Pay for construction managers is unusually consistent across the country: $71,510 at the bottom of the range, $166,030 at the top, a spread of only 2.32×. Where you work matters less for this role than it does for most — which usually points to pay being set by structure (scales, licensure, collective agreements) rather than local bidding.
The top tenth of construction managers earn $189,440 or more; the bottom tenth earn under $69,690. That is a 2.72× gap within the same occupation, in the same year. A spread this wide means the job title is not what determines pay — specialisation, employer type, seniority or book of business is. Expect the early years to sit near the bottom of the band rather than the middle, and treat the $114,990 median as a waypoint, not a destination.
San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont (CA) leads and Aguadilla (PR) trails, but the gap is modest. For a role like this the more useful comparison is not between cities but between the 10th and 90th percentile within one — see the band above.
| Metropolitan area | Median | Hourly | LQ | Employed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont CA | $166,030 | $79.82 | 0.89 | 5,160 |
| San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara CA | $163,040 | $78.39 | 0.67 | 1,850 |
| Mount Vernon-Anacortes WA | $159,860 | $76.86 | 0.87 | 110 |
| Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue WA | $159,430 | $76.65 | 0.78 | 4,010 |
| New York-Newark-Jersey City NY-NJ | $158,000 | $75.96 | 0.52 | 12,120 |
| Bellingham WA | $156,580 | $75.28 | 0.92 | 210 |
| Boston-Cambridge-Newton MA-NH | $156,470 | $75.23 | 1.14 | 7,570 |
| Longview-Kelso WA | $154,300 | $74.18 | 0.57 | 60 |
| Kiryas Joel-Poughkeepsie-Newburgh NY | $152,100 | $73.13 | 0.47 | 310 |
| Alaska nonmetropolitan area | $151,240 | $72.71 | 2.32 | 620 |
| Wenatchee-East Wenatchee WA | $150,780 | $72.49 | 0.46 | 60 |
| Kennewick-Richland WA | $149,900 | $72.07 | 1.01 | 320 |
| Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro OR-WA | $146,740 | $70.55 | 0.91 | 2,690 |
| Olympia-Lacey-Tumwater WA | $142,500 | $68.51 | 0.5 | 160 |
| Bremerton-Silverdale-Port Orchard WA | $142,070 | $68.30 | 0.44 | 100 |
| Worcester MA | $140,570 | $67.58 | 1.03 | 880 |
| Barnstable Town MA | $140,080 | $67.34 | 0.87 | 200 |
| Yakima WA | $139,480 | $67.06 | 0.24 | 60 |
| Napa CA | $138,730 | $66.70 | 0.94 | 180 |
| Anchorage AK | $137,980 | $66.34 | 2.08 | 900 |
| Fairbanks-College AK | $137,470 | $66.09 | 2.02 | 180 |
| Eastern Washington nonmetropolitan area | $136,980 | $65.86 | 0.34 | 90 |
| Rochester NY | $134,940 | $64.87 | 0.4 | 490 |
| Norwich-New London-Willimantic CT | $134,010 | $64.43 | 0.46 | 140 |
| Manchester-Nashua NH | $133,980 | $64.42 | 0.32 | 160 |
| Metropolitan area | Median | Hourly | LQ | Employed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aguadilla PR | $71,510 | $34.38 | 0.34 | 40 |
| Ponce PR | $72,420 | $34.82 | 0.3 | 50 |
| Mayaguez PR | $72,800 | $35.00 | 0.28 | 40 |
| West Arkansas nonmetropolitan area | $73,190 | $35.19 | 0.36 | 80 |
| Southern Michigan nonmetropolitan area | $74,570 | $35.85 | 0.95 | 310 |
| Hot Springs AR | $74,700 | $35.91 | 0.35 | 30 |
| Gadsden AL | $75,210 | $36.16 | 0.87 | 70 |
| Rome GA | $77,960 | $37.48 | 0.44 | 50 |
| San Juan-Bayamon-Caguas PR | $77,990 | $37.49 | 0.3 | 510 |
| Northeast Louisiana nonmetropolitan area | $79,010 | $37.98 | 0.85 | 130 |
| Metropolitan area | Median | Hourly | LQ | Employed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Beaumont-Port Arthur TX | $100,340 | $48.24 | 3.03 | 1,210 |
| Northwest Colorado nonmetropolitan area | $129,750 | $62.38 | 2.84 | 920 |
| Greeley CO | $118,350 | $56.90 | 2.65 | 780 |
| Wasatch Front Fringe Utah nonmetropolitan area | $99,170 | $47.68 | 2.63 | 440 |
| Bozeman MT | $106,840 | $51.37 | 2.6 | 460 |
| Decatur IL | $104,160 | $50.08 | 2.53 | 280 |
| Naples-Marco Island FL | $113,750 | $54.69 | 2.43 | 1,030 |
| Corpus Christi TX | $98,520 | $47.37 | 2.43 | 1,150 |
| Mobile AL | $94,060 | $45.22 | 2.33 | 980 |
| Alaska nonmetropolitan area | $151,240 | $72.71 | 2.32 | 620 |
| Cape Coral-Fort Myers FL | $100,670 | $48.40 | 2.28 | 1,700 |
| Auburn-Opelika AL | $100,140 | $48.14 | 2.26 | 400 |
| Metropolitan area | Median | Hourly | LQ | Employed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington TX | $103,550 | $49.79 | 1.73 | 17,110 |
| Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands TX | $103,530 | $49.78 | 2.05 | 16,500 |
| Chicago-Naperville-Elgin IL-IN | $117,280 | $56.39 | 1.25 | 13,850 |
| New York-Newark-Jersey City NY-NJ | $158,000 | $75.96 | 0.52 | 12,120 |
| Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim CA | $131,680 | $63.31 | 0.66 | 10,120 |
| Phoenix-Mesa-Chandler AZ | $118,350 | $56.90 | 1.41 | 8,170 |
| Boston-Cambridge-Newton MA-NH | $156,470 | $75.23 | 1.14 | 7,570 |
| Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell GA | $119,590 | $57.50 | 1.06 | 7,470 |
| Denver-Aurora-Centennial CO | $128,850 | $61.95 | 1.84 | 7,250 |
| Washington-Arlington-Alexandria DC-VA-MD-WV | $129,650 | $62.33 | 0.86 | 6,630 |
| Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos TX | $102,980 | $49.51 | 1.91 | 6,040 |
| Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia NC-SC | $107,200 | $51.54 | 1.64 | 5,450 |
Figures come from the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics programme, May 2025 release, SOC code 11-9021. OEWS surveys employers, so it reports what is actually paid rather than what job advertisements claim, and it excludes the self-employed. Estimates cover 509 of 528 metropolitan areas — near-complete coverage, which means the ranges above are reliable rather than drawn from a handful of markets. Read the methodology.