Median pay for management consultants runs from $46,350 in Missoula to $136,670 in San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara — a 2.95× range across 498 metropolitan areas. The national median of $101,860 sits inside that range but describes no particular market.
The top tenth of management consultants earn $171,640 or more; the bottom tenth earn under $60,640. That is a 2.83× 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 $101,860 median as a waypoint, not a destination.
San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara (CA) leads and Missoula (MT) 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 Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara CA | $136,670 | $65.71 | 1.38 | 9,020 |
| Boston-Cambridge-Newton MA-NH | $135,640 | $65.21 | 1.69 | 26,450 |
| Barnstable Town MA | $132,140 | $63.53 | 0.26 | 140 |
| Boulder CO | $131,470 | $63.21 | 0.88 | 980 |
| Lexington Park MD | $130,020 | $62.51 | 3.18 | 1,300 |
| Washington-Arlington-Alexandria DC-VA-MD-WV | $126,830 | $60.97 | 3.44 | 62,360 |
| Daphne-Fairhope-Foley AL | $126,810 | $60.97 | 0.15 | 70 |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont CA | $126,730 | $60.93 | 1.72 | 23,560 |
| Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue WA | $126,340 | $60.74 | 1.4 | 16,930 |
| Durham-Chapel Hill NC | $126,110 | $60.63 | 0.93 | 1,840 |
| Southern Vermont nonmetropolitan area | $126,080 | $60.62 | 0.26 | 130 |
| Northeast Virginia nonmetropolitan area | $125,050 | $60.12 | 2.22 | 740 |
| Pittsfield MA | $125,010 | $60.10 | 0.42 | 140 |
| Myrtle Beach-Conway-North Myrtle Beach SC | $124,400 | $59.81 | 0.33 | 280 |
| New York-Newark-Jersey City NY-NJ | $124,390 | $59.81 | 1.23 | 67,630 |
| Massachusetts nonmetropolitan area | $122,870 | $59.07 | 0.23 | 50 |
| Worcester MA | $122,180 | $58.74 | 0.51 | 1,040 |
| Odessa TX | $122,080 | $58.69 | 0.26 | 120 |
| Huntsville AL | $121,970 | $58.64 | 1.11 | 1,710 |
| Northwest Oklahoma nonmetropolitan area | $120,020 | $57.70 | 0.31 | 170 |
| Hilton Head Island-Bluffton-Port Royal SC | $119,430 | $57.42 | 0.72 | 340 |
| Burlington-South Burlington VT | $118,270 | $56.86 | 0.42 | 290 |
| Colorado Springs CO | $117,850 | $56.66 | 0.69 | 1,270 |
| Baltimore-Columbia-Towson MD | $117,750 | $56.61 | 1.09 | 8,500 |
| Walla Walla WA | $115,210 | $55.39 | 1.21 | 180 |
| Metropolitan area | Median | Hourly | LQ | Employed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Missoula MT | $46,350 | $22.28 | 0.68 | 260 |
| Southwest Montana nonmetropolitan area | $48,890 | $23.50 | 0.5 | 110 |
| Ponce PR | $51,380 | $24.70 | 0.17 | 60 |
| Tallahassee FL | $58,860 | $28.30 | 5.73 | 6,160 |
| Jackson MS | $59,030 | $28.38 | 0.83 | 1,290 |
| Mayaguez PR | $59,540 | $28.63 | 0.23 | 70 |
| Kansas nonmetropolitan area | $60,790 | $29.23 | 0.19 | 420 |
| State College PA | $60,890 | $29.27 | 0.56 | 220 |
| Arecibo PR | $61,100 | $29.38 | 0.17 | 40 |
| Lower East Mississippi nonmetropolitan area | $61,860 | $29.74 | 0.17 | 120 |
| Metropolitan area | Median | Hourly | LQ | Employed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tallahassee FL | $58,860 | $28.30 | 5.73 | 6,160 |
| Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom CA | $82,990 | $39.90 | 4.1 | 25,600 |
| Olympia-Lacey-Tumwater WA | $88,790 | $42.69 | 3.69 | 2,770 |
| Washington-Arlington-Alexandria DC-VA-MD-WV | $126,830 | $60.97 | 3.44 | 62,360 |
| Salem OR | $99,090 | $47.64 | 3.43 | 3,740 |
| Lexington Park MD | $130,020 | $62.51 | 3.18 | 1,300 |
| Carson City NV | $85,400 | $41.06 | 3.18 | 590 |
| Northeast Virginia nonmetropolitan area | $125,050 | $60.12 | 2.22 | 740 |
| Trenton-Princeton NJ | $102,020 | $49.05 | 2.02 | 2,810 |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont CA | $126,730 | $60.93 | 1.72 | 23,560 |
| Boston-Cambridge-Newton MA-NH | $135,640 | $65.21 | 1.69 | 26,450 |
| Warner Robins GA | $96,930 | $46.60 | 1.66 | 730 |
| Metropolitan area | Median | Hourly | LQ | Employed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| New York-Newark-Jersey City NY-NJ | $124,390 | $59.81 | 1.23 | 67,630 |
| Washington-Arlington-Alexandria DC-VA-MD-WV | $126,830 | $60.97 | 3.44 | 62,360 |
| Chicago-Naperville-Elgin IL-IN | $105,090 | $50.53 | 1.44 | 37,510 |
| Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim CA | $104,930 | $50.45 | 1.02 | 37,060 |
| Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell GA | $101,220 | $48.66 | 1.61 | 26,870 |
| Boston-Cambridge-Newton MA-NH | $135,640 | $65.21 | 1.69 | 26,450 |
| Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom CA | $82,990 | $39.90 | 4.1 | 25,600 |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont CA | $126,730 | $60.93 | 1.72 | 23,560 |
| Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington TX | $102,860 | $49.45 | 0.77 | 18,010 |
| Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue WA | $126,340 | $60.74 | 1.4 | 16,930 |
| Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington MN-WI | $101,560 | $48.83 | 1.47 | 16,630 |
| Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach FL | $94,290 | $45.33 | 1.02 | 16,540 |
Figures come from the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics programme, May 2025 release, SOC code 13-1111. OEWS surveys employers, so it reports what is actually paid rather than what job advertisements claim, and it excludes the self-employed. Estimates cover 498 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.