A it support specialist in Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom has a median wage of $106,040. In Guayama the median is $29,490. That is a 3.6-fold difference for the same job title, which is unusually wide even by the standards of a country this large — and it means a national average for this role is close to meaningless.
Ten per cent of it support specialists earn below $40,980 and ten per cent above $100,540 — a 2.45× band. The upside from median to 90th percentile is 63%, which is a normal amount of room for experience and specialisation to matter. An offer below the 25th percentile is worth questioning; one above the 75th is worth taking seriously.
7 of the ten best-paying metros for it support specialists are in CA. When one state dominates the top of the table like this, cost of living is doing part of the work but rarely all of it — state licensing rules, public-sector pay scales and the presence of a few large employers usually explain the rest. If you are comparing an offer in CA against one elsewhere, adjust for housing before concluding anything.
| Metropolitan area | Median | Hourly | LQ | Employed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom CA | $106,040 | $50.98 | 2.77 | 13,820 |
| San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara CA | $93,590 | $45.00 | 1.11 | 5,790 |
| Carson City NV | $93,560 | $44.98 | 3.81 | 560 |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont CA | $89,440 | $43.00 | 0.98 | 10,770 |
| Vallejo CA | $81,280 | $39.08 | 0.5 | 330 |
| Santa Maria-Santa Barbara CA | $80,520 | $38.71 | 1.04 | 960 |
| Napa CA | $79,050 | $38.01 | 0.45 | 160 |
| Yuba City CA | $78,420 | $37.70 | 0.7 | 160 |
| Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue WA | $78,330 | $37.66 | 1.56 | 15,030 |
| Bridgeport-Stamford-Danbury CT | $78,070 | $37.54 | 1.32 | 2,460 |
| Washington-Arlington-Alexandria DC-VA-MD-WV | $77,860 | $37.43 | 1.28 | 18,510 |
| Boston-Cambridge-Newton MA-NH | $77,850 | $37.43 | 1.09 | 13,580 |
| Santa Rosa-Petaluma CA | $76,900 | $36.97 | 0.55 | 520 |
| Santa Cruz-Watsonville CA | $75,720 | $36.41 | 0.47 | 210 |
| New York-Newark-Jersey City NY-NJ | $75,690 | $36.39 | 0.84 | 36,580 |
| Denver-Aurora-Centennial CO | $75,480 | $36.29 | 1.34 | 9,960 |
| El Centro CA | $75,460 | $36.28 | 0.42 | 130 |
| Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim CA | $75,070 | $36.09 | 0.71 | 20,660 |
| Boulder CO | $74,380 | $35.76 | 1.93 | 1,710 |
| San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad CA | $74,020 | $35.59 | 0.74 | 5,260 |
| Salinas CA | $73,540 | $35.36 | 0.4 | 340 |
| New Haven CT | $73,210 | $35.20 | 0.89 | 1,150 |
| Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario CA | $72,140 | $34.68 | 0.45 | 3,540 |
| Redding CA | $71,940 | $34.59 | 0.49 | 160 |
| Trenton-Princeton NJ | $71,920 | $34.58 | 1.07 | 1,180 |
| Metropolitan area | Median | Hourly | LQ | Employed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Guayama PR | $29,490 | $14.18 | 0.76 | 40 |
| Ponce PR | $30,090 | $14.46 | 0.73 | 210 |
| Arecibo PR | $30,490 | $14.66 | 0.75 | 120 |
| Puerto Rico nonmetropolitan area | $33,610 | $16.16 | 0.43 | 60 |
| Mayaguez PR | $34,640 | $16.65 | 1.38 | 330 |
| Aguadilla PR | $34,830 | $16.74 | 0.99 | 220 |
| San Juan-Bayamon-Caguas PR | $36,720 | $17.66 | 1.47 | 4,690 |
| Southwest Alabama nonmetropolitan area | $37,390 | $17.98 | 1.11 | 330 |
| North Arkansas nonmetropolitan area | $41,930 | $20.16 | 0.37 | 200 |
| West South Dakota nonmetropolitan area | $43,170 | $20.76 | 0.46 | 130 |
| Metropolitan area | Median | Hourly | LQ | Employed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Carson City NV | $93,560 | $44.98 | 3.81 | 560 |
| Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom CA | $106,040 | $50.98 | 2.77 | 13,820 |
| Provo-Orem-Lehi UT | $59,390 | $28.55 | 2.16 | 3,040 |
| Lansing-East Lansing MI | $50,840 | $24.44 | 2.05 | 2,050 |
| Boulder CO | $74,380 | $35.76 | 1.93 | 1,710 |
| Bloomington IN | $55,940 | $26.90 | 1.78 | 600 |
| Burlington-South Burlington VT | $65,070 | $31.28 | 1.71 | 950 |
| Sierra Vista-Douglas AZ | $54,450 | $26.18 | 1.67 | 260 |
| Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos TX | $61,990 | $29.80 | 1.62 | 9,680 |
| Colorado Springs CO | $59,930 | $28.81 | 1.61 | 2,350 |
| Tallahassee FL | $49,170 | $23.64 | 1.6 | 1,380 |
| Salt Lake City-Murray UT | $62,410 | $30.00 | 1.6 | 6,110 |
| Metropolitan area | Median | Hourly | LQ | Employed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| New York-Newark-Jersey City NY-NJ | $75,690 | $36.39 | 0.84 | 36,580 |
| Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington TX | $60,710 | $29.19 | 1.21 | 22,600 |
| Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim CA | $75,070 | $36.09 | 0.71 | 20,660 |
| Chicago-Naperville-Elgin IL-IN | $60,730 | $29.20 | 0.95 | 19,680 |
| Washington-Arlington-Alexandria DC-VA-MD-WV | $77,860 | $37.43 | 1.28 | 18,510 |
| Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell GA | $62,110 | $29.86 | 1.2 | 15,980 |
| Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue WA | $78,330 | $37.66 | 1.56 | 15,030 |
| Phoenix-Mesa-Chandler AZ | $62,310 | $29.96 | 1.31 | 14,310 |
| Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom CA | $106,040 | $50.98 | 2.77 | 13,820 |
| Boston-Cambridge-Newton MA-NH | $77,850 | $37.43 | 1.09 | 13,580 |
| Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach FL | $60,500 | $29.09 | 1.02 | 13,270 |
| Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington PA-NJ-DE-MD | $62,210 | $29.91 | 0.96 | 12,850 |
Figures come from the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics programme, May 2025 release, SOC code 15-1232. OEWS surveys employers, so it reports what is actually paid rather than what job advertisements claim, and it excludes the self-employed. Estimates cover 526 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.