Explore jobs
Find specific jobs
Explore careers
Explore professions
Best companies
Explore companies
Best states for a project manager & leader
Quoted expert
John Alpers
- Rank 1 - 10
- 11 - 20
- 21 - 30
- 31 - 40
- 41 - 51
Do you want to become a project manager & leader at AT&T;, and you wonder what that means or entails? We have the full list of best states for project managers & leader that you can check out, before you begin your journey. We wanted to look at the best states for project managers & leader -- where there are plenty of project manager & leader jobs to go around and project managers & leader get paid what they deserve during every phase of their career.
To that end, we dove into our dataset of job and salary numbers to figure out which states have the best opportunities for project managers & leader. California is the best state for project managers & leader, where the median salary is $129,510.We found that the South is best for project managers & leader, and the Northeast is the worst. San Francisco, CA is the best city in the country for project manager & leader jobs, where as California is the best state in the country.
10 best states for project managers & leader in 2025
1. California
Total project manager & leader jobs: 8,222 Average annual salary: $129,510 Lowest 10 percent earn: $90,000 Highest 10 percent earn: $185,000 Location Quotient: 1.212. Virginia
Total project manager & leader jobs: 2,952 Average annual salary: $113,239 Lowest 10 percent earn: $83,000 Highest 10 percent earn: $153,000 Location Quotient: 1.353. New Jersey
Total project manager & leader jobs: 1,947 Average annual salary: $116,047 Lowest 10 percent earn: $85,000 Highest 10 percent earn: $157,000 Location Quotient: 1.064. North Dakota
Total project manager & leader jobs: 314 Average annual salary: $101,584 Lowest 10 percent earn: $75,000 Highest 10 percent earn: $136,000 Location Quotient: 1.455. New York
Total project manager & leader jobs: 3,001 Average annual salary: $114,669 Lowest 10 percent earn: $84,000 Highest 10 percent earn: $155,000 Location Quotient: 1.016. Massachusetts
Total project manager & leader jobs: 3,520 Average annual salary: $105,285 Lowest 10 percent earn: $77,000 Highest 10 percent earn: $142,000 Location Quotient: 1.657. Nevada
Total project manager & leader jobs: 443 Average annual salary: $104,843 Lowest 10 percent earn: $73,000 Highest 10 percent earn: $150,000 Location Quotient: 0.918. North Carolina
Total project manager & leader jobs: 2,101 Average annual salary: $102,246 Lowest 10 percent earn: $75,000 Highest 10 percent earn: $137,000 Location Quotient: 0.949. Rhode Island
Total project manager & leader jobs: 441 Average annual salary: $99,311 Lowest 10 percent earn: $73,000 Highest 10 percent earn: $134,000 Location Quotient: 1.5610. Delaware
Total project manager & leader jobs: 252 Average annual salary: $108,271 Lowest 10 percent earn: $79,000 Highest 10 percent earn: $147,000 Location Quotient: 0.87
Project manager & leader jobsNear Columbus, OH
How Zippia determines the best states to be a project manager & leader
You can read about how the best state rankings are calculated here.
Detailed list of the best states for a project manager & leader
| Rank | State | Average salary | Lowest 10% earn | Population | Job count |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | California | $129,510 | $90,000 | 39,536,653 | 8,222 |
| 2 | Virginia | $113,239 | $83,000 | 8,470,020 | 2,952 |
| 3 | New Jersey | $116,047 | $85,000 | 9,005,644 | 1,947 |
| 4 | North Dakota | $101,584 | $75,000 | 755,393 | 314 |
| 5 | New York | $114,669 | $84,000 | 19,849,399 | 3,001 |
| 6 | Massachusetts | $105,285 | $77,000 | 6,859,819 | 3,520 |
| 7 | Nevada | $104,843 | $73,000 | 2,998,039 | 443 |
| 8 | North Carolina | $102,246 | $75,000 | 10,273,419 | 2,101 |
| 9 | Rhode Island | $99,311 | $73,000 | 1,059,639 | 441 |
| 10 | Delaware | $108,271 | $79,000 | 961,939 | 252 |
| 11 | Arizona | $104,652 | $74,000 | 7,016,270 | 1,125 |
| 12 | Illinois | $103,531 | $76,000 | 12,802,023 | 2,402 |
| 13 | Connecticut | $101,746 | $74,000 | 3,588,184 | 762 |
| 14 | West Virginia | $105,950 | $78,000 | 1,815,857 | 176 |
| 15 | Pennsylvania | $97,125 | $71,000 | 12,805,537 | 2,382 |
| 16 | Montana | $94,414 | $67,000 | 1,050,493 | 353 |
| 17 | Maryland | $101,786 | $74,000 | 6,052,177 | 1,683 |
| 18 | District of Columbia | $100,624 | $73,000 | 693,972 | 1,049 |
| 19 | South Dakota | $89,527 | $66,000 | 869,666 | 250 |
| 20 | New Hampshire | $94,879 | $70,000 | 1,342,795 | 362 |
| 21 | Washington | $93,764 | $66,000 | 7,405,743 | 3,567 |
| 22 | Michigan | $96,237 | $70,000 | 9,962,311 | 1,468 |
| 23 | Texas | $94,233 | $69,000 | 28,304,596 | 4,033 |
| 24 | Nebraska | $87,262 | $64,000 | 1,920,076 | 667 |
| 25 | Minnesota | $90,087 | $67,000 | 5,576,606 | 1,505 |
| 26 | Oregon | $91,517 | $64,000 | 4,142,776 | 1,710 |
| 27 | Alabama | $90,279 | $67,000 | 4,874,747 | 598 |
| 28 | Florida | $93,182 | $68,000 | 20,984,400 | 2,838 |
| 29 | Missouri | $89,618 | $66,000 | 6,113,532 | 1,139 |
| 30 | Indiana | $88,962 | $66,000 | 6,666,818 | 1,042 |
| 31 | Hawaii | $92,354 | $71,000 | 1,427,538 | 182 |
| 32 | New Mexico | $84,778 | $61,000 | 2,088,070 | 669 |
| 33 | Georgia | $88,189 | $65,000 | 10,429,379 | 2,158 |
| 34 | Utah | $85,284 | $60,000 | 3,101,833 | 759 |
| 35 | Alaska | $87,494 | $69,000 | 739,795 | 240 |
| 36 | Ohio | $84,614 | $62,000 | 11,658,609 | 2,064 |
| 37 | Maine | $87,807 | $65,000 | 1,335,907 | 261 |
| 38 | Wyoming | $85,133 | $61,000 | 579,315 | 123 |
| 39 | South Carolina | $88,028 | $65,000 | 5,024,369 | 665 |
| 40 | Idaho | $86,176 | $60,000 | 1,716,943 | 329 |
| 41 | Iowa | $85,243 | $63,000 | 3,145,711 | 551 |
| 42 | Vermont | $84,589 | $62,000 | 623,657 | 158 |
| 43 | Kentucky | $83,722 | $62,000 | 4,454,189 | 525 |
| 44 | Louisiana | $84,661 | $62,000 | 4,684,333 | 397 |
| 45 | Wisconsin | $81,690 | $60,000 | 5,795,483 | 1,129 |
| 46 | Oklahoma | $83,342 | $61,000 | 3,930,864 | 407 |
| 47 | Arkansas | $81,156 | $60,000 | 3,004,279 | 403 |
| 48 | Mississippi | $82,769 | $61,000 | 2,984,100 | 217 |
| 49 | Tennessee | $78,042 | $58,000 | 6,715,984 | 1,162 |
| 50 | Kansas | $80,747 | $60,000 | 2,913,123 | 539 |
| 51 | Colorado | $81,660 | $59,000 | 5,607,154 | 1,087 |
Highest paying states for project managers & leader
| Rank | State | Avg. Project Manager & Leader Salary |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | California | $129,510 |
| 2 | Virginia | $113,239 |
| 3 | New Jersey | $116,047 |
| 4 | North Dakota | $101,584 |
| 5 | New York | $114,669 |
| 6 | Massachusetts | $105,285 |
| 7 | Nevada | $104,843 |
| 8 | North Carolina | $102,246 |
| 9 | Rhode Island | $99,311 |
| 10 | Delaware | $108,271 |
| 11 | Arizona | $104,652 |
| 12 | Illinois | $103,531 |
| 13 | Connecticut | $101,746 |
| 14 | West Virginia | $105,950 |
| 15 | Pennsylvania | $97,125 |
| 16 | Montana | $94,414 |
| 17 | Maryland | $101,786 |
| 18 | District of Columbia | $100,624 |
| 19 | South Dakota | $89,527 |
| 20 | New Hampshire | $94,879 |
| 21 | Washington | $93,764 |
| 22 | Michigan | $96,237 |
| 23 | Texas | $94,233 |
| 24 | Nebraska | $87,262 |
| 25 | Minnesota | $90,087 |
| 26 | Oregon | $91,517 |
| 27 | Alabama | $90,279 |
| 28 | Florida | $93,182 |
| 29 | Missouri | $89,618 |
| 30 | Indiana | $88,962 |
| 31 | Hawaii | $92,354 |
| 32 | New Mexico | $84,778 |
| 33 | Georgia | $88,189 |
| 34 | Utah | $85,284 |
| 35 | Alaska | $87,494 |
| 36 | Ohio | $84,614 |
| 37 | Maine | $87,807 |
| 38 | Wyoming | $85,133 |
| 39 | South Carolina | $88,028 |
| 40 | Idaho | $86,176 |
| 41 | Iowa | $85,243 |
| 42 | Vermont | $84,589 |
| 43 | Kentucky | $83,722 |
| 44 | Louisiana | $84,661 |
| 45 | Wisconsin | $81,690 |
| 46 | Oklahoma | $83,342 |
| 47 | Arkansas | $81,156 |
| 48 | Mississippi | $82,769 |
| 49 | Tennessee | $78,042 |
| 50 | Kansas | $80,747 |
| 51 | Colorado | $81,660 |
Expert opinions on the best states for project managers & leader
Are there any particularly good places in the United States for project manager & leaders to find work opportunities?
John Alpers
Assistant Professor of Business, Carson-Newman University
In my opinion, technical careers will continue to grow and flourish. Some of these skills can be taught virtually, but not all. I think anyone who can parlay this new environment and find a way to create value for an organization will be in demand.
Project manager & leader best states FAQs
Have more questions? See all answers to common computer and mathematical questions.
Search for project manager & leader jobs
Updated January 8, 2025