Best states for an athletic director

Q: What is the best state for athletic directors?

The best state to be an athletic director is Wisconsin based on athletic director salaries and job opportunities.

Q: What is the highest paying state for athletic directors?

The highest paying state for athletic directors is Arkansas based on Zippia’s salary database.

Q: What is the worst state for athletic directors?

The worst state for athletic directors is South Carolina, due to a combination of low salaries and few job opportunities.

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Job opportunities vary from state to state, and executive management careers are no different. Because we know how difficult it can be to know which states are the best when it comes to athletic director jobs, we decided to crunch some numbers to bring you the best states for athletic directors.In fact, our research shows that Wisconsin is the best state for athletic directors in America. The best city in America for athletic directors with the highest pay is Alameda, CA.

To that end, we dove into our dataset of job and salary numbers to figure out which states have the best opportunities for athletic directors. Wisconsin is the best state for athletic directors, where the median salary is $83,689.If you are currently seeking employment as an athletic director, you can find open job positions using Zippia's search tools.

10 best states for athletic directors in 2025

1. Wisconsin
Total athletic director jobs: 107
Average annual salary: $83,689
Lowest 10 percent earn: $54,000
Highest 10 percent earn: $129,000
Location Quotient:
0.76
Athletic director jobs in Wisconsin
2. Massachusetts
Total athletic director jobs: 187
Average annual salary: $85,055
Lowest 10 percent earn: $52,000
Highest 10 percent earn: $136,000
Location Quotient:
0.8
Athletic director jobs in Massachusetts
3. California
Total athletic director jobs: 539
Average annual salary: $95,435
Lowest 10 percent earn: $58,000
Highest 10 percent earn: $156,000
Location Quotient:
0.73
Athletic director jobs in California
4. Pennsylvania
Total athletic director jobs: 196
Average annual salary: $78,384
Lowest 10 percent earn: $48,000
Highest 10 percent earn: $125,000
Location Quotient:
0.66
Athletic director jobs in Pennsylvania
5. Nevada
Total athletic director jobs: 19
Average annual salary: $83,444
Lowest 10 percent earn: $51,000
Highest 10 percent earn: $135,000
Location Quotient:
0.36
Athletic director jobs in Nevada
6. Ohio
Total athletic director jobs: 131
Average annual salary: $79,401
Lowest 10 percent earn: $49,000
Highest 10 percent earn: $126,000
Location Quotient:
0.51
Athletic director jobs in Ohio
7. Montana
Total athletic director jobs: 20
Average annual salary: $77,607
Lowest 10 percent earn: $50,000
Highest 10 percent earn: $119,000
Location Quotient:
0.68
Athletic director jobs in Montana
8. Oregon
Total athletic director jobs: 59
Average annual salary: $82,044
Lowest 10 percent earn: $51,000
Highest 10 percent earn: $130,000
Location Quotient:
0.56
Athletic director jobs in Oregon
9. Michigan
Total athletic director jobs: 114
Average annual salary: $77,248
Lowest 10 percent earn: $48,000
Highest 10 percent earn: $121,000
Location Quotient:
0.58
Athletic director jobs in Michigan
10. New York
Total athletic director jobs: 395
Average annual salary: $77,794
Lowest 10 percent earn: $48,000
Highest 10 percent earn: $124,000
Location Quotient:
1.22
Athletic director jobs in New York

Athletic director jobsNear Columbus, OH

How Zippia determines the best states to be an athletic director

You can read about how the best state rankings are calculated here.

Detailed list of the best states for an athletic director

Rank	State	Average salary	Lowest 10% earn	Population	Job count
1	Wisconsin	$83,689	$54,000	5,795,483	107
2	Massachusetts	$85,055	$52,000	6,859,819	187
3	California	$95,435	$58,000	39,536,653	539
4	Pennsylvania	$78,384	$48,000	12,805,537	196
5	Nevada	$83,444	$51,000	2,998,039	19
6	Ohio	$79,401	$49,000	11,658,609	131
7	Montana	$77,607	$50,000	1,050,493	20
8	Oregon	$82,044	$51,000	4,142,776	59
9	Michigan	$77,248	$48,000	9,962,311	114
10	New York	$77,794	$48,000	19,849,399	395
11	Colorado	$76,212	$49,000	5,607,154	105
12	Vermont	$74,375	$45,000	623,657	22
13	New Hampshire	$79,293	$49,000	1,342,795	13
14	Maine	$77,951	$47,000	1,335,907	14
15	District of Columbia	$76,863	$48,000	693,972	68
16	Iowa	$70,437	$46,000	3,145,711	541
17	Alaska	$73,401	$47,000	739,795	18
18	New Jersey	$75,227	$47,000	9,005,644	160
19	South Dakota	$73,874	$49,000	869,666	12
20	Connecticut	$74,395	$46,000	3,588,184	66
21	Idaho	$77,098	$48,000	1,716,943	14
22	Wyoming	$76,513	$49,000	579,315	3
23	Louisiana	$67,835	$41,000	4,684,333	508
24	Maryland	$74,965	$46,000	6,052,177	97
25	Washington	$74,596	$46,000	7,405,743	103
26	Minnesota	$70,805	$47,000	5,576,606	100
27	Rhode Island	$72,548	$45,000	1,059,639	17
28	Kentucky	$69,941	$44,000	4,454,189	53
29	Indiana	$67,684	$42,000	6,666,818	108
30	Illinois	$69,710	$44,000	12,802,023	233
31	Alabama	$63,310	$39,000	4,874,747	522
32	Virginia	$70,650	$43,000	8,470,020	153
33	North Carolina	$66,254	$41,000	10,273,419	147
34	Arizona	$68,600	$41,000	7,016,270	86
35	West Virginia	$69,152	$43,000	1,815,857	13
36	Delaware	$71,568	$44,000	961,939	11
37	Utah	$65,586	$41,000	3,101,833	47
38	Arkansas	$54,689	$34,000	3,004,279	499
39	Oklahoma	$55,660	$35,000	3,930,864	451
40	North Dakota	$63,890	$44,000	755,393	8
41	Mississippi	$55,175	$34,000	2,984,100	307
42	Texas	$60,109	$36,000	28,304,596	309
43	Georgia	$57,509	$35,000	10,429,379	197
44	Nebraska	$59,468	$38,000	1,920,076	32
45	Tennessee	$61,213	$38,000	6,715,984	60
46	Kansas	$58,600	$37,000	2,913,123	33
47	New Mexico	$60,413	$37,000	2,088,070	13
48	Hawaii	$61,824	$46,000	1,427,538	5
49	Missouri	$55,927	$36,000	6,113,532	84
50	Florida	$57,471	$35,000	20,984,400	185
51	South Carolina	$56,181	$34,000	5,024,369	52

Highest paying states for athletic directors

Rank	State	Avg. Athletic Director Salary
1	Wisconsin	$83,689
2	Massachusetts	$85,055
3	California	$95,435
4	Pennsylvania	$78,384
5	Nevada	$83,444
6	Ohio	$79,401
7	Montana	$77,607
8	Oregon	$82,044
9	Michigan	$77,248
10	New York	$77,794
11	Colorado	$76,212
12	Vermont	$74,375
13	New Hampshire	$79,293
14	Maine	$77,951
15	District of Columbia	$76,863
16	Iowa	$70,437
17	Alaska	$73,401
18	New Jersey	$75,227
19	South Dakota	$73,874
20	Connecticut	$74,395
21	Idaho	$77,098
22	Wyoming	$76,513
23	Louisiana	$67,835
24	Maryland	$74,965
25	Washington	$74,596
26	Minnesota	$70,805
27	Rhode Island	$72,548
28	Kentucky	$69,941
29	Indiana	$67,684
30	Illinois	$69,710
31	Alabama	$63,310
32	Virginia	$70,650
33	North Carolina	$66,254
34	Arizona	$68,600
35	West Virginia	$69,152
36	Delaware	$71,568
37	Utah	$65,586
38	Arkansas	$54,689
39	Oklahoma	$55,660
40	North Dakota	$63,890
41	Mississippi	$55,175
42	Texas	$60,109
43	Georgia	$57,509
44	Nebraska	$59,468
45	Tennessee	$61,213
46	Kansas	$58,600
47	New Mexico	$60,413
48	Hawaii	$61,824
49	Missouri	$55,927
50	Florida	$57,471
51	South Carolina	$56,181

Best states for an athletic director

10 best states for athletic directors in 2025

1. Wisconsin

2. Massachusetts

3. California

4. Pennsylvania

5. Nevada

6. Ohio

7. Montana

8. Oregon

9. Michigan

10. New York

Athletic director jobsNear Columbus, OH

How Zippia determines the best states to be an athletic director

Detailed list of the best states for an athletic director

Highest paying states for athletic directors

Athletic director best states FAQs

What is the best state for athletic directors?

What is the highest paying state for athletic directors?

What is the worst state for athletic directors?

Search for athletic director jobs

Total athletic director jobs:	107
Average annual salary:	$83,689
Lowest 10 percent earn:	$54,000
Highest 10 percent earn:	$129,000
Location Quotient:	0.76