $84,200 | $40/hr |
| 70 | Norfolk, VA | $84,100 | $40/hr |
| 71 | Jacksonville, FL | $83,600 | $40/hr |
| 72 | Mesa, AZ | $83,600 | $40/hr |
| 73 | Fort Wayne, IN | $83,200 | $40/hr |
| 74 | Houston, TX | $83,100 | $40/hr |
| 75 | Fort Worth, TX | $83,100 | $40/hr |
| 76 | Tucson, AZ | $83,100 | $40/hr |
| 77 | Glendale, AZ | $83,100 | $40/hr |
| 78 | Garland, TX | $83,100 | $40/hr |
| 79 | Spokane, WA | $83,100 | $40/hr |
| 80 | Arlington, TX | $82,700 | $40/hr |
| 81 | Tallahassee, FL | $82,700 | $40/hr |
| 82 | Albuquerque, NM | $82,200 | $40/hr |
| 83 | New Orleans, LA | $82,200 | $40/hr |
| 84 | San Antonio, TX | $81,700 | $39/hr |
| 85 | Grand Rapids, MI | $81,700 | $39/hr |
| 86 | Cincinnati, OH | $81,300 | $39/hr |
| 87 | Lexington, KY | $81,300 | $39/hr |
| 88 | Corpus Christi, TX | $81,300 | $39/hr |
| 89 | Greensboro, NC | $81,300 | $39/hr |
| 90 | Knoxville, TN | $81,300 | $39/hr |
| 91 | El Paso, TX | $80,800 | $39/hr |
| 92 | St. Louis, MO | $80,800 | $39/hr |
| 93 | Indianapolis, IN | $80,300 | $39/hr |
| 94 | Louisville, KY | $80,300 | $39/hr |
| 95 | Memphis, TN | $79,900 | $38/hr |
| 96 | Oklahoma City, OK | $79,900 | $38/hr |
| 97 | Toledo, OH | $79,400 | $38/hr |
| 98 | Lubbock, TX | $79,400 | $38/hr |
| 99 | Wichita, KS | $78,500 | $38/hr |
| 100 | Mobile, AL | $78,500 | $38/hr |
Does location actually decide Underwriter pay?
Underwriter work is usually hybrid, so the metro you choose still largely determines what you earn. Pay ranges from $78,500 in Mobile to $112,400 in San Francisco — a spread of 43%.
Highest-paying is not the same as best-off
The number that ranks these metros is not the number you live on. In San Francisco, $112,400 against $3,000/month rent leaves roughly $76,400 a year after housing. In Mobile, $78,500 against $850 leaves about $68,300. The top still wins after rent, but by $8,100 rather than the $33,900 the headline suggests.
Why these metros and not others
The metros at the top are not simply the expensive ones; they are where the hiring is. San Francisco (Salesforce, Google); New York City (JPMorgan Chase, NYC Health + Hospitals); Irvine (University of California, Irvine, Broadcom). Depth of demand for finance work is what lifts pay above the local baseline, and it is why two equally costly cities can pay this role differently.
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.