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Best states for a project management lead
Quoted expert
Dr. Ricardo Cunningham
- Rank 1 - 10
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Are you thinking of becoming a project management lead and really want to work at Franchise Career Advisor? Turns out, your chances to become a project management lead are better in some states than others.In order to help you decide which state is the best for project management leads, we ranked all 50 states and the District of Columbia from best to worst for project management lead jobs.
To that end, we dove into our dataset of job and salary numbers to figure out which states have the best opportunities for project management leads. New York is the best state for project management leads, where the median salary is $104,008.New York is the best state, and Atlantic City is the city with the highest pay for project management leads.
10 best states for project management leads in 2025
1. New York
Total project management lead jobs: 3,187 Average annual salary: $104,008 Lowest 10 percent earn: $63,000 Highest 10 percent earn: $170,000 Location Quotient: 1.122. Delaware
Total project management lead jobs: 279 Average annual salary: $104,372 Lowest 10 percent earn: $63,000 Highest 10 percent earn: $170,000 Location Quotient: 13. New Jersey
Total project management lead jobs: 1,778 Average annual salary: $104,432 Lowest 10 percent earn: $63,000 Highest 10 percent earn: $170,000 Location Quotient: 1.014. California
Total project management lead jobs: 7,299 Average annual salary: $99,557 Lowest 10 percent earn: $55,000 Highest 10 percent earn: $177,000 Location Quotient: 1.135. Massachusetts
Total project management lead jobs: 2,123 Average annual salary: $90,006 Lowest 10 percent earn: $55,000 Highest 10 percent earn: $146,000 Location Quotient: 1.046. Maryland
Total project management lead jobs: 1,312 Average annual salary: $100,568 Lowest 10 percent earn: $60,000 Highest 10 percent earn: $165,000 Location Quotient: 0.937. Texas
Total project management lead jobs: 4,298 Average annual salary: $86,778 Lowest 10 percent earn: $48,000 Highest 10 percent earn: $156,000 Location Quotient: 0.968. Arizona
Total project management lead jobs: 1,191 Average annual salary: $90,083 Lowest 10 percent earn: $49,000 Highest 10 percent earn: $163,000 Location Quotient: 0.929. Virginia
Total project management lead jobs: 2,074 Average annual salary: $90,038 Lowest 10 percent earn: $53,000 Highest 10 percent earn: $150,000 Location Quotient: 0.9910. Pennsylvania
Total project management lead jobs: 2,129 Average annual salary: $92,510 Lowest 10 percent earn: $55,000 Highest 10 percent earn: $153,000 Location Quotient: 0.83
Project management lead jobsNear Columbus, OH
How Zippia determines the best states to be a project management lead
You can read about how the best state rankings are calculated here.
Detailed list of the best states for a project management lead
| Rank | State | Average salary | Lowest 10% earn | Population | Job count |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | New York | $104,008 | $63,000 | 19,849,399 | 3,187 |
| 2 | Delaware | $104,372 | $63,000 | 961,939 | 279 |
| 3 | New Jersey | $104,432 | $63,000 | 9,005,644 | 1,778 |
| 4 | California | $99,557 | $55,000 | 39,536,653 | 7,299 |
| 5 | Massachusetts | $90,006 | $55,000 | 6,859,819 | 2,123 |
| 6 | Maryland | $100,568 | $60,000 | 6,052,177 | 1,312 |
| 7 | Texas | $86,778 | $48,000 | 28,304,596 | 4,298 |
| 8 | Arizona | $90,083 | $49,000 | 7,016,270 | 1,191 |
| 9 | Virginia | $90,038 | $53,000 | 8,470,020 | 2,074 |
| 10 | Pennsylvania | $92,510 | $55,000 | 12,805,537 | 2,129 |
| 11 | North Carolina | $84,113 | $48,000 | 10,273,419 | 2,011 |
| 12 | West Virginia | $91,518 | $53,000 | 1,815,857 | 257 |
| 13 | Ohio | $77,006 | $44,000 | 11,658,609 | 2,303 |
| 14 | Michigan | $82,292 | $47,000 | 9,962,311 | 1,616 |
| 15 | Washington | $75,689 | $41,000 | 7,405,743 | 2,166 |
| 16 | Nevada | $70,214 | $37,000 | 2,998,039 | 770 |
| 17 | North Dakota | $72,951 | $42,000 | 755,393 | 234 |
| 18 | Georgia | $78,370 | $43,000 | 10,429,379 | 2,256 |
| 19 | District of Columbia | $76,180 | $45,000 | 693,972 | 682 |
| 20 | New Hampshire | $79,635 | $48,000 | 1,342,795 | 341 |
| 21 | Illinois | $76,638 | $43,000 | 12,802,023 | 2,620 |
| 22 | Connecticut | $76,160 | $46,000 | 3,588,184 | 666 |
| 23 | Rhode Island | $75,313 | $46,000 | 1,059,639 | 206 |
| 24 | Alaska | $67,555 | $43,000 | 739,795 | 274 |
| 25 | New Mexico | $62,385 | $33,000 | 2,088,070 | 649 |
| 26 | Maine | $71,613 | $44,000 | 1,335,907 | 235 |
| 27 | Minnesota | $65,473 | $37,000 | 5,576,606 | 1,539 |
| 28 | Wisconsin | $64,749 | $36,000 | 5,795,483 | 1,222 |
| 29 | Tennessee | $63,788 | $35,000 | 6,715,984 | 1,198 |
| 30 | South Carolina | $66,442 | $37,000 | 5,024,369 | 839 |
| 31 | Oregon | $62,415 | $33,000 | 4,142,776 | 1,182 |
| 32 | South Dakota | $60,242 | $34,000 | 869,666 | 274 |
| 33 | Montana | $62,387 | $35,000 | 1,050,493 | 294 |
| 34 | Arkansas | $58,639 | $32,000 | 3,004,279 | 772 |
| 35 | Kentucky | $64,403 | $35,000 | 4,454,189 | 666 |
| 36 | Indiana | $63,978 | $35,000 | 6,666,818 | 1,258 |
| 37 | Florida | $67,339 | $39,000 | 20,984,400 | 2,783 |
| 38 | Louisiana | $65,692 | $36,000 | 4,684,333 | 510 |
| 39 | Nebraska | $56,805 | $31,000 | 1,920,076 | 698 |
| 40 | Oklahoma | $57,983 | $31,000 | 3,930,864 | 780 |
| 41 | Mississippi | $64,119 | $35,000 | 2,984,100 | 309 |
| 42 | Vermont | $68,927 | $41,000 | 623,657 | 111 |
| 43 | Idaho | $56,066 | $30,000 | 1,716,943 | 471 |
| 44 | Alabama | $60,851 | $33,000 | 4,874,747 | 739 |
| 45 | Hawaii | $53,047 | $36,000 | 1,427,538 | 185 |
| 46 | Missouri | $58,213 | $31,000 | 6,113,532 | 1,243 |
| 47 | Kansas | $49,889 | $27,000 | 2,913,123 | 883 |
| 48 | Utah | $57,250 | $30,000 | 3,101,833 | 516 |
| 49 | Iowa | $54,893 | $30,000 | 3,145,711 | 646 |
| 50 | Colorado | $51,048 | $27,000 | 5,607,154 | 1,104 |
| 51 | Wyoming | $54,998 | $30,000 | 579,315 | 84 |
Highest paying states for project management leads
| Rank | State | Avg. Project Management Lead Salary |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | New York | $104,008 |
| 2 | Delaware | $104,372 |
| 3 | New Jersey | $104,432 |
| 4 | California | $99,557 |
| 5 | Massachusetts | $90,006 |
| 6 | Maryland | $100,568 |
| 7 | Texas | $86,778 |
| 8 | Arizona | $90,083 |
| 9 | Virginia | $90,038 |
| 10 | Pennsylvania | $92,510 |
| 11 | North Carolina | $84,113 |
| 12 | West Virginia | $91,518 |
| 13 | Ohio | $77,006 |
| 14 | Michigan | $82,292 |
| 15 | Washington | $75,689 |
| 16 | Nevada | $70,214 |
| 17 | North Dakota | $72,951 |
| 18 | Georgia | $78,370 |
| 19 | District of Columbia | $76,180 |
| 20 | New Hampshire | $79,635 |
| 21 | Illinois | $76,638 |
| 22 | Connecticut | $76,160 |
| 23 | Rhode Island | $75,313 |
| 24 | Alaska | $67,555 |
| 25 | New Mexico | $62,385 |
| 26 | Maine | $71,613 |
| 27 | Minnesota | $65,473 |
| 28 | Wisconsin | $64,749 |
| 29 | Tennessee | $63,788 |
| 30 | South Carolina | $66,442 |
| 31 | Oregon | $62,415 |
| 32 | South Dakota | $60,242 |
| 33 | Montana | $62,387 |
| 34 | Arkansas | $58,639 |
| 35 | Kentucky | $64,403 |
| 36 | Indiana | $63,978 |
| 37 | Florida | $67,339 |
| 38 | Louisiana | $65,692 |
| 39 | Nebraska | $56,805 |
| 40 | Oklahoma | $57,983 |
| 41 | Mississippi | $64,119 |
| 42 | Vermont | $68,927 |
| 43 | Idaho | $56,066 |
| 44 | Alabama | $60,851 |
| 45 | Hawaii | $53,047 |
| 46 | Missouri | $58,213 |
| 47 | Kansas | $49,889 |
| 48 | Utah | $57,250 |
| 49 | Iowa | $54,893 |
| 50 | Colorado | $51,048 |
| 51 | Wyoming | $54,998 |
Expert opinions on the best states for project management leads
Are there any particularly good places in the United States for project management leads to find work opportunities?
Dr. Ricardo Cunningham
Director of Master in Management/Domestic and International MBA Programs, University of Dubuque
Although the pandemic has hit the entire US, according to the SHRM survey, 14% of employers have hired more employees in response to COVID-19, with the most significant percentage coming from employers over 5,000. Work opportunities are likely to occur in geographic growth regions of the South and the West, but the emergence of remote work may limit the impact of regional employment. New graduates, however, should not neglect the Midwest in their post-graduate job search. Unique to the Midwest is a growing professional and business services sector with many entry-level opportunities for new grads. Couple job availability with the modest cost of living in most Midwestern cities, and it provides young professionals with relief from the high cost of living coupled with wages that don't keep pace on the east and west coasts.
Project management lead best states FAQs
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Updated January 8, 2025