Top 15 Metro Areas for Social Media Marketing Jobs

Social media marketing is an increasingly popular career choice among today’s tech-savvy workforce. The value of these skills, which were virtually nonexistent a decade ago, grew 3.9 percent over the past two years, according to PayScale. With demand growing, those entering the workforce for the first time (and others who are seeking a new challenge) are quickly adopting the skills necessary for this field. These are the top 15 metropolitan areas and median salaries for a career in social media marketing.

The highest paying jobs for social media marketing are located in – yep, you guessed it – San Francisco. The metropolitan area of San Francisco, San Mateo and Redwood City, Calif. commands the highest pay among all regions in the U.S. with a median compensation of $66,600. The 47 square miles of San Francisco are densely packed with 825,000 people living within the city’s borders as of 2012. The cost of living is 51.9 percent greater than the national average.

Employers in the heart of Silicon Valley – San Jose, Sunnyvale and Santa Clara, Calif. — will typically pay $65,600 for employees with social media management skills. San Jose is the third largest city in California and tenth largest city in the country with a population approaching one million. The cost of living is 39.6 percent greater than the national average.

The greater metropolitan area of New York comes in third with a typical pay of $62,400. More than 8.18 million people call New York City home and about half of the city’s inhabitants were born out of state or country. The income per capita is $30,498 while median household income stands at $50,285. The cost of living is 47.8 percent greater than the national average.

Employers clear across the continent in the metro area of Seattle pay an average of $61,600. Seattle’s population of 608,660 is growing well above the national average, jumping 8 percent from 2000 to 2012. Income per capita is $40,868 while median household income stands at $60,665.The cost of living is 21.6 percent greater than the national average.

Workers in Boston and surrounding areas enjoy the fifth highest compensation for social media in the country, bringing home an average salary of $60,300. The income per capita in Boston is $31,856 while median household income stands at $50,684. More than 617,000 people call Boston home. The cost of living is 32.4 percent greater than the national average.

America’s second most populated metro area, Los Angeles, commands an average salary of $60,100 for jobs that require social media skills. The “City of Angels” sprawls across 469 square miles with a population of about 3.8 million people. The income per capita in Los Angeles is $27,620 with a median household income of $49,138.The cost of living is 27 percent greater than the national average.

Employers based in the metro area of our nation’s capital typically pay $60,000 for a career in social media. Income per capita is among the highest in the nation at $42,078 with a median household income of $58,526. The city’s population of 601,723 is growing steadily, jumping 5.2 percent from 2000 to 2012.The cost of living is 17.6 percent greater than the national average.

Social media workers in the region surrounding Santa Ana, Anaheim and Irvine, Calif. earn an average of $59,200. Santa Ana’s population has shrunk over the past decade to 324,528 people, but other areas of this metropolis like Irvine are growing like wildfire. Irvine’s population jumped 48.5 percent from 2000 to 2012, ending 2013 with 212,375 inhabitants. The cost of living is 19.2 percent greater than the national average.

Texas comes up big, rounding out the top 10 metro areas for social media jobs with employees making $58,800 on average in the Dallas area. The population of Dallas has remained relatively flat since the turn of the century with almost 1.2 million people calling the city home as of 2013. Income per capita comes in less than $1,000 above the national average at $26,716 while median household income stands at $41,682. The cost of living is 8.3 percent less than the national average.

Employers in “Space City” pay an average salary of $57,000 for a position in social media. The city’s population of 2.1 million as of 2013 carries an income per capita just barely above the national average at $25,927 and median household income of $42,962. The cost of living is 17.1 percent less than the national average.

Workers with social media skills in the greater Chicago area earn an average salary of $56,700. Despite being the third largest city in the country, Chicago is shrinking with nearly 2.7 million people now calling the city home. The income per capita in the “Windy City” is $27,148 while median household income stands at $46,877. The cost of living is 4.1 percent greater than the national average.

Employees with social media marketing skills in the metropolitan area of “Twin Cities” take home an average salary of $56,600. The population of Minneapolis is stagnant at 382,578 people. Income per capita is $29,551 while median household income stands at $46,075.The cost of living is 1.3 percent greater than the national average.

Social media skills in the “City of Brotherly Love” will typically bring home a salary of $56,300. Population in Philadelphia has been relatively flat the past decade, growing just 0.6 percent to about 1.53 million people. The city’s income per capita is well below the national average at $21,117 while median household income is even lower overall at just $36,251. The cost of living is 0.9 percent greater than the national average.

People are flocking to sunny San Diego, boosting the city’s population 6.9 percent from 2000 to 2012 to 1.3 million as of last year. Jobs requiring social media skills pay an average salary of $56,200. The city’s income per capita and median household income is also high at $32,553 and $62,480, respectively. The cost of living is 25.7 percent greater than the national average.

A career in social media marketing comes with an average salary of $56,000 in Portland, Ore. The population of “Rose City” is booming, growing in the double digits since the turn of the century to 583,776 people as of last year. The city’s income per capita is $29,797 but median household income comes in under the national average at $48,831.  The cost of living is 6.9 percent greater than the national average.